Tag Archives: joshsisk

Odds & Ends: Thomas Dolby, Birth (Defects)

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Thomas Dolby's first DJ performance
Thomas Dolby's first DJ performance
Thomas Dolby

Birth (Defects) @ Wind-Up Space
Birth (Defects)

Uploaded some odds n’ ends last night, among which were included the above: photos from Thomas Dolby’s (of she blinded me with science fame) first DJ performance, which was at the Paradox in Baltimore, and photos from a Birth (Defects) show at the Wind-up space, among many more. I still post photos on my Flickr, because of ease of use and the fact that I just have such a huge library already there, so if you want the raw feed, follow me there.

A note about the Dolby DJ set- it was pretty disappointing, I must say. Partially because so much effort was spent on presentation, so I was expecting something pretty cool. He had a DJ booth set up like a machine gun emplacement, with sandbags and walls and stuff, and a big projection thing going. But his DJ selections were just standard 80s fare… nothing too bad or anything, but the song selection just didn’t match up to his level of art direction.

Marilyn Manson ‘The Pale Emperor’ Tour Opener.

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Marilyn Manson @ Fillmore Silver Spring
Marilyn Manson @ Fillmore Silver Spring
Marilyn Manson @ Fillmore Silver Spring
Marilyn Manson @ Fillmore Silver Spring Marilyn Manson @ Fillmore Silver Spring Marilyn Manson @ Fillmore Silver Spring
Marilyn Manson @ Fillmore Silver Spring

I shot and wrote a thing for Noisey about the Marilyn Manson tour opener at the Fillmore… photos above, here is the text:

Yesterday, I got the all-clear to shoot the Marilyn Manson tour opener in scenic Silver Spring, Maryland. After a hiatus of sorts, my generation’s number one shock rocker is back with a comeback album, The Pale Emperor, and this show would be the first chance for live impressions. I’ve never been a Manson fan really; as a teenager, I liked some of the early songs like “Lunchbox,” and once saw him open for Nine Inch Nails, but by the time he hit full superstar mode, I was too busy listening to hardcore and screamo records to care very much about what Brian Warner was getting up to. Still, the guy is an icon—of course I wanted to see his show!

After navigating a line that literally wrapped around the block (later, I was told that concertgoers had started lining up twelve hours before doors), I went in expecting some serious 90s rockstar antics. I wasn’t disappointed. In a set filled with solid hits, Manson’s show also featured multiple costume changes (including four costume changes for the microphone itself), casual cockiness and furious anger at the sound guy, calls for fans to throw drugs on stage (he casually picked up one baggie containing an impressive amount of powder and filed it away in his back pocket for later), a contingent of women with their tops off and Manson lyrics written on their bodies, and of course, calls for the crowd to suck his dick. In true rock star fashion, any time he was done with an object—a microphone, an open bottle of water, a glass of liquor—he just let it drop to the ground, and someone would scurry over there to put it back in its rightful place without the show missing a beat.

After the show—which was entertaining enough to me, a non-fan, to stay until the end—the overall fan reaction seemed pretty ecstatic. One gothy teenager beamed at me and asked if I also thought that it had been the best concert ever. A few people I spoke to did say that they were disappointed with his vocals (though I must say that they sounded generally fine to me). I asked them if they thought that made the concert suck, and one of them replied enthusiastically, “No! Marilyn Manson can’t do a bad show!”

Read WELCOME BACK TO THE DOPE SHOW: PHOTOS FROM MARILYN MANSON’S ‘THE PALE EMPEROR’ TOUR OPENER on Noisey | SEE ALL THE PHOTOS HERE

Cocksparrer in Baltimore.

