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Hard Driving Intensity

Posted on December 1, 2015

It was a happy marriage made in metallic heaven, when We Came As Romans and All That Remains locked up for their full throttle “Hard Drive Live Fallout Tour.” Each of the mega metal groups was riding high on the Billboard charts. We Came As Romans’ self-titled LP rose to the Top 10 of Independent Albums, and ATR’s “The Order Things” had thundered its way into the Top 25. Both bands hold each other in high esteem, telling the press that they were “ecstatic” to be playing together. Both also shared a mutual admiration for the eye-searing lighting design that LD Peter Therrien created using a collection of Nexus Aw 7×7 warm white LED panels and Legend moving heads from CHAUVET Professional.

IMG_2150crop “You always like to get good feedback when you design,” said Therrien of JDI Productions. “So all of us involved in this show were thrilled when the bands went out of their way to compliment us. Aaron Patrick for ATR and Bryan Campbell for WCAR both commented how happy they were with the package and how the lighting had added an impressive visual impact to their performances.”

Like their legion of fans, the two bands appreciated how the super charged intensity of razor sharp beams from the Chauvet fixtures accented their booming onslaught of sound. “This is intense music, so we didn’t want there to be anything shy about the lighting,” said Therrien. “The brightness and intensity of the Nexus Aw 7x7s and the speed of the Legends really fit the moment.”

Therrien used 12 Nexus Aw 7x7s, eight Legend 230SR Beams and eight Legend 412 Wash in his design. He constructed an 8-foot truss tower on stage left and mirrored it with two 4-foot by-8-foot risers on stage right. He positioned a Legend 230SR Beam on top of the tower and mounted two Nexus Aw 7×7 panels, one atop the other, on the face of the truss.

IMG_2153crop Another Legend 230SR Beam was placed on the deck 4 feet in front of the truss tower. Going across the back of the upper riser about 2 feet off the deck were a third 230SR Beam and three Legend 412 Washes. Under the 30″ tall drum riser were four Nexus Aw 7×7 panels connected horizontally. Flanking the drum riser under the other risers were two 7×7 panels connected horizontally, and flanking those risers on the floor was a single Legend 412.

“This configuration allowed us to shoot lights from different layers of the stage as well as different heights,” said Therrien. “I ran the 7x7s at full intensity at all times except in between songs. I’d also bring them down to about 70 percent when they were directed at the audience. We did this when Phil Labonte, the lead singer for ATR, wanted a reaction while he was talking to crowd.”

Therrien pixel mapped the Nexus panels to create different chases and waves throughout the show. Also, when the show opened, he pixel mapped the panels under the large drum riser to spell “ATR” while the rest of the stage was blacked out.

IMG_2155crop Discussing his gear list, the LD noted, “The reason I decided on these fixtures is I’ve used them all before and loved them. The 412s give a nice color wash to the stage and the beams are bright, sharp, and colorful, so the movement and color they provide work well for both the active pop and heavy intense songs that both bands sing. Also, even though they’re metal icons, both bands do a few ballad-type songs and the gobos in the beams create really cool looks during those tunes.”

“The 7x7s worked great on many levels,” continued Therrien. “I used them as audience abuse-type blinders. Plus the chases and waves always made it like something was moving or happening on the stage. During my focus time and pre show, everyone always commented that I was turning on the sun when I switched the Nexus panels on. It’s fair to say they made a very powerful impression on everyone involved in the tour.”