The perfect conclusion to my SXSW photos is shots from the band Ho99o9 aka Horror. They were the very last thing I did at SXSW. I caught their late night show at the North Door as part of the We Are Family showcase. I only saw a couple bands all week, but the one set from Ho99o9 made up for it. They were fucking incredible.

I have known Eaddy from Ho99o9 for ages and he used to come see my old band Fucking Bullshit, but I hadn’t seen his band Ho99o9 yet even though I was at the LA Art Book Fair up until about 30 minutes before they played. I did want to see them, but I sort of hate bands and I didn’t know how  a punk band with no guitars was going to go over. Plus nothing is worse than seeing one of your friends bands and realizing they suck.

That was not a problem with Ho99o9. I had been hearing all this hype about them all week in Austin but I didn’t think I was going to get to see them. I was booked up and it just didn’t seem like it was going to work out. Fortunately the We Are Family showcase was less than a block from the Sailor Jerry Gallery and Saturday night was rainy and pretty relaxed everywhere so I knew I could slip out for a minute.

The show was even better than the hype. Ho99or put on one of the best shows I have seen in years. I couldn’t tell you the last time I had that much fun watching a band. Between the two vocalists, a sequencer and a drummer they put out so much fucking noise and put on a hell of a punk show without it feeling tired. Eaddy is one of the best front men I have ever seen and his partner in crime, Jean Lebrun, would be outstanding on his own.

When they launched into the Bad Brains anthem Attitude I forgot I had my camera in my hand and jumped into the mosh pit to sing a long. Fucking Bullshit used to cover it and I had just received an Attitude themed tattoo just hours earlier. I also ended up starting a circle pit at Eaddy’s request because the crowd seemed incredibly confused by the concept. Nothing some circular violence couldn’t fix.

I needed to head back to the SJ Gallery before their set was over but Eaddy kept jumping off shit and I kept missing it. I waited and waited and waited with my camera fixed on Eaddy. He finally jumped off an amp and nearly hit the ceiling and finally I caught it. Once I got the shot I needed I got the fuck out of there, totally pumped about the band and the photos I shot. One of my shots of them ended up in Rolling Stone’s gallery of SXSW photos and I can’t wait to see these dudes again. Honestly I just want to tour with them even though I know it will end up in my camera getting destroyed.

Now go look at all the photos of Ho99o9 at SXSW and keep up that PMA.

Ps. In totally unrelated news there is a sale on Girls of Driven By Boredom today. 20% off using code “america”.

 

 

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