Unexpected Whiskey – The Someday Tour

It feels like Lego Land on Kirschentalgasse today.  Boxes on top of boxes stacked near boxes waiting to be filled.  The sum total of a life fully lived doesn’t necessarily equal more stuff and I am surprised to see that I don’t actually have that much to pack.  I think I’m going to be able to squeeze everything that I’m storing into 10-12 boxes and will probably only need to ship 5-6 east. The cats are starting to realize that something is about to happen to them and so is their Alpha Kitty.   If everything can be packed by next weekend then it is quite possible I will be able to enjoy my last days in the Tirol with my friends so I’m feeling motivated.

On Friday I was lucky enough to have 2 photo shoots…one for a financial services company whose preparing to plaster my work on billboards and bus stops all over the Tirol.  It’s a new kind of work for me and I underestimated the effort it would require, but it’s challenging and (hopefully) lucrative.  I’ll be in Asia when the campaign goes live but I’m hopeful some friends will snap some pix and send some newspapers so I can see how it looks.

The second shoot was the polar opposite to the first…freeform instead of careful calculation.  I got to participate in an interview and subsequent rock show with Damo Suzuki, a 60 year old Japanese man who was very important to the Krautrock movement and has been on tour forever.  He was a gracious and interesting man and I’m looking forward to reading (and sharing) Brad’s interview for MOLE when it’s published.  Here are a couple images from the night…if you’d like to see them all, click here.

Damo Suzuki & mord @ pmk

Damo Suzuki & Mord - Innsbruck, Austria

Saturday entailed a whole lot of photo editing and some big denial about the packing that I promised I would begin.  I decided to procrastinate the inevitable with some whiskey at Innkeller and decided that as soon as I assemble a band to back me and my uke I am going to call us ‘Unexpected Whiskey.’  In my experience it is often the best variety.  Unexpected whiskey often leads to late nights as was the case last night so today, Sunday, didn’t get rolling until well into the afternoon.

Magically, NPR woke me with some tunes that had me packing boxes like a championship box-packer so what might have been a wash was actually a productive day. 

  Don’t see the link?  Click here.

Back to Lego Land for me…I may have just taped Doozer into a box of art supplies and need to stop multi-tasking.

In My Head

I just read this article on the BBC about how swearing helps relieve pain.  That’s fucking awesome.  It could also be one of the reasons why I sometimes feel so good.  I swear like a truck driver, you know.  Yelling ‘F#ck!” at the top of your lungs can be a deeply satisfying response whether it be for a toe stub or a well-done presentation…good and bad really have nothing to do with it.  This morning I am considering yelling at the top of my lungs while I sit in traffic on my way to work…really shaking the foundation and trying to figure a way out of my head.

I have been in my head, spinning, stuck for the last 2 weeks.  It’s true that I need focus right now and it’s true that I need concentration but fuck! I’m making myself nuts.  I think there is a limit to how many episodes of 6 Feet Under a person can watch in a row before the seams begin to unravel.  It’s good that there is so much work to be done right now as that seems to be my only respite of sanity.

The 2010 calendar for 20er magazine has commissioned my perspective on asylum-seekers in Tirol…a new publication about the Media landscape in Tirol is offering me my first cover…pmk is hanging some of my images for thier 5 year birthday party on Friday and the BIG WHEELS at Swarovski are turning like Proud Mary.  All is well and, yet, I still feel like screaming at the top of my lungs.  Go figure.

I didn’t share an update to last Friday’s adventure with Grandmaster Flash mostly because he was a douchbag.  The set was something for a senior prom in Tampa, FL or something egually as lame.  He is both a sell-out and a condescending prick so I guess it’s cool that he sucked….here’s a favorite pic from the night but check the rest here.

Grandmaster Flash @ Poolbar - Feldkirch, AT

Here’s a little tune to get things rolling today…been a while since I dj’d for you.  Click it!

