January 2012
1 post
2011: My Favorite Music Related Things/People/Etc.
Yes, I know I haven’t shot as many shows as I did last year and definitely have not been posting on my blog as often as I should be. But that won’t stop me from compiling a year end list that will polarize & alienate my readers. Without further ado:
St. Vincent covering Big Black at Bowery Ballroom - Legendary performance
Spending the day with Tokyo Police Club before and after...
December 2011
1 post
The Like @ LaGuardia High School Gym (2/12/2011)
A couple of weeks after I shot Lee Fields & The Expressions at Bowery Ballroom I saw Tennessee Thomas hanging out in the bar downstairs. Tennessee is the drummer of The Like, whose last album ‘Release Me’, saw the band shift into a 1960’s style complete with brit-pop guitar, hand claps, and 60’s style girl group vocals. Easily one of my favorite albums last year. I...
October 2011
1 post
August 2011
1 post
WatchI shot the band Peelander-Z for two days on the Warped Tour. Here’s a video to prove it. (Best to watch it in HD & full screen)
July 2011
3 posts
5 tags
Superchunk / Off! / Lemuria @ House of Vans...
I last shot Lemuria this past winter at the Don Giovanni showcase and really liked them. So I made it a point to catch their performance with Superchunk and Off! at The House of Vans. To be really honest, I was most excited to see Lemuria. While I’m a Superchunk fan, I never heard of Off! so I didn’t know what to expect.
Getting my gear ready for the show, the battery cover hinge on...
5 tags
Ted Leo & The Pharmacists / Screaming Females @...
If Nirvana and The Jimi Hendrix Experience had a baby, it would be Screaming Females. This intense punk rock power trio are not only one of my very, very favorite bands to see live, but on a personal level they’ve always been generous in giving me access to them off and on-stage. So, I’m always looking forward to them coming to town.
I got to the Seaport about an hour early to hang...
6 tags
No Age / HEALTH / Cults / Ceremony @ House of Vans...
The House of Vans warehouse in Brooklyn is a great venue to see bands. Nice big stage, large photo pit, and free beer and food! For me, as a photographer, the only complaint is that their lighting can be a little more backlight driven than I’d prefer (ie. Lots of silhouettes). It’s a minor quibble, however as the lighting is better than most venues.
Right out of the box, the crowd...
June 2011
4 posts
4 tags
Fucked Up/JEFF The Brotherhood/Iceage @ 285 Kent...
I think that the hottest ticket this week was the Fucked Up/JEFF The Brotherhood/Iceage show at 285 Kent. Fucked Up was not officially on the bill until after their appearance playing with Dinosaur Jr. at Terminal 5 had happened. However, this was the worst kept secret of the week, as JEFF has been touring with F’ed Up. Even the listing of ‘ke dcupfu’ on the Facebook event...
Northside Festival - Day 2 (6-17-2011)
On Friday, I went to McCarren Park to catch Yellow Ostrich, Sharon Van Etten, and Beirut. I didn’t shoot the show (outside of about 10 photos), but I did hang out with some friends, post-rainstorm/double rainbow. The organizers and crew did a bang up job because not only did all the bands start on time, but they all sounded great! Speaking of sound and friends, I saw sound man...
Northside Festival - Day 1 (6-16-2011)
I really wasn’t planning on attending the Northside fest this year. I was considering heading to The Governors Ball and maybe meeting up with some friends… But, fate had different plans for me. Turns out that I won a festival badge through the @VoiceStreet. And now that I live in Greenpoint, all of the venues were well within walking distance of each other and from my house. So, on...
Japanther 10th Anniversary show w/Shellshag &...
The night started off pretty crappy for me. It was raining. I got there at 8pm, only to have the show start at 9:30 (not 9pm as it was listed on the web). I wasn’t on the list, so I was forced to buy a ticket or wait out in the rain for an hour while it was settled (I chose the former). And then I had to deal with a security guard with a stick up his fucking ass.
Normally, I don’t...
May 2011
3 posts
5 tags
Our Concert Could Be Your Life @ Bowery Ballroom...
A couple of months ago, Michael Azerrad asked if he could use one of my pictures of Delicate Steve on his blog. It was impossible to say no to the guy… well, because he’s Michael Azerrad. Michael is the author of Our Band Could Be Your Life, a chronicle of some of the most important bands of the indie scene in the 80’s, like Minor Threat, Sonic Youth & Fugazi. The book...
