Coachella - Day 2

Saturday started good. I didn't have a band I needed to shoot until 3:45, so I took my time getting to the festival. Had an actual breakfast. But that mean ridiculous traffic. I ended up missing the band I needed to shoot because I sat in traffic for 2 hours right in front of the entrance. That was pretty crazy... but I probably should have expected it.

Saturday turned out to be the party day. Lots more people showed up and hung out all night. This was good for me too, as I needed to get scene shots for a slide show. So I spent whatever free time I had shooting the people and scenes at Coachella in between bands. I managed to get some really great shots.

I met one guy who just showed up in shorts. No shoes, no shirt. Long blond hair, tattoos, nipple rings... just darting towards the main stage. I had to run after him to grab him, but he was really nice. Turns out he's a music video director in L.A., small world. He reminded me of Matthew McConaughey. Great picture.

This was also, in my opinion, one of the best days to shoot bands. Everything seemed to come pretty easy this day. I got a lot of great shots, all of bands I really wasn't familiar with. But that made it interesting.

Amanda Palmer was very neat to shoot. She is the singer from the Dresden Dolls. This was her solo project. I'm not that familiar with her solo stuff, but she was very energetic and animated. Face paint, a gold bustier, and hairy armpits. :) What a woman.

TV on the Radio. Now, this was neat to shoot. I shot them way back when they opened for Bloc Party. Which was my first music gig for the Phoenix New Times. So it was neat to see them on the big stage at Coachella. They've come a long way, and I thought the put on a heck of a show. The crowd was really into it. I thought the quilts were an odd touch, but I guess I don't know the full story.

Band of Horses was another I didnt know, but they had a cool vibe. I managed to get some really nice shots. Their set was back lit for a while, but it was bright, so I got some really crisp shots of the band members silhouettes. I'm really happy with how these pics turned out.

Turbonegro was another band I had shot before at a small venue in Phoenix. They also had the crowd in their pocket. I saw a number of groups of people dressed in the Turbonegro garb. These guys put on a wild show. Really high energy. Lots of great poses. They know how to sell it. And it was really cool. Again, some of my favorite pics. This was a good day!

Ok. The Killers. No one was allowed to shoot them. THEIR photographer made his photos available to the press. LAME! Just another notch lower in my book.

TRV$DJ-AM. This was more entertaining that I imagined. It could have possibly been because of the fact that Max Headroom was singing all the songs on a large screen behind them. Travis totally ruled on the drums tho. You have to give that guy credit. He was working hard, and it was cool to see the drummer showcased like that. And I thought their lights were rad. Just subtle enough.

Overall it was a really fun day of shooting. I saw a lot of interesting things. Lots of cool people. And heard some great music. I wasn't quite as worn out as the first day. If felt like I found my Coachella groove. I got a text from my wife saying that Robert Pattinson was spotted there the night before. So I was on the lookout for him. It was ironic, because we had just watched Twilight before I left, and I said off the cuff "If I see Robert Pattinson at Coachella, I will make sure to stop and talk to him." I did meet Jared Leto, "Paul Allen" from one of my favorite movies. When I stopped him, I think I came off as a paparazzi, so I didnt take his picture. Perry Ferrell was cool tho. :)

So, the night wound down and I made my way to the car. The parking lot was beginning to empty. I couldn't find my car. Jim and I wondered around for about 20 minutes looking for it. We found it, got in, and tried to get out. We were dead stopped for at least an hour and 30 minutes. It took 3 hours to leave and get to the hotel. Got in bed at 3:45am. Nuts.

For more of mine and Misha's pics, check out Spin.com. There will probably be another slide show up soon with more of my pics of people and sights. Day 3 coming soon!

Coachella - Day 1

Friday at 7am I set off for Indio, CA. After nearly 4 hours of driving, and a quick meeting with my pals at Spin, I arrive in my parking space on the Coachella festival grounds... nearly a mile away from the entrance. My friend Jim Louvau is with me from the AZ Republic. We strap on our gear and start walking. We get to the press ticket line, which takes roughly an hour to get through. We sign out waivers and get our credentials and get in the gates.

The grounds are amazing. Very soft grass covers everything, so you could be shoeless the whole time. Gigantic art installations are set up all around. Outdoor stages, and stages in tents sprinkled in everywhere. And very expensive food vendors in every direction. This was something very neat to be a part of.

This being my first Coachella experience, I didn't quite know what to expect. My first shoot was in the medium sized tent with a band called Cage The Elephant. There were probably 25 photogs huddled into a space that normally houses 3 or 4 photogs. This was a sign of things to come. I couldn't believe how many people were covering this event. As the night went on and the bands were better known, seeing something like 50+ photogs was not uncommon.

The trek from stage to stage became very daunting in the heat with all the gear I carried. I brought with me my Canon 20d, a rented 1D Mk2, my 17-40mm f4 lense, a 100-400mm f4.5-5.6 lense, my Macbook Pro, and a laptop bag full of chargers and other miscellanea. It all became very heavy. The weather was great the first day. It even got cold at night.

I had a list of bands that I needed to cover, and ended up running around like mad until I caught my bearings. It all started to smooth out eventually. I was hired freelance for Spin, who also sent a staff photographer named Misha Vladimirsky. I wasn't able to shoot Paul McCartney, which was a big let down. Only a few photogs were selected (by Paul's people) and Misha got to cover him. But the shoot was only from the sound board, so it wasn't as glamorous as it could have been. But let me say, Paul McCartney KILLED! His was, by far, the best performance of the weekend. The music, the lights, the humongous screens, and of course, the Beatle himself! It was something quite on another level to watch. He played for over 2 hours, and I didn't see anyone leave that set.

