Category Archives: Gigs

Olly Murs – The Tour

By PaulReiffer | Published May 24, 2011

The sound of screaming kids isn’t exactly on the top of my list of wishes – but it turns out I judged Olly’s tour all wrong. It seems, strangely, that when Mr Murs plays a gig the sound of the screaming kids is drowned out by… the sound of their screaming mums!

Yes, it seems he attracts quite a range of fans to say the least

Trying not to upset the front row too much (it seems us photographers have a habit of getting in the way for the first couple of songs!) I captured previous X-Factor star Olly Murs at his Portsmouth gig on the 19th May. Full of energy, along with the odd goofy stage-trick , Olly didn’t disappoint his adoring fans, and gave a performance that I’m sure left many with a sore throat the next day. This was one heck of a “screamer” in terms of gigs, and ironically, the only one which I forgot to pack my earplugs for!

Anyway, coming on to rapturous applause and chants of his name, he took the stage and didn’t hold back. Armed with his custom rebel chain mic stand (which looks amazing!) he blasted out the first half of the set while seeming to make use of most of the audience as backing singers too!

On to the second half, and not only did Olly manage to bring his sister Fay on-stage to sing to her, he also managed to cover a Stevie Wonder medley – much to the pleasure of those in the audience who knew all of those words too!

Introducing his new “Rock-n-Roller” mic stand from Rebel as well, the second half gave him a few stage tricks too: It turns out, no matter *what* you do to this stand, it always gets itself back upright! Hard to capture in a still photograph, but if you ever see one, you’ll know about it; it certainly keeps the artist on their toes trying to catch it when it comes back at them!

Overall, a great show – put on by a great group of musicians. I also managed to grab a shot or two of Mark Pusey – a fantastic drummer who’s performed with some pretty well known people in his time

I’ve added a few more photos of the show into the gallery below too (a few are now in the portfolio also) – be sure to check out Olly’s page (and new single), along with Rebel and Mark Pusey too…!

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Also posted in Photo Shoots | Tagged Gigs, Guildhall, Murs, Music, Olly, Olly Murs, Portsmouth, Rebel Mic Stands, X-Factor | Leave a comment

Alexandra Burke – The All Night Long Tour

By PaulReiffer | Published February 16, 2011

What a fantastic night – shooting Alexandra Burke’s Wolverhampton gig with Rebel Mic Stands!

For those of you who don’t know Rebel, they’re the guys who make custom stands for a lot of the music industry – including this absolutely amazing stand that was custom built with metal roses for Kids In Glass Houses. And yes, Alexandra has her own as well…

Mid-way through her tour, we caught her in the Midlands for the concert which has had rave reviews since it started. The venue was full of a mixture of kids, parents, secret admirers pretending to be parents, and the odd one or two who are full-on Alexandra Burke mega-fans (indeed, I saw them!) and the atmosphere was great as she started straight into her act with “Broken Heels”.

The rest of the set list followed, with a huge bundle of energy delivered by the dancers on-stage – but still, no sign of the Rebel stand…

Getting a little concerned, I then realised I had an email from Maria at Rebel from earlier : she uses it on specific songs – Overcome and Hallelujah. So, after a little rest, that gave me time to get into a better position for the photos of songs 6 and 8 in the set-list – and there it was, right on cue: Her “that’s a hell of a lot of glittery stuff” custom metal built, one of a kind, Rebel!

Not wanting to only use it for one song (nor disappoint those in the audience with fake iPhone-lighters at the ready…!) the stage was then set up for her version of Hallelujah.

I DO love the lighting they used in this show – and it gave me some amazing shots. There are a load more of the show in my portfolio – feel free to take a look!

Now, off to retouch some more model shots

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Tagged Alexandra Burke, Concert, Gigs, Music, Rebel Mic Stands, Wolverhampton, X-Factor | 3 Comments

The Wanted – Before they were famous…

By PaulReiffer | Published December 15, 2010

That’s right, “The Wanted” were seen through my lens some time ago, just before they hit the charts and certainly before they were known to the extent they are now.

Now, I’m not going to lie – to say I’m not exactly The Wanted’s biggest fan would be fair. But hey, in June this year, the band members were singing and dancing in front of my lens to their first single “All Time Low”, and I snapped away. Now, from a timing perspective, this was interesting; It wasn’t at a gig, nor a music venue, it was at the Clothes Show in London where they were the warm-up act prior to the fashion theatre’s main show.

Having shot at the Clothes Show previously, it’s the normal routine – an unknown band are placed on stage by their management in order to gain publicity. Granted, what better launch platform than in front of a (predominantly) young female audience if it’s a boy-band you’re managing? But this time was no different to the last – it wasn’t quite the polished performance they’re now capable of delivering, and as a result I stopped clicking and took no more photos…

How little it turns out I know – apparently these guys are “amazing” (according to their teenage following, that is). Indeed, in fairness, bands such as Boyzone, Take That, East 17, etc – all started out with “questionable” routines for their launch to fame, and wow – did these guys surprise me. Fast forward to October this year, and The Wanted’s launch single makes it to number 1 in the UK charts with a follow-up hitting number 2. Ironically, those pictures I’d originally dismissed as of no interest to the world turned out to have captured a group of (now famous) singers right at the point they were about to launch into the UK music industry in a big way.

Lesson learned : Just keep snapping, you never know how things might turn out…!

(PS – I’m still unsure as to why it’s essential to hold onto your crotch in order to sing in tune, but maybe that’s just my age showing – it seemed to work for the females in the audience… )

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Tagged Bands, Clothes Show, London, Music, The Wanted | Leave a comment

Kids In Glass Houses & Boys Like Girls

By PaulReiffer | Published November 18, 2010

Cool – the latest shots from the Kids In Glass Houses gig on 12th November are finally in the Gigs section of my portfolio!

What an amazing night of music, and a photo pass meant I could get up really close to grab some fantastic shots. Not all of the images are stored in my portfolio, but here’s a quick preview of some of the others just in case I missed some good ones…