Raymond Ahner

  If I had to give an estimate, I'd have to say that I have been to well over a thousand shows over the years. Tonight was without a doubt one of the most wacked-out shows of them all, and by far the most fun I have ever had photographing a band. More pictures and review to come shortly!

Unfortunately Danzig decided not allow any photographers, {too old? too fat? too balding?} and had the photographers removed from the photo pit 5 minutes before the start of  his set. That's cool, because he is kinda washed up anyways. Skeletonwitch stole the show as far as I'm concerned. Stay tuned for more pictures and my interview with Winds Of Plague!

Last night I had the opportunity to interview Death Angel vocalist Mark Osegueda and then witness a pretty epic show by the band, which unfortunately was the last with bassist Dennis Pepa. Stay tuned for review and more pictures!

Photographed Saviours {one of my favorite bands} last night at the Regency Center here in S.F. More photos and review on the way!

Looking back on Metallica's "rehearsal" at the Cow Palace on Friday night, I would have to say I was pretty damn impressed with the band, which, after giving up on them many years ago, is something I though I'd never say again.

While standing on the floor of an almost eerily empty Cow Palace, and I couldn't help but pick up on the good "vibe" that was going around. There were conversations involving shopping at The Record Vault, the latest Death Angel and Testament records, and Mercyful Fate T-Shirts. And if I can get all fan-boy here, meeting and shaking hands with both legendary journalist Steffan Chirazi and one time Metallica guitar tech/band member John Marshall was pretty damn cool. It was a good time {even sans alcohol} and made waiting for the band to hit the stage {they were an hour and a half late} more than bearable.
 
Although there were a few "kinks" in a couple of the songs off of Death Magnetic that still needed to be worked out, Metallica still sounded pretty damn good, and are still a pretty impressive live band, even after all these years. Yeah there was a bit of a "lull" in the middle of the set {"Until It Sleeps", "The Day That Never Comes"} but overall the songs flowed relatively smoothly, and if it weren't for James saying something to the effect of "We'll fuck -up more than usual to make it extra special for you guys", or a complete guitar meltdown during one of the new songs (Broken, Beat And Scarred)? it could have been just another Metallica show, except for the fact that there were only 700 people or so in attendance. And although I am not going to give away the entire setlist of the evening,  I will say that highlights for me included "Cyanide" "Master Of Puppets"  "The Four Horsemen" "Fight Fire With Fire" and the 3 song "encore" during which they ripped through "Last Carass" "Blitzkrieg" (!!)  and "Seek And Destroy". Not a band way to wrap things up. Another highlight was seeing legendary photographer Ross Halfin on stage and casually getting right in the face of each band member to get his shots. As I watched him I couldn't help but gravitate towards the front of the stage to see just how he works his magic, and to say that I was envious of him would be an understatement. Although I hear he is a real prick ( and probably rightfully so} I'd love to get the chance to shoot a show with him and see just how he does it.

As far as the "production" portion of the show, the set was full of muti-colored lasers, multi-colored flames and eight pretty fucking cool coffin shaped lighting rigs, four of which would hover directly over the band at times. It was a nice touch, and maybe was meant to serve as a reminder to the audience that this band is still "metal". A friend and I did agree that there was a serious lack of explosions, but hopefully all the pyro will be in place once the actual tour starts.

 If I had only one complaint about the evening, it would have to be the 'in the round" style set-up of the stage. To me the rotating band member really takes away from the "dynamic" of the show, especially with a band like Metallica. After seeing them on tiny stages like The Stone, or on a huge stage which they completely hi-jacked at The Oakland Coliseum {Day On The Green, 1985} its hard to get a sense of energy from the band when you can't see them all head-on at any given time. But I guess that's what bands do these days. Oh Well...

So with all that being said, will I go see Metallica when they return to the Bay Area for a proper show in December? Honestly, yes I will. As much as I wanted to continue to write off both them and there music, I just can't do it this time, as I am stoked to see that Metallica has returned to form.

And please excuse the shitty pictures below. After much debate, I decided not to pursue obtaining a photo-pass, and at the last minute decided not to even bring the 5D. And I gotta admit that after shooting approximately fifty or so shows this year, it was nice to go with just a point and shoot watch as a fan for a change.

Thanks to a very well connected and very gracious friend, I'll be seeing Metallica's last rehearsal before their upcoming world tour at the Cow Palace tonight! Basically it will be a full-blown show, with pyro {!!!!}, for about 300 people. Oddly enough, the last time I was at the Cow Palace was for a Metallica show, back in 1992 I believe, which was also the last time I saw the band live. Should be pretty damn cool. Stay tuned for a full report!!!

I had never been a huge fan of Journey, but I gotta admit that they put on a pretty damn entertaining show. And your lying if you say you've never sung along to any Heart or Cheap Trick songs. As always, you can also read this and see more of my pictures over at Ground Control Magazine.

