CP: It’s cool that you are coming back to Baltimore right at the beginning of the tour, it’s been awhile off the road – how are you feeling about touring again?

JB: The Baltimore show will be our second show back. We’re really excited about doing it again, because we haven’t been on tour in almost a year now. It’s not been fun.

CP: What’s preparing for this return to the road like?

JB: It’s good, it’s work. We’re finally working again, and that’s a super good thing. After we got in our wreck last year, it’s like ‘okay, now you can’t do -anything- for awhile’. At this point we’re all healthy enough to be rehearsing as much as we can, we have a new rhythm section basically, so we have to learn everything, kind of start from square one again, figure out exactly where we are physically and musically, get back on the road and start doing it again.

CP: Sebastian Thomson (of Trans Am) is the new drummer, how is that working out?

JB: It’s awesome, he’s a kickass drummer, I’ve been a huge Trans Am fan for years, so it’s awesome to have the opportunity to play with somebody that’s made music that has influenced you and of which you’re a fan. It’s totally kick-ass. Part of what we do in Baroness is spend a lot of time considering the chemistry of the members. He gets it and we all get along, it’s great. It literally couldn’t be a better situation.

CP: He doesn’t live in Philly (where the band is based), though, does he?

JB: He and our bass player live in brooklyn, but we can have practices and do all the things we need to do, like learn and get better at music.

CP: This is going to be the first time the Yellow & Green material is going to be played by the band in the states, right?

JB: Yeah, ever. I’ve done some solo tracks, but quite literally, these will be the first live performances of the full band playing them in the states… and, really, we did a couple of shows in Europe with them, but not even enough that we got comfortable with it and I think at the time we were playing them, most people didn’t know the songs yet either. It’ll be cool to play them to an audience that knows the songs.

CP: Now that everyone has had a year for the album to soak in.

JB: Yeah, that could be a good thing or a bad thing. I’m hoping it’s a good thing. It’s good when there is some comprehension happening, and people can anticipate the songs or get excited about our setlist, have a good time singing along, hopefully. That remains to be seen – this will be as big a surprise for me as it will be for everyone else at the show.

CP: Are the setlists going to mostly focus on the newer material, or…?

JB: We always play a good cross section of our back catalogue and I intend on keeping it that way. We won’t eschewing the old songs in favor of purely new songs. We’ll always dip back and play the good songs off the old records. It’s fun to do.

CP: I saw you play a solo set in Austin for SXSW, you played some new material – are you already working on a new Baroness record?

JB: Honestly, I don’t know. It’s been a lot of energy to get this first tour together. So much so, in fact, to consider anything else has been a distraction. So we put all our energy into this, in developing a rapport with the new guys, teaching them the songs, getting comfortable with it and hopefully working towards not just being comfortable with the material, but being better than we were.

CP: How long has the new group been practicing? How long are you going out?

JB: About a month and a half- not terribly long. It’s a 3 week tour, couple weeks off, then another month on, then we’ll take another weeks off, then a couple things after that.

CP: How are Allen (Blickle, the band’s founding drummer) and the other guys?

JB: Everybody’s doing well, we’re all pretty much past the intense physical therapy side of things, kinda moving forward and getting on with our lives.

CP: It was pleasantly surprising to see how fit you seemed in Austin, and how well you played.

JB: That was actually a very difficult set to play, I was in quite a lot of pain, but you’ve got to deal with it.

CP: I’m sure everyone has asked you this, but what’s your reaction to the recent news that Norman Markus (the bus driver during the 2012 crash) has refused to return to the UK to face criminal charges?

JB: I don’t even know what to say about that, you know? That is what it is. We weren’t anticipating it, we were totally fucking surprised by it, I don’t think anyone of us knows what’s going to go on with that. Sufficive to say, I am not pleased by that fact whatsoever. It’s making a complicated situation infinitely more complicated.

CP: Does the band have to go back to the UK for the trial?

