Berserk As Fuck: My Year In Concert Photography: The Veils

My year in concert photography continues with one of my favorite bands of 2007, The Veils.

I saw them twice this year, once on June 19th at The Grand Emporium in Kansas City MO. and on August 1 at The Replay Lounge in Lawrence KS. Their album "Nux Vomica" came out overseas in 2006 and in the U.S. in 2007. Technically I put this down as an 06 release. It is probably in my top 25 records of all time. When I saw them in June it was a low turnout to say the least. Lead singer Finn Andrews actually asked all the audience members their names at one point. I was glad they played as if it was a packed house. Finn said at the end of the set he would be in the back if anyone wanted autographs or an acoustic set, half joking. I took him up on it and with three others went and asked for that acoustic set. He seemed kind of surprised but he grabbed a guitar and we went looking for a suitable room. First we tried a utility closet...to small, we ended up in the ladies bathroom where he sang three songs by himself with Liam and Heine standing in a stall watching. It was cramped in there but I thought it was very nice of him indeed. I took some photos and found out a couple months later it was even brought up in a radio show in Portland Oregon...not bad, I actually created some news. The second time I saw them on August first was not so much fun. Unfortunately for The Veils, The Yeah Yeah Yeahs were playing a block away, so they pushed back their set until midnight. Not to many people showed up because of the heat (100 degrees that day) and the YYY concert. The band remembered me and I gave Finn some Tom Waits bootlegs which he said was the best gift he had gotten on the tour. Liam the keyboard player had quit since the last concert due to the pressures of touring. The sound didn't seem the same and they only played seven songs. There was some weird Mexican kid with a semi mohawk and braces jumping around in the front throwing up the devil horns yelling "The Veil". He asked Finn if they would play at his brothers birthday party...it was a bit odd. A very small venue with the stage only a foot off the ground...they seemed annoyed. I wish there would have been a better turnout for them for both shows. I fear they won't want to come back. I will say it was one of my most listened to cds of the year by far. Here are a few photos from both shows.