Our old friend Blaze belting out an Adele song

In June, we met up with our friends at Conundrum Stages for a night of female singers and songwriters. While guitars were the staple of the night, the women behind those guitars were so incredibly different. Although many of the songs on the bill were ballads, I do not think any of the lyrical content of them were the same. We even got to see our old friend Blaze, who we seem to run into every 4 or 5 years. The last time we saw her, she was a budding fashion model but now she’s set to burn her own trail as a fantastic singer. Overall, a great night with some good music and a chill atmosphere.

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Touche Amore

Post-hardcore up-and-comers Touche Amore visited The Talent Farm in May to put on one of the most heated and intimate shows I’ve ever seen there. The entire crowd moved and swayed to the music and lyrics in unison, without missing a beat. Despite the fact that the Farm was sold out and packed to the gills, the amount of movement in the crowd was incredible. This was truly one of those shows were it pays to step back and just watch everything to fully understand the intensity and connection between Touche Amore and their fans, I’ve seen very few shows like this. It has taken me a while to really warm up to this band, mostly because it’s refreshing to see message-based bands making a comeback and it’s taken me time ti drill through the music down to what they’re trying to say. I find their show and their music nothing short of extraordinary. If Touche Amore make a stop in your town, you’re losing out by not going to see them.

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Gabe doing what he does best: shredding

While I do not often go to The Pit, every time I go it is a great time. My most recent trip included seeing my buds in Paris is Burning. As always, their set was fantastically heavy and they remain one of my favorite tech death bands in South Florida. However, this time was different as they debuted the new song Self Progression from their upcoming EP. Plainly put, this song was heavier than their material on Eminent Domain and Gabe, their guitarist, informed me that the rest of the songs are heavier so I am not entirely sure how they are going to pull that one off! Be on the look out for the new EP later this summer and they are booking shows for the rest of the summer so they should be hitting a town near you soon!

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Sam Kooby going full tilt

Until The End, one of South Florida’s most important straightedge bands reunited for the Bringing It Back For The Kids Fest 2011 and to say the least, their sets were as insane as I remember them from years ago. Keeping my camera up and shooting between stage dives, pile-ups, and stage surges was not only difficult but it definitely put my new Custom SLR Split Strap to strenuous test. Their set consisted of the raw intensity they are known for. Despite not having performed together as Until The End in some time, you wouldn’t know it at all, the band was tight and together. I know this was their last show but who knows, maybe they can reunite again for Bringing It Back For The Kids Fest 2012 if there is one? It’d be another fantastic performance by local heroes, showing younger kids what our scene means to us.

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Brandon belts out a scream

Post-hardcore outfit Lions Lions was unequivocally one of my favorite sets at the Bringing It Back For The Kids Fest 2011 earlier this month. Their entire set oozed stage presence, an intense connection with their singing fans, and the fact that they simply were overjoyed to be performing. And as for that last part, it’s absolutely true. After their set, I hung out with the guys for an hour or so and they were all down to earth and so excited to be playing the Fest; out of all of them, Van seems to be the real jokester of the bunch. During their set, there were so many jumps and so much running around, you would think these guys were marathon runners in their off time, it was nearly non-stop the entire time. This had to be one of the best performances I have seen this year and truth be told, I am eager for them to come back, regardless of whether I am shooting them or not. If you have not checked out their latest release The Path We Take, I highly recommend that you do, it’s full of emotion and up-beat tempos. And if there’s a Bringing It Back For The Kids Fest 2012, I surely hope they will be on the bill.

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Macho throwin' bows

South Florida’s reigning deathcore behemoths Forty Winters showed up to the Bringing It Back For The Kids Fest 2011 ready to grip it and rip it. Their set was composed of all new songs off of their recently released CD Reflection, which is brain meltingly heavy. Xavier and boys also have a new drummer who meshes perfectly with the band and rounds out their live sound quite well. The crowd really enjoyed hearing the new material and learning the new lyrics, it was an absolute blast seeing them perform again.

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Quite possibly my favorite shot of Daniel I've ever gotten

Remembering Never absolutely killed their set on the opening night of the Bringing It Back For The Kids Fest 2011, quite possibly the best set of the entire night. The entire band was tight and on point, they played amazingly. This was one of their best sets I have ever seen live, on par with performances back in 2005 and 2006 when they were on top of their game. Simply unbelievable.

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Thick As Blood letting the crowd sing

Hardcore heavyweights Thick As Blood were one of the best acts on the first night of Bringing It Back For The Kids Fest 2011. They brought unrelenting ferocity and energy to the Royal Family Clothing stage, with kids cramming themselves as tightly around the stage as possible in order to sing, stage dive, and generally go crazy. The featured photo epitomizes the idea of the fest itself: rage, have fun, be a part of this scene. Thick As Blood always play a set that feels like a steamroller coming through, and this time did not disappoint, they were in their element and let loose and played without restrain. The crowd reacted in kind and followed suit by unleashing one of the bigger pits of the night, combined with huge stage pile-ups and some head-walking.

Seeing these guys is always exciting and seeing them at the Bringing It Back For the Kids Fest 2011 made it all the better. If there’s another fest in 2012, I hope these guys come back and slay.

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Bring on the brutal

I recently had the pleasure of producing new promo shots for my buds in Fall of Olympus and it was a hell of a time. Between the sweltering heat in the alley we shot in to all the jokes, it was extremely fun. I love the image above as it captures an unrelenting but stoic portrayal of the band, it’s got the vibe. The hardest part of the shoot was getting the light to balance with the blinding sun bouncing off the beige walls without casting too much of a yellowish tone over the whole image, that was fun to figure out!

I’m very pleased with all the images and I can’t wait for some feedback on them! The guys in Fall of Olympus are a fun bunch to work with, I’m more than happy to work with them again, they’re definitely one of the most laid back bunch of guys you could ever hope for.

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Bringing It Back For The Kids fest

The Bringing It Back For The Kids fest starts in a just a few hours and it’s the biggest concert event that RocketownFL will have ever hosted. Featuring nearly 40 bands spanning hardcore, straightedge, deathcore, and even sludge. I’ve been looking forward to this event all year and I’m so excited that it’s finally here. Hell, I don’t even know how Rocketown’s going to be able to handle everyone that’s planning on coming. I have little doubt that this fest will pack the venue past its occupancy, it’s that important for our community. I hope there will be no fights but there’s probably going to be at least one or two, that’s just how these things go. But I know that so many people are going to be attending both days and perhaps this can morph into South Florida’s version of the northeastern metal fests, we badly need something like that down here, something to call our own.

I do hope that the no re-entry rule is relaxed because people are going to need it just to catch some fresh air and cool down. I know the last time I was there and there was a sold out show, their main stage area was literally a wall of heat and humidity from all the kids, it was nearly suffocating so I do hope they’ll be letting us roam around outside.

I’ll be there both days and will be shooting bands on both days, so it’s going to be a busy 48 hours! I hope to see many, if not all, of you there so let’s party!

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