ATP Festival, New Jersey

This is the exterior of the Convention Hall and Paramount Theater on the Asbury Park boardwalk. Lara is standing with her back to the camera just in front of the giant planter in the immediate foreground. That's right: here begins my experiment wherein all of today's photos have been taken with an iPhone camera.
It has been a gloomy weekend in Asbury Park.
Fortunately, all the shows are inside!
Here are some photos of Marc Ribot. He is a legendary guitarist based out of New York City who is perhaps most famous for his work on Tom Waits's legendary 1980s albums such as Rain Dogs, Frank's Wild Years, and Swordfishtrombones. Hear him play lead guitar on Tom Waits's Jockey Full of Bourbon
He was really great. I'm not a huge guitar guy, but watching Ribot play makes me understand what goes through the minds of all the guitar players I've known who have gone into a kind of daze whenever they listen to their favorite guitarists.
A shot of the Jersey shore from the second floor of the convention hall.
A shot of the Asbury Park boardwalk taken through dirty windows.
And here are some tasteful blocks and couches adorning the charmingly-dilapidated hallways of this building.

Down the corridor, you can just make out some merchandise tables. To my left are the doors to the Convention Hall, where a band with four drummers and someone screaming their head off were creating a deafening roar.
Another shot of the shore line. Wait...what's this?
A wedding?? Is the deafening roar causing me to hallucinate? What an odd day and situation for this!
No, it is in fact a wedding.
I hope they can't hear the drummers and screaming. That's not what you want at a wedding.

In the distance, on this building, you can see the artwork of Shepard Fairey, an artist whose work is also being showcased at this festival
And here we have Swans. This is the lap steel guitar player.

Don't let the band name (or presence of lap steel) fool you. Swans are an angry, loud, brutal band.
This is Michael Gira, lead singer.


Now in his fifties, Gira is capable of summoning levels of intensity that frankly blow my mind.

I don't know how many of you would be into this kind of music (and that includes my mother), but here is a link to the first song off of their most recent album: No Words/No Thoughts.
And here are some photos from festival curators and headliners Portishead.

I was not as close to this performance, and the lights were a good deal brighter, so photos of this set are limited. They are a great band, however, with both electronic and acoustic instruments and Beth Gibbons' beautiful and at times haunting vocals: The Rip.

I shall now go watch more music! Thanks for reading, and check back tomorrow!

-Blog Tech

Comments

Thanks for broadening my horizons, LOL!
TARYTERRE said…
For a gloomy weekend in Asbury Park, the photos came out pretty good. Loved the shoreline and beach shots. Enjoyed the tour.
Anonymous said…
It is somewhat hard to belive music with lap steel guitar can be hard :-) But I'm listening to that video right now and yes that's pretty hard, in a way :-) But I have to confess that it isn't my kind of music :-) :-):-)

The photographs are pretty good for being taken with a telephoen camera.

I guess that if the weather had been better that beach most probably would have been a rather nice place for a wedding even if my own choice would have bveen by a small and quiet lake :-)

Have a great day!
Christer.
jaz@octoberfarm said…
hey dude.....how so you know i don't like the swans? and i love beth gibbons. i might be old but i am still cool. and don't forget who introduced you to music!!! moi!!!
Barbara F. said…
I think your photos of the beach, sky, clouds are professional quality! xo
well, i am old, and i know not this music, but i'm still cool.

thanks for sharing, it is fun to see from your perspective.

be safe.
Anonymous said…
Thank you for sharing this with us.Otherwise I would never know Jersey had such a nice shorelien;)
Robin Larkspur said…
Your phone took pretty decent pix, especially through dirty windows. I listened to the first three minutes of the Swans music you linked. I like swans...floating prettily on a pond. Thanks for the road trip!
wow...from tudor place to the Swans....we have come FULL CIRCLE, my friend

kary and l'il teddy
Unknown said…
Odd day/place for a wedding indeed. Still, I hope everything worked out well for them! The fest looks awesome; wish I weren't stuck so far south.