Happy 38th birthday, Jesse Lacey!

I've always loved Brand New, so I feel privileged that I was able to photograph the band twice. The first time was Chicago Riot Fest in 2013, which was rife with issues. I've shot outdoor shows in the rain a few times, but as an Arizona native, I expect the rain to disappear in less than an hour. Chicago rain is a whole new animal. I sifted around in the mud struggling to shoot bands like Suicidal Tendencies and The Broadways.

View fullsize

Brand New at Chicago Riot Fest: photo by Melissa Fossum

The second time I photographed Brand New was at last year's Summer Ends Music Festival.  I was thrilled to be there and shoot great bands like Jimmy Eat World and Spoon, but this was the last night that my 70-200 lens worked. It malfunctioned in the middle of Brand New's set. I was not happy, but I did what I could given the circumstances.

Perhaps the third time will be a charm, as Brand New and Modest Mouse are coming to Phoenix later this month. In the meantime, I'll do what I can to avoid bad luck.

See you in the photo pit.

Happy 29th Birthday, Kendrick Lamar!

I had the distinct pleasure of photographing Kendrick Lamar three years ago. It was a disgustingly hot day at Mesa Amphitheatre, so it's pretty timely to revisit this show as Phoenix's temperatures are nearing 120 this weekend.

This show was amazing. I went in knowing little more than "Bitch Don't Kill my Vibe" and was blown away by Kendrick's stage presence. Now I'm obsessed with To Pimp a Butterfly and can't wait to see him perform at FYF Fest this fall. 

Just a friendly reminder to all other photographers out there- always save your RAW files. I'm amazed at how much this picture pops with three additional years of editing experience. This was a somewhat challenging show to shoot because Kendrick was backlit, but with the right timing and the proper amount of crouching, it made for a halo effect.

See you in the photo pit.

Happy 49th Birthday, Fat Mike!

I first photographed NOFX in 2012 when I was focusing more on writing than photography. It's not my best work (again, it was 2012 and I was still pretty new to the game), but what was most memorable about this show is that Fat Mike granted me a rare interview. 

My favorite part was asking why he took the interview.

I took your interview because our show in Phoenix is selling like shit. It's like, the worst city in the country. It's got such a depressed economy...fuck. I see Phoenix as being the next Detroit. If you're a college student or retired, it's a pretty good city.

A quote like this would get fans in some other circle's riled up, but the bottom line is it's punk rock and a very Fat Mike thing to do.

View fullsize

NOFX performed at Tempe Beach Park 4/6/15.

To that end, the recent photos in this post are from NOFX's performance at this huge punk/screamo music festival last year. Fat Mike made fun of bands like A Day to Remember while he was on stage. Their fans weren't happy, but the audience standing before NOFX loved it. 

View fullsize

NOFX at Marquee Theatre, 1/7/12

Bonus, here's Fat Mike holding up some Preparation H.

View fullsize

NOFX performed at Tempe Beach Park 4/6/15.

See you in the photo pit.

Happy Birthday to Brian Fallon of The Gaslight Anthem

It's pretty rare for me to get nervous in the pit. If I'm shooting a band I love, I'm usually smiling ear to ear, but I can count the times I actually felt nervous and giddy on one hand. One of the best examples of that is The Gaslight Anthem's Brian Fallon, who celebrates his 36th birthday today. 

I had the pleasure of shooting the band at Marquee Theatre a few years ago. This was at the height of my Gaslight Anthem adoration- who would have known that I would end up with a '59 Sound tattoo on my forearm a couple years later. I suppose that's the benefit of having a mom born in 1959. 

Here's a shot from the band's co-headling tour with Rise Against in 2012. It's not my best work, but it's great to look back and see how I've grown over the last four years. 

View fullsize

The Gaslight Anthem at Mesa Amphitheatre, 9/28/12

I suppose The Gaslight Anthem is as good a band as any for waxing nostalgic. They are the first band I saw live after turning 21, shortly after Sink or Swim was released. 

I don't expect TGA to get back together any time soon, so sometimes it is nice to get lost in the nostalgia of their music. If anything else, it will definitely put you in the mood for some Bruce Springsteen.

See you in the photo pit.

R.I.P. Glenn Frey

2016 is off to a rocky start. The Eagles' Glenn Frey is the latest addition to recent celebrity deaths, along the ranks of David Bowie and Alan Rickman.

I photographed The Eagles at Gila River Arena in 2014. Most big arena shows like that allow the photographers to shoot from the soundboard for the first three songs. This was a rare exception where we were granted four songs. The songs were all pretty long since the musicians loved what they were doing. You can see that in Glenn's face here. 

Here's a link to the full slideshow if you would like to see more.

If there is one thing I've learned over the last couple of years, it's to see the bands you love live. I have a good recent example of this-- a friend and I went to Yucca Tap Room a couple of years ago to see Iron Chic. We didn't feel like watching the openers (yeah, I know, faux pas), so we snuck some rum into Robocop instead. We got back to Yucca just as the concert let out. Now Rob McAllister is dead and Iron Chic is no more, all at the expense of watching a mediocre movie. 

Don't do what I did. Get off your butt and go to a concert. You won't regret it, unless of course, you're seeing the revamped "Dead Kennedys" or "Black Flag."

See you in the photo pit.