JB: No, because we didn’t file charges. This is a criminal case that the UK has filed against him, and it’s not a big enough case to do extradition or anything like that, so he said ‘I’m not gonna come to the UK’ and we’re waiting to hear back what’s going to happen.

CP: One positive thing that came from this terrible situation is the large amount of support that’s come from the music community.

JB: It’s super powerful, there’s a lot of people out there I have to thank as nicely as I can because collectively this was a very big shot to us, physically, mentally, financially- in every way. We’re still, nine months later, trying to make heads and tails of it, and everybodys got their own experience with it, medical bills, psychological effects, medications and doctors visits, and continued chronic pain. It’s not pleasant, but we’re gonna get through it, and everybody’s gonna be fine at the end.

CP: One last thing- your show is during Maryland Death Fest, I know I’ve seen you there before, are you stopping in this year?

JB: if we can figure a way to get in, we’re definitely coming. Look, INFEST is playing – I’m not gonna miss that.

Baroness performs this Saturday, May 25th with Inter Arma at Rams Head Live in Baltimore.

Pentagram & the Obsessed on the same bill
Both bands formed in the 70s (Pentagram in Alexandria, VA, the Obsessed in Potomac, MD), both are extremely influential, and both have iconic frontmen – Pentagram’s troubled Bobby Liebling and Scott “Wino” Weinrich of the Obsessed, as well as St Vitus and many other projects. There probably aren’t two metal bands from the DMV that have as enduring of a legacy as these two acts, and while they have reunited before, each tour has a “this could be the last time” vibe. (Disclosure: this author released two records by one of Weinrich’s later bands, the Hidden Hand)

INFEST reunion
One of the early and defining bands of the 90s powerviolence scene, Infest were a SoCal hardcore band with a reputation for great live performances, strong political stances and a small handful of influential releases on labels like Slap-a-Ham and Deep Six. They disbanded in 1996, before the peak of their scene’s popularity, so this MDF appearance will be many fans’ first chance to see them play.

Exclusive US Venom performance
Formed in the late 70s, Venom are an extremely influential band (they coined the term Black Metal, now a dominant genre), though arguably more for their use of dark, satanic imagery and over-the-top stage costumes and personas than their music. This is their only US show in 2013, and probably for the foreseeable future, and should be a fun experience, if only for frontman Chronos’ stage banter and showmanship.

Rare U.S. Bolt Thrower appearance
This is a rare US show for this long-running UK band who are apparently reluctant to come to this side of the pond. Their two appearances at 2009’s MDF (one announced, one by surprise) were the highlights of that year’s fest – full of energy and fun. This will be your only chance to see them on the east coast, so don’t miss it.

Sleep
California stoner metal band Sleep specializes in droning, meditative, weed-soaked Sabbath worship. Their hour-long set on Sunday is just shy of long enough to play their epic 63-minute song, Dopesmoker. Here’s hoping that the organizers will let them squeeze the whole thing in. Either way, this will be a set that stands out from most of the other acts at the festival.

For more information on tickets, a full running order, and more go to: http://www.marylanddeathfest.com/

A stand out of Baltimore’s punk scene in the 1980s, Grey march are often referred to as a post-punk band, but if you ask them, they were simply punk rockers. They formed at a time when there were not a lot of places for young bands to play or practice. Then the band met Jules Savarese, who ran an underground music venue known as The Loft. With his support, and that of the community that sprang up around his venue, Grey march went from playing small shows for friends to opening for popular touring bands of the time like COC, the Circle Jerks, MDC and Samhain. From there, they grew popular enough to headline their own shows, regularly drawing crowds of 300-400 people. “As it grew, it would get bigger and the shows would get bigger,” says Weldon, the band’s keyboardist. They also extended their reach outside of Baltimore, touring the US and playing several shows at the legendary NYC venue CBGBs. They even managed to release 1000 copies of a self-titled album. Today, that album is long out of print and fetches relatively high prices on online auction sites like eBay.

