EVENT FOCUS
ARCHITECTS To celebrate the release of their forthcoming album, For Those That Wish To Exist, the British metal band and crew put together an exclusive livestream performance from the Royal Albert Hall. TPi’s Stew Hume chats to Production Manager, Kenny Macleod about the project.
One of the common complaints that you often hear about livestream performances is that they lack that ‘excitement’ you get while being shoulder-to-shoulder with a room full of fans. Although I’m somewhat biased, I think nowhere is this truer than in the world of metal, where so much of the live experience is fuelled by the energy of the crowd. Despite being unable to call for any circle pits, we have seen a number of groups from the genre take to virtual stages to present raucous live performances to their fans at home. Most notably, in September 2020 Wacken Open Air reinvented itself as a virtual show [see September 2020 issue of TPi]. The latest band to adopt to the virtual transmission of live performance is none other than British metal band, Architects. On course to release their ninth studio album, the group have secured themselves as favourites among the genre’s biggest followers and have become known, in recent years, for their groove-laden riffs and crushing breakdowns. Having worked with the band during their previous Holy Hell tour, Production Manager, Kenny Macleod was familiar with the musicians and their longstanding touring crew. “I was brought in to start pulling the
pieces together for this show two months prior to the recording,” the PM began. Admittedly, this was quite a long lead-time, the PM explained that working during COVID-19, where vendors, suppliers, travel agents and venues are on reduced hours made for a “slow and drawn-out” process. This was not Macleod’s first experience with a livestream show, having PMed for Scottish band, Mogwai’s performance due to be aired later this year, as well as collaborating with electro singer, Elisabeth Elektra. “This particular project with Architects is by far the most ambitious livestream I have had the pleasure of working on,” he explained. “We were hoping to bring all the excitement and energy of an Architects show to the livestream, with production values that rival most live concert DVDs,” he explained, outlining the initial brief from the band. “We have all seen other livestreams during 2020 and, while some were inspiring, it was clear that we could do something really special that could stand alone as an excellent show.” Production Designer, Paul McAdams made use of the vast space, creating a high-energy design to showcase the venue and ensure viewers 16
