Miss & Mr Alternative bills itself as ‘Australia’s Most Exciting Alternative Model Competition’ and this is certainly a title it clearly lives up to.

I was honoured to be asked to be one of the official photographers for the event so I was keenly anticipating the night for a few weeks even if I have had an incredibly busy past few days shooting a slab of gigs. Still, when an opportunity presents itself, one should jump at the chance without a moment’s hesitation!

The Victorian Heat was held at Melbourne’s DV8 venue and attracted a variety of people from every alternative subculture. Which is kinda what makes these events so much fun as more often than not, the people in the crowd are just as entertaining as the ones on stage!

I arrived at the venue a little before 9.30pm as was instructed. It’s nice getting into a venue early as it gives you a chance to acclimatize and get all you need nice and ready. I enjoy doing catwalk photography as I have shot previous alternative events such as Circa Nocturna and Worn Wild on numerous occasions. They’re always a fun night.

The night was divided into two halves. First up, the Mr Alternative portion of the event kicked things off. For the Melbourne heat, there were four entrants all diverse and alternative and uniquely different to each other.

Entertaining the crowd at the half-way point was Michael Yule. I thought Michael was a wonderful singer with a superb voice and some great tunes. I’d definitely like to hear more of his stuff in the future.

After Michael’s set, it was time for the Miss Alternative contestants to strut their stuff. Just like their male counterparts, the girls were all unique and represented a diverse range of the alternative culture. All the girls were wonderful and worthy winners in their own right.

A great night for all!

Visit the Miss Alternative website for more info and whilst you are there, please vote for my cat Luci in the pet category!

I fell in love with the Horrors when they released their brilliant debut ‘Strange Houses’ album in 2007. I must’ve played that sucker to the point of totally and utterly destroying every digital fibre on that disc. Just an amazing album that still gets regular spins today.

What can I tell ya? They are one of my fave bands even if their latest album, ‘Skying’, I just haven’t been able to get into – to the point of freaking hating the thing.

I was fortunate enough to shoot the band in early 2010 and all I mainly remember from that show was the massive race against time to get a photo-pass for the show. If it wasn’t for the band’s manager getting me access, there’s no way I could have shot that gig.

And here we were a couple of years down the track and the quest for a photo-pass for this show was on in earnest from early last week. Realising I had left it pretty late to get access, I wasn’t too keen on my chances of getting a pass. Getting to shoot the band again tonight proved to be a massive game of cat-and-mouse and digital to-and-fro. Again, if it wasn’t for the intervention of the band’s management who seriously have to be some of the best people I have ever had to deal with – there would be no shoot!

Again, it went down to the wire. After being in touch with the promoter who told me they knew nothing about the management granting me access, I resigned myself to the fact that I had missed out. A quick email to the manager fixed things up pronto and with a couple of hours till showtime, I was on the list. Talk about down to the wire!

I really wanted this shoot. I love the band and there is absolutely no better place in Melbourne to shoot than at the gorgeous Forum.

So with all the preliminary administration out-of-the-way – I made my way to the Forum.

The Horrors took to the stage and for most of the early set, played material off the aforementioned ‘Skying’ album. And you know what, live, those songs sounded amazing. The band sounded like a fine-tuned machine ambling with their newly acquired Alternative street-cred to an adoring crowd. I miss the early version of the band. I miss them greatly, but they have evolved into something sublime. They oozed soothing tranquility as they took to a dimly lit stage with ambience and colour.

Photographically I was concerned the over-saturated lighting pointing directly into the photo-pit would cause havoc and I must admit, it was a challenge but I think it allowed for some atmospheric shots tonight so I wasn’t too displeased.

I sat in the photo-pit about 20 minutes before Cavalera Conspiracy were due to hit the stage. I always find this to be a calm time before hell is unleashed. It gives me a chance to get a feel for things, check out the lights and prematurely plan my camera settings. Of course, those plans get thrown out of the window pretty damn quickly but you do need to keep your wits about you because your three song limit comes and goes in the blink of an eye.

Regardless, I always find myself listening to the punters behind me. Some of the shit I have heard blows me away every time. But I sit there. Quietly. Observing. Listening and so often wanting to correct a bit of misinformation my ear has caught.

And the routine of getting the stage ready for the band has almost become a cliché. The drum check. The guitars. The mics. All in regular monotony. Once the roadie flashes his torch to the sound and lighting guys… that’s your cue. It’s showtime.

I now know full well why Cavalera Conspiracy called their last album ‘Blunt Force Trauma’. The minute the band hit the stage and Igor Cavalera’s drums kicked into full throttle, it literally felt like I had been kicked in the guts and pummelled to hell and back. I honestly felt my heart rattle in my rib-cage as the band took it to a whole new level of pure, pounding Metal. Fuck me, they sounded so good!

