Epica Gets A New Look on Tour With ChamSys

Epica’s Holographic Principle tour of Europe and North America has been powered by the ChamSys MagicQ MQ60 console. Lighting designer Erwin Van Lokeren created the new look for the metal band’s massive tour with the console.

“My constant touring life is really easy with the MQ60,” Van Lokeren said. “Because of the console’s compact size, it’s always possible to put my desk down to program, on the tour bus, in the dressing room, or even on stage in change over times. I do my first drawings in Vectorworks, and then I import the DWG file into Capture, which works perfectly with my MQ60. So I can program even complicated shows in my hotel room with just my MQ60 and laptop.”

Van Lokeren uses the console to limit the number of colors in each song, as well as create signature visuals for each song with the console’s punting and pixel mapping features.

“When you have too many colors in a song, you can fall into a trap that makes the lighting for the next song look unoriginal or uninspired because you wind up repeating the same colors,” he explained.  “I know I can rely on the MQ60 for punting during a show. It is a workhorse. The pixel mapping feature is great too. It makes it so easy to use. The clone/morph function saves me a lot of time, especially during festivals. For this summer run I am using 4 or 10 DMX universes, depending on if it’s a day or night show. In daylight, I have a different show file where the pixel mapping will not be used, and instead the fixtures will be run in simple mode.”

Van Lokeren’s current Epica tour rig, which was supplied by Splendit, also uses the CHAUVET Professional Nexus Aq 5×5 RGBW pixel mapping panel.

“This fixture makes up most of my rig,” he said. “I use it to create a very powerful industrial robotic look, which fits the mood of the concert.  The Nexus is also good for subtle color and pattern changes, which makes the look for each song fresh and original. This sense of spontaneity has to be there in the music — and the lighting.”