Lighting and visuals rental specialist Colour Sound Experiment kicked off what’s set to be a spectacularly busy 2013 summer season, with a weekend supplying lighting to no less than two major festivals and two high profile EDM events plus a plethora of specials packages for specific artists performing around Europe …as well as a major corporate event!
The festivals were Run To The Sun in Newquay, Cornwall; Field Day and As One in The Park at Victoria Park, Hackney, east London; We are FSTVL, a brand new 15,000 capacity dance music festival at Damyn's Hall Aerodrome in Upminster, Essex ... and down on the Brixton frontline at the O2 Academy, offering the best of drum ‘n’ bass, was ‘Hospitality’!
Over 700 moving lights were deployed by CSE across the weekend - mix of Robe, Martin, Clay Paky and GLP plus others –together with around 200 strobes and an eclectic bunch of other effects, all programmed, operated and tech’d by 50 regular Colour Sound crew.
This very much set the pace and format for the coming months, where Colour Sound will be one of the most prolific rental operations on the festival and event circuit –hopefully enjoying better weather than last year!.
Colour Sound's Haydn Cruickshank comments, "We have a huge fund of experience in working on festivals and EDM events, and our crews are extremely good at dealing with the unique conditions and often challenging environments!”
He adds that they all really enjoy doing it! Although it's arduous work, meticulous preps help save time and enables the most efficient working practices on site. It’s a routine that Colour Sound has down to a fine art ... without being complacent about it!
In readiness for the summer, the company has just invested £350,000 in new Robe moving lights and expanded into a third warehouse building, doubling their available space in Park Royal, North West London.
Having A Field Day
At Field Day Colour Sound was working for Loudsound Events to whom they are a regular supplier, and this event was again fully sold out.
Lighting was deployed to twelve different performance areas and Project Managed for Colour Sound by the unflappable Fletch, who comments, "With so many festivals happening simultaneously now, there is often high demand for certain 'products of the moment', so the logistics can get very intense when we are working on multiple events. Dealing with this is all part of the service."
He adds that Festivals are also always a good way of keeping up contact with their industry friends and colleagues.
In addition to all the lighting kit, Colour Sound delivered 30 square metres of its popular BT-20 LED screen for Stage 1 plus control via a Green Hippo Hippotizer media server.
Colour Sound's lighting team on Field Day included top operators Toby Lovegrove, Franki McDade, Chris Steel, Owen Pritchard, Mattia Collier and Sarah Payne. The same crew also worked on As One In The Park.
Hospitality
The company has lit many Hospitality events before and this one –featuring Belgian superstar Netsky and the popular Danny Byrd. Colour Sound supplied the lighting and 20 square metres of BT-12 LED screen to Rob Stanley of Zero DB Event solutions.
We Are FSTVL
The Lighting Designer for the all-new We Are FSTVL’s Main Stage was Colour Sound’s very own Haydn Cruickshank, working in close collaboration with festival promoter Reece, where 70 square metres of BT-12 LED screen helped make a big impact. Johnny Gaskell was commissioned to design the other 14 areas for Colour Sound.
Running To The Sun
John Ricketts came up with an imaginative show for Run To The Sun’s Main Stage and Jenn Webber added her creative touches to the second Stage for this event which did also actually experience some obliging sunny weather!
In addition to all the lighting kit for these two areas, Colour Sound provided 50 square metres of their BT-37 LED Screen and 10 square metres of the brand new BT-6 LED for Stage One run from a Hippotizer media server, plus another Hippotizer and 20 square metres of BT-37 for Stage Two.
In addition to these five events, ‘specials packages’were supplied for Rita Ora and Bastille appearing at the BBC’s Radio 1 Big Weekend in Derry; Sleeping With Sirens, Hot Chip and Hurts appearing at various festivals in Europe and additional floor packages for Mount Kimbie, Four Tet, Django Django and TNGHT at Field Day.
Lighting was also designed and supplied to a corporate show for Le Coq Sportif, staged at the funky new London flagship store …with lighting designed by Fletch.
It was the first of many weekends where Colour Sound’s warehouses - including the new third one - will be bare of kit. Always a perfect time for a good spring clean!