The Moniker
I've set out to capture the vulnerable solo sets up to musicians spilling over the edges of the stage. My favorite was never a secret.
He carries his own instrument beneath his skin in between his head and heart. It can stand alone or lead an orchestra. The only instrument worthy to parallel his own is the piano, and they meet as masterfully as the horizon.
Songwriting at it's purest, life's moments felt not simply recalled. The torturous reopening of the wounds forced and self-inflicted. The listener is in the midst of it, often uncomfortably so, but unable to pull away. You find yourself in them beautifully broken.
I met him in the aftermath when the stories were brief and vague. For a few minutes that first night, a boy stood in front of me so young I almost didn't recognize him. Over the years I watched him try on a multitude of disguises. Cloaking himself in everyone's clothes but his own. Baring his most painful memories for a room of strangers then putting that experience on repeat, night after night.
What armor would you need to protect yourself? What vices would you need to numb it? Would you be brave enough to speak the truth?
In concert, my camera is my armor as I'm surrounded by his reinforcements from the East and the strongholds in the West. I would be overwhelmed by emotion without it. Nevertheless, it is also the secret pathway from my heart into the world. I try to capture a glimmer of what beats so beautifully beneath.
His pathway is his voice through song. Uniquely his own. It will not be heard and then forgotten. It will break you wide open, reach for your heartstrings, and create a wondrous collaborative.
Album Available August 21st, 2020
