Sabrina Carpenter fans were asked to head home last night in Portland after a “credible security threat” was realized by local authorities, causing Sabrina to cancel her show just minutes before she was to go on stage.
The opening band Spill Tab had performed, and Sabrina had also performed a soundcheck for VIP ticketholders. Around 10pm, a staff member told fans that the show would not go on, and that the fans would receive refunds. “I am so sorry. I love you very much,” Sabrina tweeted to fans.
“Employees with the Crystal Ballroom called after they received a phone call from an anonymous person claiming they were going to blow up the venue,” says Nathan Sheppart of the Portland Police Bureau.
An AEG rep also said, “While the threat was not directed at Keller Auditorium specifically, Sabrina and event organizers agreed that out of an abundance of caution, the show be called off. Steps were taken to ensure that the audience exited the venue calmly, quickly, and safely.”
Arlington, Texas turned into a Swiftie party this weekend as Gayle, Muna and Taylor Swift graced the stage for the iconic Eras Tour. Taylor played hits from all of her Eras and put on a spectacular show. Check out the photos below, taken by Gaby Deimeke.
Tove Lo kicked off her North American Dirt Femme Tour in Music City with a sold out show at the historic Ryman Auditorium. She started the night with high energy, opening with “Pineapple Slice” before moving into “Attention Whore,” both songs off of her latest album Dirt Femme. She then laid down some ground rules for us before continuing, which included dancing with her, crying with her, and feeling sexy at least once.
We’d be remiss if we didn’t mention the wardrobe! Tove Lo started the night in her iconic golden piece most notably featuring faux nudity, and later changed into a sparkling, fringe-covered outfit with rips all the way up and down the pants. Tove Lo commented on her wardrobe after singing “Grapefruit,” a powerful song about her past experience with disordered eating and her relationship with her body. She told us how it was a long journey, but “I’m glad I did the work,” and that now she is clearly “comfortable being half-naked on stage.” She reminded us that her concerts were a place where she wants everyone to be themselves, resulting in cheers and hugs in the audience.
The setlist included songs from each of her albums, but a highlight of the night was when Nashville was treated to being the first to hear a brand new song called “Borderline” – which we can confidently say is a banger and you’ll want to add it to your playlist when it comes out in a couple of days!
When Tove Lo came out for her encores, we were surprised by the third outfit of the night, this one all metallic! As she took the stage again, she told us that she had met a man in Nashville the day before and asked him what he wanted to hear at the show. So the crowd was blessed to hear “Stranger” played live for the first time ever, before Tove Lo closed out the night with the song that started it all – “Habits (Stay High)” – and the beginning of Dirt Femme – “No One Dies From Love.” These two were significant to end the night with, as Tove Lo noted that “Habits” was released independently, and Dirt Femme is her first album as an indie artist, bringing her full circle.
If you weren’t with us in Nashville last night dancing and singing and banging on the benches of the Ryman, we hope you’re catching this show during the rest of the tour!
BANKS came to play at Marathon Music Works in Nashville, one of the first stops on her Serpentina Tour. Serpentina is Banks’s fourth album, so she had plenty of songs to choose from when getting ready for this tour. “It was hard to make a setlist,” she said, “Each song is my baby.”
Banks opened with “Misunderstood” to a screaming crowd, flanked by two dancers who struck acrobatic poses as often as they danced in sync with Banks herself. It’s hard to say which songs she played were fan-favorites, as the crowd cheered enthusiastically at the start of each and every new track. But some include “Gemini Feed” off of Serpentina, “Fuck With Myself” from her second album The Altar, and “Beggin For Thread” from Goddess, her first. Before playing “Gimme,” a song from her album III, Banks reminded us all that “it’s time for everyone – especially women – to demand what they want from the Supreme Court.” And we agree that “Gimme”is the perfect anthem for that statement.
Banks told us before playing one song in particular that it was eight years old, but she had only started playing it live for the first time this week on her tour. That song was “Someone New,” and the crowd sang along to every word of the ballad.
Take a look at the gallery below and stream Serpentina wherever you listen to music!
American indie pop rock band COIN kicked off their “Uncanny Valley” tour this month in Phoenix, AZ, and made their way to CA with stops in Los Angeles, San Diego, and most recently, San Francisco. The sold-out San Francisco show took place at The Regency Ballroom and opened with “Learning,” one of the hit songs in their Uncanny Valley album which was released in March 2022.
Throughout the entire 23-song set, the band performed with incredible energy, and lead vocalist Chase Lawrence frequently jumped off the stage to engage with fans. In addition to the songs in the Uncanny Valley album, they also played a few singles including “Brad Pitt” and “Cutie,” along with “Talk Too Much,” a fan favorite from their 2017 album How Will You Know If You Never Try. Throughout the set, the LED panel on the stage displayed impressive visuals which were individually crafted for each song.
COIN’s North American tour continues through October 2022 – make sure to catch one of their upcoming shows and enjoy these photos from the San Francisco show!
Bad Bunny played American Airlines Center in Dallas on February 18th, the first of his two performances in Dallas. He delivered a 2.5 hour set, covering songs from his El Último Tour Del Mundo album, to new hits and classics like “Lo Siento BB:/,” “Yonaguni,” and “Safaera.” His energy and stamina was impressive and the crowd was roaring from start to finish.
