Five Years of #SXSHESHREDS

“Those who have ever been to a She Shreds show before know the drill: community first, everyone is welcome, and no one is “good for a girl”, they’re just good. Fans and musicians come to our shows to be surrounded by people they love and look up to in an environment that in other contexts might be controlled by corporations. This necessity to be surrounded by an alternative yet necessary perspective on the music industry, one that celebrates diversity and identity is what fosters the spaces that She Shreds creates—no one can stop us from honoring that.”

— Fabi Reyna, Editor in Chief, She Shreds

I'm honored I was able to be a part of the She Shreds SXSW experience this year. I was involved with the one two years ago, as well, but this one was especially... special. Originally, the day was supposed to be at a space called Kinda Tropical - an old gas station convenience store turned cafe and small local market with cool teas, local beers, iced coffee on tap, and breakfast tacos. Everything was beautiful - the aesthetic could not have been more ideal and She Shreds had swagged up the place with decor, merch, cacti, banners, prayer flags, gender neutral bathrooms, and a breezy little stage on the back patio. The sun was beaming, and Shamir took the stage as I sipped the first few sips of my extra strong, bone chilling iced coffee as I began to shoot photos for the day.

And then... barely 30 minutes into the set, cops appeared and began roaming around the scene, eventually shutting us down due to a double whammy of overcapacity and unknown lack of a permit from our venue. Everyone lingered around like "Whaaat" for about the length of time that it took to make some phone calls, secure a new location, pack up all the merch, the gear, and relocate EVERYONE - the whole dang crew of show-goers and show-players. The Sahara Lounge saved the day in under 45 minutes. The show must go on!

Everyone packed into the teeny tiny super cozy bar that smells of old (and new) Lonestar beer. Like 500 bodies. A whole community. We were still all in this together, no one was letting anyone give up. The bands played on, and the day evolved into it's own beautiful success story. I was there to document the whole dang thing and I'm happy to share my photos of #SXSHESHREDS with y'all. 

FULL STORY AND ALL PHOTOS HERE!

Thanks for reading, see you out there next year!

xo, Emily

French Vanilla

French Vanilla

Speedy Ortiz

And to close this out, here's me, fresh faced and super stoked to shoot the full day ahead!

The Black Angels and A Place To Bury Strangers

On April 26, A Place To Bury Strangers and The Black Angels kicked off the Death March Tour together in Nashville at The Basement East, surrounding the release of The Black Angels' new album Death Song. It was a night of psychedelia with explosive, swooning, and haunting guitars, plus a three hour light show of lasers, projections, and strobes, both beautiful and at times seizure-inducing. I'm still seeing the rainbows of color bouncing through the thickest walls of fog.

My photos from the show are in the current issue of Original Fuzz magazine 👁 here ! 👁 

Christian Bland, The Black Angels

Austin Psych Fest photo story up on Original Fuzz

I made my first ever appearance to Austin Psych Fest, now known as Levitation Fest, down on Carson Creek Ranch in May. Three days of tramping through mud and heat with the threat of storms looming all weekend, but made it through without a drop of rain, which made way for some seriously stunning sunsets. 

Levitation is easily my new favorite festival. No matter which of the three stages you stumble upon, every band is phenomenal. Everyone in attendance is in the same headspace, on the same level. It's the most here-for-the-music festival I've experienced. In the midst of reuniting with old friends and familiar faces, I also made friends with people from all corners of the world - Australia, Venezuela, Wales, Turkey, Israel, South Africa. 

So here's my photo story of the weekend. Once again thank you to Original Fuzz for being the #1 dudes and helping me get down there. I hope to see all of you next year on the Ranch.

THE FUZZ GUIDE: AUSTIN PSYCH FEST