Rob Sinclair on designing unforgettable concert lighting

There was a moment during Tame Impala’s recent Madison Square Garden show when the entire venue went dark. Kevin Parker and his band were playing an extended version of the guitar riffs of “Elephant” as the stage emitted a subtle violet light to the beat. But when they stopped, the world-famous venue was still for two whole seconds.

The crowd was left confused… until the arena was flooded with red lasers as the band picked up where it left off. It was shocking and paralyzing and stunning — and it was designed by Rob Sinclair.

. . .

A Knight of Illumination award-winning lighting and production designer, Sinclair has worked with artists, such as David Byrne, LCD Soundsystem, Adele, Lorde, and Queen + Adam Lambert, to create concert experiences that overwhelm the senses.

“I’ve been lucky enough to work with some really inspiring artists on some truly groundbreaking shows,” he said.

At a concert, however, you wouldn’t find Sinclair sitting back and enjoying the show. He describes himself as that “slightly nervous-looking guy, wandering around and checking out how it looks from all angles.” The anxiousness is only natural: He and his team spend hours programming each song. But when it all runs smoothly? It’s a sight to behold.

*David Byrne in “American Utopia.” Photo by Rob Sinclair.*

How did you first get into the concert lighting business?

As with all creation stories, I’m sure there are some rose-tinted half truths in here, but it goes something like this:

When I was tiny, I went to the theatre with my parents; I’m not sure what we saw, but it was probably funny. I remember looking at a light fixed to the wall of the theatre and noticing that it was plugged in. I’ve always been fascinated by how things work, and it seemed strange that it need to be unplugged and moved around. Why would it not just be permanent?

I later had a eureka moment where I realised that shows of whatever kind are entirely a creation of temporary falsehoods. The audience gives us their lives for a short time and if we get things right, they’re taken somewhere that can never exist.

Fast forward a decade or so. I had no idea what I wanted to do with my life, and was making a living as a terrible mobile DJ with more of a fascination for the sound and lighting than playing the Grease soundtrack at weddings.

What did you do afterwards?

I was about 21 by this time, and I had chosen not to go to college (which I can’t quite believe my parents allowed me to do) and needed to do something. So I applied for a course for theatrical electricians, which was a regular electricians’ course with a really minor theatrical component. We spent a year learning the theory of wiring houses with some practical experience.

The last place that took me in as an intern was a lighting company. They needed someone to sweep the floor. Then, I started fixing lights and learning how to run a lighting console in the warehouse. I went on tour as a technician, and started operating other people’s shows and designing my own shows. I’m very, very fortunate to work at something I love and that continues to allow me to grow and discover new ideas.

What tour did you work when you were a technician?

I did a few. My favourite was probably with Kenny Rogers.

And what was the first show that you designed on your own?

An English band from the 60’s called The Hollies. I was with them for a couple of years and learnt a lot through some pretty basic mistakes. They’re still on the road today.

*Kylie Minogue. Photo by Andrew Whitton.*

What’s one of your best concerts or tours you’ve worked on?

I’ve been lucky enough to work with some really inspiring artists on some truly groundbreaking shows. It’s hard to pick favourites, but I think that my work with Goldfrapp, Tame Impala, Florence and the Machine, LCD Soundsystem, Kylie Minogue, Lorde, Pet Shop Boys, Peter Gabriel, and David Byrne stand up to time-based scrutiny really well.

The main things I remember in the best shows are moments. Brief points in time where music, lighting, performance, costume, and scenes come together to really bring the audience into the show. The lasers in “Elephant,” the euphoric video feedback during “All My Friends,” the house lights going out in “Family Snapshot,” the drop down in “It’s a Sin,” the four drum hits in “All The Lovers,” the shadows in “Blind,” the backlight for the dance in “How Big, How Blue.” I get misty-eyed thinking about them.

What is the creative process like? Do you start by listening to the artist’s latest album first?