Show for the Road

i stink like smoke.

my trigger finger hurts.

it’s almost 4am and im still not packed.

the last few days were a total whirlwind and in 4 hours ill head to the airport to head to frankfurt and then new jersey.  i actually got a paying/publishing picture gig though so i decided to throw caution to the wind and go rock modeselektor than stress my impending journey.  i mentally packed and that’s a good way to prepare.  the idea of leaving the digs squeaky clean for my buddy watchers went out the window so my fingers are crossed they are forgiving and non-judgemental types.  as soon as the pix are up and at ‘em i swear im gonna get packing.

so the show tonight was awesome.  im not in love with technoy house music but im realizing that there are varieties that move me.  my project for lomo of shooting digital music with analogue film is challenging but i think its gonna be fun to work on.  the guys that played tonight impressed me in Ferropolis for Melt Fest last year and I was loooking forward to seeing them again…here’s a little taste for us while my pix upload.

alright.  i really ought to get my head out of my ass and sort things out so i can catch a little sleep before its time to rally.  take a look at my favorite shots from tonight right here and, if you are feeling it, click here for the whole set.  my vip access allowed for some stage shooting which was fun and helped me avoid the champagne shower the rest of the crowd got.  these guys really impress me.  next time i think ill leave my camera home and shake my ass instead :)  There was an opener and some film shots but Im gonna sort that stuff out later on…

something about this last shot reminds me of the big lebowski.  anyway, im off now…not sure if ill be by here when im hopping between new jersey, arizona and florida (plus 3 other states on my hilarious flight itinerary) but you never know…

If You Want to Sing Out, Sing Out

There’s a million things to be…you know that there are.

  (Dont see the player?  click here)

I had good intentions to get outside today but a surprisingly late night last night and a surprisingly large amount of photos this morning kept me pretty well planted today.  I did manage a couple things other than sleep and photo editing but not by much.  Last night I headed to pmk for a line-up that wouldn’t normally see me leave my couch…but I wanted to support B and get a little Ubung with the rock pix.  Im not too moved by the genre powerpop, it seems, so I’ll spare you my uneducated and uninterested opinion.

Batman & Robin (Click here for the whole album)

Mondo Ray (Click here for the whole album)

Miss Chain & the Broken Heels (Click here for the whole album)

…not sure what got into me, but i got a little graphic.  this one is better bigger.

Merry Happy Slippery Frohe HoliDAZE

I have been playing the same song now over and over again for the last 3 days.  It was the track my alarm clock woke me up with today and, as I write this, I think it’s been playing for the last 3 hours without stopping.  It happens sometimes that I hear a song that changes my body chemistry…alters my perception and completely consumes me.  It happens a lot actually.  This time its a rare Dylan track called Blind Willie McTell and before I can tell you about any of the other stuff thats going on with me, I have to share this song with you.  Facebook peeps will have to visit my “real blog” to hear the track…

I have no idea if it will infect you as it has me.  I was just talking to a friend about it and the best I could come up with was that this song is like wind.  It blows right through me.

I can get away with laying in bed for hours on end listening to Bob Dylan because the week is over, the holidaze are upon us and I have nothing to do today.  I worked while everybody else I know elbowed their way through over-crowded super markets and stores frantic for last minute gifts and some magic antidote for massive expectations, family drama and not enough time for people they love.  That might sound very ‘bah humbug’ but I dont mean it that way, I just hate to see how a single day can spin people so far out of orbit.  I will partake in some holiday merriment, to be sure, but at this stage in the game I have come to the conclusion that it’s all a little too much.  A little Hanakauh or Christmas or Festivus *everyday* would be better than drowning in it for a couple weeks every winter…don’t you think?  Why not just tell the people that you love that you love them?  Why not just tell your friends you’re grateful for how they put up with your bullshit?  Why not buy that Album for your friend who you know will love it for no reason at all?  Why not bake cookies just because it makes your lover happy and your house smell nice?  Seriously, don’t save it all for this already overloaded season.  That said, this is me telling you that I love you…Im grateful for you…I wish you strength, laughter, adventure, health, peace, love and light this holiday season and for years to come.  Merry Christmas.   Happy Hanakauah.  Merry Kwanza.  Slippery Festivus.  Frohe Weinachten and all that jazz…

Now onto other pressing matters…I *finally* saw some music!!  It had been well over a month since I saw a show, let alone photographed one so you can believe me when I tell you it felt great to be washed in sound and static and noise for a spell.  I caught a folk concert last week at the Bierstindl with a fellow auslander at the helm, a worldy hangdrum session at Triebhaus and then some Berliner’s rocking the likes of The Band and Townes Van Zandt at the pmk.  I didn’t photograph Christine’s show but I enjoyed it anyway…shes a very talented song writer.

