Clay Paky’s award-winning hybrid fixture, the Mythos, has joined Brandon Flowers
on his European tour, with lighting designer Steven Douglas making full use of its
multi-functionality for the majority of the show’s stunning looks.
Playing across such countries as Ireland, Germany, Italy and the UK, The Killers’
frontman was out in support of his “The Desired Effect’ solo album campaign.
Douglas has been working with Flowers and the Las Vegas-based rockers for over
10 years, building design ideas from scratch for each of their highly successful
tours. For Flowers’ run of solo dates, Douglas’ design was centred upon defined
beams of light to create an architectural feel, employing six Mythos as the
workhorses of the floor package.
“My idea for this tour was to move away from using wash fixtures and to use dark
space to accentuate beams,’ explains Douglas. “We found a way of lighting the
band from a close perspective, thus eliminating the need for wash lights to
illuminate those positions. This allowed me to really take advantage of Mythos’
beam and spot modes to create the looks on stage for the majority of the set.’
Supplied by Neg Earth, Douglas also specified some A.leda B-EYE K20s, which he
placed on stage around Brandon Flowers’ centre position. The Mythos were
positioned on the floor upstage behind the band.
“I was very interested in trying out the Mythos for this tour as we needed to
maximise impact with minimal trucking space,’ says the designer. “We were
touring everything in one truck including backline, set and audio therefore being
able to have the best of both worlds out of one fixture made them ideal. Versatility
was also in mind when choosing the B-EYEs – they are a great effects light as well
as a simple LED wash.
In addition, the Mythos were great as they’re incredibly bright – I had to bring down
their output level in a few of the smaller rooms. However, overall they fitted
perfectly in this size of venue and never looked out of place in the larger
spaces.’
Brandon Flowers’ tour has now moved into its US leg, playing dates throughout the
rest of the summer.
