Vista Kicks - On Playing, Touring, and...Eating?

                It was a slightly grey Sunday afternoon when I pulled up to Harlow’s Restaurant and Nightclub and nearly ran over David Albertson, bass guitar in hand. Exaggerated hand gestures aside, I parked right next to him much to our enjoyment. He is part of local stalwart, Humble Wolf, and they are set to open the night at Harlow’s, for what promises to be an exciting show.

                While I am excited to HumbleWolf hit the stage again, I am also here to catch up with the 4 guys who make up the headlining act, Vista Kicks. Currently residing in Los Angeles, these 4 Sacramento natives have returned for the start of an intense 1-month, cross-country tour in support of their latest album, TwentySomething Nightmare. Being their 3^rd release, hot on the heels of their first EP, Chasing Waves, and their debut album, Booty Shakers Ball, they explore all sorts of avenues with their music and life on the road. Sacramento is special in this tour, though. They are doing 2 dates here, and nowhere else. Luckily, I am here for the 2^nd show of the weekend today.

Twenty Something Nightmare.

Really, they are nice guys, I swear.

                Made up of Derek Thomas on vocals/piano/occasional guitar, Sam Plecker on guitar, Trevor Sutton on bass, and Nolan LeVine on drums, the band is all up onstage, setting up their equipment and chit chatting their way through soundcheck.

                It’s strange when you’re in Harlow’s before anyone else, as arrogant as that may have come off. The stage is bathed in warm, red light, populated by shiny gear and shiny people, while said people perform their additional rituals during soundcheck. Everything else around it is shrouded in darkness, like the venue itself is biding its time for what may or may not happen later that night. The band looks very at home, nestled under the lights as they work their way through a few of their songs, providing a blistering sneak peek of the upcoming show tonight.

                If you are unfamiliar with the Vista Kicks sound, one would venture to describe it as if The Arctic Monkeys, Neil Young, Led Zeppelin, and Queen all got thrown in a blender that was on fire. It has a classic rock vibe, with a punch that is wholly their own, and modern-day twist that resonates extremely well.

                It does these ears a lot of good. Like kicking cobwebs out of the back corner of the library.

                And that was just the sound check.

                Eager to get their take on their new album, along with what touring is like for them, I start to ask some questions of each band member as the day winds on. Eventually, Humble Wolf hops up for their sound check, as well as 2^nd act of the night, Lauren Ruth Ward.

                Sam describes Ward’s music as a mix between Janis Joplin and Jim Morrison, which makes this particular attendee very excited to hear. This, in addition to Humble Wolf’s fine-tuned, rocking mystique, was shaping up to be a very eclectic, energetic night.

                The first thing I asked them about Twenty Something Nightmare, and what that recording process was like. Sam enlightens me by saying,

                “The most fun part was the time had to do it…a lot of Twenty Something Nightmare, the songs were ideas that weren’t ready at the time [of recording Booty Shakers Ball], and stuff we wrote on the road, and in between the record…We had these two tours, one at the end of 2017, then were going off again in Feb. of 2018, so we had January (laughs).”

                You heard that right. One month for the entire 18-track album. Derek punctuates this fact by adding,

                “…so 18 songs makes for a little more than a day per song. And we were doing more than just 1 song a day sometimes.”

                Sam offers a modest explanation, by saying,

                “We had all these ideas, and they are pretty fresh, and people tend to always think that it’s, like, a flex, with the amount of songs we release, and the albums…we are only trying to produce and make music in the least contrived way. We don’t put a lot of pressure on ourselves from anybody other than us. We like to give ourselves a challenge, a little bit of a push, so we were going to do it in a month.”

                Challenging is a polite way to put it, that’s for sure. But, when you listen to Twenty Something Nightmare, you get a sense from songs like “Live, You’re Gonna Die", “Million Dollar Seller”, and “Wrong Side of the Tracks", that they went in with a lot of new influences on their music. Compared to Booty Shakers Ball, it comes across a very profound change from album to album. Each of them had an interesting perspective on that recording/discovery process.

                Derek says,

                “Early on we wanted to have a sound, you know, craft the sound, and we quickly found that was burning us out, artistically, because we were trying to fit a set of parameters we had made for ourselves.”

                Sam also adds,

                “I think a lot of bands, ourselves included when we first started, we put rules on ourselves…We just like to grow, then trim it all at the end…The greats like Led Zeppelin and The Beatles, you flip on one of their records, and you’ll have the hard rock song, and the next one is the Indian song, you know?...I think we’re just more experimental and we are okay with being idealistic, and know it may not be popular, but…if it’s a good song, it won’t need any more justification.”

                Trevor had a pretty optimistic outlook on that recording process, by adding,

                “I feel like with the new record, what made it really exciting was that recording process, as far as getting our sounds and our tones dialed in. I feel like in this record we really started to find and develop our own sound. There is a very signature thing, I don’t know, when I hear the new record, I hear us, you know?...I feel like we really developed our brand, our sound as Vista Kicks.”

                Nolan also went on to add,

                “Living it as it was happening, it was so interesting…We made the sound track to our year before it even happened, and it was so interesting to watch it play out…It was just a bur, this burst of wild energy, and I didn’t even really know what was happening. We were just doing it, and doing it.”

                Diving in a little further, I was curious what influences would bring out such a dynamic shift from the band as a whole. On the subject of said influences, Sam smirks and says,

                “We all kind of like country, and Derek and I are closet country fans (laughs). I’m talking good stuff, like Hank [Williams] and Merle Haggard, you know. We would always joke around with country stuff, but we decided to dip our toes into the country stuff…And embracing a lot of Southern Rock influences, like Allman Brothers, and even Skynyrd, I guess…”

                I have to admit, that made me laugh. Nolan underscores this, by mentioning,

                “Our influences were definitely different from when we were doing Booty Shakers Ball, it just kind of seeps in, you don’t really think about it, you know?...Sometimes you make a conscious decision, like, that would be kind of funny if we did this, or we did that…just as a nod to our influences so people can almost see who we’re listening to at the time.”

