American rock band Halestorm is back on the road with Bandit Lites and screaming they’re “Back from the Dead,” which is both the name and title track of their latest album released in May.
Years ago, when Lighting Designer Craig Richter first started touring with Halestorm, he found himself at a state fair armed with an array of lighting carts. Staring at a house system comprised of an out-of-date 180K PAR 64 system, Richter naturally wished for a rig full of movers that would better suit the overall look of the show. During the hours before the evening’s show, Richter took the opportunity to make some chases and “program” the PAR system into the programmed show.
“Once the sun went down and the band went on, I was blown away by the fact that the PAR can system looked awesome and played very well the vibe and style music of the band,” said Richter. “Ever since then, I have always wanted to do a modern take on the old school PAR system.”
Now in 2022, Richter’s vision became a reality with Bandit supplying modern LED PAR fixtures in old school, PRT double hung lamp bar truss, while movers ride in old style tech truss that matches up with the PRT. Bandit provided Martin MAC Viper Profiles, Claypaky Sharpys, Vari-Lite VL 3500 Washes, Elation Color Chorus 48, Chauvet ColorDASH Accent 3, Chauvet Nexus 4×4, Elation CuePix Blinder WW2, Elation CuePix Blinder WW4, Martin VDO Atomic Bold, Martin Atomic 3000 LED Strobe and two grandMA2 full consoles.
“With every album cycle, Halestorm wants to push things a little more on the production side of things,” explained Richter. “It allows me to start thinking on a grander scale rather than just keeping it to a simple floor package. This year, they took a big step and decided to carry full production, so that added a bit more thinking going into things: truck space, power, crew, budget, set, programming time; all of those things and more had to be accounted for in the design process to ensure everything went as smooth as it can to pull off a good showing for the band’s first full production system.”
Richter was initially searching for an LED fixture that had the front lens size of a PAR 64, single sourced, and able to hold up in travel.
“There are a lot of static wash fixtures out on the market, but I also needed a fixture with a front lens that looked the part,” said Richter. “Jake Tickle and I looked around for just about every type of LED PAR out there and nothing was really standing out. Then Martin put out the VDO Atomic Bold, and I got a couple demo units sent to Bandit. Once I saw them in person, I knew it was exactly what I was looking for.”
With an Aura back lit lens and the ability to be pixel mapped and run as a strobe, the VDO Atomic Bold’s versatility meant it could act as various fixtures.
“The beam angle on it is that of a narrow PAR 64 and the color temperature range on it is outstanding,” added Richter. “It allows me to really get the old school PAR looks that I’m going for. I love the fact that I can use the Aura effect and then punch through with the main source. Overall, I am extremely happy with this fixture, and it adds such a unique look and aspect to the show.”
Groups of six VDO Atomic Bolds are mounted on lamp bars in PRT Truss while Martin Viper Profiles act as the main hard-edge fixture.
“I am a big fan of the gobo package that the Vipers have, and it helps add the texture to the stage,” said Richter. “On top of that they have the speed that I need to be able to make the transition that are called for.”
“I’ve been privileged to see the Halestorm production evolution, and this most recent iteration is an absolute home run,” said Bandit Lites Vice President of Business Development, Brent Barrett. “Craig has managed to deliver a classic rock rig with today’s tools and the results are stunning. I always look forward to working with Michael Mahar, Chris Morrison and the entire Halestorm team; their dedication and hard work is evident in every detail.”
“I have been lucky enough to have Joey Dileo as my dimmer tech and crew chief for a number of years now, and he has really hit this system out of the park,” finished Richter. “He and Brian Bogovic do a great job of getting the rig up and down in a timely manner every day. And as always, Brent Barrett made this process easy; he really helped when it came to adjusting fixture types to fit budget as well as going to bat for us on the fixtures that I just had to have. (Project Manager) Matt King always makes my ideas work seamlessly, from cable to making the best use out of the network, and all the paperwork to make the system go together as efficiently as possible.”
