July 17, 2004: And there ya have it... I'm standing in front of them again at another killer Bayfest show.  Did I mention I fuckin love Bayfest?  You'd think I was getting a kickback or something but no.  Where else can you see top notch bands for pocket lint?  NO FUCKING WHERE.  Except Bayfest.  So I lied... last time I saw these guys I said I'd go out of my way to get pics of the other dudes in the band... well I didn't...  Now, about the show... the boys put on another stellar performance, I swear they always do.  They used the same lighting rig as ZZ Top the night before so I knew it would be great for photos.. only thing is, I got stuck behind too many fuckin Sasquatches.  One in particular, more like a Yeti or Abdominal Snowman, let me prop my camera on his shoulder and squeeze off a few shots.  Good shit.  Turns out he lives right down the road from me so I'm gonna throw him a photo or two for helping out.  

 HEY that's what kinda fuckin guy I am.   So next time you see me in the crowd trying to get a photo of some band, fuckin MOVE your giant melon and I'll be glad to share my photos with ya.  Anyway, see how easily I get distracted?  A.D.D. I think. The Hip was in top form supporting their latest album, In Between Evolution.  I gotta admit though, I love the older stuff.  Classics like Blow At High Dough, New Orleans Is Sinking, Little Bones, Courage.... shit man, these guys have a fuckload of tunes to pick from and throw at ya when ya least expect it. And they do.  If they were to play ALL their best tunes in one night the show would probably run 4 to 5 hours.  Well a couple hours is enough for me.  I got good and hammered at Stokes Bar before the show so by the end I was ready for bed.  That's becoming part of the Bayfest tradition, getting loaded at Stokes before I go shootin.  

I never got to see the hip back in the good old days but when I FINALLY did, I was thoroughly impressed.  They played a whole barrage of great tunes and I got to shoot one of Canada's most classic acts of all time.  I don't care what anyone says.  These guys are the epitome of the Canadian band.  Way better than anything the States has to offer, and yet still relatively unknown other than in Canada where they are GODS. This was another infamous Sarnia Bayfest show.  I could only see Gord Downie from where I was standing but I could see him REALLY WELL, so I took a shitload of photos of him.  Sure he's not a pretty boy but he's got more talent in the three hairs left on his head than any pretty boy bands have in all the hair in their whole families heads.

I swear this is why the Hip never got REAL BIG in the States.  Cuz Gord wasn't cutesy enough for them.  Gord is just a dude, like me.  Not the ugliest fucker on earth, but the women aren't beating down our doors either.  Anyway, it's always a pleasure seeing the Hip so I hear.  I guarantee I will be standing in front of them again as soon as I possibly can.  Sorry, I didn't get any decent shots of anyone else in the band this time, I get set up for Gord photos and then realize I can't see anybody else from where I'm standing.  Next time I shoot them, I'm gonna go out of my way to get the other guys.  I mean without them, there is no Hip is there?

 

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