Before they could record another album, though, the band called it quits in late 1986 or 87. “We had been around awhile. We started getting older, and the crowd started changing…our scene started kinda dying. The people in the band started getting into different influences and stuff,” Weldon explains. “It just ran its course.” There was one brief attempt to unite the original line-up in the early 90s, but after a single practice, the band members lost touch – until 2008, when Weldon, surfing the net, thought to look up his old band. Weldon’s reaction was: “Wow, there’s a Grey march site? Thats really weird – and there’s music on there too! I don’t have any music, where are these people getting this music from if I don’t have any?”

After meeting a Polish fan of the band online, who help make a Grey march MySpace page, he managed to get in contact with vocalist Trip Burch, who soon pitched the idea of a reunion show. The pair tracked down the other members – guitarist Mikey Dub was living on the west coast, drummer Eric Wiegmann was working as a professional musician in Japan, and bassist Stuart Berlinicke was still here in Baltimore. They all agreed that they should meet up and jam, when time allowed, to see if the chemistry was still there.

Since the master tapes of their LP had all been lost, the only material the band had access to were demo tapes, saved by fans and traded over the internet, along with that sole LP. From this, they relearned their songs. “Once we got together it came back really natural. After a couple tries, we could play it, we could totally do all the songs,” says Weldon.

In late 2011, they were asked to play a show at Fraziers in Hampden. Uncertain at first, the band decided to commit and the gig was a success. “They sold every beer they had, that place went nuts,” recalls Weldon, “people were out in the street, it was so big.” Shows at The Ottobar and DC’s the Black Cat soon followed. One problem did emerge, however. As Weldon puts it, “personal band issues got a little bit out of control.” As a result, the band parted ways with original guitarist Mikey Dub. However, Paul Anderson (a member of another of Burch’s bands, the Pearl Fishers) stepped in and learned all the material, becoming a permanent member.

After the reunion shows, the idea of re-recording the original material was floated by Burch and the band agreed on one condition – they would also write and record new material. However, this arrangement was complicated by the fact that Wiegmann still lived in Japan and could only return for short trips. On one of these trips, the band clocked in studio time at Remington’s Wright Way Studios and recorded 8 tracks, a combination of classic Grey march songs, along with two new ones.

After attempting to self-release a CD of this material, another roadblock emerged. The band had worked with a friend to handle the details of the CD pressing. But, when it came time to actually release it, the band found itself in a dispute with this friend. According to the band, they were in contention about the business aspects of the release, and ultimately, although 1000 copies were pressed, this version of the album will not be publicly released. “Its the most insane thing you’ve heard in your whole life,” says Weldon of the outcome.

As a result, the band reached out to Pennsylvania-based independent label Hand/Eye Records which is run by Tim Renner, a long-time fan of the band. With his aid, they have readied a new release- self-titled, just like their 1986 LP- featuring the tracks from the Wright Way sessions, with new artwork. Hand/Eye will also be releasing “Early Works”, a CD compilation of the various demo tracks and original LP tracks (taken from a vinyl copy) that the band had used to re-learn their repertoire. When asked about his attraction to the band, Renner replies “First and foremost, I love their music. It doesn’t matter to me that they were a ‘local’ band… I think they have really captured something special with their sound. I don’t try to analyze too much what it is – some people have said it’s their combination of diverse influences, but it can’t be just that alone. Lots of artists have diverse influences. There is something really special going on with this band.”

To celebrate the dual release, Grey march will be returning to The Ottobar on May 3rd, with a line-up that includes John Stabb (ostentatious frontman of 80’s hardcore band Government Issue) and his new band Repeated History as well as Baltimore’s Lisa Doll & the Rock n Roll Romance. Both CDs will be for sale early at the show, in advance of their release dates (the self-titled drops on May 14th, Early Works two weeks later on May 28th).

When asked about the band’s resurgent appeal, Weldon has this to say: “I think its all about a certain time period. That whole vibe is about an old community… it was all about hundreds and hundreds of kids, over and over and over again every weekend, the same kids. And now they’re all adults. And now they don’t really see each other a lot, yet they’ll come down for something like this… they’ll come and they’ll reconnect.”