I caught myself getting totally sucked into the music last night in between taking photos. I was loving every single second of this gig and it is just so damn good seeing Max and Igor in a band together.

Tonight the band blitzed through the first three songs before one could fully settle into the zone. But you do the best you possibly can because you do have an extremely limited time in that pit before being escorted out.

I have fond memories of the Damned’s heyday back in the day. They were clearly my sister’s fave band at the time and I distinctly remember her room plastered full of posters and pinups of Dave Vanian and crew. I also remember driving her to (the now long gone) Venue in St.Kilda to see the Damned on their first Australian tour many, many years ago. A veritable plethora of nostalgia when it comes to the Damned so that made for high anticipation before tonight’s shoot on the band’s return trip to Australia.

Arriving at the venue a little before showtime, I got my camera ready and went to the front to scope the lighting out and to get some preparation with the opening band. Upon getting ready to shoot, I realised I had dropped my lens hood somewhere in the crowd so I had to backtrack and scurry in the dark looking for the lost hood! Not fun I can assure you. I had resigned myself to thinking I had lost it and just as I was about to give up, I spotted it and all was right in the world again.

With that bit of clumsiness out-of-the-way, the Damned’s crew were making final adjustments to the gear so it was my cue to get into the pit and shoot tonight’s show.

Fortunately, the photographers given the right to shoot the entire show – which is an incredibly rare occurrence these days but one which had all the photogs present in extremely happy spirits.

Tonight I would be shooting with the new lens which I just purchased, the Canon 24-70mm f/2.8. This is a lens I have wanted for such a long time and it certainly would be put through its paces tonight. To be perfectly honest, I was a little disappointed with most of the shots… (this seems like a regular happening of late) as I blew-out a lot of the shots which were extremely vibrant and somewhat overexposed. I couldn’t blame the lighting tonight as I usually do – but I just felt an overwhelming sense that when it comes to live music photography, I’ve still got so much to learn and am still a long way away from where I want to be.

Onto the gig itself, the band were incredibly fun and were genuinely in good form and fine spirits. It was great to be allowed to stick around for the complete set and I left the gig with a smile on my face knowing full well I had just witnessed a great rock n roll show.

And with every passing song, it all reminded me of the years my sis was a teen and that godawful musical racket that would seep from under her bedroom door as she continually played the Damned over and over at all hours of the night…

You know, you lose track of the amount of gigs one has photographed over the past few years. You lose track real fast. One gig bleeds into the next and for the most part, you can get a little complacent and find yourself in photographic auto-pilot. But… every so often, a classic falls your way and you’re left on such a high and infected with a restless, sleep interrupting buzz – well into the cool, dark confines of the AM digits on your clock!

Toxic Holocaust fucking blew me away tonight. I’m talking smithereens here! Kaboom!

But I digress and have already gone to the end of this review before I have even had a chance to begin.

Let me compose myself somewhat and shake this ringing in my ears off a little. Ok. Deep breaths. I think I am ready.

You know it is going to be an insane night of pure, unadulterated Thrash Metal when every studded and denim jacketed punter in Melbourne had found their way into the depths of Melbourne’s Hifi Bar. You know it is going to be a raucous, in-your-face eve when there is no designated photo-pit whatsoever so you’re gonna have to do whatever it takes to get your shot without being caught in the whirlwind of a circle-pit that refused to cease and desist!

It was loud and insane and the floorboards were rattling to pounding kick drums and maniacal punters long before headliners Toxic Holocaust had even set foot on that wretched stage.

Openers Kromosom held their own and in their punk-thrash best, set the tone for the classic evening.

By the time Toxic Holocaust took the stage, the crowd was primed and wired and they latched onto every fucking note, screech and blast-beat like sharks feeding on menstruating carcass’. The gnashing of teeth gave way to killer riffs and a relentless barrage of stage divers and a crazy circle pit that threatened to break the seal to the ninth gate of hell! Fuck me! Can we bottle this fucking energy here boys and girls?

The security quickly gave up dealing with the divers and I heard a collective groan when one punter crashed into the back of the bouncer sending him flying 6 feet into the air and then face-down onto the floor. Within seconds he was drowning in a sea of bodies and for a split second or two… I thought we had a serious incident on our hands.

At the end of the gig, I felt so bad for the bouncer who had been pummelled from pillar to post. So I approached him and said “surely there’s a better way to make a living?” I asked him how he was and he laughed it all off. “It’s all part of the job!”, he said.

It really does not get any wilder than this and I came away from the show blown away and eager to see what I had captured with the camera.