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Cocksparrer @ Soundstage
Cocksparrer & friends.
Cocksparrer @ Soundstage
Cocksparrer @ Soundstage
Cocksparrer @ Soundstage
Cocksparrer @ Soundstage
Cocksparrer @ Soundstage
Cocksparrer @ Soundstage
Cocksparrer @ Soundstage

Always amazing – one of my favorite bands of all time. So stoked to get to see them in my city. If you ever get the chance, don’t sleep. I almost skipped their Philly show in 2013 and it ended up being one of the best shows I have ever seen, and I see ALOT of shows. Classic band.

SEE ALL MY COCKSPARRER PHOTOS HERE.

Best Photos of 2014.

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As per the tradition, here are my personal favorite photos from 2014, posted in no particular order. I even managed to get them up in January this time! Prints of many of these are available here, contact me if there’s one you would like that is absent.

BEST LIVE MUSIC

Infest @ A389 Bash X 2014
INFEST @ A389 Bash X / Soundstage

Pentagram @ Soundstage
Pentagram @ Soundstage

Downtown Boys @ UNFest 3.
Downtown Boys @ U+NFest 3 / Ottobar

FKA Twigs @ 9:30 Club
FKA Twigs @ 9:30 Club

Gwar @ Soundstage
Gwar crowd @ Soundstage

Putrisect @ Metro Gallery
Putrisect @ Metro Gallery

Arcade Fire @ Verizon Center
The Arcade Fire @ Verizon Center

Club Mnemonic
The Soft Pink Truth @ Club Mnenomic / Paradox

Haim @ 9:30 Club
Haim crowd @ 9:30 Club

Kevin Gates @ Fillmore
Kevin Gates @ the Fillmore

Future Islands @ Floristree
Future Islands @ Floristree

Chain and the Gang @ Comet Ping-Pong (record release)
Chain & the Gang @ Comet Ping Pong

Big Mouth @ Gold Bar
Big Mouth @ Gold Bar

Betty Who @ Rock & Roll Hotel, DC
Betty Who @ Rock N Roll Hotel

Baltimore Rock Opera Society - Concertus Maximus
BROS Concertus Maximus

Post Pink @ UNFest 3.
Post Pink @ U+NFeast 3 / under a bridge

BEST EVERYTHING ELSE

MAGRUDERGRIND
Magrudergrind.

Chase Lisbon.
Chase Lisbon.

Satan's Satyrs
Satan’s Satyrs.

Old Lines.
Old Lines & friends.

John Waters @ Md Film Fest 2014
John Waters.

Blacksage
Blacksage.

Soft Pink Truth/Drew Daniel for CP BoB
Drew Daniel/Soft Pink Truth.

Last Gold Bar Show
Last Gold Bar show.

North Dakota, Winter 2012
North Dakota.

@ Tom Malenski benefit
Ottobar Staff, Tom Malenski memorial.

FKA Twigs @ 9:30 Club

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FKA Twigs @ 9:30 Club
FKA Twigs @ 9:30 Club
FKA Twigs @ 9:30 Club
FKA Twigs @ 9:30 Club
FKA Twigs @ 9:30 Club

Wasn’t sure what to expect from this, but after an uninspiring set by an opener I hadn’t heard of before, FKA Twigs proved to be worthy of all the hype. The music she plays isn’t my thing, really, but she had the crowd in the palm of her hand and had a great stage setup as well. Fun show, she is going to be big.

SEE ALL MY FKA TWIGS PHOTOS HERE | Read the Wash Post review here

Pentagram, Bang!, The Pilgrim, Kings Destroy & Radio Moscow @ Soundstage

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Pentagram @ Soundstage
Pentagram @ Soundstage
Pentagram @ Soundstage
Pentagram @ Soundstage
Pentagram @ Soundstage
Pentagram @ Soundstage
Pentagram @ Soundstage
Pentagram

Bang! @ Soundstage
Bang! @ Soundstage
Bang!

