Thankfully, I was asked to photograph the recent End Session for Seattle's 107.7 The End radio station. I wasn't familiar with Passion Pit and hadn't had the opportunity to see the Gibson Showroom before. Win win for me!
Lets start with the venue. This is a gorgeous location. The room is all set up with different Gibson equipment. I'd have to guess that it holds about 100-ish comfortably for a little intimate show. There are guitars and artwork handing on the walls and a beautiful piano when you first set foot into the venue.
Passion Pit was a wonderful surprise as well. During sound check Michael let the team know that someone needed to press a key on his keyboard so it didn't time out or he'd lose his settings. Sadie got the assignment. She dutifully sad on Michael's stool and hit a key every minute or so for about 15 minutes.
Two of the five band members were present for the 4 song acoustic set. Vocalist/keyboard/guitar Michael Angelakos and guitarist Ian Hultquist charmed the crowd with their performance and their humor. At one point Michael completely went blank and forgot the words during 'Sleepy Head'! Thankfully he wasn't shy and asked the crowd for the next line. Listener 'Sarah' called it out and he dedicated the rest of the song to her. He said he didn't care if you had sung a song 8,000 times, you'd forget the lyrics at some point.
July was a busy one! We had a show or two every single week. I'm exhausted going back and looking at all we did.
July 9, 2011: Puddle of Mudd w/ Klover Jane at 'Rockin on the River' festival, Clarkston, WA We left home early in the morning and got to town for the show, checked in for our passes and made our way back stage to see the Klover Jane gang. POM hadn't gotten to the stage area yet for us to see Paul and meet the new guitar player, Dizzy Devereaux, and new drummer, Shannon Boone. We'll meet them later on.
Klover Jane took the stage to a crowd that wasn't familiar with them at all. Rane Stone, the lead singer had also had a cold was wasn't feeling we but he pushed through and gave the crowd a great show. By the end of their set, the crowd was chanting 'Klover Jane' repeatedly. They gained a few fans that night!
Klover Jane
Puddle of Mudd took to the stage to a crowd that had been sunning and beering themselves for hours. The venue is a golf practice field right on the river so not only did they have paying fans, but fans on the Columbia river in their boats. It was a cool location.
The band had tons of energy and we really like the new additions to the band. Wes at one point though got all tangled up in his mic cord and fell. Paul had to help keep him down with a foot while the techs got him untangled and back up on his feet. He never stopped singing though. We got to shoot the first 3 songs from the pit area and then the rest of the show from side stage. Shannon gave me some great side stage shots when he stood up on his stool. Puddle of Mudd Photos - Clarkston, WA
Puddle of Mudd - 'She Hates Me'
July 12, 2011: Rockstar Mayhem Festival at the White River Amphitheater, Auburn, WA
I wasn't expecting to shoot this show at all. I didn't shoot the whole thing though. I was a work when I got a call that there was a photo pass waiting for me at will call. Needless to say, I left work, headed home for my gear and made my way out to White River.
