The lighting supply was a joint production between HSL and its Blackburn neighbours Lite Alternative. This combination worked well on the recent Human League tour which Sinclair also directed.
HSL's Mike Oates says: "It's great to be working with Rob again. He has a unique vision and creative direction, and is always coming up with new and innovative ideas and presenting us with new challenges."
Sinclair wanted his lighting design to be flexible enough to give the band plenty of space when they needed it, whilst also to being able to close the show right in at more intimate moments. He chose to do this using pantograph lifts. However the commercially available models were too slow, inaccurate and couldn't carry the weight required, so HSL came up with the solution of having 12 specially customised pantographs built.
Each of these was attached to a Kinesys Liftket variable speed motor, and rigged with two Martin Professional MAC 2K profiles and an 8-lite Molefay and scroller. HSL also fabricated bespoke brackets allowing the Moles and scrollers to attach horizontally to each pantograph.
Operated by HSL's Rupert Reynolds, using the Kinesys Vector computer controlled platform, these glided in and out at strategic moments throughout the set. HSL invested in the Kinesys system at the end of 2006 and it has been constantly in use ever since.
Keane's stage set is a 'forest' of aluminium poles - a concept originated by Kevin Godley. In this incarnation, Sinclair populated the poles with a selection of remote cameras, DB4s, Atomic strobes with scrollers and Lowell Omni fixtures which were mounted on top.
The DB4s were scattered "along the edge of anything with an edge" - on the walkway running down to the B stage, on the main stage, the wings and also attached to the aluminium poles. The four Robe DigitalSpots 5000s were rigged on the 'B' stage - one in each corner - and used to project onto a large Airstar balloon that flew in for that part of the set.
Sinclair is enthusiastic about the service from HSL saying: "Mike [Oates] is an evil genius! Nothing whatsoever fazes him - it just happens!"
(Jim Evans)
