Motörhead

Cambridge Corn Exchange – 23/11/09

I spent last night shooting rock legends Motorhead at Cambridge Corn Exchange. I very nearly didn’t make it: I received the press pass confirmation email in the afternoon and was due to work in Hunstanton until 7.15 that evening. Fortunately I managed to get home grab my camera bag and leave for Cambridge by 7.50 pm (and I only forgot my wallet!) and made it to the venue just as The Damned were belting out ‘Smash It Up’, a favourite of mine.

After getting my pass (with no problems or need of an email printout for a change) I tried to manoeuvre through the crowds. It was unbelievably busy (and sold out), and people were packed in like hairy, leather-jacketed sardines.  After about ten minutes I finally managed to force my way to the photo-pit and sat down with a few minutes to spare.

The pit was quite luxurious compared to others I’ve seen (I’ve been in photo-pits so tight that I once got my foot stuck!) so, when Motorhead arrived on stage, the other photographers and I could get around pretty easily without getting in each other’s way.

I’ll be honest, even though I’ve been a rock fan for more than 20 years, I’m not that familiar with Motörhead’s stuff, (though obviously I know all their big hits like ‘Ace Of Spades’ and, er…Ace Of Spades ) but I had heard that, due to the dry ice, it might be a challenge to get any decent shots. It was certainly tricky to get any contrast, as the fog made everything look washed out and soft, but I’m pretty happy with what I got in the allotted ‘3 songs, no flash’. What do you think?

I would have liked to get some shots of Matt Sorum (at least I assume it was him) on drums, but the only part of him visible was his hair. Never mind.

All images are available to purchase as archival prints. Please contact me for further information.

Ian Anderson performs Acoustic Jethro Tull

King’s Lynn Corn Exchange 16.09.09

For anyone unfamiliar with the name Ian Anderson, it’s likely that you’ve heard of his group ‘Jethro Tull’, for which he has been the driving force for the past 40 or so years.

The evening didn’t get off to a particularly auspicious start,  involving numerous walkie-talkie exchanges and the unheard of restriction of only being allowed to shoot from the side of the audience (and no further than the top of the stairs to ground level). This proved to be a bit of a problem as I had only packed my 17-55mm lens, so I decided to drive home & pick up ‘the Beast’, my Canon L-series 70-200mm IS lens. It meant I missed the first couple of songs, but at least I could get some close-ups and, as I was shooting the entire gig, I wasn’t too worried.

Probably best known for his wild-eyed, straggly-haired image and one-legged flute playing, Ian Anderson may have lost the hair, but he certainly didn’t disappoint in the flute-playing department; on several occasions chuffing into the flute whilst hopping about the stage like a man possessed.

The setlist for this evening of ‘Acoustic Jethro Tull’ favoured tracks from the band’s early days, such as ‘Fat Man’ and their 1968 reworking of ‘Serenade To A Cuckoo’ originally by Rahsaan Roland Kirk, a man whose innovative style Anderson borrowed heavily from in the early days. We were also treated to a version of Tull’s “worst song we ever wrote”- ‘Back To The Family’, which, considering it was recorded in 1969, hasn’t aged badly at all.

With a back-catalogue as extensive and varied as Jethro Tull’s it was always going to be a challenge keeping the entire audience happy, but most of the classic Tull tracks were there in one form or another- Aqualung and Bourrée going down particularly well with the audience. Another crowd pleaser was a Latin-flavoured solo performance from Anderson’s talented young guitarist, Florian Opahle.

Many of the songs performed were in much altered forms compared to the original versions, but the new arrangements worked well and, in many cases, served to breathe new life into the songs.  Anderson & Co’s performance was impressive and, on tonight’s evidence, suggests that, if indeed he is ‘Too Old to Rock ‘n’ Roll’, that may be no bad thing.

All images are available to purchase as archival prints. Please contact me for further information.

Model Shoots

I’ve been doing a few photo shoots with models lately, which, even though it’s quite a challenge, has been really enjoyable. My most recent shoot was with Filipino/British model, Tessa. The shoot was based on Tessa’s idea of a Rock ‘n’ Roll theme, which I was excited about, and it meant I got to bring along some of my own musical gear to use for props. The whole thing was done on location in a pretty grungy looking pub function room, ideal for a rock vibe, and it was lit with a softbox as the main light & either umbrella for fill or bare bulb for backlighting. I particularly enjoyed the fact that, as Tessa has such flawless skin, I didn’t need to do much Photoshopping afterwards!

