Prime Shots: Tenacious D

ISO 800 | f/2.8 | 1/500 | 38mm | -0.7 Step Exposure Bias

Jacob Zinn

Jack Black and Kyle Gass of Tenacious D – often shortened to “The D” – returned to Vancouver on Sunday night, performing for a packed crowd at the PNE Amphitheatre. The comedy metal duo is touring on their third studio album, 2012′s Rize of the Fenix.

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Prime Shots: Apocalyptica

ISO 1600 | f/2.8 | 1/40 | 50mm | Increased Contrast

Jacob Zinn

Paavo Lötjönen of Finnish cello metal group Apocalyptica performs in the shadows of the Commodore Ballroom. Tuesday marked the first time since 2008 that the band performed in Vancouver.

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Hardcore Hastings – A Brief History of Punk in Vancouver

JRNL 4270 – Advanced Storytelling

The Downtown Eastside – referred to as Canada’s poorest postal code – is considered the home of Vancouver’s punk community and arguably the start of the hardcore subgenre.

Hardcore Hastings briefly looks at the culture of Vancouver punk in the Downtown Eastside from the late ’70s to the early ’80s, when acts like D.O.A. and the Subhumans took a faster, rougher sound out of Vancouver and into the world.

This short documentary features interviews with Bev Davies, renowned concert photographer; Phil Addington, bassist of the new wave band Insex; and Wendy Thirteen, concert promoter and major supporter of local punk music.

They discuss the roots of punk and hardcore in the city, the atmosphere of historic DTES venues such as the Smilin’ Buddha and the neighbourhood’s notorious reputation.

• Black & White Photos courtesy of Bev Davies
• Archival Footage courtesy of Martyn Stubbs
• Thanks to the Museum of Vancouver for access to the Smilin’ Buddha sign

Prime Shots: Van Halen

ISO 1600 | f/2.8 | 1/125 | 180mm

Jacob Zinn

David Lee Roth and Eddie Van Halen get up close during “Unchained”, the opener to Van Halen’s sold-out performance at Rogers Arena in Vancouver on Monday. The band is touring on their 2012 album, A Different Kind of Truth, their first album with Roth since 1984′s 1984.

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Tour Alert: Dragonforce North American Tour Dates

APR 21	Worcester, MA The Palladium
APR 22	New York, NY Gramercy Theatre
APR 23	Philadelphia, PA Theatre of the Living Arts
APR 25	Montreal, QC Le National
APR 26	London, ON London Music Hall
APR 27	Milwaukee, WI The Rave
APR 28	Minneapolis, MN First Avenue
APR 29	Winnipeg, MB West End Cultural Centre
MAY 01	Edmonton, AB The Starlite Room
MAY 02	Calgary, AB Republik
MAY 04	Vancouver, BC Commodore Ballroom
MAY 05	Seattle, WA El Corazon
MAY 06	Portland, OR Hawthorne Theater
MAY 08	San Francisco, CA Slim’s
MAY 10	Hollywood, CA Troubadour
MAY 11	Anaheim, CA House of Blues

U.K. power metallers Dragonforce – best known for the finger-aching, ragequit-inducing fretshredder “Through the Fire of Flames” made popular by Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock – announced Thursday the dates of the their upcoming North American tour this spring.

The band will be fronted by its new lead singer, Marc Hudson, on their new album, The Power Within, out April 17.

The tour starts at the New England Metal & Hardcore Festival in Massachusetts and wraps up at the House of Blues in Anaheim, CA, with stops at such iconic venues as Seattle’s El Corazon, Vancouver’s Commodore Ballroom and Hollywood’s Troubadour on the Sunset Strip.

Tickets for most shows go on sale this weekend via Ticketmaster and Live Nation.

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Prime Shots: Iced Earth

ISO 1250 | f/2.8 | 1/500 | 35mm

Jacob Zinn

Stu Block, the new frontman of Iced Earth, pushes his vocal chords during the heavy metal band’s set at the Commodore Ballroom in Vancouver on Valentine’s Day. The group is currently on a co-headlining tour with progressive metal pioneers Symphony X.