There’s been quite a lot of buzz about the upcoming Baltimore metal band Noisem. Local label A389 Records recently sent out word that they have signed the band, who at the same time changed their name (they might be more familiar to readers by their old name, Necropsy). Lead guitarist Sebastian Phillips says the name change is due to “the thousands of other Necropsys out there.” He adds, “our new name Noisem is inspired by the term Noisome which means unsettling or discomforting, disagreeable… we all really liked it, as it isn’t so generic.” The newly branded group have an album, titled “Agony Defined”, on the way in June.

Noisem will also be playing the 11th annual Maryland Death Fest, along with other local acts Pig Destroyer, Ilsa, Old Lines, Eddie Brock, Full of Hell and Asthma Castle. In a first for the fest, it will occupy not only the former Sonar nightclub (now known as Paparazzi), but also the parking area beneath the JFX underpass. There will also be a punk and hardcore stage at the nearby Baltimore Soundstage nightclub (124 Market Place). Year after year, the Death Fest organizers manage to pull off an impressive line-up, and they’ve continued that tradition with marquee acts like Bolt Thrower (in a rare US appearance), Carcass, Down (featuring Phil Anselmo of Pantera) and Venom as well as a reunion performance by powerviolence pioneers Infest. Bobby Liebling’s Pentagram will be playing as well, their first area appearance since the release of the Liebling-focused documentary Last Days Here, and it’s a chance for them to share the stage with fellow 80’s Doom Metal luminaries The Obsessed, who are reuniting for a set at the fest. Between these appearances and sets by Sleep and the Melvins, this year’s MDF appears to be the Doom event of 2013. Of course, there are also plenty of young acts to see, including Pallbearer (who’s 2012 album Sorrow and Extinction topped many year’s best lists), Rotten Sound, DC’s Magrudergrind and Weekend Nachos. It all unfolds May 23-26 in downtown Baltimore. While many ticket options are sold out, others remain for sale at marylanddeathfest.com.

There are plenty of other notable shows coming up besides MDF: The Wayward, Big Christ and Headwounds play with Dangerous Ponies at Club K on Wednesday April 24th. Or, the same night, experience an 80s hardcore revival with Suicidal Tendencies, D.R.I. and Sick of It All at Baltimore Soundstage. Grind lifers Triac play with Inter Arma and Earthling Sunday, April 28th at the Golden West. Also at the Golden West, May 2nd one of DC’s best punk bands, The Shirks (who have a new album out on Grave Mistake Records), play with Baltimore bands Hard Dads and Gutterhooks. On May 3rd at the Ottobar, the Gray March plays a show with John Stabb of Goverment Issue’s band History Repeated. During Death Fest weekend, May 24th, Kentucky hardcore band Coliseum plays right around the corner at the Sidebar with DC’s Give and Red Hare (featuring members of classic hardcore band Swiz).

In upcoming record news, Drugs of Faith is in the studio recording a new as-yet-unnamed EP to be released later this year by Malokul Records, a label started by the DC band Disciples of Christ (who also are recording for an upcoming release on the label). Strong Intention and Coke Bust also are working on new records, and Baltimore punks Double Dagger have a new posthumous ep out now on Thrill Jockey.

Right off the plane, I got an email informing me that I had won a ticket lottery to see Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds, which meant the first thing I did was one of the big moments of the week for me… I was a little surprised he was playing the NPR showcase, and was afraid he might be toned down… however, I shouldn’t have worried. He did not disappoint, performing bawdy, offensive tunes like Stagger Lee (featuring frequent discussion of various types of sodomy), which seemed to surprise most of the crowd at Stubbs. He performed the “hits” as well though, including his well-known track Red Right Hand, which caused even the most random of crowd members to raise a fist, and he did a rousing performance of the somber track Mercy Seat.

Oh, and he stepped on my hand. How about that?

