The Sound: Post Malone, beerbongs & bentleys
The Solution: Flames/Pyrotechnics (Special Effects)
The Science Behind it
With his versatile sound, wide range of musical collaborations and relatable, humble personality – it’s no surprise that Post Malone’s popularity has skyrocketed among multi-platinum artists and international listeners. His second album, beerbongs & bentleys, was the number-one album in 2018 and on its release day, garnered 48 million streams on Spotify. As his level of fame rose, so did the creative expectations for his first large-scale production: the beerbongs & bentleys tour. This being Post Malone’s first UK tour with possible legs across the world, the team brought in trusted global companies (including Tait Towers, PRG, Sound Moves, Fly By Night and Eat To The Beat) with strong reputations within the industry of delivering top-quality staging, sound, and special effects.
Enter Pyrotek. Pyrotek’s Effects Crew Chief, Gary Bishop; Laser Technician, Antoine Cholette; and Pyro Technician, Jacob Madeiros; made up the tour’s dynamic special effects division. The team worked to maximize the pyrotechnics display so that it complimented the thrust stage setup. “Fundamentally, pyrotechnics have to be a certain proximity from the audience and with a thrust stage setup, it’s difficult to get your distances in linear feet, so we were forced to be creative,” said Bishop. Post’s performances featured a setup that utilized outside dimensions of the stage setup or “Outer Rims” as Bishop coined the out-of-the-box configuration. Pyrotek secured flame effect units to a lighting truss suspended only 8ft above the ground, with several other effects (including lasers) being placed up-stage of the video walls along their outside edges as Malone’s unique setup did not allow for a conventional on-stage configuration.
Bishop utilized four of Pyrotek’s trademark Dragon Flame Units, four Dragon Heads, and four hi/low Flame Bars to assemble the look, cooking up 88 lbs of propane with each use (Pyrotek’s propane units were swapped for Le Maitre Salamander Quad Pros in certain UK arenas). In Malone’s Manchester kick-off, there was a variety of special effects utilized including two concussion hits, two line rockets and 64 red comets. In addition to this, 30 red mines, 24 silver comets and 12 white flares all shot 30 ft up into the air, while 24 sparkbursts sparkled at 24 ft. As Post worked through his set, the Pyrotek team increased the intensity using six 30W Kvant Laser Spectrum lasers for additional effect. “It added a really cool, raw, gritty element to the show,” said Bishop.
Post Malone’s beerbongs & bentleys UK tour was a great collaboration of partners and Pyrotek was very proud to be a part of the team. From pyro and lasers to lighting, audio and set design – Malone wowed audiences with each performance, solidifying his place as a top touring artist.