                He also continues with an interesting side note,

                “I’ve been listening to a lot of Neil Young, and a lot of Bob Dylan, and there’s this drummer, his name is Kenny Buttrey, and he was 14 when he played on Blonde On Blonde [by Bob Dylan] …and then he played on Harvest [by Neil Young] when he was 21 or 22 or something, and those albums I’ve had on repeat. I really got to tap into that playing, which I’ve been drooling over lately.”

              

Vista Kicks (left to right): Derek Thomas, Trevor Sutton, Nolan LeVine, Sam Plecker.

Not Pictured: One Well-Used Van

                Shifting gears from the album, I ask about what touring is like for these guys. Over the last couple of years, since they relocated to the L.A. area, they have become total road warriors. Having criss-crossed the country, they all have very interesting takes on touring.

                Derek enlightens me with,

                “I really like going to a lot of barbecue joints in the Midwest and the South. It’s my favorite, and I love seeing all the different cities, and talking to people, and hearing the different accents, and dialects from different places…I’m kind of like Guy Fieri, you know? (laughs) I like going to the different dives, it’s really nice.”

                Sam too, agrees with gastronomic side of things. He says,

                “That’s the perk of touring, because there is not a lot of time. People are like, ‘Oh my god that’s great you get to see all these places.’ And It’s, like, ‘Hardly’…You soundcheck, then you have an hour or two, or three maybe, so you take a shower, get something to eat…So you might as well enjoy it. And when we have a day off, that’s the perfect time to explore, and stuff like that.”

                He also adds, a little more optimistically,

                “We’re doing Kansas City and St. Louis [on this tour]…in big beef states. The cities with the big, burnt end steaks…it’s so fucking good. Then we are going to Atlanta, GA, where there is probably my favorite place in the whole U.S, which is Fox Brothers Barbecue.”

                Now that my stomach was growling, Trevor tells me,

                “For me, oh man, I’m just excited to travel again. I think it’s going to be fun returning to the cities, and just eating a lot of food, since we all like to eat…I love being on the road, and it’s been a while, so I’m looking forward to just going different places, meeting different people. Seeing the old fans, meeting the new ones…I love it.”

                Nolan also adds,

                “We’ve had time since the finishing of the last record, to really step back and look at what we are doing…It’s been nice, we’ve got to play a few shows this summer, and in the fall…This time I’m really excited to get out on the road. I used to get all stressed out about everything, because I wanted everything to be perfect…and I was so tangled up in my mind over that. I’d get off stage and every little thing would stress me out. Now, I just don’t give a fuck and I just got over it, somehow between our last tour and this tour, and it’s a lot more fun for me now, because I’m just not stressing so much. Whatever happens, happens, and it makes it a better show honestly.”

                Gastronomic exploration? Optimism and personal growth?

                What a way to hit the ground running, especially on a tour that’s this condensed.

                The grey day gives way to night, and people are trickling in, here and there, with the promise of a packed house for the night. I got the chance to ask them point blank about their hometown, and what makes it so special to them, having returned for two shows in a row.

                Derek gives me his low down,

                “Family, friends, and everything that we come from is here…All 4 of us grew up and went to the same schools, same everything. It’s hard to not come back here. We have to try to not come back here.”

                Sam gives some interesting perspective,

                “Every time I come back, I feel like a salmon going upstream, I’m super happy…every time I’m here I just feel at home and nostalgic, and I see all my friends, and all my roots, and I feel fulfilled.”

                Trevor also adds, giving a little backstory with it,

                ”This time back has been good, I really enjoy coming back to Roseville, and Sacramento, now, where before I was just like…I’m done with this…I moved to LA and saw the many different things you could do and get involved in, and people are just more open minded in Los Angeles…everyone is doing their own thing, and I really dug that. Coming back to Sac, though, I realized the many nice things it has to offer. It's mellow, it’s nice, and the air’s clean (laughs).”

                It makes me very glad that Trevor missed last week's air. It may have ruined everything!

                Nolan also has a similar perspective on returning,

                “It’s home, man. It’s home. When I first moved out, it was the classic, ‘Aw man, fuck this place!’…I want to get as far away as I can. But then you get over that, and you come home and its really nice, I love it…It’s always really cool because everyone is so overwhelmingly supportive.”

                At long last, the house music dims, and it is time for the festivities to begin.

                Before Humble Wolf takes the stage to open the show, Derek and Sam join Jayson on stage for a special acoustic rendition of “Make it Through the Night”, a single from Humble Wolf’s first, self-titled record. It really cements the close relationship between these two bands, and reminds me that there are years of music contribution between those three. It makes nights like tonight that much more special, because you realize that no matter how far away these guys travel, Vista Kicks will always be from here, and proud of it. They will be connected to bands like Humble Wolf, through the virtue of friendship and kindred musical passion, the like of which transcend the miles between them.

                Sam and Derek are replaced by the rest of Humble Wolf, who kick right into their head banging set and get this crowd warmed up. The entire dance floor, as well as the bar, is full of interested show-goers as Humble Wolf’s set winds down, and Lauren Ruth Ward takes the stage with her band, the bass player of which is Trevor. Taken aback, I found out that he learned their set that day to help out.

                I never would have guessed. The whole set was cohesive, and Ward did a stellar rendition of “White Rabbit”, by Jefferson Airplane. I could see where Sam got his comparison form earlier, because her voice had a power to it that was raw and unyielding in its own way.