The Pilgrim @ Soundstage
The Pilgrim @ Soundstage
The Pilgrim @ Soundstage
The Pilgrim

Kings Destroy @ Soundstage
Kings Destroy @ Soundstage
Kings Destroy @ Soundstage
Kings Destroy

Radio Moscow @ Soundstage
Radio Moscow

Last month, Doom icons Pentagram played Soundstage (which is really shaping up into a great venue for metal in Baltimore) along with The Pilgrim, Bang!, Kings Destroy and Radio Moscow. Pentagram shows are notoriously hit or miss, as anyone who was at their infamous Black Cat comeback show can attest, but this night they were on their A game. It’s also always great to see them with Victor Griffin, when he is back with the band everything seems to just run more smoothly and Liebling (the famously troubled frontman of the band) seems to hold it together more. They didn’t disappoint, one of the best times I have seen them (though not sure if that first time I saw them at Sonar can be topped).

It was great to see Bang! too, a band I had always heard about but never had the chance to see – they really seemed to have a great time on stage, the first half of their set especially killed. This was apparently one of the last shows for quite some time for The Pilgrim, one of my favorite Baltimore bands. Cool that they managed to get on such a sick bill.

SEE ALL MY PHOTOS FROM PENTAGRAM @ SOUNDSTAGE HERE.

Best of… 2013?!?

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So, I have been doing yearly “best of” round-ups of my work since 2007. Right around now is when I start to think about what to put in the running for the year… the only problem is, I never posted one for 2013. So, here goes, in no particular order: my very late list of best photos of 2013.

Concert

Goblin @ Housecore Horror
Goblin
A band I waited a lifetime, almost, to be able to see.

Future Islands @ Hopscotch 2013
Future Islands
A band on the cusp, playing their hometown. Well-deserved success stories like theirs are part of what makes this job fun.

Municipal Waste @ GwarBQ 2013
GwarBQ pit

High Zero Experimental Dance Night
High Zero
Only was able to make it to one night of High Zero this year but it always provides something exciting.

The Gories @ Unfest 2
The Gories

Robin Thicke @ Virgin Free Fest 2013
Robin Thicke
Thicke pretty much was peaking at this festival, but it was fun to be there for it.

the Breeders @ Hopscotch 2013
Kim Deal/the Breeders
Just love how much fun she’s having. As I recall, this was days/weeks after she bid goodbye to the Pixies. She seems plenty happy.

Cannibus Corpse @ GwarBQ 2013
Canibus Corpse

Chvrches @ Virgin Free Fest 2013
Chvrches
Had never heard of this band before this, but I love quiet moments at huge concerts.

Old Lines @ Black Cat
Old Lines.
I love the guy on the left.

Down @ Housecore Horror
Phil Anselmo
He made fun of me from stage during this set.

Non-Concert

The Evens.
The Evens
This was an amazing shoot. They were really easy and fun to work with.

Dana rooftop pool, Austin 2013
Dana.

Call Girl of Cthulhu
Call Girl of Cthulhu
Got to shoot a lot of stills and behind the scenes for this film, as well as the DVD cover. Really fun experience.

Luray Caverns 2013
Luray Caverns

Maryland Film Fest 2013
Maryland Film Fest Hotel Party
This was, I think, taken in Bobcat Goldthwait’s hotel room but the memory is hazy.

Bronycon Baltimore 2013
Bronycon I
The Brony thing has gotten a little weird since this first con but I found them to be refreshing an earnest when I spent the weekend hanging out with them.

Ryan.
Ryan Schapell

Glitter Thighs @ Tiki Barge
Glitter Thighs

Wallhunters.
Wallhunters

Ottobar Haunted House
Ottobar Haunted House

Baltimore Tattoo Convention 2013
Blue Man
I’d heard about this guy for years. A retired Baltimore City civil servant who dedicated his retirement years to getting completely tattooed.

For the truly curious, here is the pool of photos I picked from.

Baltimore Rock Opera Society – Electric Pharaoh.

