June 24, 2019

Wallows at The Danforth Music Hall - Concert Photos

Wallows at The Danforth Music Hall on May 12, 2019 Photo by John Ordean at One In Ten Words oneintenwords.com toronto indie alternative live music blog concert photography pictures photos nikon d750 camera yyz photographer
Wallows at The Danforth Music Hall on May 12, 2019 Photo by John Ordean at One In Ten Words oneintenwords.com toronto indie alternative live music blog concert photography pictures photos nikon d750 camera yyz photographer
Wallows at The Danforth Music Hall on May 12, 2019 Photo by John Ordean at One In Ten Words oneintenwords.com toronto indie alternative live music blog concert photography pictures photos nikon d750 camera yyz photographer
Wallows at The Danforth Music Hall on May 12, 2019 Photo by John Ordean at One In Ten Words oneintenwords.com toronto indie alternative live music blog concert photography pictures photos nikon d750 camera yyz photographer
Wallows at The Danforth Music Hall on May 12, 2019 Photo by John Ordean at One In Ten Words oneintenwords.com toronto indie alternative live music blog concert photography pictures photos nikon d750 camera yyz photographer
Wallows at The Danforth Music Hall on May 12, 2019 Photo by John Ordean at One In Ten Words oneintenwords.com toronto indie alternative live music blog concert photography pictures photos nikon d750 camera yyz photographer
This rock and roll business is kind of a crazy game. There are tons of vacuous and many rather wise quotes I could pull out, but somehow I won’t.

What do you do when you’ve waited all day for your approval to photograph and review a concert and it doesn’t come? When it’s a massively sold out show that you really want to attend, you scrounge up a ticket from someone who can’t attend and you figure you’ll save your back by attending the show as a good old fan and not carry several kilograms of camera gear for the night.

And then you get approved. Nice. And lol. I’m on the other side of the city from home, in the venue, the opening band is on stage and now I’m approved!

Whatever, it’s rock and roll and this photography thing is quite a gift. Even late, I appreciate the approval. So, you make the best of it. I went ahead and put the years-old iPhone 7 to work in the photo pit. Sorry, it's not proper protocol but you do the best with the situation you're in. Hope you still like these photos.

Los Angeles California based Wallows put on a fun show, with a crazy crowd of big fans who sing along with, and hang on, every word. Their songs have tons of hooks, beats to keep you moving and highly addictive melodies. I'd love it if they stop through Toronto again and I might be able to bring my proper gear and get some better photos.

Check out some tunes from their set:

"Sidelines"

"Scrawny"

"These Days"

"Pictures of Girls"

"Are You Bored Yet"

"Do Not Wait"

"1980s Horror Film"

The Drums at The Phoenix Concert Theatre - Concert Photos

The Drums at The Phoenix Concert Theatre on May 2, 2019 Photo by John Ordean at One In Ten Words oneintenwords.com toronto indie alternative live music blog concert photography pictures photos nikon d750 camera yyz photographer
The Drums at The Phoenix Concert Theatre on May 2, 2019 Photo by John Ordean at One In Ten Words oneintenwords.com toronto indie alternative live music blog concert photography pictures photos nikon d750 camera yyz photographer
The Drums at The Phoenix Concert Theatre on May 2, 2019 Photo by John Ordean at One In Ten Words oneintenwords.com toronto indie alternative live music blog concert photography pictures photos nikon d750 camera yyz photographer
The Drums at The Phoenix Concert Theatre on May 2, 2019 Photo by John Ordean at One In Ten Words oneintenwords.com toronto indie alternative live music blog concert photography pictures photos nikon d750 camera yyz photographer
The Drums at The Phoenix Concert Theatre on May 2, 2019 Photo by John Ordean at One In Ten Words oneintenwords.com toronto indie alternative live music blog concert photography pictures photos nikon d750 camera yyz photographer
The Drums at The Phoenix Concert Theatre on May 2, 2019 Photo by John Ordean at One In Ten Words oneintenwords.com toronto indie alternative live music blog concert photography pictures photos nikon d750 camera yyz photographer
The Drums at The Phoenix Concert Theatre on May 2, 2019 Photo by John Ordean at One In Ten Words oneintenwords.com toronto indie alternative live music blog concert photography pictures photos nikon d750 camera yyz photographer
The Drums at The Phoenix Concert Theatre on May 2, 2019 Photo by John Ordean at One In Ten Words oneintenwords.com toronto indie alternative live music blog concert photography pictures photos nikon d750 camera yyz photographer
New York City indie pop band The Drums played Toronto's Phoenix Concert Theatre and I got to be there to experience the show and capture some photos.

