“During the early days of design discussions with the band and their management it became pretty obvious that the show design should be focused around the stunning video content created by Strangeloop Studios out in Chicago. So, as LD, it was clear that I needed to choose fixtures that could hold their own with such dynamic company,” declared Tom Campbell, LD for Zeds Dead.
“Ayrton’s DreamPanel TMTwin and MagicPanel TM602 were the obvious choice,” continued Campbell. “My concept was to use fixtures, mapped in with the video content to ‘push’ the content out into the audience and through the band: the DreamPanel with its 8×8 matrix was exactly what was needed.”
The DreamPanel Twin is a hybrid luminaire with a modified MagicPanel on one side and a DreamPanel Shift on the other. This means it can alternate between displaying high-definition video images and 3D volumetric lighting effects. Campbell’s design located the MagicPanel-602 units mounted vertically in three row of six left and right of the upstage video wall while the DreamPanel Twin fixtures took centre stage, rigged in a double row just below the DJ performance area.
“I’ve used MagicDot and MagicBlade on previous designs so I’m pretty familiar with Ayrton build and quality but even I was impressed with how well the Panels stood up to the relentless punishment of the show. The Zeds Dead stage is very bass heavy which we thought could prove an issue especially for a fixture as complex as a DreamPanel-Twin. Added to that, they travel pre-rigged in frames rather than individually flight-cased but they have proved to be extremely robust.” He commented.
“The Ayrton fixtures ARE the design for this show; any other lights fall into a complementary role,” reflected Campbell. “All the panels were mapped into the media servers and I was able to create some really original looks as well as achieving the inclusive, immersive feel I was looking for. Even so, I don’t feel I even scratched the surface with what the DreamPanel-Twins can do; I’m really excited to explore how they will evolve as the tour progresses. They will remain the central feature of the Zeds Dead design for the foreseeable future.”
At Ambersphere Solutions, MD Glyn O’Donoghue commented, “As the UK distributor for Ayrton, it is really satisfying to see our products out making such an impact. Tom has such a great understanding of the Ayrton fixtures that he is able to deliver a practical design that truly realises his original vision. It’s a real privilege for us that Tom uses our fixtures so creatively.”
