Kyle Gustafson http://kylegustafson.com Thu, 17 May 2012 12:23:33 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.2.1 Chuck Brown @ RFK Stadium http://kylegustafson.com/2012/05/chuck-brown-rfk-stadium-photos/ http://kylegustafson.com/2012/05/chuck-brown-rfk-stadium-photos/#comments Thu, 17 May 2012 12:21:09 +0000 Kyle Gustafson http://kylegustafson.com/?p=3557 WASHINGTON, DC - August 15th, 2009 - "Godfather of Go-Go" Chuck Brown performs at the Stone Soul Picnic at RFK Stadium in Washington, D.C. (Photo by Kyle Gustafson) (Kyle Gustafson)
Last night word spread like wildfire that Washington D.C. lost Chuck Brown, the Godfather of Go-Go, at age 75. Lots of other people, Chris Richards at the Washington Post in particular, will have many eloquent things to say about Brown, his legacy and what he meant to Chocolate City and they will do it much better than I ever could. I only got to shoot him a few times through the years but the most memorable was his headlining set at the 2009 Stone Soul Picnic at RFK Stadium. About halfway through his set he was joined onstage by “Mayor For Life” Marion Barry and the crowd went absolutely nuts.

WASHINGTON, DC - August 15th, 2009 - "Godfather of Go-Go" Chuck Brown performs at the Stone Soul Picnic at RFK Stadium in Washington, D.C. (Photo by Kyle Gustafson) (Kyle Gustafson)

WASHINGTON, DC - August 15th, 2009 - "Godfather of Go-Go" Chuck Brown (R) is joined onstage by "Mayor For Life" Marion Barry (L) at the Stone Soul Picnic at RFK Stadium in Washington, D.C. (Photo by Kyle Gustafson) (Kyle Gustafson)

WASHINGTON, DC - August 15th, 2009 - "Godfather of Go-Go" Chuck Brown (R) is joined onstage by "Mayor For Life" Marion Barry (L) at the Stone Soul Picnic at RFK Stadium in Washington, D.C. (Photo by Kyle Gustafson) (Kyle Gustafson)

WASHINGTON, DC - August 15th, 2009 - "Godfather of Go-Go" Chuck Brown (L) is joined onstage by "Mayor For Life" Marion Barry (R) at the Stone Soul Picnic at RFK Stadium in Washington, D.C. (Photo by Kyle Gustafson) (Kyle Gustafson)

R.I.P. Chuck. There will never be another like you.


Chuck Brown @ RFK – Images by Kyle Gustafson

]]> http://kylegustafson.com/2012/05/chuck-brown-rfk-stadium-photos/feed/ 0 Red Hot Chili Peppers @ Verizon Center http://kylegustafson.com/2012/05/red-hot-chili-peppers-verizon-center-photos/ http://kylegustafson.com/2012/05/red-hot-chili-peppers-verizon-center-photos/#comments Tue, 15 May 2012 14:45:10 +0000 Kyle Gustafson http://kylegustafson.com/?p=3546 WASHINGTON, DC - May 8th, 2012 - The Red Hot Chili Peppers perform at the Verizon Center in Washington, D.C. The band was inducted into the Rock N Roll Hall Of Fame earlier this year and released their 10th studio album, I'm With You, in late 2011. (Photo by Kyle Gustafson/For The Washington Post) (Kyle Gustafson/For The Washington Post)This was a show I had been waiting for for a long time. I had only shot the Chili Peppers once, back in 2006 at the Virgin Festival in Baltimore. I remember that gig quite vividly. I had just purchased a brand new Canon 70-200/2.8 and was very eager to use it. The band skipped DC when they toured behind their previous album, Stadium Arcadium, so this was their first trip back to the area since the festival.

WASHINGTON, DC - May 8th, 2012 - Michael "Flea" Balzary and Chad Smith of the Red Hot Chili Peppers perform at the Verizon Center in Washington, D.C. The band was inducted into the Rock N Roll Hall Of Fame earlier this year and released their 10th studio album, I'm With You, in late 2011. (Photo by Kyle Gustafson/For The Washington Post) (Kyle Gustafson/For The Washington Post)

WASHINGTON, DC - May 8th, 2012 - The Red Hot Chili Peppers perform at the Verizon Center in Washington, D.C. The band was inducted into the Rock N Roll Hall Of Fame earlier this year and released their 10th studio album, I'm With You, in late 2011. (Photo by Kyle Gustafson/For The Washington Post) (Kyle Gustafson/For The Washington Post)

