As so often happens in the industry it was a coincidence that the paths of Papa Roach and lighting designer Mathias Kuhn should cross. “About two months ago a lighting man was looking for a few shows in Russia and a festival gig in Germany,“ recalls Mathias Kuhn.
“Three months later it became Papa Roach’s European tour, while another colleague took care of the gigs in the USA.” For Kuhn the band made their decision in his favour after a festival tour of Europe last year. “It just feels good when the lighting is turned on,” said the front man and band leader Jacoby Shaddix, speaking for himself and his bandmates.
After a support tour with Shinedown in the USA, playing mainly arenas, in the Spring they embarked on a UK tour, with shows in front of audiences of up to 4,000 people. Most recently, prior to the festival season, Papa Roach has been touring Russia and the old Eastern bloc, where up to 6,000 flock into the venues night after night.
“You learn to appreciate fixtures that are compact, flexible and yet still powerful,” said Kuhn. These characteristics he finds again and again in GLP’s portfolio. “When you are working in the lighting industry, somehow GLP is always on the radar. The impression X4 is the perfect example of what I needed, as they are light, compact, super bright and have great colours.” Kuhn often develops his design ideas in close cooperation with the band and Creative Director, Darren Craig.
“Last year was a ‘Wall of Light’ theme, and the JDC1’s functioned like clockwork. The pixel mode produces incredible effects, and we enjoyed the full benefit. Finally, with the band’s new record and new tour we also wanted a new look which should be more compact, more intimate,” the designer continues.
“Immediately the impression X4 Bars came to mind, which we originally wanted to hang in triangular arrangements in the stage background. But that would have been too time-consuming and so we built five dollies instead on which the 36 impression X4 Bars, and also a lot of JDC1 strobes were installed” he said.
“The impression X4 Bars are wonderfully flexible. I use them as washlights, as razor-sharp blades that cut through the room or in pixel mode as a beamlight. On top of that there are the 18 JDC1, which I use equally as a strobe as well as a washlight, because the output and the colours of this hybrid are just great.”
The flexible structure with the dollies provides another advantage for the designer. “We also gain so much space and depth in small venues because we can easily work in several levels in a row.” Finally, some impression X4 XL are also used on the sides of the stage.
“The band does not like front lights so much as they don’t want to be blinded. But somehow I have to keep them in the spotlight—and this works perfectly with the eight side-mounted X4 XL,” said Mathias Kuhn, who is at FOH every night, piloting the show from a ChamSys MQ80.