I arrived in time to shoot Trivium, theheadliners on the second stage. This was a band I wasn't familiar with, but I liked photographing them. Great stage show and they had the crowd all amped up before heading over to the main stage for Machine Head. Trivium Photos
I really like to photograph Machine Head. They are such a different looking band. I told Mike that if he ever wanted to know what my father looked like, all he had to do was look at Robb Flynn! He is a dead ringer. I've got a great shot of Phil Demmel's hair going all over and an even better one of Adam Duce's. I'm not normally into the heavier side of metal, I'm more of a straight up rocker, but I really enjoyed them. Machine Head Photos
OK, I've seen Megadeth several times now and I'm still not an actual fan of the music, but I'm a great fan of their shows. They put on a great one. I love, love, love taking photos of Chris Broderick. Mike works a ton with David Ellefson, but Chris is my fave. He has the greatest faces when he plays. He's playful with the crowd and just looks like he loves his life. I'm still learning how to photograph Mustaine though. It's very seldom I get a shot that shows his whole face! I finally got to meet David Ellefson after the Godsmack set. He's such a nice guy. Megadeth Photos
This is my second time seeing Godsmack. I find myself saying "I'm not a fan" a bunch mainly cause this isn't my personal music scene and I'm still learning about the heavier side and finding the bands I do like in the genre. Godsmack, however, isn't one of them. I do however have a thing for bass players and Robbie Merrell is a GREAT one! Both Godsmack shows I've seen were at this venue and both times, the band hid in the upstairs green rooms and didn't mingle. I haven't heard many nice comments on Sully and I would have liked to see him interact and be proved wrong. I'm a positive person and like to see the good that must be in people somewhere! Although, they could have been proven correct as well. Hmmm.... Godsmack Photos
Disturbed is my enigma band. I've seen them a few times now and I actually like some of their songs, but not live. I'm continually bored with their overall show. Mainly I'm disappointed in David Draiman, the singer. He's boring on stage. He was better this time, but not enough. Yet again though, I loved John Moyer, the bass player. More often than not, those dang bass players save the day! Disturbed Photos
July 16, 2011: The Crying Spell at the Kirkland Performance Center, Kirkland, WA
The Crying Spell is one of my favorite local Seattle bands and this venue is one of my favorite to see them play. The Center is a newer working theater. They host band nights, plays, and other things. Stadium seating makes it easy for everyone to see and it's an all ages location. I'm able to take the kiddos with me, get them seated and make my way around to shoot. This makes for a great family night.
The band is a modern take on New Wave with a Rock twist. They've coined their style Mod Wave. Their guitar player - Eric Snyder (of Second Coming, Capitol Records) - is amazingly effortless in his sound. His effects always assist in conveying the Mod sound. Len Hotram and Chase Culp (of Point One, Adrenaline Records) on lead vocals and drums respectively and Jason Phraner (of Redlightmusic w/Peter Klett of Candlebox, DMI Records)on bass. This 4-some is one of the best around town. Their past experiences have made them grow in to a collective that is hard working, professional and all around good people. Catch them anywhere you can. There are great things on the horizon for this one peeps! Check out their Reverbnation page to hear some of their music and catch a video! The Crying Spell Photos
July 21, 2011: Jared Blake at Louie G's, Fife, WA Louie G's is a great local all-ages venue that promotes youth bands and other local acts. On occasion though, Louie books a national act. This one was a treat! Jared Blake from Season 1 of The Voice. I loved him on the show. I was sad when it didn't make it further. Jared was doing a solo set of shows on his way back home in Nashville. He is quite the story teller during his show as well which really makes the show more of a jam session. He is someone that really needs a break. The talent is there and he is a humble man. There is no ego to be found. Just good 'ole boy meets rock 'n roll with a hint of country. Support him if you find him making a stop in your town!
July 23, 2011: The Boise Music Fest with MC Hammer, Sugar Ray and Joan Jett Mike and I drove to Boise to attend the fest. This is a FREE festival and attracts upwards of 70K people to the Ann Morrison Park. The park is right along the river but doesn't have a ton of trees. This allows for the great sized crowd but makes it a little painful on a 90+ degree day at an all day festival. We were lucky enough to find a tree until Sugar Ray arrived and we went back to their trailer for a little air conditioning and visiting Mike's long time friends. He had worked for SR for 15 years.
It was time to go photograph MC Hammer. I'll be honest, I didn't think it would be a very good show and was more going to photography for the spectacle of it all. It was a spectacle, but it was a really great show too! Ann Morrison Park still has it - big time! The only ding on him is that he came on stage almost 15 minutes late which I will tie into the rest of the day later. MC Hammer Photos
Next up was Sugar Ray. I just love these guys. I loved them when I didn't know them and I still love them now that I do. The are the nicest guys you could ever meet. They love their fans and have several super fans that have now become friends. Mark and the guys never disappoint on the stage either. This was the first time I'd seen them since DJ Homicide decided to concentrate on just DJ'ing. This does free up the band to do more of their harder stuff from their 'Lemonade and Brownies' and 'Floored' days. Of course they still play their hits at shows, but I love it when they throw out 'Mean Machine'. It cracks me up to see the fans that don't know they started out as a Punk/Nu Metal band. They've added a percussionist named Al Keith. He's been a friend of Rodney's for years and was a natural fit to add some flare where it had been previously provided by DJ Homicide. Sugar Ray Photos
Last up for the night was Joan Jett. We saw her back stage on her way up to play and she is one tiny lady. Amazing so much rock comes out of that little frame! We got out to the photo pit only to find out that she was not allowing pro cameras. All I will say is that we saw why. They did allow me to go out there with my cel phone though. It has an 8meg camera so it was as good as a lot of point and clicks, but it was still disappointing not to be able to shoot with the SLR.