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BROS 'Electric Pharoah'
BROS 'Electric Pharoah'
BROS 'Electric Pharoah'
BROS 'Electric Pharoah'
BROS 'Electric Pharoah'
BROS 'Electric Pharoah'
BROS 'Electric Pharoah'
BROS 'Electric Pharoah'
BROS 'Electric Pharoah'
BROS 'Electric Pharoah'
BROS 'Electric Pharoah'

This was a fun assignment. Baltimore Rock Opera Society have been making really ambitious/crazy performances for awhile now, but I’ve never gotten a chance to shoot them. This year director Mason Ross and artistic director Aran Keating invited me to shoot their dress rehearsals and some behind the scenes shots. There was a lot to see, check em out.

See all the Electric Pharaoh dress rehearsal & behind the scenes photos here.

Marked Men 2-day stand @ St Vitus.

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Marked Men @ St Vitus
Marked Men @ St Vitus
Marked Men @ St Vitus
Marked Men @ St Vitus
Marked Men @ St Vitus
Marked Men @ St Vitus
Marked Men @ St Vitus

Earlier this year, Marked Men played 3 shows in two days at Brooklyn’s Saint Vitus. I covered it for Noisey. Great shows, I wish we could have stayed for the third one but no sense being greedy, I suppose. The atmosphere at these shows were great, really intimate, lots of fans from all over there to see one of their favorite bands play with little or no BS. The day show, especially was cool, though less “wild” since people were just waking up/not tipsy, but it gave it a more youthful vibe. Don’t miss a chance to see this band.

See all my Marked Men at St Vitus photos here!

Read the Noisey piece here!

UNfest 2 with Gories, Pissed Jeans, Peach Kelli Pop & more!

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The Gories @ Unfest 2
The Gories @ Unfest 2
The Gories

Pissed Jeans @ Unfest 2
Pissed Jeans @ Unfest 2
Pissed Jeans

Peach Kelli Pop @ Unfest 2
Peach Kelli Pop

Obnox @ Unfest 2
Obnox

Ed Schrader's Music Beat @ Unfest 2
Ed Schrader’s Music Beat

Hunters @ Unfest 2
Hunters

Roomrunner @ Unfest 2
Roomrunner

Old Lines @ Unfest 2
Old Lines

Cult Control @ Unfest 2
Cult Control

Big Christ @ Unfest 2
Big Christ

UNfest 3 is this weekend, so enjoy the above photos from 2013’s fest! You can buy tickets for this year’s fest here.

Click here for all the photos from UNfest 2.

Click here for day one and here for day two photos from UNfest 1!

(These photos originally ran on Noisey.)

Windhand, The Pilgrim, All Of Them Witches @ the Ottobar

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Windhand @ Ottobar
Windhand @ Ottobar
Windhand @ Ottobar
Windhand @ Ottobar
Windhand @ Ottobar
Windhand

The Pilgrim @ Ottobar
The Pilgrim @ Ottobar
The Pilgrim @ Ottobar
The Pilgrim

All Them Witches @ Ottobar
All Of Them Witches

Good show at Ottobar the other day (week? slowly getting my site up to date). Really dug the chance to see Windhand, as this was the first time I had seen them in a non-festival setting. The Pilgrim is always great, one of my favorite heavy Baltimore bands.

See all the WINDHAND, THE PILGRIM, ALL OF THEM WITCHES photos here!

Rat Fist & Ed Schrader’s Music Beat @ Floristree.

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Rat Fist @ Floristree
Rat Fist @ Floristree
Rat Fist

Ed Schrader's Music Beat @ Floristree
Ed Schrader's Music Beat @ Floristree
Ed Schrader's Music Beat @ Floristree
Ed Schrader's Music Beat @ Floristree
Ed Schrader's Music Beat @ Floristree
Ed Schrader’s Music Beat

Saw Baltimore’s Best Band, Ed Schrader’s Music Beat awhile ago at venerable DIY venue Floristree along with Rat Fist, a new band made up of members of No Age and Pissed Jeans. Long time homie Sean McGuiness of PJ (and various back-in-the-day DC bands) drums and sings for Rat Fist, so I couldn’t miss it. Great show. ESMB really deserves all the attention they are getting, what a great band. Seeing shows at Floristree is a really good experience because it feels so home-y (after all, it is a home) and the crowd is generally so respectful and into the music. They even have a better sounding PA now, too!