WASHINGTON, DC - May 8th, 2012 - Anthony Kiedis of the Red Hot Chili Peppers performs at the Verizon Center in Washington, D.C. The band was inducted into the Rock N Roll Hall Of Fame earlier this year and released their 10th studio album, I'm With You, in late 2011. (Photo by Kyle Gustafson/For The Washington Post) (Kyle Gustafson/For The Washington Post) Lights for this show were fine, but there were numerous obstacles in the sight lines. There was a line taped to the floor in the photo pit that the photographers were not allowed to cross, so we were relegated to the back end of the photo pit. Normally this wouldn’t be a problem, but the band had a lot of monitors on the lip of the stage along with 3 video cameramen. There was one angle, stage left, in between Anthony Kiedis and Josh Klinghoffer, that provided a somewhat clear view of the stage, but stage right was blocked by a video cameraman. Basically if you went to that side of the stage, you could only shoot Flea. I was concentrating on getting a nice group shot, so I spent most of my time using the clean angle, which (sadly) didn’t leave much time for photos of Flea. WASHINGTON, DC - May 8th, 2012 - Michael "Flea" Balzary and Anthony Kiedis of the Red Hot Chili Peppers perform at the Verizon Center in Washington, D.C. The band was inducted into the Rock N Roll Hall Of Fame earlier this year and released their 10th studio album, I'm With You, in late 2011. (Photo by Kyle Gustafson/For The Washington Post) (Kyle Gustafson/For The Washington Post)

WASHINGTON, DC - May 8th, 2012 - Chad Smith of the Red Hot Chili Peppers performs at the Verizon Center in Washington, D.C. The band was inducted into the Rock N Roll Hall Of Fame earlier this year and released their 10th studio album, I'm With You, in late 2011. (Photo by Kyle Gustafson/For The Washington Post) (Kyle Gustafson/For The Washington Post)To make matters worse, there was a guy, presumably from the tour, in the pit guarding the area in the front of the photo pit that the photographers were not allowed in. He kept pacing back and forth and ended up in quite a few of my frames. I am all for bands setting their rules, but this guy was a bit overzealous guarding his turf and there was absolutely no reason for him to continually try and get in peoples frames. Between his big melon and the stage monitors, it was impossible to get a nice wide shot of the stage set up and production. Bad form all around.

WASHINGTON, DC - May 8th, 2012 - Michael "Flea" Balzary and Chad Smith of the Red Hot Chili Peppers perform at the Verizon Center in Washington, D.C. The band was inducted into the Rock N Roll Hall Of Fame earlier this year and released their 10th studio album, I'm With You, in late 2011. (Photo by Kyle Gustafson/For The Washington Post) (Kyle Gustafson/For The Washington Post)

WASHINGTON, DC - May 8th, 2012 - Chad Smith and Anthony Kiedis of the Red Hot Chili Peppers perform at the Verizon Center in Washington, D.C. The band was inducted into the Rock N Roll Hall Of Fame earlier this year and released their 10th studio album, I'm With You, in late 2011. (Photo by Kyle Gustafson/For The Washington Post) (Kyle Gustafson/For The Washington Post) Nit picking aside, the band sounded great and the stage production was impressive. I was happy to get “Dani California” and “Otherside” during the first three songs.  Kiedis had a hat on which made getting shots of his face when he was singing pretty difficult. He eats his mic when he performs and always has. Two foot surgeries have robbed Kiedis of many of his stage moves, so if you want to get an action shot during this show, stay on Flea. I just missed two jump shots with him and wish I would have spent more time with him. My advice for shooting this show would be to stick with Flea for the first song, move around and get Chad Smith and Klinghoffer in the second and the Kiedis in the third using the clean angle I talked about earlier.

WASHINGTON, DC - May 8th, 2012 - Anthony Kiedis of the Red Hot Chili Peppers performs at the Verizon Center in Washington, D.C. The band was inducted into the Rock N Roll Hall Of Fame earlier this year and released their 10th studio album, I'm With You, in late 2011. (Photo by Kyle Gustafson/For The Washington Post) (Kyle Gustafson/For The Washington Post)

WASHINGTON, DC - May 8th, 2012 - The Red Hot Chili Peppers perform at the Verizon Center in Washington, D.C. The band was inducted into the Rock N Roll Hall Of Fame earlier this year and released their 10th studio album, I'm With You, in late 2011. (Photo by Kyle Gustafson/For The Washington Post) (Kyle Gustafson/For The Washington Post)Full photo set below. Photos are not for sale due to restrictions in the photo release I was forced to sign to shoot this show.
Don’t forget to follow me on Twitter or like me on Facebook if you want to stay current with what I am shooting.
Please don’t reuse these photos without my permission. The slideshow below has embed code you can use if you want to put these photos on your blog. Please link back to this post.


Red Hot Chili Peppers @ Verizon Center – Images by Kyle Gustafson

]]> http://kylegustafson.com/2012/05/red-hot-chili-peppers-verizon-center-photos/feed/ 0 Fort Lean @ Black Cat http://kylegustafson.com/2012/05/fort-lean-black-cat-photos/ http://kylegustafson.com/2012/05/fort-lean-black-cat-photos/#comments Tue, 08 May 2012 18:36:17 +0000 Kyle Gustafson http://kylegustafson.com/?p=3538 WASHINGTON, DC - May 2, 2012 - Fort Lean perform at the Black Cat in Washington, D.C. (Kyle Gustafson)

Late last week I got a chance to see my new favorite band Fort Lean open for We Were Promised Jetpacks at the Black Cat. I declared my love for Fort Lean a few weeks ago after seeing them do a short set at U Street Music Hall. Their surf/rock/pop tunes really struck a chord (no pun intended) with me and I’ve been listened to their excellent EP ever since. I was very excited to get the chance to see them now that I was familiar with their songs.

