AMATEUR CONCERT PHOTOGRAPHY HOUR: Conan/North @ The Garrison, May 21, 2017
I first caught Conan last year on their Revengeance tour, and in terms of sheer volume, they are one of the loudest bar bands I’ve ever seen.
Gruesome Greg
AMATEUR CONCERT PHOTOGRAPHY HOUR: Windhand/Satan’s Satyrs @ Horseshoe Tavern, May 19, 2017
Both Satan’s Satyrs and Windhand hail from Virginia, and would certainly appeal to a doom-minded audience, but there are very few sonic similarities between them.
AMATEUR CONCERT PHOTOGRAPHY HOUR: Blood Ceremony/Biblical @ Silver Dollar Room, April 29, 2017
Aside from the bands, the most memorable thing about the Silver Dollar was that it used to serve four-dollar pints of Buzz Beer…although this is no longer the case. But when it comes to bands, the act that I most associate with this venue is Blood Ceremony.
AMATEUR CONCERT PHOTOGRAPHY HOUR: ARTHUR BROWN/Acid King/Jex Thoth @ Barracuda, Austin, TX, February 25, 2017
It’s been a little while since I’ve flown halfway across the continent for a one-off, non-festival gig, but when I saw the lineup for this one, I knew I had to be there.
AMATEUR CONCERT PHOTOGRAPHY HOUR: TRUCKFIGHTERS/Kings Destroy @ Hard Luck Bar, January 22, 2017
Fast-forward a couple years, and they’re playing a proper venue with proper touring support in support of a somewhat low-key record. But I’ll be damned if that wasn’t the biggest crowd I’ve even seen at the Hard Luck, dude!
AMATEUR CONCERT PHOTOGRAPHY HOUR: DIRKSCHNEIDER @ Mod Club, January 10, 2017
This shindig was billed Farewell to Accept, and it was a proper farewell tour–with a 90-minute set and a four-song encore that covered all the classics from I’m a Rebel to Russian Roulette.
AMATEUR CONCERT PHOTOGRAPHY HOUR: TOP 10 CONCERTS OF 2016
Though I seem to have seen fewer concerts this year, what 2016 lacked in concert quantity, it more than made up for in quality. In any given year, any of this year’s Top Six could have easily been Number One, but when it comes to the overall best live concert experience, the winner was undisputed.
AMATEUR CONCERT PHOTOGRAPHY HOUR: SAINT VITUS/The Skull/Witch Mountain @ Grog Shop, Cleveland, October 8, 2016
Now, I’ve seen Saint Vitus a couple times before, but when I got word that Scott Reagers was rejoining the band for this tour, I felt it was worth the trip to Cleveland.
AMATEUR CONCERT PHOTOGRAPHY HOUR: BRUJERIA/Cattle Decapitation/Pinata Protest @ The Agora, Cleveland, October 6, 2016
If there’s one good thing that’s come out of Donald Trump’s run for president, it’s that his campaign finally gave me the opportunity to see Brujeria in concert. (And yes, I even bought the t-shirt!)
AMATEUR CONCERT PHOTOGRAPHY HOUR: DOPETHRONE/Sons of OTIS @ Bovine Sex Club, September 30, 2016
Though they’ve been building quite a name for themselves in Europe and on the underground sludge/doom scene, Montreal’s Dopethrone had never actually played Toronto until last Friday.