5 tags
Sleigh Bells+CSS w/Princeton @ Bowery Ballroom...
I shot Sleigh Bells at HARD fest last summer on Governors Island and they were terrific. However time can be deceiving as I forgot how much of a challenge they were to photograph. Their stage lighting consists of very bright strobey back lighting combined with a fog machine… and no (if very little) front lighting (a crew member joked that they are allergic to light). This is one of the...
Titus Andronicus w/ The Suzan & Dinowalrus @ Music...
I haven’t been so excited about seeing and shooting a show in a while. Titus Andronicus blew me away when they opened for the Pogues on St. Patrick’s day and I couldn’t wait to see them with a rowdy crowd that were all 100% TA fans.
As usual, the lighting at the venue was hit or miss at MHoW. Dinowalrus was basically playing in the dark, so I took roughly 35 shots of them...
April 2011
1 post
LCD Soundsystem w/Shit Robot @ Terminal 5...
I had been begging to shoot LCD Soundsystem’s last show at MSG. But sadly, it wasn’t in the cards. However, I got to shoot night 3 of their 4 night residency at Terminal 5. As it turns out, I probably had more fun shooting at T5 than I would have at MSG.
I had friends attending the concert who got there early enough that they were up against the barricade. BV commenters know one of...
March 2011
10 posts
1 tag
Starscream @ The Studio at Webster Hall...
It’s been a while since I’ve been to a show where I paid to get in, but Starscream is always worth seeing and i figured I had nothing else to do thanks to a Netflix Instant outage. But seriously, I’ve seen/shot Starscream three times now, and I really like them. You may remember my mentioning them to a member of Harvey Milk previously. They are getting a lot of exposure due to...
6 tags
The Pogues w/ Titus Andronicus @ Terminal 5...
It’s rare that a headliner goes on before 10 o’clock at a large venue in this town, but ‘A Parting Glass’ with the Pogues was an early show compared to most. Maybe because it was St. Patrick’s Day (you don’t want to keep a bunch of drunks waiting). Or was it because Shane MacGowan likes an early bedtime? I’m not sure. All I know is that Titus...
Bear Hands / Johnossi / Dinowalrus @ Knitting...
I met writer Kristen Y. Kim at the Cult of Youth Record Release show a couple of weeks ago. She contributes to TheMorningAfterPills.com and I told her if she ever needed a photographer to cover a cool show to let me know and Bear Hands turned out to be that show.
The lighting was a little dimmer than normal for the Knit, but workable. During Dinowalrus’ set, there were only a few dozen...
Harvey Milk w/Occultation @ Union Pool (3/13/2011)
After walking around a desolate Coney Island earlier in the day, I made my way to Williamsburg to catch Harvey Milk at Union Pool. It was my first time shooting at Union Pool and I really like the layout. Nice spacious bar area, a backyard garden complete with a Taco Truck and a wading Pool that doubles as a BBQ pit in the colder months. The theater is a third area separate from the other two...
5 tags
Ty Segall / Heavy Cream / Liquor Store / Home...
My Nashville buddies, Heavy Cream, returned to New York for one day to play with Ty Segall at Death By Audio (a venue I had yet to shoot). The show space is about 1.5x the size of Maxwell’s in Hoboken and only half as dark. While there was lighting, but it was dim enough to need a flash. Especially to get pictures of the moshing that took place.
When I started shooting the first band, Home...
Oh Land / Icona Pop / Friends @ Tammany Hall...
When I shot Darwin Deez a few weeks ago at Bowery Ballroom, I met the band Friends, who mentioned to me that they were on a bill with a very buzzworthy Oh Land (a.k.a. Nanna Øland Fabricius) and that it was going to be a fun show. For some reason, I thought that the show was taking place on the March 4th, but I was wrong. But thankfully, I got in to the sold out show.
I got to the venue...
5 tags
Lupe Fiasco Album Release Concert @ Webster Hall...
In my experience, Hip Hop shows usually have nice bright lighting which suggests success & glamour. I’ve gotten some stellar pics shooting artists like Jay-Z, Snoop Dogg, A Tribe Called Quest, & Die Antwoord and I was hoping that I’d have the same luck with Lupe Fiasco, who has just released a new album.
