Warming things up, Blackout was commissioned to deliver a special show opening for Kasabian's headline slots at Glastonbury festival and homecoming gig Summer Solstice. The company utilised its new 12m roller screens which were specially adapted to allow them to be installed horizontally in the roof of both the 40m Summer Solstice stage and Pyramid stage, with additional screens hung stage right and left. Each screen was precisely automated to track into position, carefully timed with the opening track 'Shiva'. There was just 1m 8s to get the screens into place, creating a solid 'white box' environment for the lighting and screen projections.
Barely 24 hours later and the team were called in by client Design Scene to supply a 25m x 10m bespoke ground support structure for the Pepsi Max activation area at London's Wireless festival. The stage featured Compressorhead, a trio of 5ft tall robots who are renowned for rocking out to ultimate hard-rock anthems. In addition, the team installed two side video structures for audiences wanting to put their feet up in the 200 capacity decking area, where they could watch a live stream of the action on the main stage.
Finally as temperatures peaked, Blackout was back at Somerset House for its 10 day summertime open-air concert featuring Bastille, Clean Bandit and Sam Smith. Commissioned for the ninth year running, Blackout provided its rigging solutions with lighting trusses on the main stage plus two truss structures either side of the stage, which incorporated the support for the video screens and provided a position for the main PA hangs.
Kevin Monks, Blackout's installations director commented: "We've worked on a wide variety of music gigs so far this summer. The projects - especially Kasabian's - showcase just how creative you can get with our stock equipment whilst still achieving unique effects that highlight the artists involved."
(Jim Evans)
