mikesaid: June 2014

Monday, June 23, 2014

Band of Skulls - HiFi, Melbourne 17.06.14

I have seen Band of Skulls twice before tonight, the first time was when I photographed them waaaay back in May 2010, see the set here. And again in July 2012 but I wasn't photographing.

They have recently released their third album called Himalayan and this makes three fucking great albums in a row from them - which is unheard of in this day in age* I don't really want to compare them to Led Zeppelin because I recently had a listen to Led Zep I, II and III and I find them to (mostly) be a bunch of pretentious wankery. But, I think Band of Skulls is Led Zeppelin without the wank... maybe? (this is why I take photos and don't review) I can't believe that drummer Matt Hayward was overlooked when Led Zeppelin reformed and they instead went with Bonzos son, Jason, who basically shot his drum jizz all over the place with out any real finesse - and also, more importantly, Matt has a beard:

Jason

Matt

anyway....

Band of Skulls comprises of Russell Marsden on Guitar and Vocals, Emma Richardson on Bass and Vocals and the previously mentioned Matt "I'm better than Jason Bonham" Hayward on Drums. They are from Southampton in the UK (despite what the gig board tells you at the HiFi in Melbourne) and have been around since when they formed as a band.

I found the HiFi to be a bit 'boxy' for them - they have sounded better the last couple of times I saw them but having said that I did watch most the gig from the front/side. There were loads of 'togs (that's industry lingo for photographers, not bathers, swimmers or trunks) so I thought I'd take a punt and shoot the first song from this great vantage point for shooting with a zoom that the HiFi offers - I then made my way through the crowd to the photo pit for the rest of the 3 songs we are given...

FUN FACT 1: Emma Richardson is an artist: Check it out
FUN FACT 2: My son LOVES the band and will crack the shits (even in his sleep) if we turn it off in the car (it will also calm him down).

So we have learnt some important stuff today:

Band of Skulls are great, and if you like rock music, you should listen to them.
Jason Bonham has a lot of drum jizz, but with very little finesse and has made a career on his fathers name (who was a excellent drummer B.T.W.)
Matt Hayman should have drummed for Led Zeppelin on their 'comeback' shows.
I should just stick to photogracizing.

* I have no idea if this is true.

Photos! and videos!!!

Now for some videos from their current album.

Wednesday, June 18, 2014

Hi.

Hello, firstly I'd like to apologise to my loyal reader for my absence... it's been a crazy first half of 2014 - I made a planter box and my partner and I had a beautiful baby boy named Theodore - he's awesome. If you follow me on instagram you may have noticed this.

So I am back in the saddle, on the wagon so they say. Speaking of Wagons, (did you see what I did there?) they have released a new album called Acid Rain and Sugar Cane and my photography features throughout it's pages. I didn't shoot the cover this time - that honor went to Kane Hibberd who also shot the band photo you see on the back of the album.

The new album is fantastic, it fits nicely into the music genre 80's Country, well for me anyway. I seem to recall hearing it on my mums record player in 1986 when I was nine, but that can't be true.

They are currently on tour promoting their new album and rolled through Melbourne recently with Jonny Fritz (USA) and fellow Melbournite Fraser A Gorman as support. I arrived early enough to start on the rider before anyone got there and finally got to see backstage at the HiFi (it's basically a wobbly staircase leading to a room with 2 couches, 1 frudge and a table. And a floor). It's been a long while since Wagons played a full band show in Melbourne, as usual it was fantastic - I really enjoy photographing for a band instead for a publication because you usually get AAA access, this provides two things: I get to capture the show documentary style, I can take time with my shots and I also think that a gig gets more interesting to shoot as the night progresses. With the usual 3 song rule that can be imposed on shooters means you end up with 800 photos quickly fired off hoping that you may get 50 or 60 decent ones, and 5 killer shots. Number two - I'm not going to lie, it's nice to feel important.

So time for pics and videos (I still remember the format!)

Photos included in the new Wagons album artwork:

Videos!

Jonny Fritz:

Fraser A Gorman:

Wagons: