Currently viewing the tag: "darlings of chelsea"
After snapping a couple of quick photographs of the Skag Barons during the Darlings Of Chelsea show a couple of weeks ago, they asked if I would come out to photograph their CD release event on the 7th. As I was stoked on their last show, I decided I would. If you read my post from their last show, you’ll know that I was unhappy with the lack of lights at Call The Office that evening; fortunately, they accommodated. I arrived towards the conclusion of the opening acts set, which was an interesting mix of influences and overall a reasonably tight performance. I’m not sure who they are however, they have a Sonic Youth (I love Sonic Youth…if you don’t we probably shouldn’t be friends) meets Henry Rollins Band sort of thing going on; at times it feels right and at others slightly uncomfortable (which might actually be a good thing). The Skag Barons crushed through a barrage of tunes from their new self titled release and took no prisoners. Their brand of Rock & Roll is a sludgy mess that I for one, am beginning to like more and more. Check them out, sludge out and enjoy the live photographs!
I’m going to be back at Call The Office (London, Ontario) tonight for Acacia’s LP release show so, if you’re in the neighborhood, come out!
Listen to both bands here:
http://www.myspace.com/skagbarons
Also check out their acoustic performance on ‘Reaney’s Pick’ via The London Free Press:
Here’s Acacia’s myspace link, while you’re at it:
http://www.myspace.com/acaciacanada
While photographing The Beat Goes On festival in 2009, I met the Darlings of Chelsea while they were playing at a small club in downtown Kitchener, Ontario for a mixed, unlikely and unsuspecting crowd. As I photographed something like 16 bands in 2.5 evenings I gave up trying to genre guess prior to entering the live atmosphere. Upon entering this particular show – I was caught off guard. For the first time during the festival I was able to experience music a little closer to my liking: Dirty, raw, unapologetic, authentic, driving, aimless, semi-melodic and purposefully derivative Rock & Roll. Since this show we have worked together numerous times on live, promotional, conceptual and personal photography; we have built a relationship out of our mutual respect and common interests. Being a musician myself (drummer and digital music producer / deejay), I can relate to a number of the brilliant high’s and pummeling low’s that make up the music world and thus, working with other musician’s is something I genuinely enjoy. If you want rock & roll in the vein of ‘The Helicopters’ and a live show reminiscent of early 80′s hardcore, then this is your band; there are so many reasons to listen to this band that jotting them all down, forging out some incendiary biblical template would seem pretentious. Therefore, I will conclude this homage to aggression and honesty and request three things of my radical blog readers:
1) Go and watch ‘Almost Famous’ RIGHT NOW to see the closest that fiction film has come to representing what I believe to be the spirit of true Rock & Roll
2) Follow your viewing up with a listen to Lou Reeds ‘Transformer’, David Bowie’s ‘Hunky Dory’ and ‘Diamond Dogs’ and Iggy Pops ‘Raw Power’
3) The next morning take a listen to The Darlings Of Chelsea’s ‘Mimico Sessions and go see them the next time they’re in your town
Listen to The Darlings Of Chelsea here: http://www.darlingsofchelsea.net
Below is an amalgamation of photographs I’ve taken of them both live and formal over the past year and a half, starting with their most recent performance at Call The Office in London, Ontario:
