This past weekend, Hanoi’s Cut Lon had their record release here in Saigon at Soma Art Cafe. This was a classic example of hearing a band and then seeing them being a bit…different. Clad in Pikachu costumes, Cut Lon got on stage and absolutely shredded. Think youth crew meets thrash - circle pits, sing alongs, and stage dives. Yeah, a bit of cognitive dissonance with the whole Pikachu shtick, but one of the things I love about the scene here is the complete lack of elitism that plagues so many scenes in the States. Kids having fun and saying something while they do it… how can you not love it? So bring on the Pickachu.
Read More
Catching Up: Dalat over Xmas.
Over the past few weeks, as you may have noticed, I have been a bit off the radar. Partially voluntary and partially by sheer logistics. The lunar New Year, or Tet as they say here in Vietnam, brought a much needed respite and a bit of digital detox was in order. I’ll have plenty of images up here in the coming days (Indonesia was incredible!) so check back for those. That said, I had such a backlog of images and I wasn’t quite sure where they would live, so I’ve decided to use this space to show some of those.
Read More
Seeing Things with New Eyes
I’ve lived in Saigon for over 5 years now, and unfortunately, I find myself shooting Saigon less and less these days. What was novel is now the norm, shoots go on autopilot, the penny is less shiny. blah blah blah you know how it goes…in a nut shell, I got bored. And boredom is the biggest disease in the world, darling.
Read More
Saigon Punk Chronicles : Year End Fest - The E Killer, District 105, 7Uppercuts, Razor Leaf, Stupiz Kiz, Tariot
in music
With the lunar new year approaching, First and Last Records held their year-end fest showcasing nearly their entire roster as well as the Singaporean melodic hardcore outfit, Tariot. To begin, DIY shows starting more or less on time here in Saigon blows my mind. With everything else here being 'time-flexible', and the habitual lateness of punk shows in general, this punctuality is noteworthy to say the least. High fives for that. That said, maybe I’ve become accustomed to things starting more. whimsically. So, unfortunately, I missed The E-killer. Next time, fellas.
Read More
Saigon Punk Chronicles : Koteka is the Reason, District 105, 7 Uppercuts
Saigon in the past year seems to have really started building a DIY punk scene. As some of you know, back in the States, I was predominantly a music photographer, and when I moved to Saigon 5 years ago, there wasn’t much of a scene, or at least I didn’t see or hear about it. Needless to say, I’m stoked to have the ‘core and punk shows to go now.
Read More
New Site!!
Stories, Ramblings and High Fives
New Year. New Stories. So why not a new site?
I’ve been debating on changing the way I present my work for some time, and just the same as one photo is never the total story, a simple visual is not sufficient in its presentation. I reckon this area of the site will serve as a behind the scenes or perhaps even a stream of consciousness of stories that may not fit within the other areas of work. Personal projects, random banter, tutorials, tips and tricks, family images, design stuff I love, other artists work - they will all live here. The creative community is so important, so I’d love for this to be a hub for photographers, artists, outcasts, shenanigans peddlers, storytellers. Let’s build something amazing. While you’re here, check out the rest of the site and leave a comment below on what you want to see here.
Read More