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Infomonkey's Music Blog
In this space: Music news, interviews with local artists, album and concert reviews ... and whatever else comes along.
Contributor Kim Kinrade is a musician, novelist and blogger based in Dartmouth.
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Kim Kinrade's blog Music Before the Money
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Halifax Image Smith |
 JUNE 22, 2007
BY CARSTEN KNOX In the four years that Chris Smith has lived in Halifax, the guy has made a lasting and distinct mark in the music business, makin’, as his website says, “dirty, hairy musicians look good.” He’s even rebranded his name; you may have seen it spelled “CHR!S SM!TH”. Originally a designer with an interest in photography, the Newfoundland-native is a multi-award winner (ECMA Designer of the Year Award, Music Nova Scotia Visual Artist of the Year, The Coast Music Photographer of the Year) who has helped mold the careers of many Atlantic acts with his in-concert and promo photography and creative album design, including Patrick Boyle, Brothers In Stereo, Joel Plaskett, Matt Mays and El Torpedo, The Divorcees and The Novaks.
Also a member of the Viewpoint photo gallery collective, Smith (who shouldn’t be confused with the Chris Smith who runs the Pavilion) has dabbled in fine art as well as commercial variants, and sees his interest in both overlap. For example, today (Friday) a skateboard deck he designed will be one of a number auctioned off in a fundraiser for the Halifax Skate Park Coalition. It takes place at The Argyle Fine Art Gallery on Water Street at 6pm.
Smith has always been interested in music: In the eary 90s while going to Memorial University he was a music journalist for the student newspaper and had a radio show on the campus station. He also plays drums. Recently he's been jamming with a group of like-minded musicians. We may see Smith step out from behind his camera and computer and onto the stage again soon.
• What came first, the photography or the design work?
Photography came out of design. I’d been a professional designer working at ad agencies for quite awhile… 8 years. I got sick of having to buy stock photos all the time. So, I started to get more and more into photography to start fulfilling the ideas I had myself as opposed to hoping I’d find the photo I needed online. Naturally, I started shooting bands playing live because I’m always at shows. Eventually I started getting good at it. I didn’t go to school or anything, I just kept pressing buttons until it made sense. After that I started taking promo photos because I knew a lot of the bands, I also used to book bands. I used to be a promotions manager of a bar in Newfoundland.
• Do you approach an artist with an idea on how they should present themselves, or do you wait to meet with the artist to hear what they suggest?
The ideas are generally my ideas. Usually they give me the music if I don’t have it already, I go home listen to it over and over. I also have a meeting with them, I like to hash stuff out. Feel out how they see themselves as a band or a solo artist. I take all that information and churn it around in my head listening to the album. I come back and go, “This is how a photo will look of what you sound like!”
• Fifty years of rock and roll have offered a lot of iconic images, many of which have been replicated and become clichés, how do you avoid doing something that has been done already?
Well, I’ve got a few rules. One of the first things I tell bands is: “no brick walls, no stairwells, no train tracks.” I’ve got my list of things I won’t do because they’re so done. Generally it has nothing to do with what’s trendy. A lot of times it comes from their lyrics. It tends to be very specific and therefore off the beaten path.
• Is there a band out there that is your dream band? A group that you’d like to work with but haven’t yet?
Nothing specific. I generally do it on a band-by-band basis as they come to me. I haven’t got the time to sit around dreaming… there are a few bands that haven’t asked me yet! I’m very busy.
• What’s the most fun thing hat has happened to you while you’ve been spending time with a band?
Shoots are a lot of fun. The one I did with Pogey, I did their album and press photos. We rented a bunch of tuxedos and went swimming in their buddy’s pool. Not an average day for most folks, I don’t think. There was an album cover I did for a guy named Colin Barley in Moncton. It’s got a picture of a gun coming out of his mouth. He’s got a song on the album “Shooting His Mouth Off.” One of the best parts of that shoot was calling up a gun shop and asking if we could borrow a gun for an hour.
• And they were they OK with that?
You’d be happy to know they’re not. We managed to wrestle a pellet gun from them suited the shoot quite well.
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