I'm going to stop here and do a blog dedicated to the last show of July. This is my discovery band of 2011 so far.... Out of L.A. - Le Butcherettes.
The June 2011 catch up blog will actually be broken out in to 2 blogs. This one is the shows I went to in the states and there will be a separate blog for the two things we attended in London so watch out for the London blog too!!!
06.03.2011: U2 & Lenny Kravitz at Qwest Field in Seattle, WA Well, I can say that I attended this show but I'd only be half correct. Mike was photographing the show while the kids and I waited outside the stadium and listened to the music. Since Qwest is an open stadium, we were able to enjoy the show from a patch of grass right outside. I do have to say that Live Nation was pretty damn brilliant when they decided to have actual merch booths OUTSIDE of the venue. I was able to buy myself a U2 T-shirt. So they still got my money even though I didn't buy tickets. Brilliant.
06.23.2011 KISS at the Everett Comcast Arena in Everett, WA We took the kids to this show and amazingly enough - Ryan stayed awake the whole time! It was due to the fire. I'm going to warn you that I'm about to pan this show. The fire was fine, the music was fine but we had been preparing the kids for the cool things they were going to see like Gene going up into the rafters and singing from up there and for Paul going across the crowd on a wire and singing from a little stage at the rear of the venue.... didn't happen. The arena was too small for those parts of the show. We were all pretty bummed about that. It was still good, but not great.
'Firehouse'
'Modern Day Delilah'
06.25.2011: Amanda Hardy at Louie G's in Fife, WA
You are going to see quite a bit of the young musician's we support from the Seattle/Tacoma area. Amanda Hardy is one of them. 14 years old singer, guitar playing songwriter.
06.28.2011 Jason Kertson & The Immortals at Louie G's in Fife, WA
Here is another one of the young musicians from the area. Jason Kertson is being mentored by Dave Mustain of Megadeth. Yip, he is. You can find tons of videos on Youtube.
Wow... We actually had a pretty calm month! BUT, I know what's coming - London. So I think we planned it this way.
05.06.2011: Loudness at The Boardwalk in Orangevale, CA
OK, I had no knowledge of this band at all. Why did we drive down to the Sacramento area for this show? Loudness is one of Mike's favorite bands. They are an 80's rock band from Japan and they seldom tour the states. This worked out perfectly cause we had plans in Reno the day after the show so we drove down a day early to catch Loudness in Sacramento then drove to Reno the next morning.
The place was packed. I stayed up front and snagged a pic from the bass player. There were a ton of people there that knew all the words to the songs. Mike was the only photographer allowed.
05.15.2011 Rammstein at the Tacoma Dome in Tacoma, WA
OK.. WOW is the only way to start off talking about this show. Are you kidding me? Crazy good music and even crazier good show. How they get away with some of their antics and show posters, I have no idea! Check out my video:
05.27.2011: Nolan Garrett at Louie G's in Fife, WA
We go from 80's rock to a young blues guitar player. Nolan is only 13 and is already opening up for Randy Hansen (The composer and Jimi Hendrix tribuite musician). Nolan plays a lot. if you have a chance to catch him, please do. The youth musicians in this area are really something to be excited about. There is a new generation of musician that really have bright futures and they all play styles that are just a little bit different from each other.