On November 2nd, St. Louis gathered at The Pageant to see headliner Walk the Moon – who were back for the first time since 2018 – and opener Jany Green on the Dream Plane Tour.
Jany Green kicked off the high-energy show, and had everyone moving and dancing early in the night, especially while singing his hit single “Little.” Though only joined on stage by his drummer, Jany Green had no lack of presence and captivated the audience completely with his infectious personality and music.
Walk the Moon took the stage after, and front-man Nicholas Petricca asked about how many people in the crowd were at their first show back since the pandemic began. Nearly everyone raised a hand. The magic and gratitude that was felt in that moment from everyone in the venue was palpable. St. Louis had another special moment – Nicholas Petricca grew up in the Lou and had family at the show! The crowd gave them a bunch of applause, too.
And of course, Walk the Moon had the entire house bouncing from start to finish. They played hits including Shut Up and Dance as well new music from their upcoming album that releases on November 12th titled Heights. They came back out for two encore songs, finishing with fan-favorite “Anna Sun,” which, if I do say so myself, was a spiritual experience.
Take a look at the gallery below with photos from the night.
Deanna Wheeler had a special birthday yesterday. She kicked off the Hometown Heroes music festival in Austin, Texas, and hosted the show, held at Brushy Creek Amphitheater. This event is the first large scale social distancing live music festival to be held since Covid-19 began closing music festivals in March.
Dressed in all black and showcasing her signature classic country sound, Deanna and her band got the crowd warmed up for the weekend’s festivities in style.
You can check out the backstage pictures and all the photos from the concert below. Head over to Deanna’s website to learn more about her and her music, and follow her on Instagram here.
Sam Houston performed this Friday night at the Far Out Lounge in Austin, TX. The event was socially distanced and masks were required. You can check out the photos below:
Crowdsurfer: Tell us how you got into shooting shows, how long you’ve been doing it and why you started.
Dusty Kessler: I’ve been shooting music since 2010 when my best friend was starting to perform as a local DJ. I would help him book shows by sending emails to promoters then bring my cameras with me to the shows, maybe there would be 25-50 people there. I started venturing out on my own and hitting up local promoters and other friends in the music scene and was just shooting for free for a while. Eventually that developed into some good business relationships that I still have today with some artists. I guess I started just because I loved live action and music. I never knew it could be a potential career path starting out but i’m thankful to still be shooting.
CS: What are some of your favorite shots you’ve taken over the years and why?
DK: One of my first favorite shots in memory was with G-Eazy, who I still collaborate with frequently. We shot it in Kansas City, MO, while I was in college. He was crowd surfing and I had a strobe in the back of the venue for extra light that I popped off while the confetti blast happened. I’ll never forget that one.
G-Eazy by Dusty Kessler
Recently I’ve been working with Miguel and a few months ago we shot at a festival in California. The shot of him with pryro going off in the background ended up being used on his tour merch so that was an amazing moment. To know there are people on the other side of the world wearing clothes with my image on it is amazing.
CS: What do you think is the hardest part about live concert and portrait photography?
DK: The hardest part for me is also the most fun part which is conveying to the viewer what it was like to be there in person and show the human aspect of the artist. When I’m working with an artist 1 on 1 it’s always a challenge that I break down the barrier between the camera and the subject.
CS: Your aesthetic includes a lot of film photography. Do you prefer film over digital? How has your style evolved over time to your signature style that you use now?
DK: I love film and digital. Film is the best medium to be creative and challenge yourself to slow down and frame up a shot. Yes I have shot film a few times during live concerts but it’s more often that I’ll shoot digital for the performance and any backstage or BTS stuff I’ll shoot a mix of film and digital. Sometimes with such quick turn around times I have to only shoot digital to deliver fast. I think my style has always been about being honest and not staging my shots.
CS: Who are some of the people you’ve gotten to photograph, and who is your dream artist to get to photograph one day?
DK: It’s a very extensive list. Recently I’ve still been shooting with G-Eazy and Miguel. Others include Jamie XX, Hitboy, Ava Max, 5 Seconds Of Summer, 070 Shake, Dan and Shay, Maroon 5 and many more. I’ve shot a lot of artists but I think a dream artist who I’d really like to be on tour with is someone who’s not even known yet to the public. I really like working with artists who are small and develop their brand image and creative. But a Billie tour would be fire too (shout out Matty Vogel)
CS: What do you love about shooting shows and the whole touring experience?
DK: I just love tour and meeting new people all around the world who care about music and come together for that reason. There’s nothing like a live sold out show or festival or tour.
CS: What would your advice be to young photographers just starting out?
DK: Find new artists and be in A&R. Reach out to people and offer your services for free at first and build with them creatively. The rest will come with time and just keep shooting every day no matter what type of camera you have or subject you shoot.
CS: Love that. What’s next for you, and what are your plans for this year?
DK: Right now is a scary time for those in my industry. With the touring and music industry on hold we have to stay creative and get through this together. Hopefully in the next 6 months things get back to normal.
CS: Definitely. Anything else you want to add?
DK: I love hearing from new people. Send me a message on IG @dkessler.
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