Rise Of The Fallen
I think it is now official. When it comes to shooting live music in Melbourne, no venue comes close to Billboard. The lighting guys nail it almost every time and it is always a venue I enjoy shooting at. In fact, I really don’t think I’m ever going to bother trying to photograph anyone at the Hifi Bar. The pit is awfully deep, the lighting is almost always utterly abysmal and you spend a long night pushing your camera to the max, only to come home with naff shots.
So after the winter live-music hibernation, which was discussed at great length after the Napalm Death gig, I was really looking forward to tonight’s shoot. I love Soulfly and was very eager to see Fear Factory’s Burton C Bell’s sideband, City Of Fire. How could you go wrong with two kick ass acts such as these? Well, you can’t.
Both bands put in a kick-ass set but Soulfly were one out of the box. Blistering is a word that comes to mind. I had seen Soulfly a few years ago but wasn’t too impressed with the band’s performance that night. Tonight, they brought the A-game and mercilessly tore Billboard a new one.
There was quite a rowdy crowd in attendance, chanting the band’s name half an hour before they hit the stage.
The pit was awfully crowded with security and another 6 or 7 photogs alongside me.
I was fearful we’d get kicked out after the first song (as sometimes happens at Billboard) but thankfully, we got our three songs.
It felt good to be back amongst it all, and I was feeling confident with the shoot.
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