If you’re regular reader of Ground Control I know what you’re probably thinking. “What the hell was Raymond Ahner, the guy who covers all those punk and metal shows, doing at a concert like this?” Well, let me ask you a question. If you were given the chance to photograph three legendary bands, have a few beers, and take in live versions of "Dream Police," "Magic Man" and "Wheel In The Sky" on a warm Autumn evening, wouldn't you seize the opportunity? Of course you would! Besides, the opening band on this tour have been heroes of mine since the day I bought Live at Budokon on 8-track well over 25 years ago, and as is always the case, I was pretty excited to see them live again.

While the mullets and muscle shirts were still making their way into the venue, Cheap Trick hit the stage and proceeded to deliver one of the most entertaining sets I have witnessed this year, and as I was up in front of the stage taking pictures of the band I don't think the smile ever left my face. As the band went through hit after hit including "Oh Claire," "If You Want My Love," "California Man" and "The Flame," it was pretty hard to believe the average age of these four guys is almost 58 years old. Robin Zander hasn't lost his pipes, while drummer Bun E. Carlos and bassist Tom Petersson are still one of the best rhythm sections in rock history. As for guitar legend Rick Nielsen, the guy is a total nut on stage. While constantly throwing guitar picks into the crowd (and at me and my camera), running from one end of the stage to the other, and switching guitars at least a half a dozen times, he still managed to show what an incredible guitar player he is. And although the band’s "looseness" may have mistakenly made their performance seem just a bit sloppy, Cheap Trick are one of the only bands around that can pull off sounding so good while having so much fun on stage. They were non-stop good times and full of energy, and I'll take that any day. Of course no Cheap Trick set would be complete without the "mega-hits" and the band delivered with "I Want You To Want Me," "Surrender," and the perfect song to end their far-too-brief time on stage, "Goodnight." And although they then exited the stage, I thought to myself there was no way they were not coming back to play "Dream Police,” and they did not disappoint. Journey's Jonathan Cain, Ross Valory and Deen Castronovo even joined in on the fun. Cheap Trick were the PERFECT band to open this show, and if you have never seen them live, you need to go see them, because you are missing out on something special.

When I first learned that Heart did not allow professional photographers, I gotta admit I was pretty disappointed. I have been a huge fan of theirs for over 25 years, and to finally photograph Ann and Nancy Wilson after all these years would have been pretty damn cool. But as I made my way to my seat—which was only ten rows from the stage, and almost dead center—just as the band walked out on stage, I got over it, and was content (and pretty excited) to finally witness them live.

All I can really say about Heart's performance tonight is that from the opening note of "Wild Child," to the last beat of "Crazy On You," the band quite simply floored me. Ann Wilson sounded phenomenal, and belted out classics from four decades like she was thirty years old again. I was really quite pleasantly surprised by just how good she still sounds. As for her sister Nancy, her stage presence was very reminiscent of one Jimmy Page, from her slightly smug demeanor to the way she slung her guitar. She is an incredible guitarist, and totally owned the stage without being overbearing. And speaking of guitarists, the band’s other guitar player, Craig Bartock, was a bad ass himself, and traded riffs with Nancy quite nicely. Although every song got a roaring response from the crowd, it was "Never," "These Dreams" (with Nancy on Mandolin), and "Alone"—all hits from the 1980s, that surprisingly got the loudest reaction. Not that I don't like these songs, because I do, but I was more stoked to hear "Magic Man," "Barracuda" and my all-time favorite Heart song, "Straight On." Covers of The Who's "Love, Reign o'er Me" and Zeppelin's “Going To California" (again with Nancy on Mandolin) were also nice touches to the set list. And as the band wrapped up their set I thought to myself that I was so glad that I finally got the chance to see them live, but as with Cheap Trick, their time on stage was not nearly enough for me. Hopefully they will be retuning to the Bay Area soon.

While waiting patiently in the photo pit as the road crew put the finishing touches on the stage, I turned around to take a long look at the twelve thousand or so fans in front of me and couldn't help but feel the electricity in the air. These people were ready for a rock show, weekday be damned. What amazed me more than anything else however, was that there seemed to be two different generations of fans, the old ones (like myself) and the younger ones (the kids of the older ones) who probably weren't even born when I bought my copy of the Escape album way back in 1981. It was pretty cool to see, and gave me total flashbacks to being that age and at a huge show like this. I also couldn't help but notice the strong contingency of Filipinos in the audience, many who were holding up signs and waving the flag of their country, all in support of Arnel Pineda, the new vocalist for the band. I had heard of some of buzz about him, but did not expect to see such a following. It was a very nice show of support, and showed just how big of a fan base Journey still has.

