After a three-year hiatus, the Sonisphere festival came back with a bang, seeing The Prodigy perform alongside a stellar line up of heavy metal and rock giants including Metallica and Iron Maiden.
Hurst wanted to create a 'mind blowing' lighting design that would be a spectacular end to day one, and he didn't disappoint. Locked together by the luminaires' unique quick-connect system, which allows SL Nitro 510 and 510C units to connect together easily top-to-bottom and side-by-side, Hurst rigged the 84 SL Nitro 510 and 72 510C strobes in mixed groups of 10. His design saw them blast white and coloured light over the audience, generating an electric rave atmosphere.
"The design concept was based on an air hanger for a Harrier Jump Jet," explains Hurst. "We took the idea from their 2013 New Year's Eve show at the O2. It was a favourite for the band so they asked me to adapt it to our festival run this summer."
The Prodigy performed energetic hit after hit, including Voodoo People and Firestarter. Hurst's design punctuated each track with frenzied strobing and crowd blinder effects.
Sixteen SL Nitro 510 and 510C luminaires were rigged on two towers surrounding the band, and the rest in side hangs, filling the space around the 20 metre-high arch which framed the stage.
"I'm a really big fan of the Showline SL Nitro 510 range of strobes," says Hurst. "They are super bright with great colour mixing and fantastic macros enabling me to create some really cool looks."
The Prodigy will continue to play at a number of international festivals over the summer, including appearances at the UK's Global Gathering and Sziget Festival in Hungary.
(Jim Evans)
