Fugazi, Washington DC, September 3, 1997. this photo was taken at Fugazi's 10th Anniversary show at Wilson Center in Washington, DC. i could probably do a photo a day of Fugazi alone, but i will hold off and flow one to this site every now and then. i will make this brief and won't gush too much...
some friends and i drove down to DC (10 hours) for a free outdoor Fugazi show at Fort Reno August 29, 1997 it was a cool trip as we managed to see Blue Tip and Kerosene 454 in PA on the way down and hangout with friends in Philly on the way back.
at this show i found out that Fugazi were playing a "secret" show at Wilson Centre the next week, the day i was flying into Newark for the CMJ festival. hmmm... seeing a tonne of crappy bands vs. renting a car and driving three hours to see Fugazi again, at THE Washington DC venue. tough call. i bailed on my travelling companion (sorry again Mur) and jumped in a car and drove to DC. on the way in i was listening to the "modern rock" radio station and the announcer passing on a rumour that Fugazi was playing their last show ever at a secret location that night, and if the listeners had any info, to call 1-800-BLAND-ROK... and then he played "Waiting Room". yup Fugazi only have one song. loser. i was a little teary eyed at the possibility of it being their last show but got over it by the time the Mighty Mighty Bosstones kicked in and i turned the radio off.
the show was really good (as if Fugazi could play a less than amazing show) and i got to see a lot of old friends. i was surprised that the audience seemed a little jaded as only the front two rows were dancing. a far cry from the video i have of a 1988 Wilson Center show where the whole audience coalesced into a unified groove. Jem Cohen was filming the show, but his lights fell over and blew, which explains the dark-ish/grainy footage from that show in Instrument
i got to hang out and stay with Pat Graham, a great rock photographer in his own right. word got out that i was driving back to NYC the next day so before you could say Greyhound, Pat's phone was ringing off the hook and my rental car was filled with Jem, Allison Wolfe (Bratmobile/Cold Cold Hearts) and Ted Leo. i picked up Jem at Dischord and got to see Cynthia roasting some peppers on the gas stove (neat!) while Ian showed me jennicam.com on the web (equally neat!) my poor grasp of DC geography had me driving all over the place to pick people up and we left town late, plus we dawdled a bit, so Allison missed her CMJ panel. it was a fun drive back to NYC.
this photo appeared in Canada's national newspaper The Globe and Mail. they actually grabbed it from the Southern website and used it without my permission or crediting me. i gave them a semi-nasty/incredulous call and sent them an invoice.
if you'd like to see some other pix from that show please go to my page on Southern's Fugazi Gallery. i believe that all the live shots of mine are from the end of the set when they did "Glueman". the portrait shot was from April 1989 was taken just as they were packing up to leave after playing Ottawa for the first time.
if anyone has any connections at any airlines or travel agencies and can hook me up with a cheap flight from Ottawa to Phoenix, AZ (today or tomorrow - or Lincoln, NE on the 17th) please email me asap and get me on the next flight out. i haven't seen Fugazi in a year so and am needing my fix in a big way. help!
so much for being brief and not gushing.
link of the day
word of the daypsaltery - n. an ancient stringed instrument played by plucking with a pick
right: "Somehow I doubt ancient Greek musicians played power chords on a psaltery."
wrong: "Sodium chloride is extracted from sea water at the psaltery."
archives
3.26.01 3.27.01 3.28.01 3.29.01 3.30.01 3.31.01 04.01.01 04.02.01 04.03.01 04.04.01 04.05.01 04.06.01 04.07.01 04.08.01 04.09.01 04.10.01 04.11.01 04.12.01 04.13.01 04.14.01 04.15.01 04.16.01 04.17.01 04.18.01 04.19.01 04.20.01 04.21.01 04.22.01 04.23.01 04.24.01 04.25.01 04.26.01 04.27.01 04.28.01 04.29.01 04.30.01 05.01.01 05.02.01 05.03.01 05.04.01 05.05.01 05.06.01 05.07.01 05.08.01 05.09.01 05.10.01 05.11.01 05.12.01 05.13.01 05.14.01 05.15.01 05.16.01 05.17.01 05.18.01 05.19.01 05.20.01 05.21.01 05.31.01 06.14.01 06.20.01all images (c) shawn scallen 2001. please contact before using or reproducing.