Drummer

One does not often get the opportunity to come close to a drummer during a concert, as they are always hidden somewhere at the back. But I was presented with the opportunity and I grabbed it. So here is a drummer (no, not the little drummer girl).

Last of the summer sun

and the first of the winter snow.

Relics

of the past (of course). Now that the band is no longer fighting its own government it seems to have started fighting the entire world... Most of the band members are so new they do probably not even remember when the band appeared...
But the band seems to build on roughly the same image and iconography it did in the 1980s... so does this work? I don't know... personally I believe in evolution (great fan of good ol' Charles me) so I think that people should also evolve during their lifetimes (not biologically of course) which obviously also means that they should evolve in what they do (I know, look who's talking 1, 2 & 3 all rolled up into one)... but then you have those who believe that if it isn't broken don't fix it...
What do you think?

Exceptions

this time I will not write the text for the blog myself. Instead I will take a poem from the Slovene poet Tomaž Šalamun as translated by Michael Biggins. Diversity is the spice of life (or so they say) and I certainly do not want you all to get bored of my mumblings (it is bad enough you always have to look at my photos)... so anyway, without further ado, I present:

LITTLE MUSHROOMS

So this is how the whole thing goes
by far the best are the little mushrooms
little mushrooms in the soup
nada nada nada nada
fiuuuuu one little mushroom
this little green parsley in tuxedo
and darkness for a long time
then they run to get a cleaning lady
responsible for all of this
nothing nothing nothing nothing
fiuuuuuuu one more little mushroom
healthy though
the blood is not so great
because she got hepatitis
Heavy heavy are these little mushrooms
heavy in the Holy Mother

Breakdance battle

This just takes me back to the 80s and my childhood in London. I remember seeing my first breakdancers on the street in Covent Garden... Well, in the street... I suppose they were really a part of the performances that take place in Covent Garden and thus not really a part of the street culture... but close enough

Thursdays

seem to be this photographer's Sundays. Once again the photography part of the day took its own course and suddenly I was stranded in the town centre with no camera on me and so many things to see...

What

sort of photo blog would this be without a photo of a stage dive? Luckily a few decided to take the dive on my birthday...

Monty Python

Well, this was one that got me worried. A Slovene theatre show called Monty Python. You know... the brilliance of the Monty Pythons on one hand and the uncertainty of Slovene comedy on the other side. The Slovenes never seemed to be a comedy nation to me, even though things are changing recently... Stand-up started appearing, and from its shy beginnings some OK stand-up emerged. And I suppose this is a step in the same direction... Basically it is an hour and a half of Monty Python sketches and songs that were translated into Slovene (mostly quite OK, with a few exceptions - like nineteen to the dozen, for example). Nothing spectacular, but a good starting point I guess for a Slovene on his way to discovering the real Monty Pythons...
This photo is from the sketch when the son (miner) returns home to his father (writer) and mum. And the roles are sort of reversed... you know the son left London to go and pursue a career, because middle class was just not good enough....

Brass band

and here is the score if someone wants to join in... as long as you can read it in mirror image.

Turning

a corner. I got asked by a magazine to take a photo of a corner on a cycling track in Ljubljana. As a new road was built a new corner appeared on an old cycling track. It is a very sharp corner that takes most by surprise. Basically, I was told to show a dangerous corner. How do you make a corner look exciting? Or dangerous? Or menacing? Well, I decided to go overboard and get somebody (thanx Blaz, and thanx Nejc & Matjaz for acting as go betweens) in full mountain bike equipment turn the corner... in an urban setting. This is one of the photos from the short photo shoot we had). Did it work?

Senzorium

Revisited. This time I saw one story I have not seen before. I like the things they do and hopefully I will be able to see & photograph something new soon... Until then I can merely wish them good luck with the things they do...

Recital & concert

another busy day for yours truly. After work I went to a poetry recital (with a bass guitar, no, not me, the poet) and then I drove off to the neighbouring town for an outdoor concert. Today I decided to post this picture, just so I can comment on the strange social practice that started appearing (quite a while ago, but I never commented on this before I think). When people - people you don't know from Adam - see you got a camera (especially if it is a SLR) they tend to come up to you and ask you to take a photo... They don't care for where or what it will be used for... They just say: 'Take my photo!' or 'Me, me!' and once you have taken it they seem satisfied with this fact. In most cases they just walk away. Rarely do they come back and ask you to send it to them or ask if they can see it somewhere. I find this sort of exhibitionism a bit strange, but I suppose it does make a good photo sometimes (nothing special in this case).

