Lighting designer Ali Pike has worked for the Liverpool indie rockers since they were unsigned three years ago, and says: "Adlib have always looked after us, whether it's been a few specials for one offs and the previous tour, right up to the full rig and crew for this one - they are absolutely brilliant."
Pike's design starting point for the tour was based on some elements that have been used in their live visuals for some time. A lot of the initial concept ideas also came from the Backfire at the Disco promo video, which features a series of DJ and disco lighting effects.
Pike persuaded the band that they could reproduce some of these on tour using more robust and practical kit like PixelLines. The back truss was rigged with four bars of 6 PARs, three Martin Professional MAC 700 Spots, and six 2-lite blinders which were zig-zagged along the front of it. The front truss featured six Source Fours and four High End Systems Studio Beams.
Upstage on the floor were five 8ft vertical truss towers on special bases, with a MAC 700 Spot on top of the four outer ones. A pink gelled lightbox with the Wombats logo, decked out with XMas tree lights - which has been with them since day one - topping the central tower.
10 JTE PixelLines were attached to the towers with frost filters over the top to create a punchy discoey zig zag streak right across stage. Another five sets of 2-lite blinders were attached to the towers also in zig zag format, plus five Atomic strobes.
Fixed to the front of each tower was a diamond shaped Wombat road sign bordered with XMas tree lights, each individually up-lit with a JTE Micro E fixture. Eight 70s style disco ball effects were side hung on the upright towers.These were sourced by the band from EBay and revamped and made tourable by Adlib.
Pike ran the show from an Avolites Pearl Expert console. The tour culminated in shows at the Royal Albert Hall and Manchester Apollo.
(Jim Evans)