The gig at Triebhaus was a guy called Manu Delago and he plays these amazing “hangdrums” backed by a band consisting of an upright bass and piano player.  It was a really unique show filled with very talented musicians.  Here’s a couple of my favs, but you can click here to see the whole album.

In addition to the regular set, Manu also did a series of duets with local Tirolean musicians with interesting interpretations of chirstmas songs.  The sitar and digeridoo (spelling??) tune was beautiful.  It was a really special concert.

I still smell a bit like whiskey and red wine from last nights rock and roll adventure and my voice has that low, raspy sound that comes with the talking too much and saying too little common at noisy rock shows.  My friend Matthais’ band called Son of a Gun opened for a band called No Horse No Rider and all of this was followed by a DJ set by a taleneted guy from Berlin called LITWINENKO (i think).  Albi and Co. were on the turntables in the other room so it was a full night of tunes.  As always, you can see the whole album from last nights pmk show here…here a few of my favs

I am reminded every time I step out of my house that I am a lucky Bean.  Surrounded by good, creative, connected people with dear friends everywhere I go.  It was a fun night.  It was a fun year….

Come Again

Listening to Jerry sing Mission in the Rain, drinking peppermint tea with a little Doozer curled by my lap seems like a nice opportunity to tell a story about the good old days…now longer ago than I can believe…but instead, I am going to refrain from telling you about the time I saw the Grateful Dead alone at Giant’s Stadium and walked around the venue no less than four times looking for Fat Albert, my Toyota minivan.  I am also going to refrain from telling you about the slow-speed golf cart chase that ensued in Addison, Vermont at sunrise after an amazing weekend of friends and enlightenment.   Though the ‘good old days’ are very much on my mind tonight I am going to refrain from telling you those stories and tell you, instead, about some fun, new days here in Innsbrucklyn. 

Ive mentioned PMK many, many times because it is, of sorts, my new Wetlands or Bowery or 2A or 3Needs or Nectars…Not that it’s new, but I am so it’s the same difference.  Its a dive bar and club where good things happen and the night before I left for the US of A there was some fun that occurred there.  Sitting here sick for the umteenth (that word looks weird written) day in a row I have some concerns about telling you that I got sauced and stayed out til the sun came up before hopping my flight, but I did.  Some bands, unknown to me, were playing a “big” show and 2 of them ended up being pretty rad.  

Looking back, I think the bill had like 8 bands on it or something insane but I arrived around 11 and caught the last 3.  The first one was a polish grungie metal band called Filth of the Earth.  They sounded a lot like their name would suggest but the lead singer had great abs.  

I stayed there only long enough to fire off a few shots and concentrated on the revelry next door waiting for the show I had come to see.  By the time Warren Suicide took the stage I was slightly lubricated so they’re total dance party vibe was easy to slip into.  They were very high energy and, though I can’t recall how even one of their songs goes, I had a ton of fun with these guys.  So much fun, in fact, that I would seek them out again for sure.  There was as much boogie happening as shutter-clicking so take these shots with a Dead Sea’s worth of salt, okay?

By the time their set was finished it was the wee-hours and everybody was marinated and excited about T Raumschmiere (for those of you unsure how to say that, its like Raum-schmear-er) a German ElectroClash superstar and lush.  He poured a beer over his head at the get go, took off his shirt and then went off.  The music reminded me a little bit of the dancey Nine Inch Nails with heavy industrial beats.  There was definitely a rock and roll element too and, generally speaking, I liked it.  His pants were way too low and the forceful, drunken stage show made me want to back up but, all in all, it was a treat and also good fun.  Apparently this guy plays much bigger rooms than the petite PMK so this was a treat for everybody and it had that feel.  I was on my 4th Radler around the time these shots were fired so be kind…

Would I seek this guy out again, you ask?  I probably would.  I was always a fan of Nine Inch Nails (even moreso after seeing Trent Reznor sing acoustic at the Bridge School Benefit) and I liked the vibe.  Curious?  Check out a little on MySpace….Living in Europe, especially Austria, I need to make some nice with electronic music and I feel like this new-to-me genre of ElectroClash has some potential.

I hope you enjoyed the photos as much as I enjoyed taking them…and that you can take some comfort in knowing that one day these days…the ones we’re living right now, will be the good old days.