                Once Ward was done, it was Vista Kicks' turn to hit that stage. The crowd was revved up as they launched into some of their new material, along with a few songs from their previous albums that got the crowd hopping and singing along. Soon enough, their set came to its end, with their song “Twenty Something Nightmare”. Being the longest song on the album, I found it fitting that this would be the set-ender.

                What I got gave me pause. Every member threw everything they got into this song. Trevor’s bass was punching me in the face, as Sam sweetly abused his guitar. Sweat was pouring from Nolan as he beat the living crap out of his kit. Derek took full command of that mic and gave his voice away to us, hair sticking to his face as he let it loose. The song thundered to a close, and the crowd made sure to let them know how much they cared.

                I couldn’t help but think, ‘Are they going to do that at every show?’

                I thought a bit more.

                Of course, they would.

                They are Vista Kicks, and as excited as they are for their tour and new album, they made one thing very clear. They have a score to settle. Nothing is being held back, and they are dead set on making it clear that everyone knows that. Check out Twenty Something Nightmare, and get onboard.

Risa Knight - Photography for a Growing Industry

     I'm making my way down one of Sacramento's sleepier suburbs, on my way to meet up with Risa Knight, a local photographer whose repertoire has been ever-expanding. She has taken photos for First Festival, Sacramento State, and a whole laundry list of personal shoots. Lately, though, her photo work has begun to take a new shape. Recently, she has been working for a marketing firm called Capitol Compliance Management, which specializes in marketing for cannabis professionals. 
     I am sitting down with her today to not only talk about photography, but to also learn a little bit more about what it's like being a photographer in such a new industry. 
     I will freely admit that I didn't even know companies like this existed, until I saw Risa's latest pictures. Complete with models using vape pens, packaged papers, and even whole cones of marijuana. It was certainly eye-opening and I knew I had to sit and chat with her about this intriguing career path. 
     I sit down with Risa in her dining room, surrounded by books, art, and fabulous framed photos. It's a very comfortable get away from the oppressive heat outside. Thankful for the invention of A/C, we start to catch up on her photography past. She fills me in by starting, 
     "I have always had a camera in-hand for as long as I can remember. The first camera I owned was one of those i-Zone instant cameras. I still have boxes full of tiny Polaroid pictures from when I was in elementary school. It was always just a small past time for me, and the photos I took, I took for myself."

(Risa Knight, photographer extraordinaire

©Risa Knight, 2018)

     From those auspicious beginnings, Risa's passion blossomed as she grew older, leading to a chance realization in design school that really got thing kick started. She explains,
     "I think it really hit me when I was going through design school, back in 2009-11. We were required to create all original content and, if you wanted a photo in your magazine layout, you had to prove that you took it yourself. I was thrown into a field where I had to figure out that graphic design was not just layouts, vector logos, and websites. I had to hone so many auxiliary skills in order to get a decent grade on my projects."
     She adds, continuing, 
     "There was one project in particular that stands out to me, where our task was to create a magazine layout based on a beat in San Francisco. My group's beat was Chinatown...so because we couldn't use stock images of Chinatown, we had to physically go there to explore, research, and gather assets [photos] for our magazine layout. The only camera I had at the time was a small point and shoot. Those images are still some of my personal favorites to this day."

(Chinatown skyline

© Risa Knight, 2018)

(Chinatown graffiti

© Risa Knight, 2018)

     Her craft was beginning to take shape, but upon getting her first design job, things changed a little bit. She elaborates, 
     "After I graduated college I snagged a job as a graphic designer at Sacramento State's College of Continuing Education. My main work day involved design but I made a friend there who did photography as a hobby. He would go out and take street photography and sell his images as stock. He taught me most of what I know now as far as photography goes...[Learning how to use] lenses, distortion, white balance, aperture, shutter speeds, ISO, basically all the mechanical elements that it takes to shoot in manual mode."
     Sounds like a two-for-one kind of situation right? Well, despite my optimism, some good things do have to come to an end. She explains, 
     "It was a lot of fun, but I was starting to get burnt out on design, so I quit, went back to school, and started my own freelance photography/design business as a means of keeping my sanity. I only did freelance as my main income for about a year, before I realized I needed a more stable source of income."
     She relaxes back in her chair, smiles a bit, and continues, 
     "It was a ton of fun while it lasted, and I did everything from weddings, engagements, food photography, to kid's sports portraits, and small business' photography. Once I realized I needed stability, I worked part-time as a senior portrait photographer for one season. That job was interesting but I gained a lot of experience and know-how as far as studio lighting. After all that learning and growing, I was finally able to snag a job as the main photographer for the marketing firm where I currently work." 
     That's where my interest has piqued. With the legalization of marijuana in California, and my general squareness, there has been a lot of information to sift through in this emerging industry. Risa's casual explanation sounds like she gets this kind of confusion often. She elaborates, 
     "Currently, I photograph marijuana for a living. I work at a cannabis marketing firm, here in Sacramento, called Capitol Compliance Management. I was hesitant to apply for this job, but after I interviewed and got to know my co-workers, I decided that as long as I am surrounded with creative, hard-working, empathetic individuals, then I will be able to sleep at night knowing that I get to go to work with them the next morning [laughs]."

(A few studio grade samples

© Risa Knight, 2018

     I can't help but laugh, too. I think every working person can empathize with that statement. She goes on to add, 
     "We market for, and operate, several dispensaries in the Sacramento region. My day involves shooting and editing our product and lifestyle photos for our various brands and dispensaries. The pictures I take can be found all over Weedmaps, various marijuana brand's websites, dispensary websites, social media, SN&R inserts, newsletters, all that good stuff! And when I'm not shooting or editing I am designing, too. So, I still get to use my degree, but I am able to balance out my creative energy better than ever before. I absolutely love my job."
     She also goes on to add, just in case any of you were thinking it, 
     "And, no... we don't consume weed at work."
     We both got a hearty laugh out of that one, that for sure. 
     In addition to her love of this work, the company also really drives home how specialist photos can help in cannabis marketing, as shown here. It's good to see how a photographer with Risa's particular skill set can have such solid backing from a growing industrial player. 

