ALT-J Tours With New Elation CUEPIX Panel
Featuring COB (Chip On Board) Technology
LOS ANGELES - (For Immediate Release) - Everything about the British indie
rock quartet ALT-J says "unique" -- from their cryptic name (when typed on
an Apple Mac OS X keyboard, it produces their trademark delta ? symbol), to
their seamless layering of multi musical genres. It was ALT-J's originality
in pulling together eclectic elements such as folk, alternative rock,
electronic synth riffs and hip-hop beats that earned them Britain's coveted
Mercury Prize for their 2012 debut album, An Awesome Wave.
It was also ALT-J's distinctive sound that got New York City lighting
designer Jeremy Lechterman (JL Designs) "hell bent on finding the
opportunity to design for them." ALT-J was opening for another of
Lechterman's clients, Grouplove, on a tour last fall, so he pitched a design
to their management and got his wish: first being hired for some select
dates on the band's initial US headline run, then asked back to design their
second tour in support of An Awesome Wave.
Lechterman just completed touring with ALT-J as Lighting Operator, with
Dylan Novicky from Felix Lighting, his gear supplier, serving as Crew Chief.
Given pretty much free rein on the creative front, the LD envisioned an
outside-the-box design that would encompass ALT-J's seemingly polar
elements. To create a lighting experience as unique as the band itself, he
used the brand-new CUEPIX Panel from Elation Professional, which features
advanced COB (chip on board) LED technology.
"To complement ATL-J's ethereal, driving and percussive sound, I wanted to
create something dreamy and airy, but also very angular and aggressive,"
explained Lechterman. "The end result was an almost exclusively backlit
show, allowing the band's silhouettes to float through the haze, while
pulsing patterns and rhythms dance across the upstage wall."
Matt Talent, his account rep at Felix Lighting, suggested using the new
Elation CUEPIX Panel in place of a tungsten matrix. Featuring 25 x 30-watt
3-in-1 RGB COB LEDs and a 60° beam angle, the CUEPIX Panel's COB technology
provides improved performance and reliability compared to surface mount
(SMD) LEDs. Since multiple COB LED diodes are directly mounted on and
electrically connected to the circuit board as one lighting module,
interconnection lengths are shortened and thermal resistance is better,
resulting in greater output from a smaller illumination source, more even
light distribution, better color homogenization and better heat dissipation.
The CUEPIX Panel also features RGB color mixing, individual control of each
COB module, variable/selectable dimming curves, and strobe and zone chase
effects.
Still, Lechterman was "initially hesitant," given the CUEPIX's lack of road
experience. "I was eventually won over by the color mixing ability and
Matt's insistence that I wouldn't be disappointed. He was right. They are
a phenomenal fixture. Their size, ease to program, color mixing, intense
brightness and the fact I don't need a media sever all contributed to them
being a perfect fit for this tour. I always wanted some sort of 'video' on
this tour. Turns out that super low-res, mostly lighting-based 'video' was
the perfect solution."
Lechterman used a total of 28 CUEPIX Panels on the stage, arranged in 7
columns of 4 each. The panels were hung from curved truss, alternating
heights to create a "wall" upstage behind the band. They floated about 3'
off the deck and maxed out at about 19'.
"In many ways, the panels were the core of the design," said Lechterman.
"Because of their speed - no dimmer delay - and color mixing, I could do
pretty much whatever I wanted with them. Sometimes I had moving images
playing across them, sometimes there were linear chases, sometimes
fire-fly-like random pixels pulsed around, and sometimes the whole thing
cranked up into a strobing, pulsing blaze."
The panels, which feature integrated rigging points, have been very
road-friendly too, according to Lechterman. "The coffin key method of
locking the panels together is rather painless, and even rattling around on
our set carts they seemed unfazed," he reports. "Programming was a breeze.
"Everyone - band, our staff, local staff, fans - noticed the panels and was
impressed. Artistically, everyone appreciated how different they look from
a traditional video wall, and how many diverse ways they can be used.
Everyone on the production side was grateful for how easy they were to
load-in/load-out and how reliable they have been."
Dan Efros was Media Content Creator for the ALT-J tour. Victor Zeiser
served as Programmer. Steven Taverner of East City Management is ALT-J's
manager, and Sarah Moir is the band's Tour Manager.
For more information, contact Elation Professional toll-free at 866-245-6726
or visit
Lighting Designer Jeremy Lechterman can be reached at 845-709-0024 or visit
