Sherburt 2/27/24 Sherburt 2/27/24

Pantera Pays Homage to the Abbott Brothers in Grand Rapids Alongside Lamb of God and Child Bite

I have to preface this with; it meant a lot to me to do this because the 3 guys I grew up listening to this band with in high school are all dead. RIP Joey Bags, Hansen, and Dolsen.

I have to preface this with; it meant a lot to me to do this because the 3 guys I grew up listening to this band with in high school are all dead.
RIP Joey Bags, Hansen, and Dolsen.

Pantera brought their headlining tour to Michigan and I drove my ass almost 3 hours to Grand Rapids to photograph it. I was 1 of only 6 photographers approved for this show and it was my 2nd arena gig ever. It felt like a hometown show right off the bat with a couple of photographers from Detroit being in the media pool, but the main reason was because Detroit’s Child Bite opened the gig. It was a helluva warm-up show for their appearance at the Garden this past weekend in New York City. Gimme some salsa ya weird metal cowboys. Anyway, the direct support for the show was Lamb of God and despite having to share the pit with 30+ VIPs, I still had no issue photographing them. I always found it weird that bands do this, and also making us sign a photo release just sends a pretty wild message. I think this might’ve been my last time photographing LOG tbh.

PANTERA NORTH AMERICAN TOUR

Rad to see Child Bite go from small Detroit shows to playing the Garden a few days after I took these. That was a big deal for me when I signed up to potentially do this show. Considering Phil has not one but multiple bands from Detroit on his Housecore Records label, it’s no surprise he would be sidestage for their set in Grand Rapids.

Everyone takes pride in their city’s culture, or at least in my head, everyone does. Detroit is incredibly tight-knit and supportive of one another, even outside of our genre lines. Escaping this city is no easy task, even nowadays when things are perceived to be much better than it used to be. Woof, that is for an entirely different conversation and I am not doing that again here today. Instead let’s just check out the galleries below from the show!

PANTERA

LAMB OF GOD

CHILD BITE

Sherburt 2/22/24 Sherburt 2/22/24

Neck Deep, Drain, Bearings, and Higher Power @ Royal Oak Music Theatre

**NECK DEEP** taken by **SHERBURT** 2.13.23

Neck Deep has been on my list of bands to photograph since I started doing this over a decade ago. For whatever reason it just seemed like it was never going to happen. Denial after denial. Then I got approved and woke up the day of the show sick with the flu. And of course, more denials. Then I had to not put in once for inventory at my old job. It just seemed like a lost cause. Then they announced this tour with one of my favorite bands in the world, Drain. I took this as a sign, that it was time. I could easily just hit Drain up and they would hook me up but I wanted to do this right. I wanted to do it on my own accord, and I wanted to go through the headliner. I didn’t want to ask for a favor. I didn’t ask for one for Blink or NOFX. So I did it the old way, the same way that got me the first gigs. Publicity.

NECK DEEP LIVE IN AMERICA

I have been working so many production shows that I haven't been able to do these kinds of gigs as often as I would like. These are a net loss for me every time. There is no payment for these kinds of gigs. Working for a publication maybe they might pay you, but I work for myself so I go in knowing I am losing money on parking, on a beverage, on food afterward and even sometimes, having to pay for tickets. Hence why a lot of these types of shows have been getting thinner and thinner on my calendar. The best part is that it’s not the same reason most start to give up shows, it’s because I have prior obligations to production companies and one of the biggest bands on the face of the planet. So with all that being said, at this point in my career, if I am willing to lose money to work, it’s because it is something I truly want to do.

Alongside Neck Deep and Drain were Bearings and Higher Power creating an absolutely stacked lineup stretching from UK Pop Punk to California Hardcore.

NECK DEEP

DRAIN

BEARINGS

HIGHER POWER

Sherburt 2/6/24 Sherburt 2/6/24

Boris and The Melvins Brought the "Twins of Evil" Tour to St. Andrew’s Hall

Time Is A Circle Pit.

The Melvins and Boris at St. Andrew’s Hall

Boris and The Melvins at Saint Andrews Hall in Detroit was a treat for me being I was obliterated on dabs and in a really good mood knowing the next day I would be flying to California. That type of energy should be able to be bottled! It made shooting so relaxing, for the first time ever. Usually, I am anxious and trying to keep myself focused. Luckily I was able to just enjoy myself and photograph the sets and feel special. Knowing Nirvana played this room is a big deal for most of us right? So to have anyone that is connected to them come here and play in the same room, is a pretty big deal. This all plays into my theory that
Time Is A Circle Pit.

I decided to go all Black and white for this show and I think it worked in my favor. I am honestly not a fan of most lighting nowadays. Few will get me to put out massive amounts of color photos. I am more likely to do it with daytime outdoor photos than hall or theatre concerts. Just how it is. These two bands are all photogenic as hell and for playing slower tempos than the punk, hardcore, and death metal shows I usually photograph, it was such a welcomed change of pace.

The Melvins played “Bullhead” and Boris played “Heavy Rocks, both in their entirety. If you ever get a chance to see either of these bands, do not skip. It is a trip.