04.13.2011: System of a Down with Gogol Bordello at Key Arena in Seattle, WA OK, I was VERY disappointed that this show was no pro photographers at all. However, this rule provided some of the best entertainment that I've had at a concert. BUT this meant that Mike nor I got photo passes so I can't re-live this show through our photos. AND I still got a guitar pick even though I wasn't even close to the stage :)
The Story: We knew there were no photographers for this tour so when we saw a guy walk by with a tripod and camera gear, we watched. It took just a few minutes to see the guy get escorted to the rear of the floor surrounded by security. Then SOAD's personal security guard arrived along with their manager Beno (Beno brought me my pic). Mike asked him what was up. Summary of Beno's reply: He asked the guy who he was and who gave him the photo pass. Guys reply: Their manager. Beno: Really, Who is their manager? Guy: His name is xxxxx xxxxx (Not Beno) Beno: Interesting, cause I'm their manager and I didn't give out any photo passes Security: Escorts guy out of the building
This show was especially fun for me cause we brought the kids. Ryan and Elisa had a good time, but for the second time, Ryan fell asleep at a major, and loud, concert. I'm sure he was snoring the way he was sitting in his seat. He's also done that at an AIC concert at the Paramount. We were standing on the side and he sat on my feet and fell asleep for almost an hour. I don't know how he does it.
Both SOAD and Gogol left me wanting lots more. This was the second time I'd seen Gogol and they were just as much fun the second time around. SOAD was a first for me. I absolutely loved them. They didn't sing my favorite song, Vicinity of Obscenity, but they sang 29 songs total. 29! Here are some snapshots: SOAD/Gogol
04.14.2011: Deftones at The Paramount Theatre in Seattle, WA LOVE their energy. I still don't know enough of their songs, but you don't have to to enjoy this band. Here are some of Mike's shots from the 2010 & 2011 shows: Deftones/Chino Files 2010/2011 I was excited to see Dillinger Escape Project open, but they played in the actual dark which really wasn't fun at all.
04.16.2011: Record Store Day with Duff McKagen's Loaded at Easy Street Records on Queen Anne in Seattle, WA I had no idea that Easy Street had a stage behind the garage door at the back of the store. You literally stand between records to watch a band play. We love Loaded. Love the guys, love seeing them play any time we can. This is a band that we support big time. Please take the time to have a listen. Duff has been in Loaded longer than he was in GNR now. Pretty amazing. Here are my photos: Duff McKagan's Loaded - Easy Street Records - Seattle 4/16/11 I also have several videos up from the show on my Youtube channel: stefferzz1970 This one was my favorite video showing the garage door going up:
04.29.2011 S.Y.F.T. CD release show at El Corazon in Seattle, WA Syft are a local rock/metal band with a bunch of promise. The lead singer, Sean, is a very good front man. Great stage presence and he gets the crowd going. Technically they are a 4 piece but sometimes bring an extra guitar along. Photos: S.Y.F.T. CD release party @ El Corazon 04.29.2011
03.05.2011: Dokken & Sword of Judgement at the King Cat Theater in Seattle, WA
It's been 4 years since I met my husband and I still feel like I'm in Metal 101 class. Yes I have always known of Dokken, but I didn't know a single tune. It was a good time though and I got to continue practicing with my new camera.
Sword of Judgement is a young local band and had some good shredding going on. They are a throw back to the 80's style metal bands like Megadeth, Flotsam and Jetsam & Rage.
03.07.2011: Dirty Heads at El Corazon in Seattle, WA
I cannot praise this band enough!! Dirty Heads are amazing live. They and their fans are always full of energy. Good energy. Energy that is out to have a great time. This show was the first time I had seen them headlining with a sellout of their very own. It was completely packed in there. It was so hot that the security guards, stage right, were squiring the crowd with Super Sucker water guns to cool them off. I was luckily up on the second level, but I still had to keep and eye out for the water to my camera was ok.
Here's a video from the show - 'Check The Level' and 'Paint It Black'. There are several up on my Youtube channel: http://www.youtube.com/user/stefferzz1970
Opening for Dirty Heads was a new band to us called New Politics. We left fans of the band as well as the guys. They were super nice to chat with after the show. I'm sure you'll recognize their hit!