(Additional product photos, also marketed by CCMUP

© Risa Knight, 2018)

     That only serves to make her and her co-workers more excited. She fills me in, 
     "We have some pretty grandiose plans for our dispensaries, and for our firm within the next year. Our Marketing Director always urges us to 'crush it' no matter how small our task is, and that is exactly what we aim to do every single day." 
     With any emerging market though, there are definite challenges to face, and Risa agrees with that sentiment. She explains, 
     "The challenges that we are constantly trying to navigate is educating our clients on legalities, protocols, and getting used to paying for invaluable marketing services. A lot of the clients that we work with have been around since before cannabis was 'legal', and they are not used to having the tools that we offer. They are used to black-market [sales], so it's a little hard getting them out of the 'we don't need a website' mentality. But, I think that as time marches forward that the mentality of our clients will shift into something different, new, completely unexpected, and super exciting for everyone."
     For a split second, I sympathize with the old school mentality. This is a whole new way of looking at a product that, for as long as I have been alive, has always been illegal, albeit decriminalized by medical marijuana laws. It's also quite admirable to know that there are plenty of people out there just like Risa, eager to open people's eyes to the new way of interacting with this newly legal product. 
     And to think, this all stems from an iZone camera, not so long ago. It has definitely served to open my eyes to a different side of something I thought I had figured out. Inspired by Risa's very creative journey, I wonder what she would say to photographers looking to get started. She give me the answer, with, 
     "The further outside of your comfort zone you go, the more unique experiences you will have. It'll show through your work. Never stop learning, dreaming, and experimenting."
      That's exactly what Risa's work can show us. Not just in creative output, but the creative journey as well. You never know where you'll end up, and you never know what you'll learn in the process.

Be sure to check out some of Risa's pictures and design samples on her Instagram, Facebook, and website. As well, be sure to follow Capitol Compliance Management for the latest news and updates in this exciting industry.

Cam Evans - Live Music Photo-Wizard

     It's a warm Monday evening as I make my way down Stockton Blvd, out in Sacramento. My ultimate destination is Cafe Colonial, where I am meeting up with local live music photographer Cam Evans. Or, as his website calls him, Cam! (The Photographer).
     Tonight, I am meeting up with Cam in his natural environment to talk about his experience as a live music photographer. In addition to following his website, I have also run into Cam taking pictures at Cafe Colonial, it's neighbor The Colony, and First Festival. Every time I saw him, he was always right against the stage, crowd roiling behind him. I've seen him wade into the thick of it camera held high, shooting away as the craziness unfolded around him. 

(The man himself, Cam Evans

©Cam Evans, 2018)

     This night is a little bit different, though. We meet up in the bar of Cafe Colonial, and I am greeted with a hearty smile and a handshake. Bag slung over his shoulder, we get to chatting about tonight's show, which was featuring Glass Sounds, Art Lessing and the Flower Vato, and Period Bomb. It was sure to make an interesting bill on a Monday night, and Cam seemed excited to get to shooting.
     Eventually, our conversation changes gears a little bit as I delve into how Cam got into photography in the first place. He gives a nostalgic smile, and tells me, 
     "It started off in Las Vegas in about 2008 or 2009, and one of my step-moms noticed I was just fiddling around with the point and shoot camera we had... [Cam] was just trying to get some good angles and whatnot. She looked at me, like, ‘You know, you should be a photographer, you should look into that’. That was around junior year of high school for me…But it took me until my senior year to get fully started."
     Almost from the get-go, Cam went into live music photography as his focus, but with all great things, there was a little bit of a hiccup. He explains, 
     “Funnily enough, when I got my first DSLR camera, I got to photograph a show that was near me…it was at this, like, cyber café [laughs], which is where I photographed my first official show…I think I photographed two shows there, and then kind of stopped…I started getting back into it around last year."
     This gap in time proved fruitful for his photographic development. He fills me in how, 
     "Between that time, too, I was still trying to find my niche in photography. I looked into portraits, photographing food…" 
     He also adds, offhandedly, that he got work doing photos for a church directory, but all that elicited was an aggravated sigh, a head shake, and a hearty laugh. I couldn't help but laugh, too. It was so earnest, and familiar, that I couldn't help but sympathize. 
     Previous employment irritation aside, Cam has taken his talents all around Sacramento and the Bay Area, and people are definitely noticing. His pictures have wound up in Sacramento News and Review, SubMerge Magazine, Tube Magazine, and Berkeley-based New Noise Magazine. Just to name a few. Going all over, in all sorts of crazy crowds, I immediately wonder how he does it with all that gear? I mean, how has somebody not kicked a camera out of his hands by now? He explains, with his trademark laugh and humble shrug,
     "I’m pretty headstrong about some things [laughs], especially in the pit with all this craziness going on [in the crowd]…I think most of it has to do with travelling light as well. Most of the time when I go to shows, I see people [photographers] with backpacks of gear, and large lenses. So, I try to just…keep it simple. Just a camera, a couple lenses, with one on the body and one extra, and a couple of batteries in there. That’s about it, because honestly, I just don’t want any of my equipment damaged or anything."

