I have honestly lost count of the amount of times I have seen Opeth live. They regularly tour Australia on each tour they undertake and almost always without fail, they never, ever disappoint.

I believe tonight was the second time I have photographed them having shot them on their last tour in 2009.

I arrived early at the venue as I wanted to photograph tonight’s openers Katatonia as well. What greeted me on arrival at the venue was a queue that stretched down the length of two city lanes as many had come early to see Katatonia too.

I could have just waltzed in, flashed my media pass and beat the queue but I said fuck it, I wanted to feel the vibe of the people so I trekked all the way to the end of the queue just to get into the right frame of mind. As you do.

Once inside, the usual chit chat with my fellow photogs in the photopit as we waited for Katatonia to hit the stage.

My phone was going mental as colleagues in the audience were demanding I try and get a photo of Katatonia’s lead singer. This proved to be a completely impossible task as his long hair, frustratingly, covered his face for the duration of the band’s fine set.

Most label Katatonia and Opeth clone, but they held their own tonight and delivered a wonderful set.

And then Opeth took command. I always do enjoy shooting them because a three song limit with Opeth, usually lasts about 40 minutes!

Again, they were superb. Truly superb but I am not here to break down a track by track review of the gig, you can read that over at HEAVY who I was shooting for tonight.

After the debacle that was the Marduk shoot a few days ago, I wasn’t feeling too passionate about tonight’s Nightwish/Sabaton gig. But I needn’t have been too concerned. The Palace as a venue, is about a million times better than the Hifi and production values are improved tenfold.

The venue was packed to the brim when openers Sabaton took the stage. I made it into the photo-pit just in time to hear my fellow photogs rib me about the Marduk shoot and the ensuing bitching I put forth after the show! (as you do!)

After the usual pleasantries with my fellow ‘togs, Sabaton took to the stage in all their Euro-cheesy glory. Really not my scene musically and the military camp daks just added to the whole cheese-factor! But, they were energetic, lively, friendly and a ton of fun. The crowd lapped it all up and they put forth a tight set.

I also didn’t know too much of Nightwish really. Can’t say I am a fan and I probably only know one or two of their songs – but I do know they are hugely popular (two sold out shows at Melbourne’s Palace is proof enough of that!) They have a worldwide loyal following at the Melbourne league was in full force and voice tonight.

They looked and sounded amazing and could rarely put a foot wrong as their legion of fans sang along to each and every song throughout the band’s blistering set.

There was a great vibe in the room and it was even better in the photo-pit tonight with my fellow colleagues. In short, I had an absolute blast!

The less said about this debacle the better. In short, no photopit. No room to move. No fuckn lights (at least for the headliner who may as well have been lit by candlelight).

A total waste of time and effort.

Don’t laugh too hard at the ‘photos’.

Let’s move on from this farce!

I first photographed Dark Funeral on their last Australian tour back in early 2010. Now they were back with some new blood in the band and ready to render the Corner Hotel into utter smithereens!

Again, I always find it an absolute treat when the band has gone to some effort to produce a show. Rock N Roll should always be about theatre as well and on the visual front, Dark Funeral deliver in spades.

As the curtain was drawn, the band stood motionless in eerie united solitude before breaking into a cacophony of pure nihilistic, misanthropic Black Metal.

Of course, the crowd lapped it all up and each band member decked in black armour and corpse-paint looked like they had escaped the confines of hell yet always took the time to pose for the photographers in question. Thank you guys!

Usually I am not a fan of shooting at the Corner. Almost every time I have been there, it is devoid of an allocated photo-pit which can make things painfully awkward. I certainly was not in the mood to mix it in a ferocious mosh pit tonight, and thankfully it proved to be a pretty easy and fun shoot all round.

With thanks to Frazer Bourke and all at Metropolis Touring.

I’ve extolled the virtues of shooting gigs at Billboard many, many times over but lately, there have been some very poorly lit shows for us photogs. Tonight’s Amon Amarth gig was probably the worst I have seen Billboard lit for many a show. Which is a shame, because for the most part, Billboard is always a pleasure to shoot at.

Tonight there were circumstances a-plenty to deal with that ended up conspiring to make it a woeful night behind the camera.

From the get-go, security advised us that we would pretty much have to leave the pit the minute things heat up. Thanks guys, I’ve come all this way to shoot a gig and you’re gonna give me a song to work with and hopefully get a decent shot or two.

Shit lighting, over zealous bouncers, over crowded photo-pit and a very tender arm from a 6 hour tattoo session and I was beginning to wish I was elsewhere!

Last time Amon Amarth were on these shores and this very same venue, it proved to be such a great night but tonight was the complete and total opposite.

Still, you play the cards you are dealt with and try and do your best.

Looking at the faces of my fellow photogs, I knew they were feeling the same way as I as I believe we all struggled for a decent shot or two tonight.

So apologies dear readers, you’re not going to get anywhere near my best work to look over as it was… one of those nights.

With the near-encounter with Rotting Christ yesterday in the streets of Melbourne, seriously – what better way to kick off 2010′s gig photography with a nice touch of Black Metal evilness?

I was scheduled to shoot both Rotting Christ and headliners Dark Funeral at Billboard tonight – one of my fave venues to shoot at by the way – for Heavy Metal website and all round cool dudes, Metal Obsession.