See all the RAT FIST / ED SCHRADER’S MUSIC BEAT photos here!

Roomrunner band photos, 2014 edition.

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Roomrunner.
Roomrunner.

I’ve known the Roomrunner fellows since they became a band and I’ve known Denny Bowen since he was in high school, back when his early bands Yukon and Economist used to play shows in my basement, usually at the request of Sean Gray, another old friend who runs Accidental Guest, the label that is putting out the new Roomrunner record. I think I have taken almost all of their promo photos, but this was the first time we did it not after a show and a lot of beers. It was still fun. Great fun, actually- rambling around the Copycat building, petting Dan’s cute cat, climbing up on the roof and dodging weird moss and horsecrab corpses (no joke).

Kevin Gates @ the Fillmore Silver Spring.

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Kevin Gates @ Fillmore
Kevin Gates @ Fillmore
Kevin Gates @ Fillmore
Kevin Gates @ Fillmore
Kevin Gates @ Fillmore
Kevin Gates @ Fillmore
Kevin Gates @ Fillmore

The other week, I shot Baton Rouge rapper Kevin Gates at Fillmore. I was expecting to be underwhelmed, as most hip-hop shows I go to lately have been fairly disappointing… a lot of the younger artists haven’t been playing shows that long and seem to lack the showmanship you used to see. Not Gates, though. After a slow start, I was pleasantly surprised as he burst into life, stalking back and forth on stage, calm one moment, barely contained energy the next. The crowd ate it up, too. Good show, fun to shoot too, as he kept interacting with crowd members.

See all my Kevin Gates at Fillmore Silver Spring photos here!
Read the Washington Post review here.

Arcade Fire : Reflektor Tour 2014 @ Verizon Center

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Arcade Fire @ Verizon Center
Arcade Fire @ Verizon Center
Arcade Fire @ Verizon Center
Arcade Fire @ Verizon Center
Arcade Fire @ Verizon Center
Arcade Fire @ Verizon Center
Arcade Fire @ Verizon Center

I shot the Arcade Fire Reflektor Tour at Verizon Center for the Washington Post. Was a little skeptical at first, having not kept up with them in years, but I thought the show was fun, and fun to shoot. The reviewer didn’t seem to like it much, but I had a good time.

See all the Arcade Fire : Reflektor Tour photos here!
See the Dan Deacon photos from Reflektor tour here!

Dan Deacon: Reflektor Tour 2014 @ Verizon Center

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Dan Deacon @ Verizon Center
Dan Deacon @ Verizon Center
Dan Deacon @ Verizon Center
Dan Deacon @ Verizon Center
Wham City members Robby Rackleff & April Camlin lead the crowd in interpretive dance.
Dan Deacon @ Verizon Center

The other day I shot Dan Deacon and Arcade Fire for the Washington Post at their Verizon Center stop of the Reflektor tour. I initially was a little worried that the show would be a little empty, or that the crowd wouldn’t ‘get’ Dan’s typical group-participation antics. I was wrong – though it took a minute for the large venue to fill in, it eventually got packed in there and it seemed like everyone was super happy to join in with Dan.

Some funny moments of the show for me: at these big shows, photographers always have media handlers who take you where you are supposed to be. However, since Dan set up at front of house to play, they were like “wow, I don’t know what’s going on, just do your thing,” which rarely happens. Also, was surprised to find that grindcore legend Scott Hull was in attendance. He asked me what Dan Deacon was all about, I tried to explain it, and assumed it wouldn’t be to his taste… but he loved his show!

See all the Dan Deacon : Reflektor Tour @ Verizon Center photos here!
See all the Arcade Fire photos from Reflektor Tour here!