(The Pathogens, live at 924 Gilman St., Berkeley

©Cam Evans, 2018)

     Keeping to his standards, he came equipped with a medium sized messenger bag, with all the basics nestled in it. It's quite impressive how the simple set up he brings with him can get such high quality images, especially in such low-light, high intensity situations. When I ask him how he can get such detail, he explains, 
     "I think for me it's just being prepared, because you got to deal with a lot of hit going on all at once...I just try to keep my aperture low, and my shutter speed around 1/60 to 1/125 of a second."
     This, coupled with the proper Lightroom and Photoshop work, leads to some stunning, high intensity shots that capture the tone of each live performance he shoots. With all the running around he does, I was curious about some interesting stories, from a live photo perspective. He lists off Las Pulgas, local Sacramento Punk Rock outfit, and speed metal/punk legends, Municipal Waste. That second band threw me for a loop, to be honest. Cam explains, 
      "I saw them at a biker bar...There was this little space, past the stage edge, and I managed to stay there for their entire set [laughs]…[The crowd] was totally crazy… I got some good shots from there, too! [laughs]."

(The night in question: Municipal Waste, live in Sacramento.

©Cam Evans, 2018)

     Our conversation lingers on the ridiculous for a little bit, before I ask about his own advice for the upcoming photographers out there. He has an interesting insight, saying, 
     "Be versatile, have some variety. Not with just the whole photography thing, but with music as well. Don’t go out and, you know, photograph punk show, after punk show, after punk show, mix it up a little bit! Go check out a jazz show, go check out a hip hop show, an indie rock show, etc…"
     Ultimately, that attitude is reflected across most of his portfolio. It is filled with rock shows, punk shows, hip hop shows, burlesque nights, and all sorts of stuff like that. We both head back into Cafe Colonial, where I get another beer as he tweaks his camera's settings before we make our way towards the stage. From the back of the crowd, my vision went back and forth between theCam and the band. He was all over the place in front of that stage. Crouching, reaching, and bending, he was a man on a mission. Through all three bands that night, he repeated this process, all with a smile on his face and a winning attitude. Eventually he sat down at a table and pulled out his laptop, revealing a whole kaleidoscope of images he was working on. 
     No rest for the weary, that's for sure. With another friendly handshake, I head on out into the cool night, excited to see what shots he wound up from this particular night. Be sure to follow him on Facebook, Instagram, and his Website, for regular photo uploads and updates.
      

Elle Jaye - Photos, Drums, and Sunshine.

     It’s another beautiful Saturday morning when I find myself wandering down Sutter Street in Old Town Folsom. On this particular day, I am meeting with esteemed local photographer, Lauren Jenkins, also known as Elle Jaye. She is well known locally for her stunningly sharp wedding and personal portraits, as well as her unique spin on band photos. More broadly, she is well known as one of the foremost authorities on drum photos, which has gotten her work in magazines like Modern Drummer, among many other dynamite productions.

     As she arrives to her shared space studio, she greets me with her trademark bubbly smile and sunny disposition. Catching up as we enter the building, we climb the stairs to the main studio space, and I am taken aback for a second.

     There is a room directly in front of me, where a couch sits across from two chairs in the opposite corners. A small chest of drawers is between the chairs, and there is a coffee table in front of the couch. The drawers are covered in a shag carpet of some kind, and the walls are white and warm. My first instinct was that I really wanted to take a nap here. I loved it.

     Once that first thought came and went, I looked into the next room, decked out in hardwood floors. It was easily three times as long, and twice as wide, complete with its own compliment of furniture, too. The thin white curtain in the window wafted slightly in the breeze, and the room was bathed in natural light in a way that I had never really thought I could see in a building this old.
     Maybe being on the second story, helped? I digress.

     After the brief, but illuminating tour, we took our seats in the first room and delved into how photography has been for Lauren.

     Lauren tells me that she has been doing photography as a full time job for about 12 years, which  stems back to the early days of the local music scene for people of our generation. She started out taking nightlife photos at places like The Underground, Club Retro, and The Boardwalk, all of which are institutions of nostalgia in the Sacramento area. She explains that experience as,

     “It was always just nerdy-ass screamo, emo bands, and stuff [laughs]…everybody was under the age of 20, and we all had swoopy hair, heavy eyeliner, and skinny jeans, so yeah (laughs). But when I got married, I moved up to a rural area, and there are no venues like that…so from there I established the portrait and wedding thing. I did that for 8 years, and I did well.”

(Lauren Jenkins, © Elle Jaye 

http://www.ellejaye.us/)

     Establishing a solid base as a wedding and portrait photographer was a very formative part of her experience, but things changed, as life tends do to sometimes. After working at this for as long as she did, Lauren got divorced and realized, as she put it,

     “This [wedding photography] is not my heart, and I need to move on.”

     From this formative decision, Lauren soldiered on, as any artist worth their salt would do.

     “I started doing more portraiture, and more band stuff…then I was over at the Powerhouse [Pub] down here [Folsom, CA], doing some shooting they needed for their website. I had my lights and everything out, while they were making crazy drinks, and fire, and stuff. There were a couple of guys who were laughing…so I went over and, turns out, they were laughing at something else, so we got into conversation and turns out they were [Mike Johnston's] Drum Camp people. So, Mike Johnston [who works locally in Folsom], is a drummer here in town…and the guys were just out and about after a day at Drum Camp…so the guys from the bar went back to Mike and were like, ‘Yo, this girl’s a little bit crazy, and her work is great, you should check her out’”

     And from there, a very interesting working relationship formed. Lauren goes on to tell me that Mike walked through Old Folsom, found her studio, and took a picture in front of it. After he sent it to her on Facebook, they met and he hired her for some work. It was here, that she began her shift to drum photography, and in a very interesting way. You see, Mike is an immensely popular drum clinician, and Lauren was shooting all of his drum camps, magazine shoots, and ads. This tapped into something unique, versus taking pictures of live bands. She explains,

     “I think that market was so under-served, as far as media is concerned. So, when I showed up…I do have floaty, flighty mannerisms, and a way about me. So, it was just, for them, new. I gave them an opportunity at the time to look cool, in an industry that wasn’t traditionally cool looking.”

     Not that being a clinic drummer is uncool or anything, it’s just a different group of people her media was reaching. Being confused, I asked her to elaborate. She said,

     “I mean, there were rock star people who were all like, ‘RRAAAH’, and crossing their sticks at the camera, which I hate with a burning passion…So, here’s the thing with clinicians, they have a huge audience. It’s like, people will go to a rock show, and they’ll be, like, ‘Yeah, the drummer’s dope’, but they don’t play drums. They might be like ‘Oh he’s super cool, look at him hit all the things. He hits all the things all at once’…versus the drum nerds, who are paying attention to the clinicians. So, the people who will show up to clinics, paying attention to online lessons, or YouTube-ing, or whatever, that’s hundreds, potentially thousands of people who are then exposed to what I do.”

     I can safely say, I never in my life would have put that together. So, naturally, I asked where this path had taken her, through work and travel and the like. She gave me a pretty impressive list, with places like Germany and London, along with proposals for places like Singapore and Japan. In addition, she has gone up and down both coasts, along with hot-spots in places like Chicago, Nashville, and Texas.
     It’s amazing, really, how lucky this whole circumstance has come across, but our conversation shifts slightly towards talking to people in individual music scenes, as I am sure Lauren has done countless times over her eclectic journey. She offers a good piece of wisdom, in saying,

     “Have something to offer, in exchange. Like, ‘Hey, I’m really good at music marketing, I’m really good at branding, and photography, etc, can I have a few moments of your time, in exchange for X, Y, and Z?’”

     With a repertoire like Lauren’s it’s understandable how this kind of attitude can pay off dividends in the long run.

     Speaking of dividends, I turn our lovely chit chat to the inevitable 4 letter word that can prove to be a stumbling block for some photographers, as well as other artists.

     Gear. 

     And software, but that has more letters.

     Lauren has an undaunted attitude about it thought.

     “If you want to create art, you’ll do it. If you want to be a creator, you’ll do it. For people, who want to take pictures, if they can’t afford Lightroom or Photoshop, there are free options like, Gimp and Pixlr. I mean there’s like a million things that you have on app stores now, that are totally usable.”

     Having used Pixlr myself, I agree with this sentiment, very much. When it comes to hardware (AKA: cameras and lenses), though, Lauren has a very unorthodox answer for me, which is,

     “I honestly can’t say, because I don’t use great gear, because I do stupid shit, like walk in the river with my camera up here [holds her arms over her head] [Laughs]”

     Intrigued, I hustle for clarification of that statement.

     “I did a shoot last year with a drummer, who had just gotten off tour, had one day that we booked to shoot, and then was going back on tour with a different band. We had literally one day, and Modern Drummer wanted to do a 5-page piece on him…so I moved 3 things around. It happened to be the hottest effing day in the history of the universe. It was like 115 degrees, and this building is like a brick oven…I came in, and by 10 a.m. it was miserable and we had to shoot at 4 p.m.…We have to go outside, because we are all going to die. So, we went down to the river and we took his cymbals, and I’m, like, chest deep in water, holding my camera up here trying not to fall over [laughs]. My assistant was on the bank of the river, holding the light up and over, extending it as far as it could go. It was dope, and it turned out well, but I’m not going to take an $8000 camera out and do that kind of stuff.”

     Chuckling heartily, I listen as she explains that she does have a few older, but still solid cameras and lenses, and will bring out the nice stuff when it calls for it. She also has a tendency to work with water, flour, dirt, and other camera-hating elements in her photography, so utilitarian is the best option in those cases.

(Lauren's photo's with the band Lucid, for example, involved water getting chucked around, much to their delight, I'm sure.

© Elle Jaye, www.ellejaye.us)

     In the eternal debate of gear versus skill, though, Lauren did have some interesting insight into a subject I never really paid that much attention to as an outside observer. 

     Light. Plain and simple. She says,

     “If you can learn to read light…Light, ingenuity, and a creative mind. Because even if you have a baseline camera, if you know how to use light, it will look just as good as a really nice camera. But, you have to work inside your parameters and know what your limitations are, and know how you can work around those. It takes a lot of trial and error, and it’s not always a good use of time, but it’s not impossible if you don’t have great gear.”

     I take note of the shining light through the room we are sitting in, along with the big room out in the hall, and how evenly bathed in morning light they are. There isn’t a single light fixture on in the whole place, and they don’t even need them! It clicks in my head, that this place is built as a reflection of its users, and I can’t help but smile. This place was made to take all the pictures, and provides its own specific style of comfort that I still can't place. But it is there.

     Putting aside my personal revelation, I can’t help but ask her if she has any advice for upcoming photographers out there in the world, and she puts it in a very poignant way.

     “Know your time. Know what you’re worth. Burn out is very easy, especially when you’re doing stuff for free. And your setting the expectation from those people, that you will always do things for free…that’s my biggest thing. And just shoot. Just shoot the things and take all the pictures!”

     Practical, truthful, and supportive, all in the same sentence.

     I feel like that is Lauren, and this wonderful conversation has proven that. What further proves it, is when she sits me down for my own personal head-shots. Her cheery tone coaxes out smiles and relaxation from this writer that other photographers have had a hard time getting. Or at least the genuine forms of it. All while dragging couches around, playing with the curtains, and even shooting from the other side of a window. All to get the shots she needed. It was amazing, and I thoroughly enjoyed myself.