2. John Baizley from Baroness solo

After the horrific tour bus accident that critically injured most of Baroness – Baizley, the singer & guitarist received serious arm damage, drummer Allen broke several vertebrae – the future of the band seemed uncertain. But on stage at the North Door during SXSW, Baizely confirmed both that their future is sound and that he is committed to moving himself in a new, more personal direction. He brought out a set of stripped down, yet spaced-out songs with introspective, personal lyrics, including at least one interesting choice of a cover tune (Townes Van Zandt? Wow!) More than anything, though, it was good to see the man on stage, in one piece, playing guitar again.

3. Mutilation Rites at the Invisible Oranges showcase

After a long, brutally hot day of walking, this was the perfect release – the Grim four-piece, without any pomp or circumstance, simply walked on stage and cut loose – delivering an hour of blackened thrash metal. While they have none of the pretensions of some other modern NYC black metal bands, their set was legitimately transcendental.

4. Roomrunner at the Palm Door

Baltimore’s own Roomrunner briefly sparked life in what was otherwise a sleepy stage area as they delivered a great set of their grunge-tinged rock. Singer/guitarist Denny cracked wise about the increasingly corporate nature of SXSW from the stage, but this crowd was all music fans, excited to simply see a great band cut loose.

5. Thee Oh Sees outside of Beerland

The very last set I caught, but one of the best. Beerland is among the best places to see a SXSW show in Austin – partially because they are no frills, and don’t care if you have a wristband or a badge, a fact spelled out on the sign at the door. Thee Oh Sees didn’t even bother with the stage, instead setting up on the sidewalk patio outside and played for the street, various onlookers crowding around to get a peek, and when 2am rolled around, they just kept going! A great high point to end the long week on.

6. Diarrhea Planet at the Palm Door

The largest band in terms of number of members that I saw at SXSW, also the one that played the most shows, probably. This six piece band from Nashville seemed to have six people on guitar alone, all constantly soloing in triumphant rock god poses and generally exhorting the crowd to cut loose and have a great time… which they did.

7. Merchandise at the bridge party

Every year at SXSW, there is a punk show hosted illegally on a pedestrian bridge that spans Colorado River, and it’s always been one of the highlights of the trip. This year was no different, with Tampa’s Merchandise playing along with one of the heavily buzzed bands of SXSW, Parquet Courts. Merchandise really impressed me at this show, though like most good live shows, the crowd was as much an important part of the moment- exploding around them, dancing, making out, moshing, throwing fireworks. This year, the cops didn’t even come.

8. The Sparring at the Jackalope

Simple, pure, SoCal punk with a metal tinge – this band ripped into a set of short, brutal anthems, including a sloppy cover of Ace of Spades. The singer dominated the space – doing laps on top of the bar, scattering people (but hopefully not their drinks), shoving the mic into surprised onloookers faces, and general creating a time that was surprisingly fun and raucous for 2pm. We stumbled into this place simply to get out of the heat, but it ended up being one of the more fun moments of the week.

9. Spider Bags at a random bar

These North Carolina country & garage tinged psych rockers impressed me at Hopscotch Festival last year when I walked into a random bar and they were playing, and I was stoked to completely randomly catch them again under similar circumstances – this band deserves to be more well known than they are.

10. Boy (on a boat)

A bit of a departure from the other bands on this list, Boy delivered a quiet, earnest set of Americana-tinged indie pop… even though they are Swiss-German! Bonus entertainment was found when the singer Valeska Steiner spoke between songs, not in the Southern twang of her songs, but in her native Swiss accent. This was a fun break… watching Austin’s skyline roll by and enjoying the cool Colorado River breeze.

11. Destruction Unit at Beerland

This band was a fresh discovery for me, even though the late Jay Reatard was once a member., They played several shows at SXSW but their set closing down the last night of the Beerland stage, was their best I saw – great onstage antics, fast, catchy (yet dark) songs, and they managed to whip a crowd exhausted from days of partying into a frenzy, including yours truly.

12. Mac DeMarco hanging out

I watched from my vantage point on the side stage as Mac DeMarco, full of energy, bounced around above the crowd, eventually performing most of one of his songs hanging upside down from the lighting above the stage, people’s hands and cameras outstretched all around him.

