Suicide Silence and The Black Dahlia Murder 10/9/14

Nothing gets better than a stacked line-up. When tours come around, there is just no point (in my honest opinion), to attend a show if you want to see just one band. Here well, there is just no choice. This line-up was one for the ages. Non-stop, pulse-pounding, mosh pitting madness that turned Manhattan’s Irving Plaza into a damn circus. Throw in streaming power of Yahoo and Livenation, and you have a show for the ages. The Black Dahlia Murder headlined this night of the show as Suicide Silence and themselves, switched headlining slots. One band took half and the other well you get the point. Chelsea Grin opened up the festivities when I arrived, unfortunately I was not able to catch Alter Beast, who were the first band for the night and on the touring bill.

I never got to see or shoot Chelsea Grin, ever. I was going to skip this set because I was under the assumption that only the best lighting was going to be available for the final two acts. Good thing I didn’t as the light equaled the energy being exerted unto the audience. The three songs was all I needed to capture this band as everything was perfect. I enjoyed the music and the atmosphere they pitched unto the crowd. The photographers weren’t really groovin’ much to the material, but I know I was. The bands drummer, David Flinn, was easily my favorite person to shoot. He acknowledged my presence by flipping me off several times on occasion and making faces throughout the songs I was designated to shoot. Not saying the rest of the band is ugly or anything, I just knew the drummer had the best lighting and it shows. Alex Kohler was an awesome front-man and he’s a nice guy to chat with too. Having his moments of being a classical conductor, swaying his arms around and belting lyrics into the microphone when he turn came up unless he pointed the mic out to the audience. Alot of moshing, little crowd-surfing and an easy time. Check the photos out below and their set-list as well.

Chelsea Grin Photo Gallery

Suicide Silence was second before the end and the magic number here is TWO, mainly because all photographers were given two song notices as we all walked into the pit area by security. I remember shooting them the first time and I was terrified due to the amount of bodies surfing into our area of work. This one was no exception. The main difference from Starland Ballroom’s show in NJ and Irving Plaza in NYC was that we managed to escape without calamity. The show erupted into mosh pits, surfing and security round-ups as audience members started the show before the music even began. The two songs went by really fast and leaving out with a headache thanks to the strobe lights was not the souvenir i intended to have. These photos were certainly better the first time, but not my best I will admit. See for yourself.

Band Set-list:

Suicide Silence Photo Gallery

The Black Dahlia is always a fun session to shoot due to the hilarity that ensues from Trevor Strnad, the bands singer. His unorthodox actions combined with his singing abilities make this shoot very entertaining when I am not dodging crowd-surfers and security. The band brought out their best for the streaming event and the audience unleashed their worst as relentless waves continued to pour on the hour and 20 minute set. I captured what I feel were much better photos from when I shot them at Best Buy Theater as they toured with Carcass earlier this year, easily a damn good time. Check out the pictures. Hopefully you guys like them as I know I do.

The Black Dahlia Murder Photo Gallery

Band Set-list:

This article was rather a short write due to the calamity that was the New York Comic-Con that I bought a four day pass for. I was all in “business” mode, to which I shot, recorded highlights and immediately moved forward to get myself ready for day two of the convention. I want to thank the guys in Black Dahlia Murder for signing my photos I printed out and also Eddie Hermida of Suicide Silence. I got to speak with the man himself and he even signed my 11 x 14 picture I captured at Starland Ballroom during the Summer. I may have moments where I get frustrated or I do not write much, and its because I don’t like to give the little things away. My memories and achievements are seeing all the different faces sign my work and reminisce about the night it occurred. Those moments can never be captured into a photograph, but they are always embedded in my mind even when they cannot remember. All of these bands are human like you and I. If you really dig deep and learn about who they are and what they believe in, I am sure your answers will be justified.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

See you on the flip side rockers.

–Derek Soto–