WASHINGTON, DC - May 2, 2012 - Fort Lean perform at the Black Cat in Washington, D.C. (Kyle Gustafson)

WASHINGTON, DC - May 2, 2012 - Fort Lean perform at the Black Cat in Washington, D.C. (Kyle Gustafson)

WASHINGTON, DC - May 2, 2012 - Fort Lean perform at the Black Cat in Washington, D.C. (Kyle Gustafson)

I’m happy to report that the band lived up to my already high expectations. In a live setting the band is tight and lively and they did a great job of making an audience that was not there to see them pay attention and give them their due. Plus, they are very energetic on stage which makes my job taking photos very easy. Epic hair shots! Big things are ahead for this band, mark my words.

WASHINGTON, DC - May 2, 2012 - Fort Lean perform at the Black Cat in Washington, D.C. (Kyle Gustafson)

WASHINGTON, DC - May 2, 2012 - Fort Lean perform at the Black Cat in Washington, D.C. (Kyle Gustafson)

Full photo set below. As always, click on any photo to purchase prints.
Don’t forget to follow me on Twitter or like me on Facebook if you want to stay current with what I am shooting.
Please don’t reuse these photos without my permission. The slideshow below has embed code you can use if you want to put these photos on your blog. Please link back to this post.

Fort Lean @ Black Cat – Images by Kyle Gustafson

]]> http://kylegustafson.com/2012/05/fort-lean-black-cat-photos/feed/ 0 2012 Sweetlife Festival http://kylegustafson.com/2012/05/2012-sweetlife-festival-photos/ http://kylegustafson.com/2012/05/2012-sweetlife-festival-photos/#comments Wed, 02 May 2012 16:37:48 +0000 Kyle Gustafson http://kylegustafson.com/?p=3533 COLUMBIA, MD - April 28th, 2012 - Rapper A$AP Rocky performs at the 2012 Sweetlife Food and Music Festival at Merriweather Post Pavilion in Columbia, MD. After a string of successful mixtapes, his debut album, LongLiveA$AP, is scheduled to be released in July 2012. (Photo by Kyle Gustafson/For The Washington Post) (Kyle Gustafson/FTWP)

Now in it’s third year, the Sweetlife Music and Food Festival looks to be here for the long haul. And for the second straight year, it was cold and rainy, two conditions that don’t exactly scream “Summer concert season is here.”

COLUMBIA, MD - April 28th, 2012 - James Mercer (left) of The Sins performs at the 2012 Sweetlife Food and Music Festival at Merriweather Post Pavilion in Columbia, MD. The band is currently touring behind their latest album, Port of Morrow. (Photo by Kyle Gustafson/For The Washington Post) (Kyle Gustafson/FTWP)

COLUMBIA, MD - April 28th, 2012 - Kid Cudi performs at the 2012 Sweetlife Food and Music Festival at Merriweather Post Pavilion in Columbia, MD. Cudi recently released the album WZRD, a collaboration with the record producer Dot da Genius. (Photo by Kyle Gustafson/For The Washington Post) (Kyle Gustafson/FTWP)

This year’s festival added a second stage and more food vendors, which greatly improved the festival experience. Last year’s fest was just on the pavilion stage and there was a lot of downtime after I was done shooting. This year, I was on my feet and working most of the time, which made for a very long day, but I’ll take it.

COLUMBIA, MD - April 28th, 2012 - Swedish DJ Avicii headlines the 2012 Sweetlife Food and Music Festival at Merriweather Post Pavilion in Columbia, MD. After a long day of rain and cold weather, fans went crazy for his brand of electronic dance music. (Photo by Kyle Gustafson/For The Washington Post) (Kyle Gustafson/FTWP)

COLUMBIA, MD - April 28th, 2012 - Fans watch headlining DJ Avicii perform at the 2012 Sweetlife Food and Music Festival at Merriweather Post Pavilion in Columbia, MD. (Photo by Kyle Gustafson/For The Washington Post) (Kyle Gustafson/FTWP)

COLUMBIA, MD - April 28th, 2012 - Twin Shadow perform at the 2012 Sweetlife Food and Music Festival at Merriweather Post Pavilion in Columbia, MD. (Photo by Kyle Gustafson/For The Washington Post) (Kyle Gustafson/FTWP)

This year’s lineup included Avicii, Kid Cudi, The Shins, Zola Jesus, Twin Shadow, A$AP Rocky and more. The two acts that I liked best, however, happened to be locals. US Royalty played a blistering late-afternoon set on the second stage and Bluebrain supplied the crowd with some nice beats during their DJ set on the pavilion stage. Avicii and The Shins were also better than I expected.