Last year, Baltimore musician Jason Donnells (The New Flesh) split for greener pastures but thankfully he’ll be back long enough for his most recent band, Friend Collector, to play a show in town. See them at the Bell Foundry on March 25th with Curse and Multicult. Later in the week, a new metal party kicks off on March 30th at the Borinquen Night Club on Eastern Ave, featuring performances from Lich King, Possessor, and a host of other bands. The promoters say this will be the first of a weekly metal night at the club.

Moving into April, on the 6th Tim “Ripper” Owens is performing at Cafe 611 in Frederick. I can’t say I’m a huge fan, but the guy went from being in a Judas Priest cover band, to being in Judas Priest, to having a movie made out of his life starring Mark Wahlberg as him. Pretty wild ride. The next night, Baltimore’s Passage Between opens for Kowloon Walled City and Zozobra at the Ottobar, and Cemetery Piss opens for Evil Army at the Sidebar.

Joining the ranks of other local fests like A389 Bash and the upcoming Maryland Death Fest, Chris Moore (Magrudergrind, Coke Bust) has organized a strong line-up for the first Damaged City Fest, a two day event at Saint Stephens in D.C. There are too many bands playing to list here, but some of the area acts include: Mindset, Sick Fix, Ilsa, Necropsy, Coke Bust and Give, along with out of towners like Negative Approach, Double Negative, and Dropdead. It goes down April 12-13th and passes are on sale now.

Necropsy, a Baltimore metal band new enough that several members are reportedly still in high school, have just recorded an album with Kevin Bernsten of Developing Nations for their debut release on A389 records. The album should be out in the next few months. Baltimore punk band Paper Dragons have just released an LP, Die To Please, on Wallride Records. They are also playing on April 14th at the Ottobar, with Diarrhea Planet & Tenement. Everlasting grind band Triac just released a split 12” record with D.C.’s D.O.C. on German label RSR.

Finally, on a sad note, longtime Relapse Records sales manager Pat Egan recently passed away from pneumonia complications. Egan was a beloved fixture in the metal community at large for years and Relapse‘s Pig Destroyer is releasing a benefit EP named “Mass and Volume”, which will consist of several doom metal-inspired tracks that were previously available only in Japan. Relapse has also released a 20 band compilation entitled “Patlapse”. Proceeds from both will go towards his daughter’s college fund. You can find out more at patlapse.bandcamp.com.

 

Last month, I shot The Evens (Ian MacKaye and Amy Farina) in their home for Ghetto Blaster magazine, for a feature about their new album. I was a little nervous, unsure how it would be working with Ian, but my worries were totally unfounded – they were both great to work with, friendly, firm about what they wanted, and full of great ideas that made the final product better. A great shoot, and I think the final product came out well!

• See all the photos here.

 

Noisem (formerly known as Necropsy) are a great young Baltimore metal band – though their sound and chops are already quite seasoned, as is their live performance. They recently signed to A389 Recordings and changed their name… I would guess you will hear alot more about these guys in the next couple of years. Here are some photos from their last show under the old name, at the Golden West.

• See all the NOISEM photos here.

I spent a pleasant afternoon in Matmos’ Baltimore City studio, photographing them for a recent XLR8R piece on their studio, their gear, and their new album. A really interesting pair of artists, they explained some of their process and a lot of their gear to me, and they even demonstrated the basic concept of how they came out with the concepts and raw material for their new album – having a friend of theirs undergo sensory deprivation and describing the music that he heard (pictured above). A really cool shoot.

• Read the XLR8R feature here.
• See all the photos here.

Two shows I shot for the post, both bands I hadn’t heard before. Imagine Dragons (playing at the Fillmore) were super energetic live, or at least the singer was, but not really to my taste. Veronica Falls (playing at the Black Cat), however, I loved. Very poppy indie rock with melodic vocals… I thought they would fit in opening for the Smiths in the 1980s, or something. Check them out!