Surprisingly, there were no bouncers in the photo-pit tonight and the show was only being shot by two photographers. Myself and someone else, who’s name I didn’t catch unfortunately. We had plenty of room to move in and I used this opportunity to shoot from both sides of the stage. I have a nasty habit of staying in the one spot during a shoot and not fully utilising my space to get the artist from all sorts of different angles. What can I tell you, I’m a creature of habit.

And so with the lack of security and tons of space to work with, I endeavoured to capture Rotting Christ from as many angles as possible. Certainly was great not to be hampered by a three-song limit so I stayed and shot the band for the majority of their impressive set.

As they hail from Greece, where my heritage is from, it was cool hearing the band members talk in Greek amongst themselves between songs and fully understand what was being said! Ha!

I was pleasantly surprised by the band’s energetic, well received and damn good set. I had a misconception about these guys and always felt they were much, much heavier – but they put in a blistering performance and certainly won me over. Really need to check out some of their discography, because on tonight’s showing, they obliterated!

By the time Dark Funeral hit the stage, all decked out in the Black Metal Satanic corpse-paint and the like, I was feeling a little weary. (And it probably shows in my photos of these guys). I have much respect for band’s that go that extra mile on a visual front – it always makes for more interesting photos, but tonight, I just wasn’t feeling it.

They were super-loud and often times, it all got lost in a blitz of speed and volume. I had my back resting against the P.A. system and all I could hear feel, was a blur of rapid sound rattling my rib-cage. (That was kinda fun!)

I shot as much of the band as I could from the side of the photo-pit and called it a night after that.

I had never shot at the Palace before so it was to be a night of firsts. I made my way to the front of the stage 20 minutes before Opeth were to kick off their set. I wanted to familiarise myself with the front of the venue and get a feel for the place – as you do.

With 10 minutes to show time, I made my way into the designated photo-pit and sternly checked my gear again and waited for the band. Several other photogs made their way to the pit.

Some new faces tonight and one photog approached me and said “You know, you should smile more often?” She took me by surprise and I responded with “Excuse me?”

“You look so serious!” she said. I laughed out loud and introduced myself.

She said, “You can smile and still be Metal you know. Not even Bloodduster are this serious.”

I guess I must have looked pretty intense, but I always feel a little tense before the band hits the stage. So many thoughts running though my head! Concentrate! Get the shot! Anticipate! Get the shot!

The last time I got to see Opeth live, I was armed with nothing but my iPhone to try and get a photo or two.

Although that gig was only just over a year ago, I wasn’t shooting bands at that point, but I remember thinking to myself just how amazing it would be to get that opportunity.

Here we are 12 months down the track and that opportunity had finally arrived.

The three-song limit had been cut back to two but thankfully, Opeth songs are mostly epic and vast and almost always span for ten minutes at a time. The restricted limit wouldn’t be too bad. I mean, driving to work this morning and listening to Opeth in the car, I only got to hear one track in my usual 15 minute drive.

The stage is pretty high at the Palace so I did find it a little tricky to get some good face shots of lead crooner Mikael Åkerfeldt but apart from that, I completely enjoyed shooting at the Palace.

Opeth, as always, were meticulously brilliant. I did feel they concentrated a little more on their mellower stuff tonight and felt that the gig in September of last year was a better performance. I was clamoring for a rendition of ‘Master’s Apprentices’ but alas, it wasn’t forthcoming.

A big thank you to Leticia and all the gang at Metal As Fuck.

And a nice little mention on the Roadrunner Records site can be seen here.

I heard about Arch Enemy’s tour of Australia back in June. I’ve been a fan of the band for a while and last saw them at Festival Hall a few years ago in support of Megadeth. I definitely wanted the opportunity to photograph them so I decided to email the band via their website. When the promoter all but ignores you – cut out the middle man and go straight to the source.

Having said that, I really wasn’t expecting any sort of response but a day later, there was an email in my inbox that read:

hey John,
no problem.. if we can use the pictures as well..
dont forget to bring me a b-day cake, haha..
i will add you to the GL for the Melbourne show
cheers
Angela

Hmm? Angela? Nah! Couldn’t be!!!

Sure enough, the band’s lead singer Angela Gossow had personally responded and provided a photo-pass for me for the forthcoming Melbourne show. How totally freaking cool is that? If only other bands were so hands on and actually gave a crap about photographers and the like – it would certainly make our work a helluva lot easier! I totally thought this was a world-class move by Angela and one I certainly won’t forget in a hurry.

As the initial contact was made several months ago – I emailed Angela once again a week before the show and indeed, she had all but organized for my pass tonight.

Arriving at the Forum, already the foundations were being shook to the ground. New York’s Suffocation were blowing the place to bits and as I approached the doorman to get my credentials, I felt a tinge of nervousness overwhelm me. Shit, what if my name isn’t on the door? What if Angela didn’t get round to getting it all organized?

I needn’t have concerned myself. The pass was sitting and waiting for me so I made my way through the hallowed doors of the Forum. (Have I mentioned just how much I love this venue?)

Flashing my pass, I got to walk through the crowd and straight into the pit where I spent some time shooting the tail-end of Suffocation’s set (photos will be online soon).

Again, there were familiar photogs and faces in the photo-pit and again, we traded some war-stories about previous shoots, dodging bottles and Dr Marten imprints in our backs.

Arch Enemy took the stage just after 10.30pm and the gathered Metal throng was in pure rapture.

With a three song limit in force, I started frantically going for broke as the band hit the stage.

The band were in fine form and a blistering, concise and brutal Metal set delivered with finesse, style and a ton of class was mercilessly dumped onto an eager Melbourne Metal crowd.