COLUMBIA, MD - April 28th, 2012 - Paul Thornley and John Thornley of US Royalty perform at the 2012 Sweetlife Food and Music Festival at Merriweather Post Pavilion in Columbia, MD. This was the band's last live performance before going into the studio to record their sophomore album. (Photo by Kyle Gustafson/For The Washington Post) (Kyle Gustafson/FTWP)

COLUMBIA, MD - April 28th, 2012 - Nate Ruess and Jack Antonoff of fun. perform at the 2012 Sweetlife Food and Music Festival at Merriweather Post Pavilion in Columbia, MD. The band's hit "We Are Young" recently reached number one on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 and Digital Songs charts. (Photo by Kyle Gustafson/For The Washington Post) (Kyle Gustafson/FTWP)

I got to the venue a few hours before the gates opened for a photoshoot with the band fun. Look for those photos in the Post tomorrow.

COLUMBIA, MD - April 28th, 2012 - Fitz and the Tantrums perform at the 2012 Sweetlife Food and Music Festival at Merriweather Post Pavilion in Columbia, MD. (Photo by Kyle Gustafson/For The Washington Post) (Kyle Gustafson/FTWP)

COLUMBIA, MD - April 28th, 2012 - Zola Jesus performs at the 2012 Sweetlife Food and Music Festival at Merriweather Post Pavilion in Columbia, MD. (Photo by Kyle Gustafson/For The Washington Post) (Kyle Gustafson/FTWP)

Full photo set below. Photos are not for sale due to the photo release.
Don’t forget to follow me on Twitter or like me on Facebook if you want to stay current with what I am shooting.
Please don’t reuse these photos without my permission. The slideshow below has embed code you can use if you want to put these photos on your blog. Please link back to this post.


2012 Sweetlife Festival – Images by Kyle Gustafson

]]> http://kylegustafson.com/2012/05/2012-sweetlife-festival-photos/feed/ 0 The Weeknd @ 9:30 Club http://kylegustafson.com/2012/04/the-weeknd-930-club-photos/ http://kylegustafson.com/2012/04/the-weeknd-930-club-photos/#comments Mon, 30 Apr 2012 19:39:50 +0000 Kyle Gustafson http://kylegustafson.com/?p=3527 WASHINGTON, DC - April 26th, 2012 - Canadian recording artist and record producer Abel Tesfaye, pka The Weeknd, performs at the 9:30 Club in Washington, D.C. Tesafaye has released three critically acclaimed mixtapes, including last year's House of Ballloons, which was nominated for the 2011 Polaris Music Prize. (Photo by Kyle Gustafson/For The Washington Post) (Kyle Gustafson/FTWP)

 I can’t recall a crowd ever going so crazy for a performer like the 9:30 crowd did during The Weeknd’s performance last week. The sold out crowd was full of scantily clad women who were climbing over each other to get as close to the stage as possible.

WASHINGTON, DC - April 26th, 2012 - Canadian recording artist and record producer Abel Tesfaye, pka The Weeknd, performs at the 9:30 Club in Washington, D.C. Tesafaye has released three critically acclaimed mixtapes, including last year's House of Ballloons, which was nominated for the 2011 Polaris Music Prize. (Photo by Kyle Gustafson/For The Washington Post) (Kyle Gustafson/FTWP)

Known for his series of mixtapes, this was The Weeknd’s first proper US tour. Obviously he’s doing something right if he sold out the 9:30 Club on his first time through town.

WASHINGTON, DC - April 26th, 2012 - Canadian recording artist and record producer Abel Tesfaye, pka The Weeknd, performs at the 9:30 Club in Washington, D.C. Tesafaye has released three critically acclaimed mixtapes, including last year's House of Ballloons, which was nominated for the 2011 Polaris Music Prize. (Photo by Kyle Gustafson/For The Washington Post) (Kyle Gustafson/FTWP)

WASHINGTON, DC - April 26th, 2012 - Canadian recording artist and record producer Abel Tesfaye, pka The Weeknd, performs at the 9:30 Club in Washington, D.C. Tesafaye has released three critically acclaimed mixtapes, including last year's House of Ballloons, which was nominated for the 2011 Polaris Music Prize. (Photo by Kyle Gustafson/For The Washington Post) (Kyle Gustafson/FTWP)

Lights for this show were just about non existent. The first two songs were near dark with deep blue and purple before getting some spotlight action during the third song, but other than that there wasn’t much to work with. He also has a rights grab photo release, which I was handed 8 minutes before his scheduled stage time, so be aware. I crossed out the two paragraphs that pertained to the rights grab and signed the document, which was accepted by the tour manager. So keep that in mind if a similar situation is presented to you.