Yes, it all has to come from the music. Being totally immersed in what the artist is trying to say. Then, it’s a process of meetings, ideas, and visualization. I also have to specify the equipment, and learn the songs.

*Tame Impala at Madison Square Garden, 2019. Photo by Rob Sinclair.*

One of the strangest parts of the job is talking to artists about my opinions on their music. It never gets easier to talk to someone about a song they wrote.

In rehearsals, we spend hours programming each song. Every detail of every part is examined. Do we need a cue on that drum fill? Are we making this chorus euphoric enough? Can this be sadder? How can this cue be as surprising visually as it is sonically? Are we throwing attention to someone who is doing something clever?

I also increasingly look through my phone. Is this an Instagram moment? Does the band look as good on screen as they do to the eye? We’re always asking ourselves if it can be better.

How involved are the artists you’ve worked with?

The best shows come from an engaged artist. It’s all about their music and their performance and it’s essential for them to be a part of the process.

What factors do you consider when creating a lighting concept for a concert?

Most of them are duller than you’d hope. How much money is there? What are the venues like? How many trucks can there be? How long are the drives? Is it possible to move the show overnight? Although they’re not glamorous, the logistics are an essential part of the process. The coolest ideas are pointless if we can’t deliver them every night and without bankrupting anyone.

What are your thoughts on Instagram playing a role at concerts these days?

The first person I worked with who looked through a phone at a show was M.I.A. She came out to see what we’d been working on and just immediately looked at the screen to see how it would look on YouTube.

I think there’s a natural reaction to something like that of “That’s preposterous.” The key is to think it through and realise that what may seem bizarre is actually visionary. Instagram has now become such a part of life that it’s also part of the job when designing the show. And I’ve found that designing concert lighting for phones makes me a better designer. I now consider how bands look much more, as well as the picture I’m building around them.

Have you come across any difficulties when creating lighting concepts?

I think the creative process is difficult for everyone at times, isn’t it? I guess that’s what makes it fun. But trying to figure out why something looks terrible and doesn’t work at 4 a.m. isn’t wonderful. Fixing the problem with a happy accident at 4:10 a.m., however, is a different matter.

Do you have any examples of a past happy accident?

I can’t think of any specifics that I can point to. I think that trial, error, and happy mistakes are just part of the creative process, whatever you’re doing. Aren’t they?

*Queen + Adam Lambert at San Jose, 2019. Photo by Rob Sinclair.*

Do you have any upcoming projects you can share with us?

I don’t really like to talk about things until they’ve happened. Seems like bad juju. But I’m immensely grateful to have fun shows find me regularly and there are some exciting things coming up.

Finally, what a go-to lighting move that always gets crowds excited?

I defy anyone not to love a disco ball.

*LCD Soundsystem. Photo by Rob Sinclair.*

Here are Rob Sinclair’s 12 songs:

A lot of the music I listen to these days is for work. Learning songs and forming opinions about them is the core of what I do. Luckily, my love for music remains undimmed from listening to songs on repeat for weeks and turning them into a series of cues. This does make discovery of new music hard, but I find that festivals are great places to fall into exciting things.

A couple of years ago, my sister and I walked into the tent at Stagecoach for some respite for the sun just as Nikki Lane was singing this song. Nikki and her band all looked, sounded, and just were really amazing. We stayed for the whole set and I downloaded the album before we left the tent.

I don’t know when I realised that David Bowie was the coolest man in history, but I’ve been certain of it since I was very, very young. David Bowie changed my life, but it’s hard to find a specific song.

So here’s Cat People which is a deliberately obtuse choice (it was this or something from 1. Outside). It’s a cornerstone album track of Let’s Dance and of the Serious Moonlight tour that followed it.

That tour is a great example of how an artist can maintain their integrity whilst playing enormous venues. It’s also of how simple theatrical tricks can work at scale. Watch this song from the concert film and marvel at how simple and powerful the lighting is.

Let’s not talk about the brass section costumes though, shall we?

