Ivan Moody of Five Finger Death Punch - more photos... photo by jeff barringer - staff photographer

Eventually Jay West showed up, and soon our escort was taking us back to the holding area. Tonight would be pretty much the same as normal, 3 songs, no flash, except for Hellyeah, who only wanted us to shoot 2 songs.

Heading down to the stage, Jay and I staked out our places behind the barrier and prayed under our breath for a decent light setup. Alas, it was not to be. While the lighting was exciting and dramatic for the audience, it turned out to be a real issue for the photogs. I guess it was kind of apt to name the tour the "Bitch We Have a Problem Tour", at least from the standpoint of the photographers, but you shoot what you can, and almost no show has "perfect" lighting.

First onstage was the band 5 Finger Death Punch (5FDP), a band from Los Angeles that is signed to Firm Music and seems to be poised to break out. I really thought their set kicked ass, especially for being the opening act on a 4 band show. Perhaps it was the growl of their frontman Ivan Moody, formerly of Motorgrater, or maybe it was the guitar work of Zoltan Bathory, formerly of U.P.O., but something really clicks with these guys. They seem to have more depth and talent musically than many other bands associated with thrash metal/hardcore genre. Ivan has the ability to do more than scream and Zoltan can do more than just grind and it's good to hear some of their songs mix more traditional metal with the rasp of the thrash. I hope these guys come back and play a smaller venue soon, they are probably even better in a club. Sadly for me the minute 5FDP stepped onstage, the lighting guy flipped on the strobe lights making it next to impossible to shoot. You had to time it just right and probably 80% of what I shot didn't come out at all, the rest were marginal at best.

Duke of Droid - more photos... photo by jeff barringer - staff photographer

The next band on the list, Droid from Long Beach, made my head hurt and my ears numb.

Signed to KoЯn member James "Munky" Shaffer's label Emotional Syphon Records, Droid are a more traditional thrash metal act with some death metal influences. They were loud, they were fast, and they looked good but I was pretty so so on their performance. It's not that didn't play well, they just weren't really my thing. If it weren't for "Conan the Bass-barian" AKA Duke, their bass player, I would have a hard time separating them from all the other thrash bands I have covered over the past year. Then again, I have always been more of a metal "traditionalist", liking long winding solos, intricate orchestration, and songs that last 12 minutes, rather the the short clipped buzz saw of most thrash metal.

Once again we photographers got pelted by the strobe lights from the stage so it was tough shoot, most of my pics ending up in the recycle bin. The strobes dazzled me so much I lost track of what song number we were on, and had to be reminded when our time was up, the tap on the shoulder coming very unexpectedly. Heading upstairs with our escort, I grabbed a coke, and sat in the publicity office waiting for Hellyeah, deleting blurry pictures from my cameras as I waited. I like shooting at the Erwin Center, there is always a nice quiet place to sit and cool out between sets, and the staff at the publicity office is always so helpful.

Chad Gray of Hellyeah - more photos... photo by jeff barringer - staff photographer

Hellyeah, the third band on the bill, really hit the mark for me. More like Slayer meets Skynard than anything else, these guys know how to rock old old school. Fronted by Chad Gray of Mudvayne, and with Pantera's Vinnie Paul on percussion, this Dallas based band really knows how to grind it up. With guitarwork provided by Greg Tribbett from Mudvayne, and Tom Maxwell of Nothingface, and with Bob Zilla, also of Nothingface on bass, this is a band that certainly deserves the title "hard rock supergroup". With all their collective years of experience they certainly knew how to work the crowd, a good percentage of whom came just to see them and were singing along. Tom Maxwell actually spotted me and posed a couple times but the lighting was killing me, and I just couldn't get the pics to come out.

Though I was still hamstrung by the damned strobe lights, I have to admit I spent more time just watching the Hellyeah's performance than I should have. Before I realized it, they were finishing up their second song and I tried to snap as many pics as I could before we got booted from the pit.

Fieldy of KoЯn - more photos... photo by jeff barringer - staff photographer

Where do I start with KoЯn. I wanted so much to go to this show and not like Korn, but I have to admit they were damn good. I don't own any of their music though over the years I have heard plenty of KoЯn songs, I never really considered myself a real fan of their sound and had never seen them perform live. They were always one of those bands I just didn't "get" so never really followed. Seeing them live I have a much better appreciation for their music. Although I doubt I'm ready to go put a KoЯn logo and stick it on the back window of my car, I might go out and buy a couple of their discs.

I loved frontman Jonathan Davis mic stand, designed by H.R. Geiger of Alien fame. Jonathan has a love of creepy stuff like that. Its no secret in the pet world that he has been seen frequenting west coast pet stores for the last few years with an interest in invertebrates - spiders, scorpions and other creepy-crawlies.

Heading out of the venue I stopped out back for a smoke, and while hanging around the loading dock I ran into Ivan of 5FDP. Not being a local he asked me if I knew how to get to 6th Street, and how to go about getting a cab. I explained that it would take longer to get a cab than to walk, and that if he needed a ride I would be glad to give him a lift. One thing led to another and soon most of the band and I were headed out through the parking lot where we encountered, of all thing's, Scooby Doo's "Mystery Machine". Stopping to snap a few pictures of the band next to the van, eventually we loaded up my truck and headed down to the entertainment district.

Thanks Laura and all the crew at the Frank Erwin Center, and the all the bands for inviting me out. And Ivan and 5FDP, I posted all your Scooby Doo pictures to our gallery!

KoЯn at the Frank Erwin Center, Austin, Texas - more photos... photo by jeff barringer - staff photographer