WASHINGTON, DC - April 26th, 2012 - Canadian recording artist and record producer Abel Tesfaye, pka The Weeknd, performs at the 9:30 Club in Washington, D.C. Tesafaye has released three critically acclaimed mixtapes, including last year's House of Ballloons, which was nominated for the 2011 Polaris Music Prize. (Photo by Kyle Gustafson/For The Washington Post) (Kyle Gustafson/FTWP)

Full photo set below. Photos are not for sale due to the photo release.
Don’t forget to follow me on Twitter or like me on Facebook if you want to stay current with what I am shooting.
Please don’t reuse these photos without my permission. The slideshow below has embed code you can use if you want to put these photos on your blog. Please link back to this post.
The Weeknd @ 9:30 Club – Images by Kyle Gustafson

]]> http://kylegustafson.com/2012/04/the-weeknd-930-club-photos/feed/ 0 Patti Smith in Rolling Stone http://kylegustafson.com/2012/04/patti-smith-in-rolling-stone/ http://kylegustafson.com/2012/04/patti-smith-in-rolling-stone/#comments Wed, 18 Apr 2012 19:20:22 +0000 Kyle Gustafson http://kylegustafson.com/?p=3507 My photo in Rolling Stone!
Yesterday I got an email from a friend asking me if I had seen my photo in the latest issue of Rolling Stone. This was news to me so I took a trip to the closest Barnes & Noble and there it was, Patti Smith page 70 of the April 26th issue with Radiohead on the cover. I distinctly remember chimping this photo during last year’s FreeFest and thinking that it was a keeper. I can’t remember if the Post ran it during their coverage, but it’s nice to see it get new life in Rolling Stone. Be sure to check out my other photos from the 2011 Virgin Freefest and feel free to check out some of my other tearsheets.

]]> http://kylegustafson.com/2012/04/patti-smith-in-rolling-stone/feed/ 0 Chain and the Gang @ Black Cat http://kylegustafson.com/2012/04/chain-and-the-gang-black-cat-photos/ http://kylegustafson.com/2012/04/chain-and-the-gang-black-cat-photos/#comments Mon, 16 Apr 2012 15:59:31 +0000 Kyle Gustafson http://kylegustafson.com/?p=3500 WASHINGTON, DC - April 12th, 2012 - Chain and the Gang, the latest musical act featuring Ian Svenonius (formerly of The Make-Up and Nation of Ulysses) perform at the Black Cat in Washington, D.C. The group released their sophomore album, Music?s Not For Everyone, in February on K Records. (Photo by Kyle Gustafson/For The Washington Post) (Kyle Gustafson/FTWP)

It’s hard to believe, but after living in DC form the last 7+ years I had never seen Ian Svenonius perform until last week’s Chain and the Gang show at the Black Cat. I wasn’t quite sure what to expect but i can say without reservation that I absolutely loved this show. 

WASHINGTON, DC - April 12th, 2012 - Chain and the Gang, the latest musical act featuring Ian Svenonius (formerly of The Make-Up and Nation of Ulysses) perform at the Black Cat in Washington, D.C. The group released their sophomore album, Music?s Not For Everyone, in February on K Records. (Photo by Kyle Gustafson/For The Washington Post) (Kyle Gustafson/FTWP)

WASHINGTON, DC - April 12th, 2012 - Chain and the Gang, the latest musical act featuring Ian Svenonius (formerly of The Make-Up and Nation of Ulysses) perform at the Black Cat in Washington, D.C. The group released their sophomore album, Music?s Not For Everyone, in February on K Records. (Photo by Kyle Gustafson/For The Washington Post) (Kyle Gustafson/FTWP)

The band’s stripped down, rowdy punk sound made a nondescript weekday gig seem like a genuine event.  Svenonius was in fine form, taking the piss out of all the development in DC that’s happened over the last few years. “What’s a guy have to do to find a bar with a flat screen TV so I can watch sports?” he asked the crowd, tongue firmly in cheek. “Why is it so hard to find a nice, Belgian import beer? I’m going to open a bar called Duke’s, for all the miscreants and non-conformists out there. I’m going to show all Duke sporting events, all the time. Particularly lacrosse.” 

WASHINGTON, DC - April 12th, 2012 - Chain and the Gang, the latest musical act featuring Ian Svenonius (formerly of The Make-Up and Nation of Ulysses) perform at the Black Cat in Washington, D.C. The group released their sophomore album, Music?s Not For Everyone, in February on K Records. (Photo by Kyle Gustafson/For The Washington Post) (Kyle Gustafson/FTWP)

WASHINGTON, DC - April 12th, 2012 - Chain and the Gang, the latest musical act featuring Ian Svenonius (formerly of The Make-Up and Nation of Ulysses) perform at the Black Cat in Washington, D.C. The group released their sophomore album, Music?s Not For Everyone, in February on K Records. (Photo by Kyle Gustafson/For The Washington Post) (Kyle Gustafson/FTWP)

Since this show was in the backstage of the Black cat, lighting was a bit dodgy outside of a few spots on stage where the lights were aimed. I actually like shooting in the backstage room, it’s a bit of a challenge, and I find it very satisfying when my photos turn out better than all other photogs there popping their flashes off every 5 seconds and bugging the shit out of the audience all the while. Yes, it’s pretty much impossible to get a proper action shot in these conditions, but it’s always good to shoot in conditions that keep you on your toes. 