Slickness & ProgRock

Every now and again (more often than I ever expect) something rolls into this little Tyrolean Valley and brings the world I remember with it.  Last night the Adrian Belew Trio played a club called Komma in a little village about 30 minutes east of me.  I rolled into the club just in time to hear Eric kick things off and remembered how often I find myself in awe at his talent…His sister, Julie, is also quite a prodigy and when you glue those two together with Adrian’s style its a pretty amazing show.  The sound in the club wasnt perfect and there was one drunk doucbag who kept “conducting” the band as though he was driving but neither of those two things prevented me from enjoying myself.  For those of you not sure who Adrian Belew is, hes a rock legend whose played with plenty of amazing musicians among them King Crimson.  I first saw the Trio play at the 1st Annual Paul Green School of Rock Festival and knew they were worthy but enjoyed last nights show much more.  Complicated rock is more fun for me in a little room where I can concentrate.  After the show and a little QT they packed it in and so did I.  All in all, an exceptional night of rock in Tirollllll.

These are my favorite shots from last night but feel free to peruse the whole album right here.

The Good New Days

Happy Monday.

That might normally be considered an oxymoron but today I really mean it.  You already got a little taste of this past weekends revelry with my postrock blabberings on EF but were you also aware that I regressed to my Freshman year of college on Friday night?  Or that I communed with butterflies in the Botanic Garden?  Or that I photographed a Punk-Pop band from Seattle on Sunday night?  Of course not.  You would only know these things if you’re stalking me or if, perchance, you are telepathic.

The bit about Friday night is too sorted to detail here but, suffice to say, I had fun.  We had fun, actually.  After two whiskeys at home with my latest painting effort I turned up the music, called Irene and we headed to the Bogen in support of Clausie who was DJing.  A corner seat at the bar provided us with an ausblick of the whole room and we stayed planted there until things got fuzzy.  I pinballed my way home around 5-something am and passed out on the couch.  Seriously, I haven’t gotten stupid like that in *very* long time and, though my Kater crippled me on Saturday, it was well worth the fun.  This is all you get…

Saturday saw me shift from the shower to the couch to my bed back to the couch to the kitchen and then baxk to bed again.  With each year I age, it adds 12 hours needed recovery time for a big night out.  Im sure the day was lovely but I was happy (sort of) for the quality time with Doozer and Walter.  It was also nice to catch up on some laundry and tv-watching.  I hadn’t anticipated leaving the comfort of my nest until Beate radio’d in and told me about the band playing at PMK.  I went and you already read about that….it was worthy.

Sunday saw a return to form and, after a pancake breakfast, I went wandering.  The snow frosted mountains laid against the blue sky and green hills was super-breathtaking as was the walk up the hill into Hötting…super breathtaking.  After scouting some potentially perfect picnic places (say that 3 times fast!) we hit up the Botanic Garten and communed with the butterflies.  It was the first time in my life that I heard a person make an argument for why butterflies are ‘disgusting creatures.’  Sad for you, I cant share the garden pictures yet…check back tomorrow and I assure you you will find yourself jealous of my backyard.

After some fresh air and some wandering it was back to the nest to futz and plotz before heading back to the PMK for some more music.  Rocktober is the same no matter what continent you live on, I think.  I wasn’t as into this band as the one the night before but they were good enough that I stayed for The Pharmacy’s whole set.  Here’s a glimpse, but you can find the whole album here. 

Tonight marks the beginning of my newest German class…pretty soon Im gonna have to start writing this bitch in Deutsch, friends…

EF @ PMK

The floor of PMK turned to quicksand last night by the time EF, a post-rock band from Sweden, played their second song.  Like Mogwai or Sigur Ros, their thick, ambient sound builds slowly and before you know it, it’s rolled over you completely like a blanket of cement.  Soft, sometimes too emo vocals, would wind and twist their way into heavy, driving sonic waves of sound before you realized what was happening.  I was struck at how good they were and wasn’t sure if I held that opinion because I rolled in with no expectations or because I was genuinely affected.  When I got home, only a couple hours before sunrise, I found them on MySpace and decided to take another pass and see…The 6 tracks they have posted are worth listening to but only if you have a quiet moment to let the music transport you to that breezy, sometimes stormy, place all the tracks seem to go.  A total surprise show for me, I’m really glad I motivated…If you’d like to see the complete album from last nights post-rock feast, click here.

