Photographer: Sergio Amalfitano
Site: www.mxlphoto.com
Based in: Southern California
ONE
CEREMONY – CHAIN REACTION – ANAHEIM, CA
This is a photo of the first time that I saw Ceremony. I was never a big fan of their recordings and kind of resented people labeling them power violence. They were just hardcore punk to me so I never understood the hype I suppose. But I saw them for two reasons on that day. 1) My friends band Slip It In was playing and I wanted to support. 2) I read an interview with Ross. I gave it a chance. I listened not only to what the music had to say but to what the people behind it had to say. It’s hard expressing your anger and frustration at the world in a minute’s worth of screaming. So when I read the interview it struck a chord with me. They were my age, they felt what I felt and more so they expressed it in a way that I hadn’t really heard before. When I saw them it made sense. The hype. The praise. In this photo all you see is Ross, balled up in the center of the stage at Chain Reaction, lost in his own world. He’s surrounded by pounding hands that are searching for some sort of release or support from the swelling crowd behind them. Blurry faces grasping for air. This picture reminds me were all desperate and pissed and the world made us this way.
TWO
OSCAR – DESPISE YOU’S FIRST SHOW – LOS ANGELES, CA
Here’s a photo of my friend Oscar. I could have chosen any number of photos to represent Despise You’s first show but I chose this one. There was a million people there. No ventilation or room to move. I took this on top of a half pipe. Despise You played in the middle of the sea of people completely surrounded by fans. Off to the center of the entire debacle was Oscar, in the corner of my eye, climbing upwards. He managed to get on top of where they usually have a projector. For a split second the entire crowds attention was on him. You can see people waiting in anticipation for the gnarliest jump of the night. Hands are beckoning him to jump towards them. If I recall correctly he broke the ledge he was standing on and had to quickly grab one of the ropes and fall on the crowd. But it remains one of the most daring and awesome things I’ve seen at a show. Unfortunately the venue is no longer with us. RIP 6th St Warehouse.
THREE
VACCINE – THE BLVD – LOS ANGELES, CA
I like this photo aesthetically more than anything. Not a major story attached to it but I like everything that it represents to me and my love of photography particularly as it pertains to punk and hardcore documentation. I love the double exposure. It makes me see photography, even punk photography, for more than just a way to chronicle what goes on around me, but also a way to make art out of it. The fact that its a killer band by the name of VACCINE is rad. They’re an amazing straightedge power violence super group I got to play with at this show. I don’t think those two things (ie edge, power violence) mix very often, so I was stoked.
FOUR
MINORITY UNIT, CHAIN REACTION, ANAHEIM, CA
Minority Unit is a band that represents not only the Los Angeles straightedge community but also the Mexican community. In fact if you’re not straightedge or Mexican you can’t be in the band! There’s 11 members actually in it when you see them live. Members of Rotting Out, Sleepwalkers, Soul Search and more. A lot of these guys are my friends and I really dig the concept. Despite people calling it a gimmick band they are actually one of the best bands to have come out with a demo this year. I love this photo. Its so simple and straight forward. It says…here we are, we’re brown and proud, we’re clean and sober, we defy the stereotypes. They actually used this photo for their demo tapes, upcoming demo 7″ and a shirt! So I’m particularly proud of this shot of them.
FIVE
TOUCHE AMORE – ALADDIN JR – POMONA, CA
This is a photo of Touche Amore at Aladdin Jr in Pomona. This photo brings a lot of different feelings to mind. I like aesthetically how it came out. The emphasis on the crowd screaming along to the song. How they take up most of the picture with emotions sprayed across their faces. I like that this was a show put on by some close friends of mine at SOS Booking. They are some of the people who are keeping DIY all ages shows alive in Southern California and I believe that they deserve a whole lot more credit than is given to them by show goers. I also like that this was a benefit show for my friend Mitch Dubey’s family. Mitch passed away this year at age 23. He was shot twice in the chest in what is believed to be a gang related incident. He was a genuine, dorky, fun loving kid that I had known for a while when we used to book shows before he moved to Hartford, Connecticut. I miss him. All the bands that played that night knew him. A lot of the crowd were friends of his.
SIX
VEGAN BABY – THE CO OP – CLAREMONT, CA
A lot of people take for granted that extreme music doesn’t have to be a phase. They think that punk / hardcore/ metal, etc are all things you toss aside when you become an adult and go out into the “real world”. A lot of people, especially in the straightedge and vegan communities within hardcore, take it all in for a relatively short period of time and then give up on their ideals to pursue family life or what have you. I don’t mind that at all. But It makes me 100 times happier to see punk parents at shows. This is an awesome example. This is one of the members of vegan straightedge band Abandon. Here he has his child with an awesome xveganx shirt (not to mention his badass Assuck shirt). I’m vegan and straightedge and having twins! So this has made its way into one of my favorite photos because it represents what I want from my life. I want to live with my ideals and share them with my children. I want to be able to expose them to all styles of music and expression. You have to admit that it’s really cute too.
SEVEN
ANAL CUNT – METAPHOR CAFE – ESCONDIDO, CA
Seth Putnam just died. He was only 43 years old and he passed away from a heart attack. By no means is he an idol of mine or a hero. More than anything he was something fascinating. His band was tongue in cheek. Our generation’s GG Allin I guess. I like grind and power violence and for some reason enjoyed his band (though not very much). So when we were asked to play with Anal Cunt with my band ACxDC I couldn’t help but say yes. This photo is probably one of the last photos of Seth. He could barely stand while performing. His microphone broke so he was just using his hand to project his voice to the crowd. This kind of represents him in a way I suppose, falling apart yet admired and praised. RIP.
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