When I was about 17 and just starting to be fascinated by lighting and the production behind shows, I went to the new Blockbuster Video on Fulham Broadway in London. It was an amazing place, full of possibilities and films that I never could have found in any other video store I’d ever visited.

I rented “Stop Making Sense” because a guy called Andy, who was cooler than me, had heard of it. I had zero expectations.

Back at my disgustingly untidy shared house, Andy and I watched, open-jawed, as the show unfolded. Just when I thought I’d seen everything, this song happened. The slideshow and David’s iconic lamp dance.

Thirty years later, I managed to find myself in David’s office, talking to him about his new show. I almost didn’t take the meeting as I worried about meeting one’s heroes, but I’m very glad that I did as he seemed to like me. The show, “American Utopia,” toured the world last year and opens on Broadway in October 2019. I’m so proud of every second of it and it’s been an amazing honor to be a small part of the team.

We also have a lamp in the show. We had to. It’s different, but it’s there.

I’m trying my hardest not to make this a series of “I saw this band at a festival and OMG,” but…

My first visit to Glastonbury in 2002 was the time when Belle and Sebastian and I found each other.

Everyone needs to find Belle and Sebastian.

A wise man once told me that it’s impossible for anyone not to realise that this is the best song ever written. I couldn’t argue then and I doubt I could now.

When I need to concentrate, I listen to this album. Something flips in my brain and I stop procrastinating. I’m listening to it as I write this. It’s a strange thing, but I’m not complaining.

“O Makunde” is from the soundtrack of Robert LePage’s “Ka,” which I urge any visitor in Las Vegas to see. We put so much thought on how to fit touring shows into different buildings and it’s inspiring to see what’s possible when the theatre and the show are built for each other.

This song reminds me of people and times l’ll cherish forever. A complicated song from simpler days.

When I was about ten, I was handed down a mono cassette deck by my brother and an Elton John live album called Here and There by my sister. It was the only tape I hadn’t recorded from the radio.

The first track on Side 2 was a ten-minute, show-opening “Funeral For a Friend / Love Lies Bleeding.” I really didn’t know what to make of it at the time, but it intrigued me more than the rest of the songs.

Listening now, I can see how it was structured to start a show and I almost instinctively know how they would have lit it — the atmospherics, going into the band’s arrival, and the eventual reveal of Elton at his piano.

In 2015, I was at the opening night of the Kaiser Chiefs tour in Liverpool. First days are always fraught and we’d not had much sleep whilst getting everything set, chasing our tails and making last minute decisions.

The opening act always gets their time squeezed at the start of tours. We were only able to give them time to set up right before the doors opened.

Suddenly, the stage was a flurry of weird-looking, almost-homemade projection screens and guys in tweed — it was unlike anything I’d ever seen.

I decided to go out and see a couple of minutes of the show, but stayed for the whole thing. It’s rare when someone comes up with a new take on pop music and Public Service Broadcasting are brilliantly unique.

Plus, they all look and dress like me. What’s not to love?

This song reminds me of so many things and people that are important to me now. Plus there is an amazing breakdown that leads into the world’s best confetti cue.

Keane and their manager Adam Tudhope took a chance on me. I was probably a pretty objectionable person, so I’m not quite sure why they did, but I’m forever grateful to them.

The band let me spend a lot of their money with very little track record and almost no understanding of what I was doing. We toured for years, became the closest team, and discovered the world together.

This song was always the most fun to light and I stumbled across what’s still a classic move of putting the darkest and brightest cues of a show together. Maximum dynamic to really pull the audience into the euphoria of the final chorus.

The accessibility of music has changed so much for the better. My friend Mike and I went to an Acid Jazz night at the (now, thankfully, demolished) Astoria on Charing Cross at some point in 1992, and the DJ played this song. It took many visits to specialist record stores, most of a weeks’ wages, and some serious detective work to find an imported copy. Whoever invented Shazam: Thank you.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity. Listen to Rob Sinclair’s curated 12 Songs playlist below: