HELLYEAH — THROUGH THE YEARS

TWO NEW YEAR’S EVES. ONE BAND BUILT FOR THE STAGE.

HELLYEAH occupies a specific place in my photography archive because the band is tied to two nights that were almost exactly one year apart: New Year’s Eve in Dallas, first at South Side Ballroom and then at The Bomb Factory.

Those shows gave me the chance to document a band that looked and felt completely at home in Texas.

SOUTH SIDE BALLROOM — DECEMBER 31, 2014

The 2014 show is one of the earliest major bodies of work in my current archive. The room, the lighting and the proximity created photographs that still feel immediate years later.

CHAD GRAY gave me constant movement at the front of the stage. Behind him, VINNIE PAUL was unmistakable behind the kit. The combination of personality, volume and a Dallas New Year’s Eve crowd made the entire set feel larger than the room.

THE BOMB FACTORY — DECEMBER 31, 2015

A year later I photographed HELLYEAH again, this time at The Bomb Factory. Returning to the same band one year later mattered because it let me see the difference in my own work.

I was watching the stage differently. I was looking for cleaner backgrounds, stronger expressions and moments that told more than simply who was standing in front of me.

VINNIE PAUL AND THE TEXAS CONNECTION

There was always extra weight to photographing HELLYEAH in Dallas. VINNIE PAUL was part of the musical history of this city and of Texas heavy music. Having him behind the kit made those photographs more than just another show in the calendar.

Time has made those frames more important to me, not less.

WHY THESE NIGHTS STILL MATTER

Concert photography is built around moments that disappear. The lights change. The singer turns away. The drummer lifts a stick and the frame is gone before you have time to think about it.

These two HELLYEAH shows are a reminder of why I keep an archive in the first place. You never really know which photographs will become history while you are making them.

THROUGH MY LENS

HELLYEAH gave me two New Year’s Eve chapters, one year apart, in the city where their Texas connection meant the most.

I am grateful I was there with a camera for both of them.