Robe rolls on with Guns N' Roses
- Details
Phil’s work with the American hard rockers dates back over 30 years - since they first hit stardom with their debut Appetite for Destruction album released in 1987. Ron Schilling is out on the road as lighting director for this one which is the first time that three original members Axl Rose, Slash and Duff McKagan have performed together since 1993.
Phil chose Robe moving lights to play a major role in the lighting scheme with the stadium version of the rig featuring 74 x BMFL WashBeams – five used as truss follow spots, 32 x BMFL Spots, three BMFL Blades and ten Pointes.
The BMFLs are rigged in the various trusses over the stage. The tour’s ‘universal’ lighting rig also includes 9 custom made lighting pods and a floor package.
The BMFL Spots are generally used to light the stage and the audience in a wide variety of gobos and colours, with the WashBeams being the true workhorses of the rig.
The BMFL Blades are used as primary key lighting for the drummer and keyboardists, where the shutters are perfect for fine-focusing the output.
Upstaging is the touring lighting vendor in the US and Neg Earth in Europe.
The Pointes are owned by West Coast Visuals, Phil’s equipment company, and are part of the universal floor package that travels everywhere that the band are playing, including all the festival gigs where they are using a range of different ‘top’ rigs. The Pointes are used for creating different effects and looks and to accent certain parts of the songs You Could Be Mine and November Rain.
A grandMA2 platform is used for lighting control, and their consoles are also part of the universal lighting rig that travels worldwide.
Various combinations of crew from both Neg Earth and Upstaging have been working on different parts of the tour to have technicians familiar with the rig onboard. Joining Ron for the most recent European leg was Steve Shipman, Hayden ‘Goat’ Corp, Tim Phillips, Tim DeBoissiere and Adam ‘Taff’ Morgan from Neg Earth, plus Fraser MacKeen, Nick Pishghadamian and Greg Gore from Upstaging.
Not In This Lifetime is currently the fourth largest grossing tour ever, based on Billboard’s Boxscore archives and Phil Ealy describes it as “the gift that keeps on giving”. Dates are scheduled to continue throughout 2018.
(Jim Evans)