WASHINGTON, DC - April 12th, 2012 - Chain and the Gang, the latest musical act featuring Ian Svenonius (formerly of The Make-Up and Nation of Ulysses) perform at the Black Cat in Washington, D.C. The group released their sophomore album, Music?s Not For Everyone, in February on K Records. (Photo by Kyle Gustafson/For The Washington Post) (Kyle Gustafson/FTWP)

WASHINGTON, DC - April 12th, 2012 - Chain and the Gang, the latest musical act featuring Ian Svenonius (formerly of The Make-Up and Nation of Ulysses) perform at the Black Cat in Washington, D.C. The group released their sophomore album, Music?s Not For Everyone, in February on K Records. (Photo by Kyle Gustafson/For The Washington Post) (Kyle Gustafson/FTWP)

If you haven’t checked out Chain and the Gang, I highly recommend you do so. They are on tour throughout the US through the end of April.
Full photo set below. As always, click on any photo to purchase prints.
Don’t forget to follow me on Twitter or like me on Facebook if you want to stay current with what I am shooting.
Please don’t reuse these photos without my permission. The slideshow below has embed code you can use if you want to put these photos on your blog. Please link back to this post.


Chain and the Gang @ Black Cat – Images by Kyle Gustafson

]]> http://kylegustafson.com/2012/04/chain-and-the-gang-black-cat-photos/feed/ 0 Chickfactor 20th Anniversary Show http://kylegustafson.com/2012/04/chickfactor-20th-anniversary-show-photos/ http://kylegustafson.com/2012/04/chickfactor-20th-anniversary-show-photos/#comments Tue, 10 Apr 2012 13:05:56 +0000 Kyle Gustafson http://kylegustafson.com/?p=3495 ARLINGTON, VA - April 7th, 2012 - Archie Moore, Pam Berry and Brian Nelson of seminal Washington, D.C. indie-pop band Black Tambourine perform at Artisphere in Arlington, VA. The band reunited to play their first gigs since 1991 for the 20th anniversary party for Chickfactor Magazine. (Photo by Kyle Gustafson/For The Washington Post) (Kyle Gustafson/FTWP)

Influential zine/magazine Chickfactor took over Artisphere in Arlington last weekend to celebrate their 20th anniversary and the Post sent me along on Saturday to document the reunion of Black Tambourine. This was the band’s first show since 1991 and was a big deal locally since the band are regarded as one of the major influences on the type of twee-pop that is seemingly everywhere these days. The band’s story – one album, only a handful of shows – makes them that more mysterious and this event more of a big deal. Personally, I was very excited to see Archie Moore and Brian Nelson, 2/5 of Velocity Girl, back on stage together. Jim Spellman was in the crowd hanging out so we actually had Velocity Girl quorum at this show!

ARLINGTON, VA - April 7th, 2012 - Brian Nelson of seminal Washington, D.C. indie-pop band Black Tambourine performs at Artisphere in Arlington, VA. The band reunited to play their first gigs since 1991 for the 20th anniversary party for Chickfactor Magazine. (Photo by Kyle Gustafson/For The Washington Post) (Kyle Gustafson/FTWP)

ARLINGTON, VA - April 7th, 2012 - Archie Moore and Mike Schulman of seminal Washington, D.C. indie-pop band Black Tambourine perform at Artisphere in Arlington, VA. The band reunited to play their first gigs since 1991 for the 20th anniversary party for Chickfactor Magazine. (Photo by Kyle Gustafson/For The Washington Post) (Kyle Gustafson/FTWP)

ARLINGTON, VA - April 7th, 2012 - Seminal Washington, D.C. indie-pop band Black Tambourine perform at Artisphere in Arlington, VA. The band reunited to play their first gigs since 1991 for the 20th anniversary party for Chickfactor Magazine. (Photo by Kyle Gustafson/For The Washington Post) (Kyle Gustafson/FTWP)

If you look closely at the photo above, you can see most of the music blogger cognoscenti in DC (and a few from out of town). My favorite band of the night was Lorelei, who have recently reunited after being inactive for a few years. Their brand of swirly, hazy, dream-pop is right in my wheel house and I really enjoyed their live set as well. I wasn’t familiar with them when they were active back in the 90s, but I am eager to dive into their back catalog on Slumberland.

ARLINGTON, VA - April 7th, 2012 - Lorelei perform at Artisphere in Arlington, VA as part of Chickfactor Magazine's 20th anniversary weekend. (Photo by Kyle Gustafson) (Kyle Gustafson)

ARLINGTON, VA - April 7th, 2012 - Lorelei perform at Artisphere in Arlington, VA as part of Chickfactor Magazine's 20th anniversary weekend. (Photo by Kyle Gustafson) (Kyle Gustafson)

 Kurt Heasley of The Lilys played just before Black Tambourine and put on an excellent, if somewhat subdued, acoustic set. I never took the time to get into that band but it was really great to hear the fans in the audience go crazy over a few of the songs in his set.

ARLINGTON, VA - April 7th, 2012 - Kurt Heasley of The Lilys performs at Artisphere in Arlington, VA as part of Chickfactor Magazine's 20th anniversary weekend. (Photo by Kyle Gustafson) (Kyle Gustafson)

ARLINGTON, VA - April 7th, 2012 - Kurt Heasley of The Lilys performs at Artisphere in Arlington, VA as part of Chickfactor Magazine's 20th anniversary weekend. (Photo by Kyle Gustafson) (Kyle Gustafson)

This was my first show at Artisphere, a venue that has been in the local news lately for all the wrong reasons, but I have to say it’s a fine place to see a show. I hope more people can put this space to use in the future. Lastly, here’s a photo of the co-founders of Chickfactor, Gail O’hara and Pam Berry. Congrats to them and much respect for all their hard work over the years.