Hometown Tourist

The leaves are turning from green to gold and the air smells like time moving forward. Crisp and cool and fresh and forward. Watching the leaves turn reminds me that life is moving along and that it’s almost time to molt and hibernate before waking up to a new year. Sorry if I’m rushing winter on you but with smoke puffing out of the high mountain chalets and the red and gold peering out the tops of the birch trees, I’m looking forward to watching the leaves fall and then dragging my feet through them listening to them crunch and woosh. Autumn was always my favorite season in Vermont and New York and, as it turns out, the same is true in Innsbruck.

With Autumn comes the crunching of leaves and chestnuts and another kind of crunching as well…that of numbers. The last couple weeks of work have been extremely intense for me. Budget preparation is a new art for me and, like most crafts, it takes some time to perfect. Early, early mornings and late, late nights saw me focused on understanding the past, predicting the future and, hardest of all, communicating what I found. I internalized a lot of the stress and found myself needing to cocoon a little this weekend and try to find my center again.

Too many hours reorganizing my iTunes folder on Friday night didn’t help with the quest for balance (though I did manage to organize 300 gigs of noise) and it’s possible that it pushed me further into my funk. After a late, late, late night showing of Welcome to the Dollhouse I closed my eyes with the notion of not opening them again until I was back at 100%. The morning sun got me up somewhere around 30% and after a little grocery shopping and short walk through the Botanic Garden I got right back in bed and didn’t hear from the world again until about 10pm. Sweet.

Unshowered and still half-asleep, I threw a hat and old sweatshirt on the insanity and headed out to a new venue to catch an anti-folk New Yorker called Turner Cody sing me some songs. I have officially learned my lesson….Innsbruck is too fucking small to *ever* think I can go out of my house without a shower and a little effort. Anonymity is a luxury saved for New York City, I suppose. I saw a lot of friends, fired off a few photos with my crappy 50mm and really enjoyed the show. There was such a familiar quality to all the songs he played, like I already had heard them 1000 times before. Those of you New York peeps reading this should catch him sometime in the city. I’m not thrilled with how they turned out, but if you’re inclined, you can check out the photos here.

After the Bierstindl I followed some friends to Triebhaus to try and catch the end of Gustav. That was a bust but I did manage to find another friend, some warm Zipfer and then an adventure to Pantheon for another zipfer or two. This funky gothic cellar was a little cheesy but totally comfortable and cool. It was some quality time and, again, only slightly ironic that this was the night I opted to roll like a slob.

My day of sleep and my fun and easy evening saw me rested and up early yesterday. The sky was impossibly blue, the air had that crispy wonderful autumn smell and I decided to head out into the world. I walked to the Hungerburg and then rode the Bahn into the clouds. The choice was either “get high” by climbing or “be high” by riding and I opted for the latter. I’ve been longing for these mountains since I got here and today seemed like a day to be on top. I stayed up in the clouds for a while and took it all in before riding back to the Seegrube and then walking (slowly) back home. Sadly, my internet connection was too slow to get all the photos up online so you’re gonna have to check back in tomorrow…in the meatime though, here’s a glimpse.

It’s always a nice perspective to look up at your life and then back down on it – the proximity of the mountains makes that easy to do here.  I needed some time for quiet contemplation, some fresh air, a little movement.  The walk down from the Hungerburg was long and slow and the light in the forest was perfection.  In retrospect, I think I should have sat there a while longer.

In case you were wondering, when a Bean thinks in the forest it does make a sound.  Here’s one last little peek at yesterday’s lovliness…check back in tomorrow for some high Alpine awesomeness and some 21st Centruy Iccarus for a change of pace.

Melt Fest 2008 – Pictures and Fragments

“Possible Germany” rings in my ear as I ride out of Dessau on a bus through what looks like Ernest Callenbach’s Ecotopia. Windmills turning, wheat blowing in the breeze, my socks still wet from the night before I have time to think…It always amazes me how music can be the tonic to heal wounded ears of too much music. “Possible Germany” isn’t a suggestion this day, it’s a fact.

