Just returned from the Paul F. Tompkins show
Posted by
Mark A. Heinz at
11:45 PM Central
He just played the Firedbird in St. Louis. And he killed it.
Listening to his (free—and very funny) Pod F. Tompkast now. Kinda like my old-guy, comedy-show version of cranking Aerosmith in the arena parking garage on the way of out the Aerosmith concert.
Here’s the one pic I managed to snap during his set:
Paul F. Tompkins performs at the Firebird in St. Louis, 28 Aug 2010 (Sat)
Filed Under: Photo, Reviews
Photo: One, two, three, four, five… sex?!
Posted by
Mark A. Heinz at
4:11 PM Central
Since I’m on this seemingly-megalomaniacal self-pic-posting kick, I wanted to share this one with you today.
[Story is continued below huge photo... so don't click away in disgust JUST YET.]
Me playing with Fragile Porcelain Mice at a festival in 2007 (photo by Chris Hursey)
Now, this was taken back in the Fall of 2007 at a festival that FPM was playing in a small, German town in Illinois called Millstadt.
The festival, cleverly named “Millstock,” had a very German vibe to it (or at least our set did since Scott was [lightheartedly, as usual] spouting off German-themed zingers between songs throughout) including, but not limited to, ample bratwurst and beer sales and distribution. And upon closer inspection of some fan-shot photos from the event—including the one above—it seems as though the sound company was getting into the whole German theme, too.
Look very closely at that photo.
Someone should have told the sound company that “SIX” is spelled “S-E-C-H-S” in German—and that the next microphone in line really should’ve been labeled “SIEBEN” for consistency.
If they’d ever seen National Lampoon’s European Vacation, they’d have known better.
Filed Under: Live, Photo
Photo: Me playing with FPM at a basement show in about ’92
Posted by
Mark A. Heinz at
12:12 AM Central
Were you at this show/party? You know, the one in Carbondale where I gave the only set of FPM’s van keys to Justin to hold onto during our set, and then we both forgot about that little transaction while he left and headed back home—where we’d all come from, and two hours away—after the show… with the keys?
Me playing with Fragile Porcelain Mice at a basement show/party around 1992 (photo by Justin Makler)
After this episode, I made a set of keys for everyone in the band, and we made it a rule that every man had a set on him at all times (and eventually a no-girlfriends-riding-in-the-van rule, but that’s another post). Worked out much better that way, come to find out.
Great show, though, as I recall. Immeasurable energy from everyone in the room—I think. But then again I’m getting older now, and my memory ain’t so good.
Maybe I’m thinking of a scene from the punk-rock episode of Quincy. That was intense.
Filed Under: Live, Photo
Now presenting the all-new Essentials shirt (but how?!)
Posted by
Mark A. Heinz at
2:31 PM Central
I was recently tasked with visually presenting to you the first items to be available in the new store: the two new Essentials shirts.
The first iteration (L) and the final solution (R)
The first possible presentation solution? The ol’ “stick-the-digital-design-on-a-stylized-shirt-shaped-graphic” method. And while easy to whip up in Photoshop this method just doesn’t come close to representing the true quality of the actual product, so I knew I had to press onward and upward for a better solution.
The second possibility was to photograph the shirts from a bird’s-eye view, with the product nicely lit and then outlined and cropped and stuck onto a clean, white background. Eh. Boring.
Now what?
Aha! Photograph a real, live person wearing actual Essentials shirts—and give it some personality.
I turned to longtime friend, work associate, and former bandmate [Dementia 13, anyone?] Dan O’Saben and asked about the possibility of his oldest son modeling the shirts. Dan gave the shirts and a digital SLR to his son Ian and budding photographer Kelly Kries, and the rest, as they say, is history.
Very pleased with the end result, and I thank everyone involved for helping to get the store off the ground.
Check out Kelly’s shots in action on the store, and look for more store offerings in the not-so-distant future. Got some great stuff planned.
Filed Under: Photo, Production Work, Store
Visit the brand new SwingStomp store
Posted by
Mark A. Heinz at
11:35 PM Central
The store is now open. Give it a visit, and maybe pick up a nice, new shirt.
The SwingStomp shirt I’m wearing in the photo below (with my lovely wife Mia) is seriously my new favorite. It fits great, is super lightweight (including the ink), and I can finally wear something drum-related in public without feeling goofy.
Filed Under: Announcements, Photo, Store