They were here to support their latest release, Brutalism, and they played a great set that highlighted their latest album plus previous hits from their sizeable discography. This band has so many fun, catchy tunes that it made for a great-sounding and energetic set. I love their bassline-driven and post-punk influenced sound.

Tanukichan opened the show and photos of their set are here.

Check out a bunch of Drums' tunes:

"Days"

"Best Friend"

"Body Chemistry"

"Let's Go Surfing"

"Money"

"626 Bedford Avenue"

"Blood Under My Belt"

Tanukichan at The Phoenix Concert Theatre - Concert Photos

Tanukichan at The Phoenix Concert Theatre on May 2, 2019 Photo by John Ordean at One In Ten Words oneintenwords.com toronto indie alternative live music blog concert photography pictures photos nikon d750 camera yyz photographer
Tanukichan at The Phoenix Concert Theatre on May 2, 2019 Photo by John Ordean at One In Ten Words oneintenwords.com toronto indie alternative live music blog concert photography pictures photos nikon d750 camera yyz photographer
Tanukichan at The Phoenix Concert Theatre on May 2, 2019 Photo by John Ordean at One In Ten Words oneintenwords.com toronto indie alternative live music blog concert photography pictures photos nikon d750 camera yyz photographer
Tanukichan at The Phoenix Concert Theatre on May 2, 2019 Photo by John Ordean at One In Ten Words oneintenwords.com toronto indie alternative live music blog concert photography pictures photos nikon d750 camera yyz photographer
Tanukichan at The Phoenix Concert Theatre on May 2, 2019 Photo by John Ordean at One In Ten Words oneintenwords.com toronto indie alternative live music blog concert photography pictures photos nikon d750 camera yyz photographer
Tanukichan at The Phoenix Concert Theatre on May 2, 2019 Photo by John Ordean at One In Ten Words oneintenwords.com toronto indie alternative live music blog concert photography pictures photos nikon d750 camera yyz photographer
Oakland-based Tanukichan is multi-instrumentalist Hannah van Loon. She and her band performed at The Phoenix Concert theatre opening for The Drums. Click here to check out my photos of their set.

I enjoyed Tanukichan's chill shoegaze sounds and vibes. I'm looking forward to diving deeper into their music.

Check out some of their tunes below.

"Lazy Love"

"Natural"

"Enough"

Hippo Campus at The Phoenix Concert Theatre - Concert Photos

Hippo Campus at The Phoenix Concert Theatre on May 1, 2019 Photo by John Ordean at One In Ten Words oneintenwords.com toronto indie alternative live music blog concert photography pictures photos nikon d750 camera yyz photographer
Hippo Campus at The Phoenix Concert Theatre on May 1, 2019 Photo by John Ordean at One In Ten Words oneintenwords.com toronto indie alternative live music blog concert photography pictures photos nikon d750 camera yyz photographer
Hippo Campus at The Phoenix Concert Theatre on May 1, 2019 Photo by John Ordean at One In Ten Words oneintenwords.com toronto indie alternative live music blog concert photography pictures photos nikon d750 camera yyz photographer
Hippo Campus at The Phoenix Concert Theatre on May 1, 2019 Photo by John Ordean at One In Ten Words oneintenwords.com toronto indie alternative live music blog concert photography pictures photos nikon d750 camera yyz photographer
Hippo Campus at The Phoenix Concert Theatre on May 1, 2019 Photo by John Ordean at One In Ten Words oneintenwords.com toronto indie alternative live music blog concert photography pictures photos nikon d750 camera yyz photographer
Hippo Campus at The Phoenix Concert Theatre on May 1, 2019 Photo by John Ordean at One In Ten Words oneintenwords.com toronto indie alternative live music blog concert photography pictures photos nikon d750 camera yyz photographer
Hippo Campus at The Phoenix Concert Theatre on May 1, 2019 Photo by John Ordean at One In Ten Words oneintenwords.com toronto indie alternative live music blog concert photography pictures photos nikon d750 camera yyz photographer
Hippo Campus at The Phoenix Concert Theatre on May 1, 2019 Photo by John Ordean at One In Ten Words oneintenwords.com toronto indie alternative live music blog concert photography pictures photos nikon d750 camera yyz photographer
Hippo Campus at The Phoenix Concert Theatre on May 1, 2019 Photo by John Ordean at One In Ten Words oneintenwords.com toronto indie alternative live music blog concert photography pictures photos nikon d750 camera yyz photographer
Hippo Campus at The Phoenix Concert Theatre on May 1, 2019 Photo by John Ordean at One In Ten Words oneintenwords.com toronto indie alternative live music blog concert photography pictures photos nikon d750 camera yyz photographer
St. Paul, Minnesota indie rock band Hippo Campus came through Toronto on their latest tour. They played The Phoenix Concert Theatre to a packed crowd who were enthralled with the music.