ARLINGTON, VA - April 7th, 2012 - Chickfactor Magazine co-founders Gail O'Hara and Pam Berry address the crowd at the magazine's 20th anniversary weekend at Artisphere in Arlington, VA. (Photo by Kyle Gustafson) (Kyle Gustafson)

Full photo set below. As always, click on any photo to purchase prints.
Don’t forget to follow me on Twitter or like me on Facebook if you want to stay current with what I am shooting.
Please don’t reuse these photos without my permission. The slideshow below has embed code you can use if you want to put these photos on your blog. Please link back to this post.


Chickfactor 20th Anniversary – Images by Kyle Gustafson

]]> http://kylegustafson.com/2012/04/chickfactor-20th-anniversary-show-photos/feed/ 0 Gotye @ 9:30 Club http://kylegustafson.com/2012/04/gotye-930-club-photos/ http://kylegustafson.com/2012/04/gotye-930-club-photos/#comments Tue, 03 Apr 2012 16:33:18 +0000 Kyle Gustafson http://kylegustafson.com/?p=3488 WASHINGTON, DC - March 23rd, 2012 - Belgian-Australian multi-instrumental musician and singer-songwriter Gotye performs at the 9:30 Club in Washington, D.C. His single "Somebody That I Used to Know"(featuring Kimbra) has reached number one in nine countries and is top 5 in the Billboard Hot 100. (Photo by Kyle Gustafson/For The Washington Post) (Kyle Gustafson/FTWP)

Wally De Backer, aka Gotye, is 2012′s breakout star with his smash hit “Somebody That I Used to Know” featuring Kimbra. He played to a very sold-out 9:30 Club last week, which was to my knowledge, his first show in D.C.

WASHINGTON, DC - March 23rd, 2012 - Belgian-Australian multi-instrumental musician and singer-songwriter Gotye performs at the 9:30 Club in Washington, D.C. His single "Somebody That I Used to Know"(featuring Kimbra) has reached number one in nine countries and is top 5 in the Billboard Hot 100. (Photo by Kyle Gustafson/For The Washington Post) (Kyle Gustafson/FTWP)

WASHINGTON, DC - March 23rd, 2012 - Belgian-Australian multi-instrumental musician and singer-songwriter Gotye performs at the 9:30 Club in Washington, D.C. His single "Somebody That I Used to Know"(featuring Kimbra) has reached number one in nine countries and is top 5 in the Billboard Hot 100. (Photo by Kyle Gustafson/For The Washington Post) (Kyle Gustafson/FTWP)

His show was mostly built off the projections at the back of the stage. There was a tiny photo pit for us photographers, but the lack of space and amount of gear on stage made getting clean sight lines very difficult. Gotye split his time between singing and playing the multiple drum set-up that he had surrounding him. A music stand placed right in front of him blocked any chance of getting a full body shot.

WASHINGTON, DC - March 23rd, 2012 - Belgian-Australian multi-instrumental musician and singer-songwriter Gotye performs at the 9:30 Club in Washington, D.C. His single "Somebody That I Used to Know"(featuring Kimbra) has reached number one in nine countries and is top 5 in the Billboard Hot 100. (Photo by Kyle Gustafson/For The Washington Post) (Kyle Gustafson/FTWP)

Despite the hurdles, there were some great frames to be had, it was all a matter of timing with the strobe like lights, which thankfully were not as bad as the Sleigh Bells show.

WASHINGTON, DC - March 23rd, 2012 - Belgian-Australian multi-instrumental musician and singer-songwriter Gotye performs at the 9:30 Club in Washington, D.C. His single "Somebody That I Used to Know"(featuring Kimbra) has reached number one in nine countries and is top 5 in the Billboard Hot 100. (Photo by Kyle Gustafson/For The Washington Post) (Kyle Gustafson/FTWP)

Full photo set below. As always, click on any photo to purchase prints.
Don’t forget to follow me on Twitter or like me on Facebook if you want to stay current with what I am shooting.
Please don’t reuse these photos without my permission. The slideshow below has embed code you can use if you want to put these photos on your blog. Please link back to this post.


