Goldfrapp Felt Mountain UK Tour, Spring 2022

Neg Earth supported Sinclair / Wilkinson with their vision for the lighting design on this tour. One of our favourite looks was the ‘starlight’ design in which the team at Sinclair / Wilkinson used a star cloth as a backdrop and placed Astera AX3s on a black hi-shine floor to create this look. Wirelessly powered and controlled, the AX3s were integral to achieving this effect. 

During conversations in pre-production, the need for an impactful, flexible but simple feature was discussed. Use of our prefabricated pods was quickly suggested to the design team and approved. In total, 4 pods were placed upstage of the band, forming an arc around them. Martin VDO Sceptron were rigged within the pods creating the linear effects we see throughout the show, with GLP FR10 Impression Bars placed at the base to provide additional lighting effects. The lighting pods not only satisfied the design criteria but also provided further opportunities for the design team to integrate them into the pageantry of the show. One example was the addition of a gauze to the front of the pods which was used to great effect to soften the output from the Sceptron at the beginning of the show. Once removed it revealed a more dynamic and defined look.

Working from the drawings from Sinclair Wilkinson, our Fabrication Team designed and built a touring solution that allowed for the lighting elements to be pre-rigged during prep and travel ‘ready built’ during the tour. This not only allowed us to replicate the look quickly and accurately at each show it also provided opportunities to add lighting in other areas.   

“A really exciting part of this job was working with fabrication to find an appropriate rigging solution for the Sceptron on the pods. It allowed for creativity and was a great example of the cohesion between all departments at Neg.  

It was quite challenging to fit these massive pods along with everything else into the designated truck space, but it was a good opportunity to see how a great truck plan is done.  

Goldfrapp was a really good example of the thought that goes into a design to ensure the integrity of the show is maintained in different venues that are vastly different in size, and how that extra thought pays off.” Says our Neg Project Co-Ordinator Jasmine Williams.  

Some of the other fixtures used included 18 Ayrton Diablos and Martin Mac Aura XBs.  

Lighting Operator Neil Holloway says, “Once Again Neg Earth pulled it out of the bag and gave us a great solution to touring this, while the pods were very large, the rest of the system and components were all kept fairly small for scalability as this tour went through many manners of venue.  

This tour I discovered Ayrton Diablo properly, and they’ve absolutely blown me away, such an incredible feature set and Output for such a small unit. 

The AX3 around Alison where a stroke of genius from Sinclair / Wilkinson and gave an immense amount of depth to the show, I worked very closely with SW and mainly Luke Rolls on this project and I think we were all very pleased with where it ended up.  

 Once again, a massive thanks to Neg for being fantastic as usual. 

Another big thanks to hard working techs Tom Bexon and Holly Brightman.”  

Lighting Design: Sinclair / Wilkinson 

Gauze: Alligator Dynamic Drapes 

Photography: Neil Holloway