Reepham Festival 09

I spent all day Saturday as official photographer at the Reepham Summer Festival, which was great fun. Basically, I just wandered about all day checking out different musicians and taking pictures. Nice! I was surprised by the quality of some of the acts I got to hear, and there was so much going on that I’m sure I missed some other treats. A particular highlight for me was when I made my way over to the church to see who was on and discovered a guitarist & percussionist performing classical & African tunes to a near empty room. I have no idea who they were, and they’re not listed on the program I was given, but I really enjoyed it. I was also impressed by the maturity of siblings Sam and Daisy’s performance, whilst the Buster James Band have obviously done this sort of thing for years, and knew exactly how to get the crowd going. I was convinced one of their fans, a pissed old codger (at least I assume he was pissed), was going to have a stroke as he shook his head from side to side at the front of the stage.

Hanzel Und Gretyl – Heil Hizzle Mein Nizzle

On Friday I was lucky enough to have the opportunity to shoot German-obsessed NY lunatics ‘Hanzel Und Gretyl’ at Camden Underworld. If you haven’t ever seen them live, HuG don’t just play a gig, they put on a spectacle, which, bordering on anarchy from the start, finally descends into total & utter chaos. Highlights of the show included the appropriately named Kaiser Von Loopy downing beer from a boot (and spraying a fair amount over the audience in the process) and the encore of “Fukken Über Death Party”, during which more than half the members of the audience were on the stage and holding Herr Von Loopy aloft. I’m sorry to say I didn’t catch any of the beer-flinging shenanigans, but I’m not sure my camera would have appreciated it. It’s fairly likely the Underworld cleaners weren’t impressed, but I can’t imagine any of the audience going home feeling short-changed.

From Rock City to Welborne Church

It’s been a hectic couple of days for me; yesterday was spent playing guitar with my Bro in Appalachian folk duo ‘Hellbilly Stew’ at Welborne church, which was a thoroughly enjoyable & civilised evening, and on Friday I made the two-hour trip to Nottingham to photograph legendary New York band Prong…

I’ve been a big fan of Prong since I was a spotty teen many years ago, so it was really exciting to have the opportunity to photograph them live. I’d heard there were two support acts and that doors opened at 7.30 so I wasn’t too concerned when I arrived at the venue at about 7.45. There was no band on & the stage was still being set-up so I assumed it would be quite some time before Prong took the stage. Unfortunately they proved me wrong. I had just managed to order a beer at the bar when I spotted mainman Tommy Victor pick up his guitar and start chugging away. No support bands, Nightmare! I had to grab my beer and leg it to the photopit (without spilling my pint) and start snapping. In my haste not to miss any photo ops I forgot to put my ear plugs in and, after feeling my eardrum flapping like a loose drum skin for 3 songs, I had to admit defeat and plug my ears (you wouldn’t believe the volume when you’re standing right next to the PA system!). Finally, hearing protected (and earning an all-knowing grin from Tommy), I managed to start shooting in earnest.

Whether the fact that Download had just begun had any impact on crowd numbers or not I don’t know, but for such a hugely influential band the room wasn’t as full as it should have been. Musically, the trio were incredible and played for two hours non-stop with the set including highlights from all their major releases from 1988 release ‘Force Fed’ to 2007’s ‘Power Of The Damager’. I wasn’t so lucky when it came to lighting; it was very dingy, with plenty of red light making things more challenging, but it was a great night nonetheless.  I even bought a Prong cap.

Oh, and feel free to spot the Prong song references

Shake Your Tail Feathers

I have just been honoured with the presence of a Peacock in the garden (he’s still here, honking away as I type). He’s visited us a few times over the past year, but this is the first time he’s graced us with a full display of his stunning tail feathers. It took a few minutes of following him around the garden on my knees, but I did manage to grab a few photos of him in all his glory.

Wasps

Had to remove a wasps’ nest from my shed this morning. Shame really as they’re quite incredible structures from the papery texture down to the hexagonal chambers. I’m not overly fond of wasps, they’re kind of like bees with the charm removed, but I felt a bit guilty removing their home.

Bees, on the other hand, I am rather fond of, to the point that I did a short bee-keeping course last year with the aim of having a couple of hives down the end of the garden. Haven’t managed to get set up yet, but the plight our honeybees are under has made me more determined to do what I can.

The nest in my shed