Rewind 3 days and I’m on the same bus, this time with no music but only the anticipation of 3 days of music to come. Almost 10 years since I’ve slept in a wet tent backstage at a show and I wonder if it’s as brutal and fun as I remember it. My credentials are ready and a kind bus driver drops me right off at the Production office where they set me up with a tent and directions to the Presse Tent. Game on…only 2 hours to spare before its time to sport my gear (almost 40 pounds worth) and make some art and try to stop time.

After nesting a little in the Presse Tent with my bone dry locker (sehr wichtig) and a handful of new friends and strangers I headed out to scout the grounds, find all the gates my “freund” bracelet and Presse pass would get me (pretty much everywhere but up a coal digger…which I found my way up anyway) and timed how long it would take me to get from stage to stage. This last excersice was futile after the earth turned deep brown and slippery and kiddies in their funky shades clogged the arteries.

It’s hard to figure how best to re-cap all the music so I think I’ll just go in order. Perhaps it’s natural to start with the “big dogs” first but instead, I will take you through it as I experienced things and, when possible, I’ll give you my impression in words as well as megapixels…

To go a little deeper, click on each picture to see the whole set of that band. Or, if you feel like sitting back and seeing the “best of” album, click right here.

Friday…July 18

Markus Kavka kicked things off with beats and an unwavering smile. Not my thing but it was a good way to get the party started.

Fotos was some German indie pop that served as a chance to adjust the white balance on my camera and check the perspective from the pit. The music wasn’t so memorable for me…

Lightspeed Champion was the first band that I was psyched to see. Dramatic and melodic the highpoint was the Star Wars anthem and the furry hat.

Late of the Pier had a super high-maintainence sound check but these Brits (i think) threw down, what I can only guess would be, electro pop with a major emphasis on the drums. The crowd went crazy and it was a good, if a little too loud, 3 songs in the pit.

Turbostaat was some German mediocre ‘power’ rock. I remember it was awful but the boys in the front row wearing Turbostaat shirts and singing every word would probably respectfully disagree. To their credit they were playing in a shit sounding concrete box and that could have been a factor in my disatisfaction.

My new photog friend Adrian, when referring to the band Blackmail said that he “wasn’t sure why these guys aren’t famous yet’” and I pondered that thought as the bass drum layed down a new rhythm for my heartbeat during soundcheck. The smoke machine was annoying and the music wasn’t super memorable…

This guy surprised me a little and I found myself liking his ‘doo-wop-vegas-indie-folk-jewish-pop’ more than I would have expected. He’s one of those guys that, even if you don’t like the music, you cant help but smile when he and his back up singers do their thing. Funny but nice.

I was aiming for Burger/Voigt but caught Tobias Thomas instead. He had this pharmaceutical mellow thing going that would have been nice to stay with for a bit had I had a couch to sit on.

Kate Nash sounds exactly the same live as she does on FM4 but the lack of imagination in her “KATE NASH” visuals and her kind of late-lazy stage show made me like her a little bit less. The pouring rain could have also been a factor in the overall lackluster performance but im pretty sure it was her.

Gui Boratto was cute but, if i’m being honest, DJ’s can start to sound the same to me after a little while

I first heard Modeselektor on a iTunes playlist assembled by Thom York. I liked it then and I liked it live…these were the only DJ’s I heard with the ability to make people dance like animals instead of robots. Fucking awesome.

The Editors reminded me a little bit of “Live” but I think it had more to do with the lead singers voice than with the actual sound of the band. They had a huge draw and a big sound and, though it wasn’t something I would go and seek out, they were good.

Ellen Allien had too many technical difficulties for me to stick around. This was shot around 3am and I had one gig left to shoot…

Robyn was new to me but clearly not new to the stage. Both diva and pimp, she was like a sizzling Swedish gangster with the soul of Pat Benetar. Highlights of her set were covers of Snoop Dogs “Sexual Eruption,” Salt n Pepa’s “Push It,” and what I think was a Prince cover of “I’ll Jerk You Off.” If I get the chance to see her again, I will.

Saturday…July 19

Sleep came but didn’t stay. After about 4 hours it was time to wander the grounds and watch Melt wake up. After some festival food it was time to park myself in the tent and edit some photos before heading out to do it again. Storm warnings and terrential rain put a damper on things (sorry about that) and the mud came out in full effect.