Finally making their way on stage and immediately launching into "Never Walk Away," it was pretty obvious what all the hype surrounding Pineda was about. The guy sounds exactly like Steve Perry, while at the same time delivering the songs that Perry made famous with his own unique style. "Stone In Love," "Ask The Lonely" and "Separate Ways" all sounded totally undated with Pineda at the helm. He was nothing short of a total entertainer, and as he ran around the stage, jumped up in the air and even rode on the shoulders of a security guard at one point, he had the entire crowd in his clutches and hanging onto his every word. As for the rest of the band, guitarist Neal Schon seemed to be having a blast up on stage and was effortlessly belting out lick after lick on his sunburst Les Paul. I was pretty blown away, and I guess it just never really sunk in that he is a pretty incredible guitarist. And while we're on the subject of talent, I also never realized that Jonathan Cain was such a multi-instrument bad ass. Watching him go from piano/keyboards to guitar to harmonica, I was thoroughly impressed. Bassist Ross Valory delivered his signature thick and heavy bass licks, while drummer Deen Castronovo kept the beat flawlessly, and even delivered the vocals during "Keep On Running." Both Valory and Castronovo are pretty amazing musicians in their own right, and it was nice to see both of them making their presence known and not taking a back seat to the rest of the band, as is often the case with the rhythm section. As good as Journey were as a whole however, the evening belonged to Pineda. As he continued to amaze the crowd with spectacular renditions of both "Lights" and "Open Arms" it seemed that everyone person in the venue hand their glowing cell phones (I'm old enough to remember when it was lighters) up in the air and were swaying in unison to the music. And as Cain broke into the opening notes of "Don't Stop Believin'" on his piano, the place exploded, and rightfully so. I think that moment was the high point of everyone’s evening thus far, including mine.

As the show drew to a close with "Faithfully” and "Faith In The Heartland," and the encore of “Lovin, Touchin, Squeezin,” I walked out of the venue with a new level of respect for both Journey and Heart, while not losing an ounce of respect I have always had for Cheap Trick. In today's world of touring "nostalgia" acts it was so nice to see three bands that have been around for so long and still sound so good. Not only are three bands still incredibly talented, but all their songs have all with held the test of time, and still sound pretty damn good after all these years. What more could you ask for?

So I know this is old news by now, but hey, better late than never. Besides, in the last two weeks I've been to five shows, photographed four weddings, and worked the day job ten hours a day. So there! Anyways, this review {and more of my pictures} can also be seen over at Ground Control Magazine. The pictures aren't the best, as I was only allowed to shoot the first song, and Nick seemed slightly less than enthusiastic about me taking his picture. You should also definitely check out the reviews of the same show by fellow music geeks Hard Rock Chick and Umlaut. {Just be sure to skip the part about the Kennedy Assassination reenactment}.
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I have taken Nick Cave And The Bad Seeds live shows for granted, and I'll be the first to admit it. In fact, the last time I saw him and his band live (aside from the two Grinderman shows here in S.F. well over a year ago) was probably in 1997 or so. But after being blown away by those two amazing nights It finally sunk in that Mr. Cave has become as talented as a performer as he is a songwriter, and I vowed to myself right then and there that I would not miss out on another chance to witness him on stage.

Unfortunately, due to some minor but ultimately resolved issues at the box office, I missed all but the last song of opening band Red Sparrows’ set. But I can tell you that what I did hear was nothing short of fucking epic. These five guys (three guitarists, a bassist and a drummer) created a total flowing wall of sound and were incredibly heavy without being overbearing in the least. And as geeky as it may sound, while standing there taking in the music with my eyes closed I felt like totally sucked in, and for a brief moment was transcending space and time. I really wish I had seen their entire set, and I'm very much looking forward to hearing them again. And if you have never seen Red Sparrows live, I would highly recommend you experience them as well.

As soon as the band hit the stage with a rocking version of "Night of the Lotus Eaters," I knew that I was going to be impressed. Nick and the Bad Seeds were non-stop energy from the first note, and while running from one edge of the stage to the other—sometimes with a tambourine, sometimes stopping for a few quick chords on his keyboard, and sometimes just with arms flailing about—Nick seemed to have even more charisma than usual, and was energetically and sometimes even playfully interacting with both his band and the audience members. As far as The Bad Seeds go they proved that they are some of the most talented musicians around. Mixed in with old classics such as "DeAnna," "Mercy Seat," "Tupelo" and "Red Right Hand" (which Cave simply introduced by saying, "This is a song about the usual stuff") were plenty of songs from the band’s latest album, Dig, Lazarus, Dig!!!, including "Today's Lesson," "Moonland" and a pretty damn incredible version of "We Call Upon The Author," complete with guitarist Warren Ellis on his hands and knees with his effects pedals. My personal favorite from the new album, "More News from Nowhere," was a perfect choice to close the set.

After just a few moments Nick and co. returned for an audience participation filled "The Lyre of Orpheus," "Into Your Arms" and what was probably one of my favorite songs of the night, "God Is In The House," which Cave slightly ad-libbed at points. Rocking versions of "Get Ready For Love," "Hard on for Love" and "Stagger Lee" marked the end of the night.

Looking back on this show, I have to say that I still continue to be blown away by both Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds even after all these years, and will not miss them when they return to San Francisco.