     What else can I say, except that we can expect many a great thing to continue to come from this vibrant and hard-working individual. Be sure to follow her on Instagram and Facebook, and check out the rest of her fine work on her website, ellejaye.us

Jayson Angove - Be Who You Needed

     It's a blustery Monday evening when I pull up to Fat Cat Recording Studio. Tucked away like one of Sacramento's many precious jewels, it's entryway sits nondescript, belying the magic that is created beyond it. I yank it open, step into the entryway, and maneuver down the hall that runs parallel to the cavernous live room. There's a whole gaggle of gear, splayed all across it. One very noticeable inclusion of this gear pile is Ryan Hernandez's suitcase kick drum. It's adorned with microphones, juiced up, and ready to go. Only there is no pilot behind the pedal.
     As if he heard my thoughts, Jayson Angove emerges next to me from the main room, light spilling into the darkened hallway. I am greeted with a trademark Jayson hug, which stops just shy of popping my spine. Its gratifying and honest, every time.
     I follow him into the control room, where Sean Stack sits, bathed in blue and purple light from his colossal wall of screens, interfaces, and recording equipment. Seated next to him is the aforementioned multi-instrumentalist Ryan Hernandez, playing around with an acoustic guitar. Saying hello to everyone, I come in and sit back in one of the recliners along the back wall.
     Sean sets back to his screens, tweaking and adjusting levels on each track with the precision and speed of a true expert. Jayson is moving between the control room and the live room, setting up the next parts of recording, while Ryan serenades us with with spacious noodling. I've felt this vibe before, back when Humble Wolf was recording their newest EP, "Black and White".
It's the vibe of manic energy that comes with creating new things. New and exciting things. New, exciting, and freshly explored ideas.
     On this particular day, April 30th, they are laying down the last bits of percussion, as well as violin, as played by Ryan. The day before, they laid down drum tracks from several different musicians, and frequent collaborators with a lot of Jayson's projects. They include: Steve Brown, from Oleander, Kevin Prince, from Drummer101.com, and Ben Michel, from Short Sessions and a whole myriad of collaborations with Jayson. With a rhythm section built on these drummer's foundations, how could you go wrong?
     Ryan also is slated to play his pedal steel guitar on this album, which Jayson loves to add in to his songs whenever he can.
     Soon enough, though, Ryan is warming up on his violin, while Jayson finishes setting up the mic for him to play into, while Sean tweaks the levels on his end. The violin has replaced the guitar as the control room backing track, and I can't help but kick back and listen. The ebb and flow in this room is something I have yet to see replicated in any recording environment.
     Sean is playing parts of the song recorded so far. Titled "Saving Grace", it gives off a John Mayer sound, mixed with Jack Johnson, but all played through acoustic guitar instead. It makes for good head swaying music, I know that. You can't help but feel pleasant serenity every time you hear its devilishly catchy chorus.
     Jayson and Ryan trade places, and Sean sits up a little straighter in his chair. It's go time, ladies and germs.
     They give Ryan a run through of the song, while he figures out where to place his violin and how to insert its swelling notes into each part of the song. Once they get that figured out, Jayson leaves it in the hands of Sean, and he slides over to the table I am sitting behind. Both of us have a pretty good grip on our newly acquired plastic cups, filled up half way with the finest wine. And by finest, I mean red-ish.
     Anyway, I start talking to Jayson about the nitty-gritty of this upcoming album, my primary curiosity is how he gets his ideas down, and put together. He explains,
"I'll write a song, and sometimes I'll just be playing guitar, like for stress relief, or an outlet. An idea will sometimes happen by accident, and I'll build on that, put it into Pro-Tools, then I'll start adding instruments to it."
     In between our chatting, Jayson rolls his chair over to Sean, providing effective, yet diplomatic instructions for where the song should go next. Once everyone is on the same page, she rolls back over to me, just in time for me to ask about what this album is going for. He explains,
     "It's [the album] cohesive, the whole album goes together. It has one meaning...The name of the album now is "Be Who You Needed". There's a quote by Danielle Vincent [Manager of Show Up Sacramento and First Festival] that she posted a while back, that was a really interesting thing to think about. It was to be who you needed when you were younger. And I really liked that idea...That's kind of what the whole record is about. Growing up, and treating yourself like you wanted to be treated when you were young."
     That is quite a theme to build on, especially for such an accomplished musician like Jayson. The violins they were recording get a few takes wrapped up, while he and I sit back a little and enjoy our sour grape juice. He turns to me, adding,
     "I've recorded 7 records, and I think this is the one I am the most excited about right now...I've made other albums that I've really liked, but this is by far my favorite solo record I've made."
     With a very satisfied smile, he finishes the last swig of his grown-up juice, and he swivels over next to Sean again. Ryan goes through two more takes, while Sean continues to work on each individual track with his trademark expertise. Eventually, things wind on down for the day, and Ryan packs up his violin and guitar. Eventually, the computers go dark, and that's a wrap on recording for this particular day. There is much laughter and musical banter as we make our way down the darkened hall, and out into the deepened night of the parking lot. I bid everyone farewell, complete with a shoulder-popping hug from Jayson. The excitement I felt in that room this particular night hung with me my whole ride back home. I know, just from this snapshot I got tonight, that this upcoming album will leave you with the same floating, euphoric feeling that all great music leaves you with.

Be sure to give Jayson a follow on Instagram, as well as a listen to all his previous albums and singles with Humble Wolf on SoundCloud. Stay tuned for this exciting release, and don't miss a thing.

