THE DANDY WARHOLS, "THIS MACHINE," AND ME!

Tuesday, April 24, 2012

Sometimes, ya just can't even believe it until you see it, and then it's STILL pretty surreal. This is why I've not yet mentioned that something pretty amazing was in the works. But today...I CAN MENTION!

If you read here regularly, you may know that Portland's own Dandy Warhols are a favorite band of mine. I just love 'em, and have truly enjoyed being able to photograph them in concert. This is plenty enough for me, really: I get to hear and see music I love, dance around a bit, and make what I hope are beautiful images. It's my favorite way of experiencing music. Photographing live music heightens my senses, making the sights and sounds even more vibrant for me. It is always an exciting challenge to try to capture what is such a visceral event in a still image. I hope I can continue to do it for many more years.

Last summer, the whole family traveled to see the Dandies perform at this marvelous old theme park outside of Salem, Oregon called Enchanted Forest for the Great Idea Music Festival. We had a blast, I shot some pictures in this awesome Old West setting, and wrote about it when we got back home. Fast forward to a couple of months or so ago, the band is readying a new studio album, and contacted me about the possibility of including some of the Great Idea shots for the photo collage in the album booklet.

O.M.G. 

I swear, swear, if you had told me years ago that someday in the future some of my photos would be included on the albums of bands I love, I would have been so stunned that I possibly would have entered a catatonic state for several months. I mean, come on!!! Frosting on cake!!!

Today, the Dandy Warhol's "This Machine" was released and I get the double sweetness of new music from a beloved band and the kick from seeing two of my photos in the collage. Did the band need my photos? Nah, they had lots of cool shots to use from lots of people. But there they are, and it sure makes me smile.

So, thank you, Dandies and managies, and thank YOU for going over HERE or to Amazon or iTunes to purchase "This Machine!" I'll be seeing the band again at Seattle's Showbox Market on June 17th, and I'd also like you to purchase tickets for that HERE or check the band's tour schedule and see them in your town this summer. Hurray!