Soaking It All In
photography
Big Show
Neon Hitch and Mike Posner, performing at Albion College’s annual Big Show concert.
One of my favorite projects to shoot all year.
Trains: Gene
Gene is 85 years old. He’s been seriously collecting trains for more than 55 years. It all started with a $5 set during the Depression.
He served two tours of duty in World War II and in the Korean War.
“When I got home from the service, I started collecting more.”
Since then, he’s been a bit of everything: pest control, fencing (as in fences), antiques.
He’s been with the Central Michigan Model Railroad Club since the beginning, in the 1960s. It’s the tradition – the idea of keeping these old trains alive – that keeps him interested. He likes the G-gauge trains: “The big ones.”
His set is full of moving parts, like a talking car wash, and a tornado that spins around on an old record player.
Gene also collects barbed wire.
F-Stops Here Podcast
Honored to be a part of The F-Stops Here podcast last night. Thanks to Zach and Jamie for having me on to talk about photo projects, Sigma’s Art lens series, and more.
We Are KMFDM
Not many bands last 30 years. Not many continue to crank out new material, either.
But KMFDM has marched on through many iterations, founders coming and going, and new lineups that freshen up the sound.
I’ve been a fan since the Nihil era – KMFDM’s glory days. The golden age when each new album, from Angst to Symbols, did better than the one before it.
And like a lot of people, it was “Juke Joint Jezebel” that turned me on to the band. I should say – it turned me on to a world of music I didn’t know before.
Danceable. Techno beats. Shredding, heavy-metal style guitars. Backup singers. Self references. Self mockery.
And so much fun.
The current lineup is a talented group. I do enjoy the twin-guitar gallop of Steve (above) and Jules. Andy’s live drums add a new dimension that makes many live KMFDM songs better.
My buddy Don and I saw KMFDM at the Magic Stick, a smaller venue than usual, along Detroit’s Woodward Ave. It’s actually the perfect place to see the band: small, intimate, and easy to get to.
A lot of the new stuff is so-so, but Sascha always throws in plenty of the classic stuff. “Light,” “DIY,” “Anarchy” – these are the songs we came to scream. Some of the new stuff, like “Kunst,” sounds great live, too. But I think the majority of KMFDM fans prefer the classics.
Who knows how much longer KMFDM will be around. Forty more years? Fifty?
Multnomah Falls, Closer
A closer view of Multnomah Falls in Oregon, from a trip to Portland a few years back.
Porcupine Islands
A view of the Porcupine Islands, in Frenchman Bay, from Cadillac Mountain in Acadia National Park, Maine.
Hitting the Road
Hitting the road through Utah, on my way to the Grand Canyon.
Some amazing driving out west.
Winter Sunsets
The magic of winter sunsets.
Captured on the side of The Salesman building in Concord, MI.
Route 66 Gallery
Route 66, Arizona, a road-side gallery.
I traveled Route 66 twice in my life – one complete time that changed my life, and another short spur through New Mexico and Arizona.
Seattle
Despite Pete Carroll and the thugishness of his football team, Seattle really is a fantastic city.