How not to end an artistic partnership? Simply by not abandoning the band! The Bluebeaters EXTRA TRAX (Caribb Roots Records/Universal)compilation was released for Record Store Day 2024. I took the band’s photo on the back cover. ENJOY!
A new frame for a new tour (Non sento più Tour hosted by Kashmir Music) with… the amazing The Bluebeaters… The photo session (see below) dates back to June 1, 2023, during the show date of Trinity Tour.
Happy to be part of the fellowship… My b&w frame for The Bluebeaters music-cassette Live in Köln 2017 (by Dirt Tapes) inside sleeve.
Thanks to my friend rapper/actor/filmmaker Taiyo “HYST” Yamanouchi I had the chance to participate in a singer’s image change.
For his new album campaign, IndieJesto, Jesto, Hyst’s brother, not only chose to reappear on social networks with a completely different look, but he even changed musical genre shifting from rap to pop rock.
On a rainy November evening, I joined the crew led by HYST for the filming of a videoclip.
A quick briefing: they needed backstage shots in black and white and some “street” portraits, again in a high-contrast black and white; in short, they looked at creating a typical vintage atmosphere from other times.
The sets: a second-hand clothing store; a record store; the Navigli canal-sides; and a pub.
The characters: Jesto & friends, an acoustic guitar and pints of beers.
The film and photo crew: Me & HYST
Jesto’s natural attitude in his new skin made my work absolutely easy: I photographed the skin-changing live with my old FujiFilm X30 and I did it before the fans could realize what it would soon be.
Jorge Agustín Nicolás Ruiz de Santayana y Borrás wrote: <A man’s feet must be planted in his country, but his eyes should survey the world.> This quote came to my mind as soon as I met Vancouverite songwriter Bocephus King at Ponkj bar in Milan.
That’s the reason I decided to take a bunch of shots before the live show began: I was curious to see what his eyes could tell me and how they kept surveying the world.
A few shots were enough to obtain amazing postcards from Bocephus King’s world.
Then there was a friendly chat – I’m a Vancouver lover.
The concert has begun and Bocephus King’s eyes have continuously surveyed and narrated the world. His feet were at the same time in Canada and in Milan when he started to sing Bonnie Dobson’s Morning Dew…
Surviving time is not an easy task. Tom Barman – a voice somewhere between Bob Dylan and Eddie Vedder – succeeded with the dEUS and then with TaxiWars. During their latest show in Milan, Mr. Barman and TaxiWars pushed post-rock into the arms of free jazz, bewitching the audience. On stage, the songs from the new album, Artificial Horizon, opened the window and cleared the air of rock music. The band did not give up to a desire to feed their fans; TaxiWars played loud to convince those who still weren’t convinced of their music. In a rainy Milanese night the magic came true. Everybody survived the Nineties.
What happens when Buddy Guy meets the Grateful Dead? The question may need to be corrected. Need to ask when does Buddy Guy’s blues meet the Grateful Dead’s psychedelic jam? The magic happened in Milan during the North Mississippi Allstars concert at Spazio Teatro 89. The band led by the Dickinson brothers – in the power trio version – performed a 2 hours and 15 minutes live show rejecting any “music label.” North Mississippi Allstars’ philosophy? Jamming, jamming and jamming. Following the mood of the evening, I started a photographic session interrupting myself often, to try to get even more in tune with the band’s vibes. Shot by shot I explored with my FujiFilm X30 the visual nuances of blues and rock. There is nothing better than frames supported by music, you know! Jamming, jamming and (photo) jamming!
Yesterday on air with musician and DJ Giuseppe Fiori, DJ Paola Colombo, friend bluesman Joe Valeriano and author Aldo Pedron at Let’s Spend The Night Together, Radio Popolare FM 107.6. We talked about Joe’s exciting musical career and his artistic partnerships. BLUES ROCK POWER! (Fuji X100 + Huawei Y7 2019)
Are you in Milan with your band for a live show/showcase or a recording session?
I am a photographer/essayist/music journalist, member of f/50 The International Photography Collective.
I’ve been in the music business for more than twenty years. Now, I am a columnist for Swiss Pnp Magazine and for Indiana Music Magazine and a contributing author/photographer for Fuji X Passion and Olympus Passion magazines.
In my ROCK MUSIC ARCHIVES you can find people like Iggy Pop, Chris Cornell & Soundgarden, Wayne Kramer & MC5, Soft Machine and indie/underground musicians too.
If you are tired of the usual boring photo sessions, please contact me. In addition to the live performance I can also photograph all the soundcheck & backstage situations. (Photo: Me and Zara McFarlane at Blue Note, Milan, 2018 – by Federico Ramponi)
CONTACT: ceschimatteo@gmail.com
<Kick Out the Jams… Motherfuckers!> On November 21 at night a sonic revolution was played on stage! People were ready to join Brother Wayne Kramer & Friends (Kim Thayil of Soundgarden; Marcus Durant of Zen Guerrilla; Brendan Canty of Fugazi; and Billy Gould of Faith No More). Militant riffs spawned from Kramer’s and Thayil’s guitars and exploded among the audience; in the background the rhythm section moved forward as a mighty tank on the battlefield; a voice cut the air screaming iconic songs. <Kick Out the Jams… Motherfuckers!> An army of eyes and ears recorded voraciously a piece of future . <Art and creativity will provoke Resistance!>, Brother Wayne said… [All shots taken with FujiFilm X30 during November 21 MC5‘s live performance at Alcatraz, Milan. Thanks to Margaret & Danny.]
TELLING WITH MY EYES 