It was

well and truly night before I discovered that I have spent the whole day behind the computer working... so once again... disapointment (or relief?)... no photos.

Toying

Some days, you just need to grab your camera by the lens and mess around...

Here and now

is a photo from the dance performance Hic et nunc.

Comedy & music

not at the same time. but on the same day... After listening to quite a bit of improvisation comedy I went to a concert in the evening. A full day by any standard. Guess from which one this photo is from.

25 hours

of improvised theatre. By 8 individuals. There is always some sort of fascination we find with these endurance things. Why is that? (Nobody ever came to watch me translate 16 hours straight). But yes there is something fascinating about it... I guess we want to see whether they will make it... and how well will they function... will it become strange and Dadaistic or surreal as time goes by? Well, I don’t know, but hopefully I will be able to pop in during the day for a few extra stints and see.

Probability

What is the probability of seeing the same band in two different towns on two consecutive days, both times at free concerts? Well, roughly 100% it seems. I have seen them yesterday in Kamnik (where they were the bonus band in my evening, as I went to see something else) and then I wanted to go to Kamnik today again, but the rain just did not want to stop, and as much as I wanted to see the concert, I had temperature this week and truly didn’t fell like balancing the umbrella and trying to take photos and enjoy myself at the same time – and all of this in the pouring rain... so I ended up going to a local concert (and taking some photos – this time to accompany a concert review in a magazine it seems).

I'm back!

Photos are back! Events are back (well they were there to be had all the time)! And to celebrate me feeling better and going out to take photos again I sat in a car and drove out of Ljubljana... all the way to... ...Kamnik. Well, yes, I know, it is not really far... but there was a concert there I wanted to go and see (or listen to - with me it really is both, well, and feel it also, so the three really). I like to hear it (after all they are playing music), but I also like to photograph it (it helps to see in this case) and I also like to feel the atmosphere and everything surrounding the concert (or any other performance for that matter).
For a change I will not give you a photo from any of the performances I have seen this evening (as always, you know where to find them)… instead here is a photograph from the town of Kamnik at night… (for a change).

At home again

Today I wanted to go and see my friend's opening, but stayed at home recovering. Maybe tomorrow will be photo time again (I hope and I wish)

Fever

Wanted to go and see an exhibition but I had a temperature so I stayed at home... No photo for you today.

This is...

... truly no time to be sleeping. C'mon, you are playing the moog. Wakey, wakey!

Performance

that almost turned into a photoshoot.

Moving

Performers develop their own way of moving on stage. Or they don't develop it, but they just have it (even though I am quite certain that a lot of performers work on their stage presence). The singer of Bernays Propaganda reminded me (in her movements, silly) of Ian Curtis (not that I ever saw him live). But then, it could be just me... and nobody else saw it... or it could be just a coincidence... or she could have studied his performances... who knows...

World music

A trendy name that seemed to have boomed in the 90s? Or was that before? Certainly not later. Well, this time they took it seriously. The band members came from Switzerland, Italy, Brazil, Zimbabwe, UK, and some other countries I forgot... So a good mix there... and to be true to their world music idea, they also played music from around the world... some might think that they do not know what sort of music to play, but I prefer to see it (and listen to it) as a little journey around the world (of music).

Antipop Consortium

And yet they seem quite popular. Next step Anti-matter Consortium.

Hard Work

Here, have a beer mate!

Just checking...

... if the light in the refrigerator turns off when you close the door. (Could also be used as a personal cooling device - but kids, don't try this at home.)

Lighting... What lighting?

It seems that the concerts at Trnfest are getting darker and darker... (Yes, in more ways than one :) )... No, but seriously, it has got to a stage where it is almost impossible to take any photographs.. won't somebody tell them to add 20% instead of take away 35% (70% lights are fine, 20% sort of suck...)? I know... it is all about the atmosphere, but once visitors start bringing torches to the show, you know something isn't right...

Mid-flight

refueling?
(You will probably have to click on the photo to enlarge it to get a better view)