Author: johnny

One year ago today I posted some photos of Sodafrog, The Painted Lights and The Russians to this site. After over a decade of photographing bands around town, I finally got off of my ass and decided to do something with all of the pictures I take. Daykamp Music was born. I’d like to take a moment to thank everyone who has supported the site in its infancy. So… thanks.

Now onto some useless babbling about the site’s first year. It’s a love letter of sorts…

Over the past year I’ve managed to catch sets from a lot of my favorite bands. Reverse continues to be a beast of a band. The Dirty Truckers, *AM Stereo, Full Body Anchor and Watts always seem to rock whatever joint they’re playing. The Rationales, The Modifiers, Brendan Boogie, Jonny Pape, The Future Everybody, Devil On Horseback and Miskatonic all feature friends I’ve seen many times in the dark of the clubs. These are just some of the folks who have kept me going out to shows over the years. Good times.

I was also fortunate enough to get turned on to a whole bunch of bands I had never seen before. Parlour Bells, The Fagettes, Eddie Japan, Streight Angular, Thick Shakes, The Sinbusters and Gene Dante all rocked my world. And that’s just the tip of the iceberg. Seriously, we have an insane number of high quality bands in this town. Black Thai, Brownboot, Cask Mouse, Motherboar… geezums. I could go on, but I’ve got some other stuff I want to write about. Like, hmmm… let’s go with The Rock N’ Roll Rumble next…

The 2011 Rumble was one of the best I can remember. John Powhida International Airport took the tiara. Mellow Bravo, Old Jack, Spirit Kid, Do Not Forsake Me Oh My Darling and The Autumn Hollow Band were all fantastic. Heck, every band I caught in last year’s Rumble was pretty great. The Rumble has always been and will always be the best way to check out a slew of bands at the top of their game in one fell swoop (the 2012 Rumble starts Sunday night – get thee to TT’s!). In fact, the Rumble is where my obsession with Sidewalk Driver began.

Oh, Sidewalk Driver. You caught me off guard. Some of my friends had been raving about you. I was excited to catch your Rumble set, but nothing could have prepared me for what I saw. The glitter! The glam! The songs about dancing, disasters and indecision! You are real. My mind was blown. You got me my first official photo pass, and I will forever be grateful for that. It was for your show at House Of Blues, opening for The B-52s. You blew them off of the stage. While we’re on the subject of The B-52s…

You guys out there in Boston rock land love your cover sets. The Bikini Whale show for Halloween at Radio was better than the real thing. The photos I posted from that set currently reign supreme as the most viewed on this site. Aquanutz covered W.A.S.P. and made me a very happy man. Nicole Tammaro put together a Joan Jett tribute night at The Rosebud that was more fun than is legal in 39 states. The MixTape series is a cover set heaven. And then there was Uke Springsteen, who is so amazing I can’t even put it into words. Luckily I have video…

Daykamp Music wasn’t the only new face to show up to the party in the last year. Radio (and Moe’s Lounge in their basement) has been a fun place to see a band since the day it opened last October. Rule, who made their debut at Radio, have become a force to be reckoned with in just two shows. One Night Band 3 saw 8 new bands form and break up in the same day (I got to shoot a few of their promo photos, which was a real thrill for me). Will there be reunions in their futures? Who knows? Oh! Reunions! The Dents had one at TT’s, the same place where Ad Frank And The Fast Easy Women went out in grand style. Speaking of which, I’ve gone on too long. Sorry about that. It’s been fun. Lots of fun. Thanks for putting up with me. Thanks for tuning in. You guys are the best.