Front-of-stage systems for a European run
Mojo Barriers supplied its extensive in-house barrier inventory for Metallica's 2012 summer festival tour. The European run of outdoor shows began in Paris on 12 May and finished at Download Festival with a Black Album set.
Mojo's European office negotiated with the festival organisers and supplied front-of-stage systems that suited their requirements, always mindful of the high standards Metallica's touring party expects from a robust barrier system.
A snakepit swap in the mud
The Metallica team arrived at Download's Donington Park site in pouring rain, in the festival's wettest year so far, with an audience of just under 100,000. After Friday night's headline set by The Prodigy, Mojo Barriers UK director Jim Gaffney reviewed the ground conditions on the main stage with the event's key management team, including Metallica's production co-ordinator, the festival director, the production manager and Live Nation's health and safety director.
It was a tough call as to whether swapping the barrier configuration after day one was safe. … Discussions with Metallica's production team before they arrived left us in no uncertainty that they were very keen to have their 'snakepit', but the safety of crew and the audience was everyone's primary consideration.
We were surprised with how well the ground had stood up when we surveyed it after The Prodigy, so the decision to go for the changeover was made.
The Mojo crew worked through the night and into the morning, in the rain, to replace the straight front-of-stage barrier with the snakepit configuration. The soft, compacted ground meant no heavy plant could be used to move the barriers as usual, and the old system was hard to remove. Joining the snakepit to Download's central thrust barrier, which ran back to the front-of-house tower, took considerable extra work.
At Download, Jim also introduced a new front-of-stage thrust design for the second stage and a 60-metre break barrier to manage crowd movement between the two main stages.
Orion Music + More in Atlantic City
In the USA, Mojo Barriers provided a traditional festival front-of-stage system at The Orion Music + More festival in Atlantic City, for Metallica's first US shows of the run on 23 and 24 June 2012.
Having worked with festival organiser C3 Presents since 2011, Mojo planned for the crowd dynamics of 37 bands and artists, from thrash metal to punk, indie and experimental rock. Mojo supplied the barrier for all four stages, plus rolling risers, cable ramps and Gatekeeper turnstiles on site.
An in-the-round system for Mexico and Canada
Mojo Barriers would also provide an in-the-round configuration around Metallica's stage for eight concerts in Mexico City and four in Canada, split between Edmonton and Vancouver. The later in-the-round shows were to be filmed for a 3D production, a long-planned project to capture the band's legacy.
The stage set included elements from past tours, such as the famous collapsing towers. The barrier system had several curves in unique layouts with a gate on each side, and a 150-metre barrier line surrounded the arena floor. Because the band came through the audience to reach the stage, the integrity of the barrier was paramount. Mojo worked closely with Metallica's Dan Braun and the tour security team, who had particular requirements for the safety of the band and everyone working in the stage area.
When I joined the company seven years ago, there was already a strong relationship with Metallica's production team. They were one of the first to learn about Mojo's barriers and bring them to the US before the company had a US office. Patrick (Jordan) designed the aluminium barricade under the behest of Metallica, who were keen to have a safe, lighter weight touring system than the traditional steel barriers.