Gotye @ 9:30 Club – Images by Kyle Gustafson

]]> http://kylegustafson.com/2012/04/gotye-930-club-photos/feed/ 0 Noel Gallagher @ Warner Theatre http://kylegustafson.com/2012/03/noel-gallagher-warner-theatre-photos/ http://kylegustafson.com/2012/03/noel-gallagher-warner-theatre-photos/#comments Thu, 29 Mar 2012 22:34:43 +0000 Kyle Gustafson http://kylegustafson.com/?p=3479 WASHINGTON, DC - March 29th, 2012 - Former Oasis lead guitarist/songwriter Noel Gallagher performs at the Warner Theater in Washington, D.C. with his new act, Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds. Gallagher played a career-spanning, 20 song set featuring new songs and old favorites from Oasis.(Photo by Kyle Gustafson/For The Washington Post) (Kyle Gustafson/FTWP)

Anyone that knows more than a little about me knows that I LOVE OASIS and can be a bit obsessive about them. So obviously I was beyond excited at shooting the opening show of Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds latest North American tour last night at the Warner Theatre here in DC. I caught Noel last year at the Wang Theater in Boston, but went sans cameras just to enjoy the show and I had an absolute blast. Much less beer was consumed last night but that didn’t make the show any less thrilling.

WASHINGTON, DC - March 29th, 2012 - Former Oasis lead guitarist/songwriter Noel Gallagher performs at the Warner Theater in Washington, D.C. with his new act, Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds. Gallagher played a career-spanning, 20 song set featuring new songs and old favorites from Oasis.(Photo by Kyle Gustafson/For The Washington Post) (Kyle Gustafson/FTWP)

WASHINGTON, DC - March 29th, 2012 - Former Oasis lead guitarist/songwriter Noel Gallagher performs at the Warner Theater in Washington, D.C. with his new act, Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds. Gallagher played a career-spanning, 20 song set featuring new songs and old favorites from Oasis.(Photo by Kyle Gustafson/For The Washington Post) (Kyle Gustafson/FTWP)

I love that Noel is playing theaters on his US tours. The Warner is one of my favorite places in town to shoot because the lights are always great and even though there is no photo pit, I am generally able to move around the aisles and get a variety of photos. There was a bit of confusion about the shooting restrictions for this show (it was supposed to be soundboard but I didn’t find that out until I was almost done shooting) so I stuck with my usual routine at the Warner, starting in the back and working my way down one aisle for the first song before running out and switching aisles sometime during songs two and three. The crowd stood up throughout the show last night so getting good sight lines required me to move around quite a bit.

WASHINGTON, DC - March 29th, 2012 - Former Oasis lead guitarist/songwriter Noel Gallagher performs at the Warner Theater in Washington, D.C. with his new act, Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds. Gallagher played a career-spanning, 20 song set featuring new songs and old favorites from Oasis.(Photo by Kyle Gustafson/For The Washington Post) (Kyle Gustafson/FTWP)

WASHINGTON, DC - March 29th, 2012 - Former Oasis lead guitarist/songwriter Noel Gallagher performs at the Warner Theater in Washington, D.C. with his new act, Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds. Gallagher played a career-spanning, 20 song set featuring new songs and old favorites from Oasis.(Photo by Kyle Gustafson/For The Washington Post) (Kyle Gustafson/FTWP)

WASHINGTON, DC - March 29th, 2012 - Former Oasis lead guitarist/songwriter Noel Gallagher performs at the Warner Theater in Washington, D.C. with his new act, Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds. Gallagher played a career-spanning, 20 song set featuring new songs and old favorites from Oasis.(Photo by Kyle Gustafson/For The Washington Post) (Kyle Gustafson/FTWP)

Ultimately I ended up staying mostly at the front of the aisle stage right.It was a bit less crowded on this side and I was eventually able to get some frames with no heads in them. Noel’s performance was amazing and I was very pleased with the photos I ended up with. If you’re thinking about catching him on this tour, he’s in fine form and playing a great collection of new songs, Oasis hits and b-sides. If you’re interested, I wrote a few thoughts about the show on my Tumblr, and most of the stuff I wrote about last year’s Boston show still stands.

WASHINGTON, DC - March 29th, 2012 - Former Oasis lead guitarist/songwriter Noel Gallagher performs at the Warner Theater in Washington, D.C. with his new act, Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds. Gallagher played a career-spanning, 20 song set featuring new songs and old favorites from Oasis.(Photo by Kyle Gustafson/For The Washington Post) (Kyle Gustafson/FTWP)

WASHINGTON, DC - March 29th, 2012 - Former Oasis lead guitarist/songwriter Noel Gallagher performs at the Warner Theater in Washington, D.C. with his new act, Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds. Gallagher played a career-spanning, 20 song set featuring new songs and old favorites from Oasis.(Photo by Kyle Gustafson/For The Washington Post) (Kyle Gustafson/FTWP)

WASHINGTON, DC - March 29th, 2012 - Former Oasis lead guitarist/songwriter Noel Gallagher performs at the Warner Theater in Washington, D.C. with his new act, Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds. Gallagher played a career-spanning, 20 song set featuring new songs and old favorites from Oasis.(Photo by Kyle Gustafson/For The Washington Post) (Kyle Gustafson/FTWP)

Full photo set below. As always, click on any photo to purchase prints.
Don’t forget to follow me on Twitter or like me on Facebook if you want to stay current with what I am shooting.
Please don’t reuse these photos without my permission. The slideshow below has embed code you can use if you want to put these photos on your blog. Please link back to this post.
Noel Gallagher @ Warner Theatre – Images by Kyle Gustafson

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