Patrick Wolf - The Metro

Patrick Wolf returned to Sydney with his full band in tow. It was a much more energised show then the last time he was here. Costume changes, much swanning about on stage and even jumping into the crowd at one point. He's a great showman, an incredibly talented musician and in a live situation his voice is stunning. I'd be very surprised if he isn't playing a much larger venue next time he's here.

It was a bit of a popfrenzy showcase tonight with great support from Mist and Sea and Paper Scissors.

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The lighting is never phenomenal at the Metro, but luckily, a kind soul at popfrenzy sorted me out for a photopass so I was able to get in to the pit and duck between the other photographers to get my shots. I'd also like to give Patrick Wolf a hug due to his no-flash photography policy. They almost always look crap anyway.

The Arcade Fire - St John's Church (2nd night)

Again at St John's Church and lining up for a few hours, but this time I was at the front of the queue and one of the first people into the venue. The band opened the night with an rousing acoustic version of The Clash's Guns of Brixton right in the middle of the crowd, I was too far away to even see it but it sounded amazing. Once they were on stage I spent the gig about 3 feet from Win Butler's rather large army boots but was able to avoid a wrathful stomping by only taking the occasional photo rather than snapping away constantly through their set. Although the set list doesn't show it, they closed it off with Tunnels which is possibly my favourite track from Funeral.

It was an amazing way to end my gig going in London, especially as I'm moving back to Sydney for good this coming Sunday. Bye London!

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The lighting seemed a bit dimmer this evening, it was all very basic indeed. Still, I think I managed to get a few good shots - I'd be embarrassed if I didn't at that range!

The Arcade Fire - St John's Church

I arrived in London just under two years ago and went straight from the airport (and a 24 hour flight from Sydney) to this particular gig. I was exhausted, but it still stands as one of the best shows I've ever seen. I'm flying home to Sydney for good this coming Sunday and was surprised to hear that The Arcade Fire were returning to play a series of shows during my last week in the country, even moreso when I realised that I missed out on tickets to every single show and saw tickets going for up to £500 per pair on eBay. No thanks. Still, I wanted to bookend my stay in London by seeing the most amazing live band in the world...

Luckily, the band decided to release 50 tickets per day at each of their London shows. From 12pm I waited outside the venue for the ticket release (it did have it's benefits though), I was #12 in line. Eight and a half chilly hours later I had my ticket and the band filtered onto the stage and it was all worth it. It was absolutely amazing, the band were in fine form playing songs mostly from their upcoming album Neon Bible, and filling out the set with songs from their first album. Oh and did I mention that they played in a church?

The gig ended with the band carrying their instruments outside through the audience, onto the church's steps and performing Wake Up with the whole crowd as backing vocals. It was definitely worth the wait.

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The venue was seated (no one sat) and I was about six rows from the front, so I spent a fair bit of time trying to shoot over/around/between waving hands and heads, so all of these photos are heavily cropped. There was no photo pit and the professional photographers were relegated to an upper balcony. I'm hoping to get into the first or second row when I do all this again on Wednesday and Thursday...

Drowned In Sound Xmas Party

Drowned In Sound held their Christmas party at Kings College this year, the line-up included Laura Groves, Jeremy Warmsley, GoodBooks, Guillemots, Courtesy Group, Acoustic Ladyland, and The Bellagios. I stuck around for the first four acts but had to head home after I started feeling more than a bit ill.

Lighting wasn't always ideal, but it was good enough to get a few decent shots. I was told there was a three songs/no flash rule but the other photographers there seemed quite happy to ignore it, security didn't mind either. I'm using some new gallery software too, have a look at the photos!