NASHVILLE – Longtime Neil Young LD Keith Wissmar and manager Elliot Roberts turned to Dizzy Gosnell at Bandit Lites for the artist's solo acoustic tour. The lighting rig – like Young's 1959 Lincoln Continental, which is powered by a micro-turbine bio-electric engine – balanced "old school" with "green." The base system relied on classic fresnels lekos and scoops, and the rig also included energy-efficient LED fixtures including GRN Battens and GRN Washes. All the equipment was suspended from various Matthews grip stands and 16-foot crank up towers.
The LED fixtures, used for color washes, helped keep the power draw to a minimum. Wissmar also came up with two lampshades that he made by attaching an array of jewels to large, old-school gymnasium lampshades. They were positioned over two separate keyboards.
The backdrop resulted from a trip to the hardware store, where Wissmar purchased $60 worth of screen door mesh. It got somewhat abused as the tour wore on, adding texture and dimension to the LED washes.
For more information, please visit www.banditlites.com.
