My parents made me study piano. For ten years. It wasn't my thing. My brother was brilliant at the keys. But piano just wasn't my thing. We grew up in a house that played a lot of music. My parents listened to Elvis, Nana Mouskouri, Tom Jones, Beethoven, Nazareth and good old Lithuanian Folk Music- just to give you an idea of the range. My brother and i used to take chop sticks and pretend to conduct Ravel's Bolero. We would fight about which part either of us would sing when we'd listen to the Jesus Christ Superstar soundtrack. 

As an adult, i am seldom found without music playing. i am quite interested in musicality and quality lyrics in tandem. Within the last couple years i discovered the band Blue October. I instantly found the perfect companions for running, driving, singing along, lounging and sharing. The more i dug into their catalogue, the more levels of intrigue i discovered. Here was a songwriter telling his stories without glossing over the gory details. He exposed himself and his troubles, and his chronology of music is his autobiography. I have been a captivated fan since my discovery.

Fast forward to last night. Justin Furstenfeld, the lead singer of Blue October is on tour promoting his book "Crazy Making." A friend and i caught the show at The Ark in Ann Arbor. Now, here is where this blog ties into my photography. i called ahead to find out what the camera rules for The Ark are. I WAS MISINFORMED. i thought i was well within the rules bringing a DSLR with me. So, i was super happy going into the show, knowing i could snap a few pics of my fave musician.

At the end of the night, i waited in line to get Justin's autograph in my book. (i don't entirely understand the purpose of autographs- but we can discuss that over coffee sometime.) (It would have been nice just to have the chance to meet him and thank him for what he does without seemingly asking for even more from him.) 

Onward! Just before it was my turn to meet Justin, an Ark staffer asked me how i got in with my camera. i was immediately guilty, and said, "i called today and was told it was okay to bring any camera." He replied, "That's not my policy." BUSTED! i was so rattled, because here i thought i had done the right thing by asking what the rules were (and if i had been told no removable lenses, trust me! i would have complied. i'm not in the business of giving photographers a bad rap.) and i still broke the rules. He smiled and said, "Well, i hope you got some nice photos." 

Here are a few. 

Ashleigh Stone opened. She was captivating.