UK: This summer saw tens of thousands of fans flock to Leicester’s Victoria Park for Brit rockers Kasabian’s sold out homecoming show. Lighting designer Nick Gray specified an array of versatile Clay Paky fixtures as key lighting, admitting he “loves the Sharpy.”
Gray chose 84 Clay Paky Sharpys, 32 Sharpy Wash 330s, 20 Alpha Wash 1500 and 8 Alpha Spot 1500 fixtures, supplied by Neg Earth, for his architectural yet simple design.
“With Kasbian I always have to have a very architectural head on so that the lighting design adds to the performance but is still quite clean and minimal,” says Gray. “I can pretty much tick these boxes with the Clay Paky fixtures, as they’re so versatile.”
Gray’s design was very modular and symmetrical, and saw a simple white cube that theatrically appeared as the band walked on stage.
“The range, size and power of Clay Paky is second to none,” says Gray. “Size was especially important for this show, as we had to be mindful of the weight we were adding to the roof. The fixtures also had to be small enough to be loaded in a very uniform way for speed and space reasons. I like to group the Clay Paky fixtures together in type to get maximum impact.”
The Clay Paky Sharpy is a 189W moving beam light with an unprecedented brightness usually only achievable with far greater wattages, but at an incredibly compact 48cm and weighing just 19kg. The Sharpy Wash comes in even less at 18.5kg.
Gray’s design also saw an extensive video element, with 22 x 11 metre LED screen dominating the stage.
“The Clay Paky fixtures really held their own against the LED screens,” Gray continues. “In fact, they needed to be toned down at some points as they were overpowering it with their fantastic brightness! But they allowed me to achieve a happy medium.”
A complex rig was deployed for the show, with three motorised trusses attached above the stage and multiple towers placed around the stage and audience.
Glastonbury headliners Kasabian show no sign of slowing down; embarking on an extensive European Arena tour over the next four months – culminating in a five night residency at London’s Brixton Academy in December.
“I’m really excited to get my hands on the Clay Paky SuperSharpy and Stormy – I plan to use them a lot on the arena tour!” says Gray.