On the first day, a few of my other personal highlights would be:

Patton and Rahzel. I am a huge Mike Patton fan. And getting to be close up and snap some great pictures was a really rad experience. His performance was totally bizarre and unique. Exactly what you would come to expect from him. There is no one doing what this guy does. He should be way more well known than he is.

Franz Ferdinand. This was actually quite a pleasant surprise. Not that I dislike them, but I thought they put on a really great show. It was very tight and very upbeat. It was just what people needed when the sun was going down. I wish I could have watched more of this set actually. Time to download more Franz!

Morrissey. I've never been a Morrissey fan, but the man entertained in his own way. That voice hasnt changed one bit. Another nice surprise.

For more of mine and Misha's pics, check out Spin.com. There will probably be another slide show up soon with more of my pics of people and sights. Day 2 coming soon!

Connor Oberst @ Marquee Theatre

Connor Oberst... the lead singer of Bright Eyes. I don't really know his material that well. It's sort of 'indie' story-telling. At least that's what people tell me. So I cant really comment on the show/performance. He did his thing, people clapped. Job done!

Let's get right to the photo stuff... I don't think I get more frustrated at any venue more than I do at the Marquee. They have piles of lights at their disposal... and apparently no one to work them... or even POINT them at the people on stage. 100% of the time at this show, Connor was back lit, with maybe one or two lights hitting the sides of his face. But, to make matters worse, he was wearing a large flat-rimmed black hat. So nothing above his cheeks was lit. This was really rough for a photographer.

I had the camera already set at ISO1600, and my shutter was down as low as 20/100, with a F2.8 lens... and it was still barely enough to capture anything in the middle of the stage. The sides of the stage however... perfectly lit! Maybe next time I'll see if they'll let me position the lights myself before the show.

On another note. I walked in to hear the 2nd half of the band Deep Sea Diver, and I was impressed with what I heard. Pretty chilled out vibe. Two drummers on some songs, and a twangy, reverb-heavy guitar. The band hung out by the merch table after their set to sell CDs. I walked over and said hello and told them I dug their set. I snapped a quick photo of Jessica Dobson (singer/guitarist) and Evan Trine (drummer) and bought a CD. I found out later that night that Jessica played guitar for Beck on his last tour. Which I actually photographed, and then recognized her when I read that. I would have tracked her down if I would have known, she was great in Beck's band. And in her own band too, of course.

Calexico @ Heritage Square

When I walked up to the stage at Heritage Square in downtown Phoenix, I was pleasantly surprised with what I saw. I was envisioning a tiny stage with no real lights... and people just sitting on the grass around the stage. But it was actually very cool. there was a proper stage with a decent amount of lights... and a cool spider web-ish backdrop.

The first band I caught was called Sergio Mendoza Y Orkesta, a 13 -piece Latin band. This was a very moving show. Lots of textures and layers. All sorts of instruments being played... a fan dancer... and Tucson legend Salvador Duran singing back ups and tapping his boots on a wooden box. They put on a very cool and energetic show.

Then Calexico took the stage. A few of the same band members in both bands helped bridge the gap from Latino music to the Americana meets indie sounds of the Calexico. I was impressed with what I heard. A lot more sounds than I expected to hear. Again, very nice layers.

The lights were pretty consistent throughout the show. No real changes... just a few colors would blink on and off... and occasionally dim. It was a shoot where I could take my time and figure out the shots and work with the light. The only real challenge was shoving my way up to the front of the stage as the place was packed! There was no barrier, so I just made my way around the stage and jammed my way in to get a good shot.

Fall Out Boy @ Mesa Amp

I have to say... I like bands that put on a show. Do something different, ya know? Fall Out Boy brought a lot of cool lights and moving video screens... wore themed outfits... and put on a damn good show. The other thing I have to say is Mesa Amphitheater is an awesome venue! Not only for concert goers... but photographers alike.

The stage is large and WHITE... so there is naturally more 'light' to work with. Things are easier to see and work with. Fall Out Boy brought a lot of lights of their own. Moving lights... LEDs... video screens... etc... it was a lot of fun to shoot. I would have to say, it got better light-wise as the night went on... I wish I could have been up front for that.

This was another gig I got to cover for Spin Magazine... and it proved to be a lot of fun. Check out fellow New Times-er Niki D'Andrea's review with some of my pics on Spin.com.

Cobra Starship + All Time Low @ Mesa Amp

I wanted to post a few more pics from the Fall Out Boy show... these were the two opening bands I managed to photograph. (I posted the FOB pics earlier... but moved these under that post)

The first was All Time Low. Holy Jesus... talk about lewd and overly vulgar. I mean... I say that, but I wasn't personally offended. These kids were talking about oral sex with each other and the young girls in the audience... most of whose parents were also in attendance. I guess you have to shock people... but sheesh! Wow, do I sound old?

Cobra Starship was up next. Lots of energy here. The lead singer was pretty nuts... running all over the place, jumping off stuff and just generally happy to be there.

I figured I snapped some ok shots, might as well post them. As with the Fall Out Boy pics... the light was very decent. They didn't use all the same lights as Fall Out Boy... but there was pretty ample lighting. It was easy to shoot in that respect... but in the pit with me was about 8 or so young girls who some how landed the opportunity to shoot in the pit... they were all pretty gobsmacked. Just staring at the bands most of the time. :)