Blondie / Pat Benatar @ Dodge Theatre

This was set to be a pretty packed full show, the Donnas were supposed to open, but had to cancel due to a bout of laryngitis. That aside, this was a fun show to be at. The near capacity crowd was a pretty mixed bag of ages and sexes, all wanting a piece of some classic pop rock. Getting two female pop icons for the price of one, bargain!

Pat Benatar went on first. She opened very strong... and fairly surprisingly, (to me at least) her voice seemed essentially unchanged by time. I didn't notice any strain as she belted out the classics; "We belong", "Heartbreaker", "Hit me with your best shot", and of course "Love is a battlefield".

FOUR time Grammy winner Benatar played a great high energy set, and kept the night rolling. After our 3 song nugget of shooting time, we photogs were escorted to our holding area. At the Dodge, this means basically that we are just sitting in the hall outside of the main room... so the music was very clear as I sat there editing my photos. Editing Pat Benatar photos while Pat Benatar was performing a few hundred feet away was an interesting experience.

There is an hour and a half break between when we were escorted out for Pat Benatar and when Blondie took the stage. Funny enough, no one announced that she was starting... we just heard the opening lick from "Call me" start up. We all looked at each other and thought, 'is this a cd?' We grabbed our gear and ran for the stage.

Deborah "Blondie" Harry was clad in a sort of odd 80's tattered shirt held together with buttons and skirt sort of outfit with gold converses, RayBans, and a ball cap that said "Blondie NYC". This was an interesting look for a pop diva. :) During the middle chorus of "Call me" I thought I heard Harry straining a little to hit the notes. As I kept listening, it sounded more like she had trouble hearing the monitor monitor issue rather than a performance issue. She actually rocked the house pretty solid.

Of course I didn't get to watch the whole show, but I can imagine she played all the big hits. While I was there however, Harry and the rest of Blonie seemed very "on". I could have maybe asked for a little more production on both Blondie and Benatar's side. It sort of felt like they just showed up and used what was here. Blondie did at least have a large banner at the rear of the stage with "Blondie" tagged on it. We weren't allowed to shoot Blondie from the center, so it was hard to make the photos any sort of interesting by including some of the banner in the rear of the shots.

Camera/photog wise... the lights weren't great. They were ON, but that was about it. A spot at the front and center of the stage... basically to drown everything else out. The colored lights just weren't bright enough to compete, just not enough of them... and no smoke or anything for them to reflect on. I primarily stuck to my 5D MkII for most of the night. I kept the ISO around 3200 - 4000 and was able to have a little play with the shutter speed. Since there was no barricade at this show, we were about 10 rows back from the stage, so the 100-400mm just stayed on the MkII. It performed very well.

The Fray @ Dodge Theatre

I'll admit this right up front, I requested to shoot this concert because my sister Emily listens to this band. I know OF the band, but going into the show, I didn't know any of their songs. Which was slightly surprising, because as I walked down to the stage to get into position, I thought; "Holy cow, THAT'S a lot of lighting!" It was.





This was a proper big time show, just shrank down to fit in a medium sized venue. I was actually really excited to SEE this band. As I was studying the lighting set up, I realized a lot of "indie" or "homemade" lights mixed in with the big stuff. The sort of thing my band liked to do. The sort of thing where you wrap a couple rope lights around keyboard stands and what not. But I was again surprised at even how much thought went into THAT. They had all this low-fi equipment set up, then right next to it, or even inside of it, there would be the expensive strobes, or large glowing bulbs. I was pretty upset that we only got to see 2 songs. I knew this would have been fun to watch. Below is a photo of the stage before the band came on.

So when the first song started it was just the singer standing in a spot light. I thought, "Oh great, they are going to tease the photogs with all this lighting equipment and NOT use it while we are shooting." But then the song picked up and the lights came on... and I even recognized the song! Imagine that. The band was good! The songs weren't bloody annoying, and the singer was in key. It is, I must say, very easy listening, and easily performed, but hey, they did it right. I cant fault them. They fit a niche, and the crowd was happy. Lots of "Oh my god, I love you" screams were roaring over my shoulders during the shoot.

On a side note, Jacks Mannequin opened the show. Again, it was a pretty easy fit. Round block in a round hole, but they were ok. One thing that 'bothers' me... well, that's a strong word... one thing that makes me wonder, is why bands see the need to put tape over the names on their guitars and amps. Is it because they don't want to be labeled? Because they already are. Is it because they don't want to be viewed as a band who follows trends? Because they already are. Or is it maybe because they've asked for those companies for endorsement money and were denied? Hmm.

Jay-Z @ Dodge Theatre

Jay-Z is arguably one of the most successful rappers around today... as demonstrated tonight by filling the Dodge Theatre. I don't know what it is about rap shows, but they always start late. Nearly an hour after he was supposed to go on. But hey, all in good fun. Or something.

One thing rappers understand is the connection to their audience. Rappers always make it a point to actually reach out and physically touch their fans. A hand shake or a fist pound. But it gives each performance that personal touch for the fans. Jay-Z has the bank roll to take it that one step bigger... humongous video screens. I am a fan of screens... it just ads something to the show. It changes is up. Makes it more interesting. But, it also lets the chump in the back row still be able to have a good time.

While I can't follow every lyric, Jay-Z made it a point to say that he does not use "auto-tune" vocal software. He also pointed out that he can't sing on key, then demonstrated it by just not even trying. But hey, it's "real" right?

This was another show with photo restrictions. We were only allowed to shoot the first 2 songs, and we shot from the sound board. But this time, at the Dodge, the sound board was actually above the level of the stage. This made for some cool angles, and gave me the chance to get some shots of the fans in the pics with Jay-Z. But, the other thing about rap shows, everyone has to be hard. So just before the end of the second song, one of Jay-Z's "posse" came out and smacked me on the back and said "YOU'RE DONE!" To which I said, "Yep. That was the plan." Anyways, all in all, it was a pretty easy shoot, just wish I was up closer.

Willie Nelson @ the Dodge Theatre

A living legend. It was great to see him still doing his thing. He looked happy. Lots of smiles to an excited crowd. What a catalog of songs to choose from! I wish I could have stayed to listen longer. I was only allowed to shoot for the first 2 songs. And they went quick. I sort of got stuck in a weird "I'm photographing Willie Nelson" daze. I didn't have much room to move around to get shots...there was no barricade for this show...myself and 2 other photogs just had to squeeze in the aisle up front. But it was a fun time.

Before he came out, a tech set up his signature, beautifully worn Martin N-20 acoustic guitar, "Trigger", at the front of the stage. It was a trip to see that up close. Lots of history, that. Willie was quoted as saying that when the hole he made in Trigger's body makes it unplayable, he will retire.

Good lighting, nothing real exciting...but not bad. Again, I just wish I could have watched more.