The first act was a German guy named Peter Licht. I forget exactly what it was that I thought at the time but I think it was along the lines of “emo-german-college-pop.” Boring but he did get the rainbow so you have to give him that at least.

Twisted Wheel wasn’t on the bill but found their way to the mainstage for a short set. Out of Manchester and into Ferropolis….aside from the nice light, I don’t remember what their deal was.

After a few songs Dirk arranged a crane tour for us and we headed up one of the 5 major coal digging machines that is Ferropolis. Surreal and scary, I couldn’t help but wonder what kind of noise they made when they were unearthing coal and rocks. No doubt they were far louder than any of the noise we were making with our rock and roll. Click on the picture below to see some of this awesome and rustic metal.

Melt by Day

Melt by Night

Ok ok, I got off track a little but after the tour of the big rigs it was time to rock (mostly work) until the sun came up.

Cobblestone Jazz was another DJ thing but live, synthesized vocals and groovier beat was interesting

Fujiya Migawi surprised me with their lack of Japanese-ness but I loved the their sound. A little listen on MySpace confirmed that I liked what I heard and I hope I get to see them again one day.

The Notwist is geekier than all hell but also pretty brilliant. Their set built really slow but after the 4th song they hit a stride and their subdued and melodic sound had some momentum. Not so fun to shoot but they made up for it with the music.

This scary and disgusting dude is called Rummelsnuff. The kind of stereotypical shit that somebody might think would still be happening in Germany. He sings of power and strength and other shit that makes the National nazi-types happy while his oiled body makes the homosexuals happy. His ability to bring these two unlikely groups together seems to be part of his novelty but after 5 clicks of the shutter I got the fuck out of there before the little bit of barf in my throat needed to find its way out.

Franz Ferdinand is so slick and such a well oiled machine that they feel like less of a rock band and more like a vegas act but that didnt stop me from loving every second of their set. They are fucking awesome…and lots of fun to take photos of. Go on, click the pic and take a peek.

Roisin Murphy is such a sexy bitch that its crazy. 3 costume changes during the first 3 songs with the entire stage serving as her own personal cat walk. The music was alright but her stage show was amazing. I would have loved to have photographed the whole set. This is another set that you should take a closer look at if you’re inclined.

Another sleepless night and another day to work, fortunately all my shows for the last day were on the same stage so I only had to scoot out from the press tent between rain showers and acts. I spent the day kicking it with the other photogs, you come to know one another after 3 days of working in the rain.

July…Sunday 19

Los Campesinos had a lot going on with the xylophones, horns and things. Lots of draw for an early show and a sound somewhat derivative of angsty Arcade Fire and insecure but happy Magic Numbers.

Neon Neon’s set was a tribute, maybe homage, to the man who built the Dolorian. Birth was uninteresting but Dreaming was memorable and the old school Casio ‘hand clap’ brought back memories of mine and my sister’s dabbling with our own keyboard many years ago. It got some weird Rusted Root-esque percussion that turned me off towards the end but by then it was time to go anyway…

Get Well Soon is another example of an Arcade Fire want-to-be but, honestly, they are doing it. They are good with the big crecendos and atmospheric rock and, though a little annoying to watch, I liked the sound.

the only word for the Battles are awesome, awesome, awesome, awesome, awesome

I didn’t know that I knew Hot Chip until I heard the song about the monkey with a miniature symbol. Damn, that song has a way of staying in my head and running circles. This band saw the biggest crowd of the whole weekend, even trumping Bjork, which surprised me. They were good but throughout the whole set I was wondering whether or not I was going to be one of the lucky few photographers shooting Bjork…

As it turned out, she decided that she didnt want any Press or Photographers in front for her show. Her Management requested a list of media and picked about 10 photographers to cover the pit…I was one of them.

Bjork is more of a life force then a singer…her performance gave me goose bumps and I only wish that I hadn’t been freezing my ass off and suffering from massively cramped hands during her set. By the time these shots were taken I had been working for almost 3 days straight, sleeping for less then 8 hours and shooting what amounted to be about 600 photographs. Believe it or not, I even managed to have a little fun, eject two fucking drunkards (literally, 2 drunk people fucking) from my tent and make a few new friends. This re-cap marks the end of Melt and I hope you enjoyed the pix.

In case you haven’t been clicking and reading, here’s another shot to see the overview… CLICK HERE FOR MELT FEST 2008