Review: Symphony X and Iced Earth share stage in Vancouver

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Tour Alert: Mastodon, Opeth & Ghost North American Dates

APR 04	Portland, ME State Theater
APR 05	Boston, MA Orpheum Theater
APR 06	Montreal, QC Metropolis
APR 07	Toronto, ON Sony Centre
APR 09	Philadelphia, PA Electric Factory
APR 10	Wallingford, CT The Dome
APR 11	New York, NY Roseland Ballroom
APR 13	Chicago, IL Riviera Theatre
APR 14	Grand Rapids, MI The Intersection
APR 15	Pittsburgh, PA Stage AE
APR 16	Knoxville, TN TN Theater
APR 18	Oklahoma City, OK Diamond Ballroom
APR 19	Dallas, TX Palladium Ballroom
APR 20	San Antonio, TX Back Stage Live
APR 21	Corpus Christi, TX Concrete Street
APR 23	Denver, CO Fillmore Auditorium
APR 25	Las Vegas, NV House of Blues
APR 26	Los Angeles, CA Gibson Amphitheatre
APR 27	Oakland, CA Fox Theatre
APR 28	Reno, NV Grand Sierra Resort
APR 30	Seattle, WA The Paramount
MAY 01	Vancouver, BC Orpheum Theatre
MAY 03	Edmonton, AB Edmonton Events Center
MAY 04	Calgary, AB MacEwan Hall
MAY 05	Saskatoon, SK The Odeon
MAY 06	Winnipeg, MB Burton Cummings Theatre
MAY 09	Washington, DC The Fillmore
MAY 10	Charlotte, NC The Fillmore
MAY 11	Myrtle Beach, SC House of Blues
MAY 12	Atlanta, GA Masquerade Music Park

Last week, Atlanta sludge metal outfit Mastodon announced their North American co-headlining tour with progressive rock five-piece Opeth.

The two groups – supported by Swedish melodic heavy metal band Ghost – will trade off performing last on the 30 double-billed shows throughout the Heritage Hunter Tour, which starts April 4 in Portland, ME and wraps up in Mastodon’s hometown on May 12. Out of the seven Canadian stops, they are only set to close the Calgary show.

Their critically acclaimed fifth studio album, The Hunter, debuted at #10 on the Billboard 200 charts last September and was named Album of the Year by Metal Hammer and Classic Rock Magazine. As of December, it had sold 75,133 copies in the U.S.

Mastodon’s setlist will likely include new hits such as “Black Tongue”, “Dry Bone Valley” and the Grammy-nominated single “Curl of the Burl”.

Tickets for all shows are on sale. Mastodon is scheduled to close the following 14 dates:

• April 4 – Portland, ME
• April 9 – Philadelphia, PA
• April 10 – Wallingford, CT
• April 11 – New York, NY
• April 13 – Chicago, IL
• April 14 – Grand Rapids, MI
• April 15 – Pittsburgh, PA
• April 18 – Oklahoma City, OK
• April 25 – Las Vegas, NV
• April 28 – Reno, NV
• May 4 – Calgary, AB
• May 10 – Charlotte, NC
• May 11 – Myrtle Beach, SC
• May 12 – Atlanta, GA

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Prime Shots: In Flames

ISO 1600 | f/2.8 | 1/40 | 24mm

Jacob Zinn

Anders Fridén, lead singer of melodic death metal group In Flames, reaches out to hardcore fans in the front row Monday night during the first of the band’s two shows at Vancouver’s Commodore Ballroom. The Swedish band is credited with pioneering the heavy metal subgenre.

Review: In Flames set the Commodore on fire

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Prime Shots: Steel Panther

ISO 800 | f/2.8 | 1/60 | 30mm

Jacob Zinn

Michael Starr, lead singer of Steel Panther, bends over backwards Thursday night during “Supersonic Sex Machine”, opening the first of two sold-out shows at the Commodore Ballroom in Vancouver. The comedic glam band is set to embark on a headlining tour of Europe.

Review: Steel Panther goes balls out at the Ballroom

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Prime Shots: The Sword

ISO 1600 | f/2.8 | 1/40 | 24mm Kyle Shutt of The Sword bends the strings of his Gibson Les Paul during Wednesday’s show in Vancouver. Date: November 23, 2011 Location: The Commodore Ballroom, Vancouver, B.C.

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