I knew this was going to be a crazy crowded show (it was sold out), so I...
The Get Up Kids / Miniature Tigers / Brian Bonz &...
Wednesday was just another one of those days where I had nothing to do and on a whim I pitched a couple of shows to BV last minute. Surprisingly, no one was covering The Get Up Kids at Webster Hall. No, seriously! Well, needless to say, I pounced on it.
When I got to Webster, I found that didn’t have a photo pass. Instead, I had an V.I.P. and an All-Access pass. Jackpot! I checked in...
Marnie Stern / Tera Melos @ Santos Party House...
As previously mentioned, one of my favorite moments last year was shooting Marnie Stern at The Brooklyn Vegan Saturday Day party during CMJ. Afterward I took a couple of portraits of the band and chatted with them. Real nice group of people. Marnie & Co. put on a great show and I was more than happy to see them again. However, it slipped my mind that they were back in town and I almost...
So So Glos / Lady Lamb The Beekeeper / Bow Ribbons...
Lady Lamb The Beekeeper (aka Aly Spaltro) is playing a Brooklyn Vegan Showcase at SXSW and BV was interested in giving her some coverage beforehand, so I was asked to shoot “The Rumble”. A show curated by TheWildHoneyPie.com. You know, the guys that brought you Tokyo Police Club playing out the back of a box truck in the snow. So I got there early to hang with Eric (who runs that...
February 2011
7 posts
6 tags
Cult of Youth Record Release Party w/Mueran...
I was bored at home ready to dig into playing video games all night when BBG from BrooklynVegan pitched a last minute assignment. A record release party at Secret Project Robot (ie. the basement of Monster Island - 210 Kent Ave in Brooklyn). I didn’t have a good reason to say no… so I took it.
I got their early enough for sound check and was surprised to see Violinist-extrordinare...
4 tags
Neko Case & Michael Showalter @ Barnes & Noble's...
I was asked last minute to shoot an in-store appearance of Neko Case & Michael Showalter hosted by Katherine Lanpher the Barnes & Noble in Union Square. Since I was there officially, I pretty much had the run of the place and was free to move about the 4th floor pretty freely. Neko performed 4 songs and Michael Showalter read a few very humorous passages from his book ‘Mr. Funny...
3 tags
Yann Tiersen w/Orchestra @ Highline Ballroom...
My first assignment at Highline Ballroom this year. I love shooting there, because the lighting is usually really good and the security staff is super nice (a big shout-out to Vincent Rispoli and his team). One thing I’m totally not used to is the 2 hour gap between the doors opening and the start of the performances. Standing around for 2 hours can get a little boring. But, fortunately...
The Don Giovanni Showcase @ Music Hall of...
I’ve been looking forward to the Don Giovanni showcase for months! Screaming Females are easily one of my favorite live bands and to see them with four other fun bands was a treat. I bought a ticket not even planning to shoot the show, but at the last minute, I approached Brooklyn Vegan to see if they had anyone covering it. They didn’t, so I did. My photography buddy Sharese...
Adele @ P.C. Richard Theater (2/11/2011)
For most concert photography assignments, my plan is to get there early. For the most part it’s so I can beat the crowd and secure a spot. Plus, in this case, I had never shot at the P.C. Richard Theater (in the AT&T Long Distance Building in Tribeca) and didn’t know the layout.
For whatever reason, trains were running sloooooow. A trip that would normally take 30 minutes took an...
4 tags
Tapes 'n Tapes/Oberhofer/Xylos @ Music Hall of...
I’ve shot Xylos a couple of times in the last year and have gotten friendly with them over the last year. They are always asking me to shoot their shows and always have complementary things to say about my pics… which gives me a little incentive to shoot them. I caught Oberhofer at the BV Day Party during CMJ, but had yet to see Tapes ‘n Tapes. So, off I went to the concert with my...
Super Bowl Sunday in Hoboken (2/6/2011)
I got a last minute assignment from Hoboken Patch to cover Super Bowl happenings at various Hoboken bars. I didn’t have a real plan. Since Hoboken seems to have a drinking establishment on every corner… and then some, I figured ‘how hard could it be to find some action’? Now, don’t quote me on this, but a high school friend of mine who went to Stevens Institute once...