I love the band's chill tunes with big choruses and in the live show, those peaceful sounds came across strongly. Several songs got a huge crowd response, including "South" and "Simple Season". "Suicide Saturday" had perhaps the biggest singalong and set-closer "Violet" was a big tune to close with. They came back for a quick encore of "Buttercup". Check out the band's full setlist from this show here.

New York City singer/songwriter Samia opened up the show. Check out my photos of their set here.

Here are my personal favourites from Hippo Campus' setlist.

"Bambi"

"Way It Goes"

"Honestly"

"South"

"Suicide Saturday"

"Violet"

"Buttercup"

"Boyish" No, they didn't play this one, but it's my favourite Hippo Campus song. So here it is:

Samia at The Phoenix Concert Theatre - Concert Photos

Samia at The Phoenix Concert Theatre on May 1, 2019 Photo by John Ordean at One In Ten Words oneintenwords.com toronto indie alternative live music blog concert photography pictures photos nikon d750 camera yyz photographer
Samia at The Phoenix Concert Theatre on May 1, 2019 Photo by John Ordean at One In Ten Words oneintenwords.com toronto indie alternative live music blog concert photography pictures photos nikon d750 camera yyz photographer
Samia at The Phoenix Concert Theatre on May 1, 2019 Photo by John Ordean at One In Ten Words oneintenwords.com toronto indie alternative live music blog concert photography pictures photos nikon d750 camera yyz photographer
Samia at The Phoenix Concert Theatre on May 1, 2019 Photo by John Ordean at One In Ten Words oneintenwords.com toronto indie alternative live music blog concert photography pictures photos nikon d750 camera yyz photographer
Samia at The Phoenix Concert Theatre on May 1, 2019 Photo by John Ordean at One In Ten Words oneintenwords.com toronto indie alternative live music blog concert photography pictures photos nikon d750 camera yyz photographer
Samia at The Phoenix Concert Theatre on May 1, 2019 Photo by John Ordean at One In Ten Words oneintenwords.com toronto indie alternative live music blog concert photography pictures photos nikon d750 camera yyz photographer
Samia at The Phoenix Concert Theatre on May 1, 2019 Photo by John Ordean at One In Ten Words oneintenwords.com toronto indie alternative live music blog concert photography pictures photos nikon d750 camera yyz photographer
Samia at The Phoenix Concert Theatre on May 1, 2019 Photo by John Ordean at One In Ten Words oneintenwords.com toronto indie alternative live music blog concert photography pictures photos nikon d750 camera yyz photographer
Samia at The Phoenix Concert Theatre on May 1, 2019 Photo by John Ordean at One In Ten Words oneintenwords.com toronto indie alternative live music blog concert photography pictures photos nikon d750 camera yyz photographer
Samia at The Phoenix Concert Theatre on May 1, 2019 Photo by John Ordean at One In Ten Words oneintenwords.com toronto indie alternative live music blog concert photography pictures photos nikon d750 camera yyz photographer
Samia at The Phoenix Concert Theatre on May 1, 2019 Photo by John Ordean at One In Ten Words oneintenwords.com toronto indie alternative live music blog concert photography pictures photos nikon d750 camera yyz photographer
Samia at The Phoenix Concert Theatre on May 1, 2019 Photo by John Ordean at One In Ten Words oneintenwords.com toronto indie alternative live music blog concert photography pictures photos nikon d750 camera yyz photographer
New York City's Samia performed with her band at The Phoenix Concert Theatre in Toronto opening things up for Hippo Campus. Please click here to check out my pics of their set.

