Three-time ACM “Entertainer of the Year” Jason Aldean continues taking his Rock N’ Roll Cowboy Tour to 34 cities nationwide with Bandit Lites and Luz Studio, which has provided production design and creative direction for the tour. Luz’s Matthieu Larivee worked closely with Aldean’s longtime Lighting Director Keith Hoagland to select fixtures.
The tour currently features special guests Gabby Barrett, John Morgan and Dee Jay Silver, while Tracy Lawrence, Travis Tritt and Chase Rice will join this fall for select dates as well.
“The creative design team had all these washes focused on Aldean for a verse,” shared Hoagland. “The only light I know that would do that and do it well was the [Vari-Lite] VL3500 wash, and once I decided that was the wash, I then needed to make sure I had a hard edge that could push through its output and compete not just as a beam but as a gobo enhanced fixture. I landed on the [Claypaky] Mythos unit as it can go toe to toe with them and look nice.”
“There’s a lot of gear on this show,” said Larivee adding, “so it was important to stay focus to the creative deck and work together with Keith in order to avoid being all over the place.”
Bandit Lites supplied more than 300 fixtures, including the Claypaky Mythos 2, Chauvet Maverick MK Pyxis, Chauvet Nexus AW 7×7, Elation Proteus Maximus IP 65, Elation CuePix WW4, GLP X4 Bar 20, High End Systems SolaPix 37, VL 3500 Washes, Chauvet Strike 4’s, Chauvet Color Strike M Strobes, Chromlech Elidy, grandMA 2 Consoles, Tyler GT Truss, Tyler Ladders and a Follow-Me System.
Rather than use a floor package and a flown rig with a video screen in the center, Larivee proposed centering the lights within a video image, creating another dimension without hiding the video wall.
“The video content is what drives the creative direction of the show,” he said before adding, “Luz Studio’s background is lighting design, so our video content reflects that. Our signature is to create set extension within the screen. It is working well because it is lit with virtual lights that mimic the actual stage lights.”
By merging physical lights with virtual lights, Luz Studio layered another dimension on to the stage, creating more dynamic content. An 8mm blow-through screen with a wall of lights behind it controlled by the video team transforms in a single, cohesive set.
Following a workshop at Bandit Lites’ warehouse with multiple series of lights on hand, Keith Hoagland, Jason Aldean’s long time lighting director chose Chauvet Pyxys to achieve the aforementioned wall of lights.
“The Pyxys was perfect because it is LED, meaning it would not damage the plastic of the screen,” said Larivee. “There’s a center beam that can shine through the screen and content. There’s also a ring of LED that creates a wash unit to help the merging of content, a zoom to avoid being too spotty, as well as an endless rotation on X and Y axis, so for the songs where we needed bells and whistles, we had it!”
“Hoagland also picked the Claypaky Mythos to create moods with gobos, colors and various positions,” said Larivee. “The High End Systems SolaPix were used as side light to wash the stage and create a few animated patterns.”
The team chose curved, asymmetric trusses, evoking an organic, root look, and with over two dozen songs on deck each night, production crafted a cohesive presentation that still showcased a diverse set of looks. An Elidy warm light is used beneath the riser to warm the looks while GLP impression x4 Bar 20 are set up beneath the riser aligned in a straight line to highlight the band riser: a striking staircase. Along the curved truss are Chauvet Strike 4 blinders, defining the trusses’ shape without lighting up the trusses themselves while Chauvet Strike M are used as a top light to wash the stage and connect the stage looks with the audience.
“The Color Strike M and Strike Array 4 units are awesome,” said Hoagland. “They read well and handle great. I really like the Color Strike unit as wash units since I am using the VL3500 wash as a highlighted tight shaft of light for an effect.”
With Hoagland having more than eight years of experience working with Aldean, his perspective on what the tour’s seen and already done proved invaluable. He wiped the slate clean and started a new fresh show file, providing the creative freedom to explore new ideas.
Custom LED winches come down from the ceiling for three songs, creating another dimension and supporting the breakdown moment of the show.
The control of the wall of lights was done via video, meaning some R&D was done to ensure the look would be cohesive. For example, if the team creates boxes in the content, the team can make them rotate, and as they rotate, a beam of light appears behind the screen with the disguise GX2c server controlling that via DMX. “Basically, we choose a color and position in the grandMA and the server manages the dimmer,” finished Larivee.
With I-Mag, the lighting can reach and include fans that may be on the far lawn at the venues. “We did some really cool video tricks this year for the I-Mag screens, really pushing the limit of how media servers are used and work,” Hoagland said. “This year’s show is a work horse for the D3 media server for sure.”
“For I-Mag, we wanted to create something different,” said Larivee. “So sometimes we are using live cameras on the center screen and we are using the wall of light to create the background of the image. We wanted to avoid having lighting beam interfering with his face.”
“We also worked with the artificial intelligence (AI) device in the VFX software Notch,” he added. “We did R&D to track the live image to kill the lights behind. Essentially, if Jason lifts his arm, the AI tracks the arm and send a DMX command to close the lights in conflict. This is really a game changer for us and for the next shows because it pushes a lot more.”
Bandit Lites has been on board with Aldean since 2008 and strives to secure the client’s vision into reality, a feat that Hoagland refers to as a “labor of love,” explaining it as, “A love of making sure it is right from the get-go and working to support with crew and gear as we went through rehearsals to now on tour. I cannot thank everyone enough for all the hard work. It truly shows folks care. Every year we start over and reimagine the wheel. Bandit has been so supportive from the day I was told to design and drive this year’s production with Luz, from our Client Representative Mike Golden, through Project Manager, Donnie Lockridge, to VP of Business and Innovation, Jake Tickle down to my Crew Chief Cody Cheatham and crew.”
Creative Direction: Matthieu Larivee – Lüz Studio
Production Design: Lüz Studio
Lighting Design: Keith Hoagland
Video Content: Luz Studio
Bandit Lites Client Representative: Mike Golden
Bandit Lites Project Manager: Donnie Lockridge
Bandit Lites Crew Chief: Cody Cheatham
Bandit Lites Crew: Kelly Field, Bryan Place, Travis Price, and Kayla Richardson