03.11.2011: Super Geek League at the King Cat Theatre in Seattle, WA
You really really have to see SGL to understand their so called Sci-Fi Punk Circus. Circus is a very good adjective. Take a punk band, dress them up like Geek super heroes, add in an aerobatics act, Go-Go dancers, a priest and a devil and you can just barely begin to understand this spectacle... To see what I mean, see the photos! Super Geek League - 03.11.2011
03.12.2011: Rock Out ALS with Pretty Enemy, Late September Dogs and History For Sale at Club Motor in Seattle, WA
First, Rock Out ALS, is a non-profit group who have a mission to raise money for ALS (Lou Gherig's Disease) research through Rock 'n Roll shows around the Seattle area. As always, this show featured some great local bands from the Seattle area. It is always a good time for a great cause.
I really don't need to say anything but DEVO. It's really all that needs to be said. If you've seen them live, you know. If you haven't, they put on a great show. You'd have no idea how old they really are! They move around like they are still in their 30's or 40's. You can see Mike's shots here:
This is one of my absolute favorite local bands. I really like this venue for them. Being that it's all ages, the theater seats make it easy for kids to be able to see (and last through) the whole show.
Please check out The Crying Spell if you have a chance. Here are a couple of videos to get you familiar with the band and their sound!
I was really excited to finally see Syztem7 live. I had seen pictures that Mike had taken of Jaymez and his head dress from an earlier show and wanted to see it in person. I did not disappoint. This thing is insane!
Syztem7 is an industrial metal band. They have a unique sound that I really enjoyed. It reminded me of my New Wave days but was much heavier. The singer had a good stage presence and the band in general was pleasing to look at with their uniformed look.
Next up was Texas Hippie Coalition. All I can really say is wow. I had never heard of the band and really had no idea what to expect. By their name, I did suspect that they would be a southern rock type of band and I wasn't far off. They were great performers and had the crowd roaring. It's not really not my type of music, but I can always appreciate a good show no matter the style. Check them out of they make their way back our direction!
This was an amazing day! I got my own photo pass!!!! I'll put up some photos from the show at the bottom of the blog!
We had to be there by Noon so we could get in and meet up with the KISW staff for instructions. I was going to be able to shoot the first 3 songs of each band and the interviews in the VIP section.
First band for each PITW show is a local act. This year - Post Modern Heroes. They got a pretty decent crown for being first up. I'd guess around 1,500 people had made their way into the show area. PMH killed it and made some new fans!!
Next up - My Darkest Days. You may know them from their song 'Porn Star Dancin'. I liked their look. Sol is just adorable. I know he'll hate that comment, but it's true!!
3rd - Drowning Pool. Hot damn they were awesome. I can't believe I got to shoot these guys!!! Ryan made his way into the crowd for 'Bodies'. Talk about insane. Mike went right in after him to get some killer shots!!! Sadly, this was just a day after Ryan's son had a tragic injury that he will be recovering from for a very long time.
4th - Sevendust!!!!!!!!!!!! I love them. I love Lajon. I love Vinny. I love Morgan. I love Clint. and I love John. They are just great great guys. They played a good set but I had to leave right after my 3 songs in the pit to make it to the VIP area to see PMH doing their on air interview with KISW.
5th - Puddle of Mudd. This band is the reason I even wanted to be at this show. I have a huge crush on Wes. They did not disappoint me at all! I had never seen them live before and I'm so glad I did! I was also lucky enough to get an all access pass from Shinedown so I was able to go backstage for the rest of the show. It made it much easier to stay with Mike and see the remaining shows from the side stage.
6th - Black Label Society: They are a bit harder than I like, but they were entertaining. I liked taking photos of them.
7th - Shinedown: For me, the set was a little too up and then down. They have such a diverse portfolio but I would have lumped the ballads together. I found the crowd was a little down during some up the rockin' tunes. Rockin', ballad, rockin' ballad. It's just too up and down. I didn't watch too much after my 3 songs. We ran in to Vinny backstage and had a great visit. Southern men can be so damn charming!