Adam Savage’s bday w/ Pig Destroyer, Magrudergrind, Cemetery Piss & Putrisect

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Pig Destroyer @ Metro Gallery
Pig Destroyer @ Metro Gallery
Pig Destroyer @ Metro Gallery
Pig Destroyer @ Metro Gallery
Pig Destroyer @ Metro Gallery
Pig Destroyer @ Metro Gallery
Pig Destroyer @ Metro Gallery
Pig Destroyer

Magrudergrind @ Metro Gallery
Magrudergrind @ Metro Gallery
Pig Destroyer @ Metro Gallery
Magrudergrind

Cemetery Piss @ Metro Gallery
Cemetery Piss (cricketcemetery.bandcamp.com)

Putrisect @ Metro Gallery
Putrisect (putrisect.bandcamp.com)

For his birthday, Baltimore promoter Adam Savage gave us a present – a sick party at the Metro Gallery (a venue that has stepped up it’s game of late with a remodel, new stage as well as way more metal shows). Local newcomers Putrisect are the most promising new band I’ve heard this year- brutal, guttural howling vocals, killer riffs and a “fuck y’all” live performance attitude add up to a band to watch. Black Metal band Cemetery Piss (featuring the birthday boy himself) have been a fave of mine for awhile but they just keep getting better and more consistent. Pick up their new 7″ if you are at all a fan of the genre. I had to slip away at this point to go to LadyFest to see Whore Paint, but Inter Arma’s set was, by all accounts, incredible. Magrudergrind killed, as always – love those guys and the crowd obviously did as well. Finally, it’s great to see Pig Destroyer strutting their stuff as a five-piece – they have been playing a lot of out of town dates, and it shows in how together they are. One of the best times I’ve seen them in awhile (and I’ve seen them a lot). Super secret birthday suprise: A Pig Destroyer Misfits cover set with Adam joining in on vocals!

SEE ALL THE ADAM SAVAGE BIRTHDAY W/ PIG DESTROYER, MAGRUDERGRIND, CEMETERY PISS, PUTRISECT PHOTOS HERE!

Earlier in the day, I shot Pig Destroyer and Magrudergrind band photos, so be on the lookout for those soon…

Pig Destroyer Misfits covers with Adam Savage on Vocals @ Metro Gallery
HAPPY BIRTHDAY ADAM!

Lady Fest 2014 – Days 1 & 2.

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Big Mouth @ LadyFest Baltimore
Big Mouth @ LadyFest Baltimore
Big Mouth @ LadyFest Baltimore
Big Mouth (bigmouthsound.bandcamp.com)

Whore Paint @ LadyFest Baltimore
Whore Paint @ LadyFest Baltimore
Whore Paint (whorepaint.bandcamp.com)

Coup Sauvage & the Snips @ LadyFest Baltimore
Coup Sauvage & the Snips (coupsauvage.bandcamp.com)

War on Women @ LadyFest Baltimore
War On Women (waronwomen.bandcamp.com)

Lizz King @ LadyFest Baltimore
Lizz King (www.ehserecords.com/lizzking)

Dasher @ LadyFest Baltimore
Dasher (dasher2.bandcamp.com)

Curse @ LadyFest Baltimore
Curse (cursebaltimore.bandcamp.com)

Trophy Wive @ LadyFest Baltimore
Trophy Wife (trophywifetheband.bandcamp.com)

Crimson Wave @ LadyFest Baltimore
Crimson Wave (crimsonwave.bandcamp.com)

Nervosas @ LadyFest Baltimore
Nervosas (nervosas.bandcamp.com)

Big Mouth @ LadyFest Baltimore

This was such a great event. Two days of bands, workshops and community in Station North. Got to see some of Baltimore’s best bands and discover quite a few out of town acts that I had never heard of – Coup Sauvage and Whore Paint in particular impressed me. Baltimore rules.

VIEW ALL THE LADYFEST 2014 PHOTOS HERE