January 2011
4 posts
3 tags
Tokyo Police Club/Two Door Cinema Club @ Terminal...
Last Friday, I got to spend the day with with Tokyo Police Club which is not only one of my favorite live bands, but some of the nicest guys I’ve come across in my music photography adventures. They were in town co-headlining Terminal 5 with Two Door Cinema Club.
I met them bright and early Friday morning at their tour bus (which were parked in the back of T5) where they had just woken up...
3 tags
Rubix Kube w/Debbie Gibson & Tiffany @ The Canal...
For those in the audience that came to the Canal Room on Saturday night looking for even a little tongue-in-cheek cattiness between Debbie Gibson and Tiffany referencing their 80’s ‘rivalry’… that wasn’t gonna happen. For those who came to see a catfight on stage… well that’s just stupid. “Sorry to disappoint you guys, but we love each other.”...
5 tags
Anamanaguchi/Peelander-Z/Starscream @The Studio at...
Last year, I saw Peelander-Z at Santos Party House and it was one of the best shows I’ve ever been to. If there was a Grammy Category for Most Entertaining Live Act Peelander-Z would absolutely be a nominee. So when one of my favorite live bands were added to the bill performing alongside two of the best (if not the best) 8-Bit/chiptune bands out there, it became a must see show for...
4 tags
Lee Fields & The Expressions @ Bowery Ballroom...
Last August, Mr. Fields joined Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings on stage during Celebrate Brooklyn and it was probably the best show I saw all year. So I jumped at the chance to shoot him again. Seeing and shooting Lee Fields & the Expressions was a good way to start off the new year.
Before I continue. I’m going to try and update my blog on a regular basis this year (yeah, I’ll...
December 2010
2 posts
30 tags
My Favorite Shows of 2010
In 2010 I shot 242 different bands and 276 different performances. The majority of which were within the span of the last 6 months. These were some of my favorites in chronological order.
RJD2 @ Highline Ballroom (3/7/2010)
RJD2’s 2002 album ‘Deadringer’ is an amazing hip-hop record. And his live show was pretty damn great. The crowd went crazy when he started performing...
FYI...
I don’t post in the comments section on Brooklyn Vegan and I certainly don’t feel the need to attack or defend myself against anonymous commenters. Just thought you should know. Laters!
September 2010
1 post
Fun in the Media Tent at Electric Zoo 2010
Glitch Mob
Sander Van Doorn
Sharese Ann Frederick
Taylor Hill
Ben Hider
Me
August 2010
1 post
April 2010
1 post
Eddie! Eddie!
Yesterday, I got to see first hand what it’s like to be a paparazzi er… a celebrity photographer. I meet up with Ben Hider, a freelance contributing photographer, who was staking out the side entrance to the Ed Sullivan Theater to shoot arrivals to The Late Show with David Letterman.
This is Ben, by the way. I met Ben at All Points West and even talked about him in my article that...
March 2010
1 post
As usual I don't have anything to write about.
Well, what’s going on in the world of Andrew St. Clair?
I updated my Verizon Droid to 2.1 all by myself.
I downloaded the ‘Stimulus Package’ map pack for Modern Warfare 2.
After a year of driving myself crazy and buying cheap sunglasses, I bought some mirrored Ray Ban Aviator sunglasses.
I bought Pinball Hall of Fame: The Williams Collection for just $9.99 at Gamestop
...
January 2010
1 post
Happy New Year, I Guess.
So, last night, I was on assignment taking pictures for a club promoter at Element in NYC. It’s a pretty large venue set inside an old National Bank built in the 19th Century. Basically, I’m supposed to shoot people posing for the camera. However, I’m also considered a guest and don’t need to be shooting every second either.
If New Year’s Eve did anything it...
December 2009
1 post
November 2009
1 post
October 2009
6 posts
6 tags
WatchI’m kind of obsessed with Eric Cartman’s version of Lady GaGa’s ‘Poker Face’.
Firefox (currently) sucks
For the last couple of months, the quality of Firefox on my iMac has degraded to the point that it doesn’t work properly on 30 percent of the sites I go to. Including YouTube (controls don’t work half the time until I refresh/F5), Facebook (uploading pictures is nearly impossible) and now Tumblr (wouldn’t navigate at all). I should also mention that it takes forever to start up...
4 tags
