music photography by nick pickles in Leeds, and wherever else it takes me
A bit of a last-minute shoot for the Guardian this, but pleased I could do it - managed to grab five minutes for some portraits before watching the live show. It’s always nice to have a beer and enjoy decent support acts, then Japandroids really impressed me. Sharp, well-crafted songs with much more depth than you might expect from a guitar and a drum kit.
It’s one thing to see a great band play in a small venue before they’ve ‘made it’. It’s quite another to see a band usually playing festival main stages and big venues come back to a small venue. Doves - who a few days after this gig played at Manchester Central (or in old money, the G-Mex) - took to the stage in the cockpit with almost a surreal atmosphere of a crowd clearly both very excited and slightly confused. The Cockpit isnt a huge venue (about 500 capacity) but it wasnt full, so it was quite relaxed.
Doves are one of my standout bands of the year - Kingdom of Rust is definitely on of my top records of 2009 - so to see them in such a small setting was just immense. A few free beers didnt harm either!
I’d forgotten how great these guys are live - saw them at a festival before i really knew them and was really impressed, now i’ve got to know the music it was really a top gig.
Phew, what a weekend. Live at Leeds all day saturday, then the Fray and White Lies last night. (more on the latter two gigs later)
It’s been a long time since I shot a gig where there wasnt a photo pit, but the change was very much a refreshing one. was great to see so many small bands that i’d not heard much of, some really great sets. bit of a change using flash for most of the bands (normally its strictly first three songs, no flash) but im fairly happy with the results.
A special mention should go to Fight Like Apes - I’d seen them supporting someone a while back, and must admit I didnt really get them. But they took to the stage sometime on saturday afternoon in the Cockpit and blew me away - great tunes, so much energy and a captivating stage presence. as katie from sky larkin said during her set afterwards, the world is a better place because fight like apes are in it. so go forth and listen!
oh, and the photos….
