STAFFORDSHIRE, U.K. — Electric Fly Productions, show and lighting designers for the main stage, four arenas and two outdoor terrace areas at the 2009 Global Gathering dance event at Long Marsden Airfield, used a package of i-Pix BB4, BB7 and BB16 LED fixtures specified by Electric Fly’s Nick Jevons. Jevons wanted to use specific fixtures for certain special effects. “I approached i-Pix because I could think of several areas that were ideal for their very high quality homogenized light output — which doesn’t even resemble an LED fixture — and they came to the party with great enthusiasm,” he said.
“Nick is one of the most innovative lighting designers and his work is always interesting,” said i-Pix’s Chris Ewington. “Our products have all been developed after careful and considered end-user feedback, so events like this present great opportunities to continue that communication”.
The largest tented arena was Global/Carl Cox, and this featured 14 BB7s hung on the main over-stage lighting truss, some on drop bars, for additional dynamics and to fill the gaps in between columns of LC 2140 screen. They were used for washing the stage and audience, their distinct petal-shaped appearance also making their own visual statement on the stage.
The Tool Room Knight/Random Concept tent saw a classic rave lighting design based around Cyberlights. BB7s were positioned all across the two level stage pointing directly at the audience for crowd illumination and burn out — a task for which they were well-suited.
“The sheer brightness of the BBs alone is amazing,” says Jevons, “It can cut right through anything, so we can break things down in layers and have pure LED looks which contrast beautifully with strobes, incandescent sources and moving lights. Even just a few units are great for making dark, smoke filled spaces a really intense experience and adding another dimension.”
In the Spectrum/Polysexual arena, 11 BB4s were installed, one in each of six upright trussing sections onstage and five on the downstage edge of the stage — again used for audience blinding and pulsing effects — with massive impact. Eleven BB4s was all it took to immerse the stage and dancefloor with massive saturated blocks of light and color.
The Bedrock tent was a long clearspan marquee with an apex roof and another double level stage. Four upright towers were again the most expedient method for rigging lights at the stage end, with a BB7 on top of each one pointing forward and firing down the length of the tent.
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Over in the Godskitchen Arena, Electric Fly built the 2009 Godskitchen world touring “Boom Box” projection structure. Headlined by David Guetta, the DJ platform was in the center of the Boom Box, flanked by two dance podiums — all contained within the structure clad with white projection scrim and also internally lit. The DJ and the dancers were lit with i-Pix Satellites — the brick-style fixture that is easily concealed and also easy to rig.
The Tuborg Live terrace area featured four BB16s, which were used to provide dense side-stage wash coverage for the bands. The low-heat advantages of LED technology came to the fore here, where the small stage required close proximity between fixtures and performers. Four more BB4s lit the distinctive lip of the structure.
Twelve more BB7s were used for the main stage to light headliners Orbital as part of their floor specials package. The band’s lighting designer Jonny Gaskell has been touring these throughout the summer, supplied by Neg Earth. Friday night main stage headliner’s Prodigy (LD Andy Hurst) also added to the BB count with 24 BB4s integrated into their festival specials.
Another 12e BB7s were used by the site’s main lighting contractors HSL for a set concept they designed and built for Steve Angello’s main stage set. This happened at sunset on Saturday.
For more information, please visit www.i-pix.uk.com.
