Glass Spider Tour, David Bowie
A giant spider about 20 meters high as a structure for a stage? That's exactly what Mark Ravitz designed for the 1987 Glass Spider Tour with which David Bowie promoted his album Never Let Me Down . At the time, many did not understand this staging because, more than a conventional concert, it was conceived as a theatrical show with spoken words and even dancers choreographed by Toni Basil. The ambitious show, which could be seen during the month of July in both Madrid and Barcelona, eventually became one of the many milestones of his career.
'Saint Pablo Tour', by Kanye West
The rapper's Saint Pablo Tour could only be seen in the United States , but we would have loved to enjoy it in these parts because rarely has a staging as risky and minimalist as this one been seen. What you see in the images is exactly what happened: Kim Kardashian's husband climbed on top of a floating stage located under the audience that went up and down using a pulley system. So simple and visually effective. Many things can be said about Kanye, but no one can doubt that when he puts his mind to it he is capable of leaving his fans speechless.
'The Born this Way Ball', de Lady Gaga
On October 6, , a castle made an appearance at the Palau Sant Jordi in Barcelona. In it Lady Gaga put the focus of attention of her entire show, since the stage in question lacked screens and had several mobile elements as the main attraction. It is true that she could have gotten much more out of this scenery because after the initial shock it became repetitive, but no pop star has dared to emulate a concept as architecturally bizarre as that.
'Alive', de Daft Punk
Alive marked a before and after in the history of electronic music since it debuted at the Coachella festival on the night of April 26, . Right there, in the middle of the desert, many of the artists who would popularize it shortly after were present. the hedonistic current of EDM. XL Video was in charge of designing an LED curtain for the occasion that had a central pyramid from which the French robot duo launched the tracks of their songs. The show, which in Spain could be seen within the framework of the now defunct Summercase festival in Madrid and Barcelona, years later is still fresh in the memories of those who had the opportunity to witness it. Since then Daft Punk have not embarked on a tour again. They know they set the bar very high.
'Aubrey & the Three Migos Tour', de Drake y Migos
The Canadian Drake and the Americans Migos did not leave North America on their joint tour , which featured a spectacular design by the Perron studio. It had a yellow Ferrari that flew over the heads of the audience, ultra-realistic state-of-the-art 3D projections and up to 200 illuminated drones that reinforced the classic stage lighting. All that and much more is what both artists showed on this tour whose stage was located in the center of each venue.
'Reputation Tour', de Taylor Swift
, Taylor Swift debuted in stadiums with a bang. The show, which can currently be seen through the Netflix platform, avoided Spain from her roadmap. But even with those, seeing it from the comfort of home, one can only praise the work done by the TAIT team: the set had an automated LED video wall, two catwalks and secondary stages, as well as two flying gondolas with the that the artist could move from the main stage to the aforementioned secondary ones. There was even a gigantic snake that appeared among the audience. Even Swift's detractors had to say that this was a great show.
'The Wall Tour', de Pink Floyd
The famous Pink Floyd album had a tour that made those songs even greater. Between 1980 and 1981, the British paraded around the world a most theatrical set in which, to make reference to the alienation captured in the same concept album, a wall was built in real time with 250 bricks in front of the spectators. There is no doubt that the show has been one of the most ambitious in rock history. Such has been its importance that, from , it was recreated again in a new world tour designed by the aforementioned TAIT. Although yes, on that occasion Roger Waters led the baton alone.
'Sticky & Sweet Tour', de Madonna
This tour may not have marked a before and after in her career like the Blond Ambition World Tour of 1990 or the always elegant Confessions Tour of . However, and , thanks to the Sticky & Sweet Tour , the diva of Pop slipped into the list of the highest-grossing tours in recent history, reaching close to $500 million. Since the Drowned World Tour, her shows have exploited all technological possibilities, and this was no exception. Sadly, on July 16, , during the construction of the stage at the Stade Vélodrome in Marseille, two workers died and eight others were injured when one of the structures fell.
Tomorrowland
The Belgian electronic festival, since its beginnings , has been characterized by the spectacular nature of its main stage. Each year it radically changes its appearance and responds to a specific theme, but the Brilliant Stages team continues to improve itself in each edition. This company has also been in charge of creating the sets for other greats of the song such as Beyoncé and Jay Z or The Rolling Stones. Social networks burn in July when the design of this monstrous temple for DJs is revealed.
'U2 360° Tour', de U2
We could not finish this list without referring to the most pharaonic project of designer Willie Williams (who participates as a speaker at MadridDesignPRO ) together with architect Mark Fisher. The tour that the Irish made between and caused a sensation thanks to its stage, called The Claw. The structure, which resembled a spaceship with four legs, rose to 51 meters high and occupied almost half of the stadiums. Nothing so grand and spectacular has been seen in any other live show since.
Live concerts, especially those that take place in large venues, perfectly exemplify how technology and architecture are at the service of the public and entertainment. Over the last few decades, superlative shows have been enjoyed live in which design studios have created authentic aúpa sets for the occasion. The list of milestones is practically endless, but from here we wanted to select ten of the ones that have had the most impact on popular culture for various reasons. Some of them have not passed through Spain and we have only been able to see them through YouTube and other Internet channels, but the vast majority ended up in our country and, to this day, continue to be revered by the lucky ones who were able to get one of their sought-after tickets. Who said that music and architecture don't go together?
