Having spent three years in a rock/blues band and also in a jazz band, I find photographing live music really enjoyable but also quite frustrating at times, mainly because it makes me want to be playing in the band I'm photographing. However, I do think this adds a certain connection to the music and usually means I can anticipate what is going to happen and react to it.
One of the first gigs I covered was in a sweaty, grimy London pub in Camden, late one evening towards the end of May, 2009. It was a muggy night which only made the confined and tightly packed space inside the pub even hotter. I was there for the launch of a new magazine which I can now only guess is defunct based on a Google search.
I had been invited to cover the event by another photographer, Vikki Cobain, who had been asked by the organisers to cover the two-night launch. It was a little unnerving walking into a new venue with no prior information, and as a result I'd taken a range of lenses, (particularly keen to use my newly acquired wide angle 14-24mm f/2.8 - which would turn out to be an excellent choice) and plenty of spare batteries for my flashguns. Vikki was also using a new camera body, which comes with all the pitfalls of learning a new system and hoping the kit will function on its first major outing and all this meant we were both unsure of what was lying beyond the saloon style doors of The Monarch pub.
Smirnoff Ice and Stella Artois were sponsoring the event and before the first acts came onstage we had some free drinks thrust into our hands (difficult to juggle with a heavy camera and bag, but it's free so I made sure I could accept) by the typically glamorous barmaids who seem to exist only at these types of event. I was asked to try and include as many images with the sponsors' products in as possible- essentially product placement. I can't remember if we were given a set list or even the names of the acts who would be performing, perhaps Vikki was given that whilst I was dragged away by one of the organisers to shoot some promotional shots of the editorial team "socialising" and drinking copious bottles of Stella and Smirnoff.
It was intensely hot by the time the first act came on to a raucous cheer from the intoxicated crowd. The stage was set up in the long window of the pub frontage, so that, beyond the drum kit and lighting rig, Camden's high street was clearly visible. Thankfully, the Monarch is opposite The Stables Market on Chalk Farm Road, so facing the window is a blank wall, making the background nice and plain, save for the occasional red bus trundling passed. It was by no means a large stage or venue and we had to fight to create a mini photo-pit between the musicians and the screaming teens, constantly pushing through the writhing bodies as they filled the gaps around us.
The first two acts came and went without much fuss, killing the excitement slight as the audience grew almost indifferent as they performed - it had transpired that the main draw of the night, an act we had covered the previous night, weren't due on until midnight. The heat and repeated firings caused my flashgun batteries to overheat. In fact, I had to use my sleeve to remove them they had become so hot, but after a change we settled into a pretty good routine. Thankfully, as I have experienced at later venues and gigs, this wasn't a "hurl your beverage towards the stage" pub and I was spared from being soaked by punters' dregs and having to wipe the lens every few minutes. I have since discovered this threat of drenching also comes from the performers themselves, although on this occasion I was spared that misery too.
The Sha La Las come from Denmark and were the nights headline act. Having covered the same set the night before we were both aware of the vociferous and carnal attitude this four piece has, and they flew into a blistering set of rock, blues and pop infused tunes. They are a blend of The Smiths and The Libertines and countless other indie bands. Here's their myspace page if you're curious; I assume they are still going: http://www.myspace.com/shalalas
Photographically, they are a very good band to work with and provide a good performance with lots of photo opportunities. A charismatic front man of the Kurt Cobain school of performance, a Johnny Marr-styled guitarist and then the solid rhythm section of bass and drums. Their manager had given them a strong style and it made for interesting photographs, and coupled with the ferocity of their act meant I was kept busy trying to capture as much of it as possible. The wide angle I was using proved invaluable in this situation and in the closed quarters of the pub, made particularly bad by the crowd which had swelled to capacity, pushing myself and Vikki right to the edge of the stage, squeezed onto a tiny stretch of fraying carpet. The movement and energetic performance offered plenty of flash-blur and motion-blur opportunities and the basic set up of the stage and lighting rig made it very easy to get very close and personal. Thanks to our work the night before the band were also familiar to our presence now and, not shirking the free publicity, played up to our cameras.
One thing I learned that night, but still haven't acted upon and regret at every gig I cover, is that ear-phones are essential. When you are lying or crouching inches from a PA or amplifier on full volume (10, not 11), blasting a cacophony into your eardrums whilst screaming fans blister your other ear, you lose all sense of time and space and it can be very hard to communicate with anyone. The constant ringing and muffled sounds that then have to be endured the next day can make life quite difficult, so for anyone considering doing this: wear earplugs. To try and remember this mantra I now imagine Baz Luhrmann saying this to me in the style of his "Wear Sunscreen" song.
It was one in the morning by the time the band had finished smashing their guitars and showering me with splinters and bits of wrecked Gretsch. Soaked in my own sweat and probably many other peoples' too I peeled myself off the floor and finally sat down. We had spent six hours covering the night's events and once the adrenaline wears off you are left with your pounding eardrums and a real sense of fatigue. Still, it was a great night out, hearing some good music, working hard to get the best photographs, drinking free drinks and providing the ideal images for the publication and sponsors.
This article was originally published in 2011
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