• See all the Imagine Dragons photos here
• Read the Imagine Dragons Washington Post review
• See all the Veronical Falls photos here
• Read the Veronica Falls Washington Post review

Ruth Moore, a veteran, went to Capital Hill to deliver 160,000+ signatures to her petition that the VA re-evaluate the way it deals with victims of sexual assault. I documented her meeting with the VA representative. See all the photos here.

Sunn O))) at Hopscotch in Raleigh, NC.

Crowdsurfing at Insubordination Fest at the Ottobar.

Dope Body at Scapescape.

The Liars at Hopscotch.

The crowd for Bethlehem at Maryland Death Fest 2012.

Morbid Angel at Maryland Death Fest 2012.

Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band at Verizon Center.

Sick Weapons reunion/record release show at UN Fest.

The Dopamines at Insubordination Fest.

Tonie Joy of Moss Icon at UN Fest.

Lost Tribe at Golden West.

Napalm Death at Maryland Death Fest.

Big Freedia at Golden West.

The Pilgrim performing as Black Sabbath at Dustin’s annual cover show.

MURDER at Sonar.

You can view all the photos here! Thanks for reading.

MICA Milquetoast Experimental Fashion Show – a really fun experience every year, a very creative fashion show by outgoing MICA grads. This year was the best one yet.

A group of protesters at the Trayvon Martin rally at Baltimore City Hall.

Promotional and album photo for grindcore band Pig Destroyer & Relapse Records.

Baltimore rapper Billy Bloodshot, for the City Paper.

Photo of my friend Tori from her wedding.

Rooftop promo photo of Baltimore’s Arboretum for Thrill Jockey.

Lester Spence, speaking at the Schools Not Jails protest in Baltimore.

Dana Murphy of Unregistered Nurse Booking, for the Urbanite.

Riding ponies at the Arabber stables.

Hunx (of Hunx & His Punx fame) and a friend.

Spent most of a day with H.R., of the Bad Brains and Human Rights Band, for the cover of the City Paper.

Lips from Canadian metal band Anvil, at Maryland Death Fest.

Winter drink the Golden Girl at Hamilton restaraunt Clementine, shot for a Baltimore Sun feature on Winter drinks.

Street Portrait, Raleigh, NC.

Thanks for reading this far, check back tomorrow for the live music best of. You can also view these on flickr here.

Every year in Maryland, there is a Polar Bear Plunge to benefit the Special Olympics. It’s grown from a modest event, to one that is huge, with 10,000s of people crowding near the base of the Bay Bridge to watch the brave souls that jump in the freezing cold water. There are bands, contests, and costumes… this year the Baltimore Sun sent me out to take photos of some of the creative costumes of the event. And, as you can see, there was a lot of Ravens pride this year…

You can see all the photos here.

The photo at the top, of Matt (from Arboretum & Big In Japan) & his partner Lane in their home is from “Open Houses”, a feature I worked on for B Weekly (along with other photographers). The concept was to go into the home of a local musician/artist/creative and make a portrait of them in their home environment, as well as capture some details. Fun little assignment. I suggested Matt & Lane’s place because I’ve always admired how well-decorated it is.

See the rest of the photos I took here, and see the whole feature here.

IRON REAGAN – members of Municipal Waste, Darkest Hour

Dwid from INTEGRITY

Rad A389 Bash this year – I was only able to make it to the first and last days, due to obligations, but I did manage to see two of my favorite bands: Left For Dead & Integrity. I have loved both since the late 90s, and while I have seen Integrity many times over the years, never thought I would get a chance to see Left For Dead. Thanks to Dom of A389 and the Charm City Art Space for making it happen!

See all the photos (of Integrity, Left For Dead, Iron Reagan) here!

For the inaugural City Paper Whiskey issue, the intrepid photogs were asked to take photos of people drinking, or just after drinking, a shot of whiskey. So I rigged up a simple little one-light setup at my home bar and shot it quick and dirty… See all the “shots” here or read the feature at the City Paper site.

I was lucky enough to have my photo of SUNN O))) at Hopscotch Music Festival selected as #5 on SPIN’s Top Music Photos of 2012. Pretty cool.