I found Samia's songs and performance intense, emotional, passionate, energized and heartfelt. Her songs told personal stories delivered with strength and conviction.

Check out her music:

"Ode to Sacrifice"

"Milk"

"Someone Tell the Boys"

"21"

"Lasting Friend"

June 21, 2019

Metric at Budweiser Gardens - Concert Photos

Metric at Budweiser Gardens in London Ontario on April 28, 2019 Photo by John Ordean at One In Ten Words oneintenwords.com toronto indie alternative live music blog concert photography pictures photos nikon d750 camera yyz photographer
Metric at Budweiser Gardens in London Ontario on April 28, 2019 Photo by John Ordean at One In Ten Words oneintenwords.com toronto indie alternative live music blog concert photography pictures photos nikon d750 camera yyz photographer
Metric at Budweiser Gardens in London Ontario on April 28, 2019 Photo by John Ordean at One In Ten Words oneintenwords.com toronto indie alternative live music blog concert photography pictures photos nikon d750 camera yyz photographer
Metric at Budweiser Gardens in London Ontario on April 28, 2019 Photo by John Ordean at One In Ten Words oneintenwords.com toronto indie alternative live music blog concert photography pictures photos nikon d750 camera yyz photographer
Metric at Budweiser Gardens in London Ontario on April 28, 2019 Photo by John Ordean at One In Ten Words oneintenwords.com toronto indie alternative live music blog concert photography pictures photos nikon d750 camera yyz photographer
Metric at Budweiser Gardens in London Ontario on April 28, 2019 Photo by John Ordean at One In Ten Words oneintenwords.com toronto indie alternative live music blog concert photography pictures photos nikon d750 camera yyz photographer
Metric at Budweiser Gardens in London Ontario on April 28, 2019 Photo by John Ordean at One In Ten Words oneintenwords.com toronto indie alternative live music blog concert photography pictures photos nikon d750 camera yyz photographer
Metric at Budweiser Gardens in London Ontario on April 28, 2019 Photo by John Ordean at One In Ten Words oneintenwords.com toronto indie alternative live music blog concert photography pictures photos nikon d750 camera yyz photographer
Metric at Budweiser Gardens in London Ontario on April 28, 2019 Photo by John Ordean at One In Ten Words oneintenwords.com toronto indie alternative live music blog concert photography pictures photos nikon d750 camera yyz photographer
Metric at Budweiser Gardens in London Ontario on April 28, 2019 Photo by John Ordean at One In Ten Words oneintenwords.com toronto indie alternative live music blog concert photography pictures photos nikon d750 camera yyz photographer
Metric at Budweiser Gardens in London Ontario on April 28, 2019 Photo by John Ordean at One In Ten Words oneintenwords.com toronto indie alternative live music blog concert photography pictures photos nikon d750 camera yyz photographer
Metric headlined Budweiser Gardens in London, Ontario and I was lucky enough to be there to capture these photos. I also captured July Talk and Murray A. Lightburn's sets. Please click through to check out those photos, too.

Metric took to the stage and started into one of the songs that made me fall in love with the band way back when, "Dead Disco" from 2003's Old World Underground, Where Are You Now?. It put me into the right headspace to love this Metric show. That tune was the furthest back in the Metric cannon that we'd delve on this night, but that's just fine, thank you. The set spanned their recorded history and demonstrated just how consistently solid their output is, with due focus on their latest, Art of Doubt.

"Synthetica" is a solid rocker of a tune. "Breathing Underwater" is always a favourite, and the ending of the main set with "Gimme Sympathy", "Youth Without Youth" and "Gold Guns Girls" was powerful. "Dark Saturday" sounded awesome kicking off the encore, followed by another classic, "Monster Hospital". It all ended with "Now or Never Now" from their latest album, Art of Doubt.

I've only photographed Metric on two other occasions. Check out my photos from them at Field Trip in 2018 and from way back in 2014 at Riot Fest.

And here are some highlights from the band's set.

"Dead Disco"

"Synthetica"

"Risk"

"Breathing Underwater"

"Dressed to Suppress"

"Gimme Sympathy"

"Youth Without Youth"

"Gold Guns Girls"

"Dark Saturday"

"Monster Hospital"

"Now or Never Now"