Big cheers to Robert MacManus for the pass and to the amazing Anwar for the loan of the lens tonight!

Honestly, I hadn’t heard too much of Combichrist’s catalogue but what I had heard, I did like. Add to the fact that they were a highly visual act, which would hopefully make for some cool shots, that left me in high anticipatory mode for the show! Oh yeah, I’m easily excitable!

A few days before the gig I prepared somewhat, looking over some YouTube videos of the band just to see exactly where they all stood and what sort of choreography I could expect. As far at YouTube clips go – yeah, they looked totally cool so I got a feel for what I would expect tonight.

Arriving at the Hifi Bar relatively early I was immediately plagued with thoughts of how much I hate shooting here. You’ve probably read countless of rants here on this blog about my disdain for the place as it is almost always woefully lit so I hoped with all my might that tonight might have been an exception.

After a couple of hours(!) of having one’s head mashed by DJ’s A+D+A+M and then a set by Angelspit – it was now time for Combichrist to take the stage.

As if on cue, the lighting became non-existent. No front lights to speak of and with a maniacal lead singer taking ownership of every part of the stage – it was proving to be so hard to get a decent shot. I was working the camera over-time but shooting tonight with a woeful f/4.0 proved to be a huge, huge mistake. Of course my killer prime f/1.2 was in the other bag. Sometimes, one just does not prepare enough hey? Shoulda been packing my gear instead of looking over YouTube clips methinks!

Industrial/Electronica bands always sound so amazing live. Yes there are a lot of keys and samples and the like, but without fail, live, these bands sound fucking pristine! Combichrist were phenomenally good! Thoroughly enjoyed their performance tonight… I wish I could say the same for the shoot.

Read HEAVY Magazine’s review of the show here which also features one of my photos from the night.

It was with great excitement and anticipation that I got the call up to shoot The Misfits. Whoa dude! The Misfits! The band hasn’t toured these shores for the better part of 5 years and they were always a band whose name I had hastily scribbled onto a natty piece of paper and ceremoniously dumped into the old bucket list of bands I’d love to shoot!

With or without the mighty Evil Elvis Glenn Danzig, the Misfits still are a classic legendary punk band and I for one, was super excited about the opportunity to be in their photo-pit tonight.

Around the corner from the Hifi Bar I noticed one of the regular local roadies I see at nearly every gig escorting a couple of young-looking dolled up goth/punk girls to the alley behind the venue. It was as if he was leading two victims to the sacrificial pyre of lead Misfit Jerry Only and I overheard him saying to them “Oh Jerry is one of the nicest guys in the biz…” Like lambs to the fucking slaughter!

So I found myself at the venue about 30 minutes before the band were to hit the stage and proceeded to spend a nervous five minutes or so as the door gal couldn’t find my name on the guest-list. Great! Just my luck I thought to myself. It’s gonna pan out to be one of those nights, the tingle in my bones said so from the outset! Fuck it! I wasn’t gonna let negative energy get the better of me. I was here to shoot the Misfits and just that thought soon brought a smile to my face.

The photo-pit was packed to the brim with a bunch of shooters I hadn’t rubbed shoulders with before. A couple of familiar faces who I did have a brief chinwag with, were in attendance and we patiently waited for the show to kick into gear.

The three song limit we had to shoot in came and went in the blink of an eye but mercifully, we were allowed to stick around for one more song. Those first few songs felt like only five minutes had gone by! That’s usually the case with Punk bands. I mean, the Ramones could probably do an entire album in about 10 minutes or so!

The band sounded amazing stomping through some classic Misfits tunes but the majority of the first three songs were incredibly dimly lit and I could hear the frustration and groans from my fellow photogs above the music.

The band kicked things off with a couple of new tunes from the latest album and man, they sounded so much better live. ‘The Devil’s Rain’ grooved along at such bombastic pace even if it was barely lit. You could hardly see the band at all such was the ‘moody’ lighting and it was half-way through the song before you could even attempt to take any photos. Quickly followed by ‘Vivid Red’ – the stage turned a sickly red as every gell in the place was red and red alone. I let out a frustrating *sigh* as I quickly realised there were gonna be a ton of black & white post-processing later on.

It was a tough, tough shoot and of course, as if on cue, the minute we were escorted out of the pit… on came the lights. I looked down onto the stage after I had climbed the stairs to the first level and there before me, the stage was lit and looking fantastic. I felt like punching the wall. Why the fuck can’t it be like this when we’re all down in the front, there to take photos?

A frustrating night. An awesome band. But a photo opportunity wasted.

