Old images found & restored

This week I was charged with formatting an old hard drive in the house. Thinking I’d the lot I needed from it, I hadn’t checked it in months. After a quick look around I found some from the Kerrang! Relentless Energy tour a few years back. I don’t know how I’d missed editing them the first time, so here they are. A little bit banded and desaturated (such are the problems when you shoot in .jpg!), but otherwise fine. The bands are My Passion, The Blackout and All Time Low. They were as bad as each other musically, but they made for some decent poses at least!

Click to see large, on black.

Fight Like Apes, 31st March 2009, Old Bar DCU

Today, formerly-mohawked drummer Adrian Mullen has today left Fight Like Apes:

“Due to creative differences, Adrian Mullan and Fight Like Apes have parted company. MayKay, Pockets and Tom wish Adrian all the best in his future creative endeavours; as they continue to work on new material for their forthcoming second album..”

It was generally unexpected news, and comes as the band are writing and recording their long-awaited second album. I shot their gig in DCU in 2009. Above are the best three from a time when I was pretty clueless.

This was the second gig I’d ever photographed, and technically the first I’d ever shot from the pit. Given that to get into the pit, I merely had to have a DSLR and give the right people  a nod doesn’t seem like much now, but at the time it was awesome. Armed only with a 50mm (1.8) and being less than two feet away from the band meant that there was no chance of group shots or anything other than head-shots, really. But i was chuffed with the results. I didn’t care about the lighting – which was – and still is – surprisingly fantastic in it’s own way.

I’d never heard FLAPES before that night and was only aware of their more radio-friendly track, Lend Me Your Face. But it was a great night. They are one of the most energentic bands i’ve ever witnessed and definitely one of the more interesting. Thankfully the people of State.ie thought so too – and it was this gig (along with my Fujiya & Miyagi shoot at the Spiegeltent) that secured me a place on their impressive photography team. Just as well the missus dragged me along – just as well I took the camera.

Anyway, how about one more. One from the days of ‘not-so-subtle-editing’, perhaps?:

Oh yeah! Proof that there was once a time I though no image too blury, too dark or generally to bland that couldn’t be saved with a monochrome conversion and raised saturation combination. Niiice!