It is good to see the Abbey Road Studios Music Awards 2023 give focus and community to Music Photography. It is something that can get taken for granted. Thousands of iPhones aloft at shows but there is a lot more to having a compelling visual record of an artist or musician that won’t just languish in digital limbo.
I can’t claim to be an internationally recognised photographer with a black book of Grammy nominated artists, but I have done a small bit to document some of the darker corners of music making. While Rankin was at his studio on the west side of Kentish Town North London, photographing the great and the good, I was on the east side, taking aim at the thousands of bands that graced the stage at the nation's premier toilet venue, The Bull and Gate, 389 Kentish Town Rd.
Chiefly I worked as a Promoter there booking bands and all that entailed, putting together posters and flyers. There wasn’t a great deal of content for bands starting out, so I conspired to make my own. Having taught myself to play guitar in some sort of fashion I guessed I could do something similar with a camera?
Digital cameras were in their infancy and my faith in ‘Point and Shoot’ consumer compacts was overly optimistic, so I had to do some homework. There were lots of books and magazines about taking pictures of puffins, but I worked something out. Various tatty SLR cameras set almost permanently to an aperture f2.8 for a 30th second at an iso of 3200, that is like turning a camera up to 9 in terms of volume.
I mostly shot Black and white, firstly, it is a lot easier to crank up the film speed. Stages are very ‘contrasty’ lighting environments, that is, there is a lot of dark open stage with spots of intensely lit performers. Camera computer brains like grey, mid tones, especially when taking colour photos, but contrast is good for more graphic cheap reproduction on photocopiers. Remember ‘The internet’ was still the domain of 'computer boffins' at that time. There was also part of wanting to make bands look slightly out of era, a new band shot in a more late 1970s style makes them look a little less of a ‘new’ band.
It is easier for whole music genres and scenes to not be documented than you may think. In the mid to late 80’s towns every outsider pub had a contingent of ’Psychobillies’ huddled in the corner comparing quiffs and tattoos. It was such a visual scene, a hybrid of punk and rockabilly, exaggerating American 50’s culture to a point past parody. Yet those that were in it, were in it, few stood back and thought ‘Hang on, what are we going to show the grandchildren?’ Style magazines didn’t take trips out to Church hall discos where the local Psychobillies would get to ‘Wreck’ to the one song they were allowed to have played. Again, Soul Boy culture was huge in the 80’s, pimped Ford Escorts and knock off sports casuals, but it seems little visual record of them exists.
Take the chance to document the music and culture in front of you. If you're involved in a pentecostal choir, if you get a thrill playing data cd’s on normal cd players, document and share what's going on in your world. You’ll be told there is no point taking photo’s these days as “Every one has a camera phone,” but it is as daft as being told not to draw a sketch as “ Everyone has a piece of paper and a pencil”. Photographers aren’t magicians, they are just persistent.
Q&A
Did Social media nearly destroy the live music scene in the uk?
It very nearly did! MySpace exploded just as the smoking ban came in. I guess, as a softener to the brewing industry, they deregulated live music performances for establishments with a capacity of under 200 at the same time. Myspace gave access to everyone to find bands, no more sending demos. Landlords started booking bands so they would at least have a dozen musicians in buying some drinks. Small venues who had been there putting on music for decades, paying for licensing and PRS, suddenly had bands playing ‘free’ shows put on in all manner of inappropriate boozers.
What was the best gig you ever promoted ?
Oxbow with Todd in support at the Bull and Gate. Eugene of Oxbow is an absolute gentleman, but he definitely has some super natural link with the underworld, a character from William Blake’s imagination made flesh
What was your most bizarre moment while promoting ?
When a band called Goldblade played the Forum in Tunbridge Wells, their amplifiers started picking up the ‘Paul Elvis Chan’ as he serenaded diners at his Grasslands Restaurant over the road from the venue. A real Spinal Tap Moment.
What cameras did you use in those analogue days and what do you use now?
Used second hand cameras near the end of their life, in case they got dropped in mosh pits or stolen. Olympus OM’s mainly OM2sp has a spot meter which was kind of helpful. Normally just used a 50mm lens, I had a nice 85mm that got stolen. I got a deal on a Canon 20mm lens, great for that grunge look if you can get close enough. The mid range Eos cameras were a bit of a bugger though, the catch used to break on the film doors at the most inconvenient of moment. I once tried to shoot a friends wedding with one and that happened. Ilford Delta 3200 was the main film I used. I liked the Fuji 1600, less grain, but one stop is one stop.
These days I have a couple of canon 5d mk1s .. still use a 50mm a lot I had to sell the 20mm over lockdown. I pick up cheap Minolta SLRs when I’m in the mood for some analogue, they’re rather underrated I think.
Are flash guns the devil's light source?
I did get a bit obsessed with not using one. They can kill the atmosphere and ‘slow sync’ i.e. flash with a long exposure to catch ghosting highlight trails, can be very hit and miss. Digital gives you more idea if it is going to work and a lot more chances of getting a good shot.
Your musings on Ai in photography ?
There is a chance it may increase the value of ‘authenticity’. Photographs have always been manipulated, edited and used to create hoaxes. From Stalin removing ‘politically inconvenient’ figures to fairies appearing at the bottom of gardens. War photographers like Robert Capa and exponents of ‘the decisive moment’ like Henri Cartier-Bresson, would have the negative holder of the enlarger used to make their prints, filed slightly larger than the negative so a distinct black border was created on the print. This was a statement of truth, to convey that the image was un cropped depicting exactly what the camera saw. I suspect something similar will happen in the digital realm and certain photographers will be able to trade on ‘their truth’.
Have you seen any good bands lately?
I’m hoping I get to see Moonlight Benjamin at some point soon. She’s got some crazy voodoo going on for sure.
Notes & Queries
Mick Mercer - The Bull and Gate has a long and illustrious history of beyond my tenure. Mick is a music journalist and photographer who documented and achieved much of London’s burgeoning music scenes from the punk era onwards. He had a particular affection for the Bull and Gate, I even believe he is in possession of a letter PJ Harvey’s mum sent to the venue to get a gig for her.
The Music Venue Trust - From the utter shambles of arrangements for UK musicians playing on the continent post Brexit to the appalling lack of investment in music for schools, there is plenty of reason to be concerned for future generations of music makers and consumers.
The Music Venue Trust is lobbying for Venues, seeking protection from property ’developers’, parity on ticket VAT with ‘traditional’ theatres and many other issues that would help make it more viable to put on live music.
The Forum Tunbridge Wells - I’ve had an on off relationship with ‘the toilet venue in a toilet’ from before its inception. All power to those who keep the impossible possible.
Bugbear Promotions - While other promotors spontaneously combust on the day they are asked to find a high hat clutch for the 2000th time, Tony and Jim keep the Dublin Castle Camden Road rocking. I tip my promoting hat to them.
Nicholas Cameras - I miss camera shops… but Nicholas is still there, it may have the retail allure of an over stocked plumbers merchant, but they are very knowledgeable and good humoured. Please don’t go there, get advice and recommendations to then buy online.
Specsavers - Probably the easiest place to get moulded hearing protection.
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