The Ahlstrand Productions team is using 24 of the new Rogue blade-style movers supplied by Primer Global in the Eldredge floor package for Urban's RipCord Tour. The Rogue R1 FX-B fixtures are arranged in a line that runs across the upstage deck roughly 3'-4' off the floor. In front of Rogue fixtures and running parallel to them at a lower height is a line of LED tape. Working together, the Rogues and the tape create a classic neon look.
"Brett has a big sophisticated sound with an onstage presence to match," said Ahlstrand. "It's very classic, almost Sinatra like, in its overtones. This is why we wanted to go for that stylish classic look, evoking neon but having the colour changes and movement that come from modern LED fixtures."
Ahlstrand uses the Rogue R1 FX-Bs to hit the stage with a variety of vivid colours that match the mood of the performance. He also relies on the fixture's five independently controlled pixel-mappable moving heads and very rapid pan/tilt movements to create a dazzling array of different looks.
"We are using a grandMA2 to control the rig, and we custom profile the Rogues with the controller so we can get some interesting tilted fixture looks," he elaborated. "Each of the five cells in all of the 24 Rogues is controlled individually, so we're really able to keep the looks fresh and original throughout the show. Judging from the wide variety of looks we create, it really seems like we have far more than 24 fixtures up on our rig."
(Jim Evans)