Jason Weeks - Working Musician Extraordinaire

     It was a chilly Saturday night when I found myself heading into the Boxing Donkey, out here in Old Town Roseville. Other than the amazing beer selection, of course, I am here tonight seeking out one of Sacramento's stellar working solo musicians. A man named Jason Weeks is playing here tonight, and I have become a pretty big fan of his work.
     I first saw him play a duo gig with fellow working musician David Albertson out at Malt & Mash in downtown Sacramento, and was very pleasantly surprised. He had a fantastic repertoire of covers spanning the 80s, 90s and a little bit of the early 00s. As well, his vocal work across whatever song he was playing was top notch. I enjoyed it, and so did the swaths of people hanging out in that bar this particular night.
     Back to tonight, though.
     I meet up with him as he is setting up, nestled in the corner under the kaleidoscope of neon that covers The Donkey's walls. Jason is, for lack of a neater word, just plan nice. He says hi, shakes my hand, and sets right in to his continuing set up. His set up is fairly minimalist, at the outset. He's got his looper, his own PA, and his guitar. Hearing sound check earlier, his PA certainly kicks, despite it's size. He points to it, and explains,
     "I got this cool little PA that packs a punch. I got it at Nicholson Music, out in Folsom. It's nice and loud, and it is great."
     Anyway, I stand back and bother him about his recent music endeavors, while he is still setting up, and get quite an interesting story.
     His solo work began in earnest about a year and a half ago, joining forces with Joshua Krage, of The Pressure Lounge and Thunder Cover, to get things going. he explains,
     "I learned a ton from Josh. About how to quickly learn a lot of covers, how to put stuff together on the fly, how to take requests, that was a lot of fun."
     And from there, he has branched out into his own tour de force, getting regular gigs for his solo stuff. He told me that this gig tonight is the 4th one he's had in 2 days. You wouldn't know it though, talking to the guy. His energy is earnest and unabated, and his focus is prevalent in how methodically he sets up his equipment. 
     I couldn't help but think, though, how does one guy snag so many gigs? Almost as if he read my mind during our conversation, he goes on to add, in regards to this line of work in the Sacramento area,
     "As anybody who does this [kind of gigging] in Sacramento will tell you, knowing and having good rapport with Ryan Hernandez [multi-instrumentalist], is the greatest thing in the world. The man has really turned himself and his name into an empire (laughs). The other cool thing is that he was also one of the first guys to help out guys like me who are new to it."
     He goes on to add, on a more technical note, 
     "If you’re professional, and know how to answer phone calls, text messages and e-mails, and you’re a reliable person, and he thinks you sound good enough to play at places, he’ll book you there. It’s been huge."
     Slowly, but surely, the bar has begun to fill a bit more, and the conversation around us definitely become more lively. Being so involved in this local area, Jason has also earned a spot in Thunder Cover, the aforementioned band fronted by Laith Kaos, as their 2nd guitar player. He's joined with Joshua Krage in this band, making the whole story come full circle. In Thunder Cover, they travel around across to other states, bringing their bombastic stage shows to eager audiences. They employ a huge swath of covers that get people dancing, that's for sure. But, how did Jason come to be in this band? 
     He explains, that it all started with Jayson Angove, from Humble Wolf and formerly of Thunder Cover, too. They had known each other through mutual friends, as well. He elaborates,
"He [Angove] randomly hit me up, and was like ‘Hey lets do a duo gig, I’d love to play with you’, at The Purple Place, up in El Dorado Hills…he heard me sing live, and he said I sounded like Laith from Thunder Cover, then he told me he used to play drums for Thunder Cover at one point…Hey said I should really meet Laith…at this point Josh [Krage] had played a couple of gigs with them, then, when Laith needed a guitar player, he hit me up. We met, jammed, and meshed. Then we did a couple of gigs together to see if it was going to work, and so far it’s working. It’s a lot of fun."
     With this solid base of work in his belt, one would think that's enough for one guy right? 
     Not so fast. 
     Jason is also in a band called Juliet Company, with his wife Anmarie Fielding Weeks. That story is pretty heartwarming, to be honest. He explains that the band started back in 2012, when he got back to Sacramento from the Navy. Him and some high school buddies got together and formed the band.       Things shifted slightly when he met Anmarie, in a good way. He explains, 
     "When I met Anmarie on the open mic circuit, we met at the Torch Club open mic, and we both just kind of clicked, as really good friends. Musically, I really loved her songwriting style, she was just so unique, and her lyrics were so good, she’s a brilliant writer…the guys did too, and they said she should play with us."
     From there, the band and Anmarie connected and soon enough, according to Jason, 
     "She wanted to do a full band gig at The Boardwalk, in Orangevale, and so we were her band for the night…It was Anmarie Fielding and we were her band." 
     They played that show, and the band was connected from there. Over time, as things do, people come and go, and life happens. It's worked out fairly organically for Juliet Company, in their own way. Jason explains, 
     "Right now, it’s just Anmarie and I, but when we do live gigs, we are fortunate enough to have a lot of talented friends…when we do full band gigs, we have a full rotating line-up of musicians who can help us out with that." 
     In addition to The Boardwalk, they have also played locally at Shine, The Powerhouse, and the like. Jason makes it clear, though, how he finds balance between Juliet Company and everything else, 
     "I try to balance it out so that my wife and I always make time to focus on our creative endeavors, too. Within the last two years, we have put out two records. We did a full-length [If I Have This] in 2016, along with an EP [All At Once] we put out 2 months ago."
     Sure enough, right as the clock strikes 9ish, Jason shakes my hand and hops behind the mic to kick things off. I get another cold beer in my hand right as he kicks into "Your Love", by The Outfield.
    Which was followed up by happy cheers and happy bar patrons.
     As well as a smile on Jason's face.
     And isn't that what this whole music thing is all about?

     Be sure to check out the links above and give Jason Weeks Music a like on Facebook. As well, check out Juliet Company's bandcamp.com page, where all their releases are available. You will not be disappointed.