Europe - Swedish metal band Amaranthe recently performed a near-sold out, 24-date tour of Europe promoting their latest studio album, The Catalyst, which was released in February.
The band’s lighting designer, operator and project manager, Lutz Neemann, together with systems technician and LD No2, Daniel Scheuch, used 14 Ayrton Diablo S fixtures as their main source of key lighting. Ten Diablo S were rigged on lighting towers and a further four on top of a truss set on a dolly as part of the floor package.
“I chose Ayrton Diablo S for this run with Amaranthe as they are equipped with the perfect features. They have great rotating gobo wheels, impressively real colour mixing and great dimming behaviour,” said Neemann. “It's simply remarkable how quickly the lamp responds to the dimming effects. As a touring LD for metal bands, I've seen a lot of different fixtures and I often find them lacking in this regard. However, the Diablos easily surpass others in this aspect.”
Regarding his choice of Diablo S, while admitting availability from the tour’s supplier, lighttunes eventservice, played a role, Neemann personally preferred these ultra-compact Ayrton profile fixtures due to their “high quality and their suitability for my show. Compared to other lamps in the same price range, they are definitely the winners,” he says.
“There are several moments during the show when the Diablos really impressed me. For example, the fast white strobe sequence during the breakdown-like part or the beautiful gobos used for a ballad song. They shine throughout the set and provide a great atmosphere.”
Daní Scheuch adds: “The size and weight of the Ayrton Diablo S is just brilliant for our venue sizes. Even on tough load-in situations where we and the stage-hands had to carry the lighting towers up to the first floor, it was still possible due to Diablo’s light weight. I even love the elegant look of the fixture, and its powerful output paired with low power consumption is fabulous. It’s perfect for mid-size touring, from clubs right up to arena-like venues.”
The 24-date tour, which Amaranthe co-headlined with Dragonforce after a successful co-venture in the US in 2023, started in Hamburg on 21 February and culminated at London’s Roundhouse on 24 March with most dates sold out. The Diablo S fixtures were supplied by German-based lightunes eventservice GbR of Hannover.
