Howard Ungerleider Featured in PLSN, February issue

The February issue of Projection, Lights & Staging News has a feature interview with Rush's lighting designer, Howard Ungerleider.  Howard explains how the design came about, his initial thoughts on first hearing Clockwork Angels, and the hiring of the various eclectic companies that put it all together.

"...with the album called Clockwork Angels and the theme of some of the songs, I knew where it was going. I wanted to design a system with angel sort of wings; there’s actually 22 moving parts to it because there’s a dozen other little mini-trusses that come down on high string motors...The band members are true professionals, and what’s also great is they all have a great sense of humor. Just look at the humorous videos they create and show just before they hit the stage. They are made up as characters with pot bellies, funny wigs and all. Even when we’re not on tour and we go over to Alex’s (Lifeson) house for a party, he comes out as a character, so yeah, great bunch of guys, very level-headed. The freedom that they give me with my lighting is very important and allows me to give them my best. I’ve done other acts where you’re micro-managed to the point where you can’t really be creative, which is not a good thing. When I use video, it’s to bring you closer to the artist while not taking away from seeing the band on stage at the same time. It gives you a little bit of insight with the robotic cameras that we’re using now — you can get right in on top of Neil Peart playing the drums, for instance. I’m using the perspective of the fan from the audience — I want to see different angles, viewpoints. I want to do lighting choreography, not only to the music, but also to the lyrics that trigger those cues. Half the show is run manually, which is a great experience!" For the full interview visit PLSN.com. - Thanks to Greg Nosek for the headsup!