The 8th and final band of the night were Godsmack. They really aren't my kind of band either. Their lighting was pretty bad so my pictures were not the greatest. Sully is quite the front man though. The crowd was very into it.
If you haven't heard of this little gem of a metal band out of Boise, you should really get familiar with them!! I'll have a link to one of their official videos at the bottom.
Half The World are a much heavier femail lead band. The lovely Mary Magill leads this band of talented musicians. We've seen Half The World several times and have even traveled to Boise to see them in their home town.
Having them open for Karnivool in Seattle was a big treat! We didn't have to travel to far and Mike was able to shoot Karnivool! The kids and I didn't stay for the bands after Half The World though. It was a school night still. We just wanted them to be able to see Mary and the guys.
As usual, Mary didn't disappoint. She always sounds great. And the guys always sound heavy!!! Rock horns to you all!!!!!!!!!!!
This was the only stop we had to make on our family vacation to Mt. Rushmore and back. Sorry, but I don't have any pictures or video to add to this blog :( . We checked in to our hotel and made our way over to the venue. This was the first concert that we were taking both kids to.We ran in to Audie Grantham, drummer of Since October, outside and I got my introduction hug from him. Little did he know, the kids also had a gift for him and Ben. Mike & Ike's! Their favorite candy.
This was our first time to this venue. It looked pretty much like the Boise Knitting Factory on the inside. It has a 21+ section as well as all ages. I like venues like this. The kids and I were escorted to our own little section of the balcony where the bands can watch the bands on stage. Ryan was beyond excited to see Arejay Hale from Halestorm.
This was the first time we had seen New Medicine. They were great. They are a little punk band with Linkin Park mixed with a little Green Day. Check out their CD 'Race You To The Bottom' from Photo Finish Records. The whole CD is great. I believe iTunes has a few bonus songs that aren't on the physical CD.
Since October is just a fabulous live band. Ben's dreds a full stage usage made him a lead singer that you can't take your eyes off of. Luke flicked a pick up to me in the balcony. How did he know I have a pick collection. I will see them play anytime they are in the Pacific NW! :)
Adelitas Way was much better than the first time I saw them earlier in the year. I absolutely love watching the guitar player Creighton Bibbs. He's my favorite part of the band. The singer doesn't do much for me. Nice voice but just kinda blah on stage.
Halestorm, as always, is just the absolute best. There isn't one thing about that band that ever disappoints. Lzzy's vocals, Joe's guitar, Josh's bass and Arejay's drumming are always, always amazing. I couldn't wait for the kids to see Arejay's drum solo for the first time. The kids mouths dropped when they saw Arejay start to drum with his baseball bat sized sticks. Arejay's drum tech (his dad Roger) came over and tossed up drum sticks for myself and the kids. It was a really fun night. One I'm sure the kids will remember for a long time.
Luckily, we know the Dirty Heads so we were set up to shoot them. Yes 'we'. This time, I got a photo pass as well. I found it facinating that we were the only photographers there! For Sublime??? And Dirty Heads at the time had a #1 song on Billboard!! Oh well, the venue was a sell out and both bands were just amazing!
We were able to meet the tour manager for both bands and got full access to both shows. Back stage, on stage and around the crowd.
I was happy to see that a lot of the crowd new The Dirty Heads music. They are still pretty new on the scene. They are a blend of beach, ska, hip-hop and punk. Jared and Duddy are share vocals and Duddy is the lead guitar. At one point, Jared started to giggle and pointed out 3 girls who were at the back of the dance floor hula-hooping. He asked them to come on stage an hoop during their song 'Lay Me Down'. That was so fun!
When Sublime took the stage, the crowd erupted. Rome is not Bradley, but he has his own style and respects what Bradley did. I absolutely loved seeing them play.
If you have the chance to see either of these bands play, please do. You will have a great time letting go and having an absolute blast. You may also get a contact high - There was plenty of that in the air that night!