I’m gonna be brutally honest here, when it comes to event photography… I suck! I suck a lot! Chuck me in the most violent of mosh-pits and I can handle that with ease. Getting to ask someone if I can take their pic? Fergetaboutit! I really don’t like doing this sort of photography because I am not good at it and I am as uncomfortable as one could possibly get when shooting in such a scenario.

Which is a crying shame because if I told you of some of the photographic opportunities I have forfeited due to this phobia, you’d be astounded.

Having said that, I have shot many events for Outré Gallery over the years. Heaps! I consider Outré’s Gemma and Martin two of the nicest, coolest and totally kick ass peeps I have ever had the pleasure to meet. So when they put out a request to have an event photographed – I’m there. Nervousness aside. I am there.

Tonight’s event was for the launch of the gorgeous Tattoo Parlour book. In attendance was the amazing Angelique Houtkamp who I have had the pleasure to photograph at prior Outré events and a veritable sea of punters who had RSVPd to attend tonight’s event. Seriously the gallery gets so packed you literally do not have space to move, let alone breathe but as always, it turns out to be an incredibly fun night!

The book ‘Tattoo Parlour’ is a showcase of artworks made by artisans who also make tattoos. The book comes in two forms – a softcover and a beautifully crafted hardback published by Outré Gallery Press.

There is also an exhibition currently running at the gallery until November 30.

More info is available here.

Special thanks to Sam Difference for her wonderful assistance in tonight’s shoot.

Can’t say I have ever been to a gig at Melbourne’s Palace that I haven’t enjoyed. Whether there as a punter or a photographer, each and every show has been nothing short of kick ass. Totally! The vibe is always blistering, the lighting is just perfect and more often than not – every band that plays there seems to regularly deliver the goods!

It was a veritable who’s who in the photo pit with plenty of familiar faces tho for some inexplicable reason, there was a dude amongst us shooting the gig in the pit with an iPhone. Ummm, yeah ok dude. ‘Scuse me whilst I try to get a decent shot or two!

I felt a little more like a seasoned veteran of the gig circuit tonight when I saw a couple of rookie ‘togs get a little shell-shocked by the flying slam dancing bodies that came over the barricades! I drew a sly smile as it brought back memories of when I was first in the pit. S’funny how now I just ignore it as one develops a sixth sense for when an onslaught is about to hit. With only three songs to shoot, every second is crucial so who’s gonna let flying Doc Martins ruin a good night hey?

I still get an incredible rush when standing in the pit waiting for the band to hit the stage… the atmosphere in any room those 5 minutes before showtime is something money just cannot buy. The air is purely electrified and you can just feel your heart thumping ever-so-loudly in your chest. The crowd begins their chanting, the lights go black and BOOM its showtime!

Tonight was my first time seeing Finland’s Children Of Bodom and simply put, I thought they were great. They commanded the stage with ease and a sure-fire cock rock attitude. The crowd loved them, I thoroughly enjoyed shooting them and at the end of a long day, I cam away satisfied and delighted to have finally see them.

“City authorities in your area have reported that the bodies of the dead are rising from the graves and attacking the living…”

I’ve lost count, but I think this was the fourth Melbourne Zombie Shuffle I have photographed and easily – it was the biggest.

The event had been planned for months and for some reason or another, I was getting a slew of media enquiries about the event from various outlets. Perchance they had seen my coverage of the event from prior years and assumed I was somewhat involved with the organisation of it all.

Regardless, these things are always a ton of fun and I had pencilled in today’s date weeks and weeks ago!

There is nothing better than being there to photograph the mayhem and craziness that inevitable unfolds and today, the City of Melbourne was completely and utterly overtaken by the walking dead.

“In the end of everything the dead will rise and sing! Fight ‘em ’til you can’t fight no more. The world is only blood – rage becomes your love. Fight ‘em ’til you can’t fight no more!”

Considering the weather took a turn for the worst, that still did not stop at least 2,000 undead leaving the sidewalks of this fair city drenched in blood, sweat and shrieking cries of zombified pain. It was relentless. A constant stream of zombified, costumed lunatics stumbling and bleeding all over piss-stenched streets of this fair city!

It was an incredible motley crew of every shape and size. Twisted and contorted faces. Blood curdling screams and an undying lust for brains, gore, mayhem and mirth pierced the Melbourne air.

The city had only recently been taken over by occupiers and professional protestors and the like, but today, it was all in the name of fun and levity. And fun was had by all… but do spare a thought for all the street cleaners who’ll be working bright and early tomorrow for the streets of this fair city have been splattered by blood akin to a slaughterhouse!

“‘Cause there’s no humanity when the dead come back to feed…”

(lyrics by Anthrax – Fight ‘Em Till You Can’t)