Why is SR-71 my favorite band, you ask? I shoot so many great bands, and SR hasn’t really been together and playing for years…. kind of an odd choice for a favorite band, right? Well, the first concert I ever went to was an SR-71 concert, and they’re the first band I ever shot. Basically, you can thank them for the existence of this blog :) Aside from their monumental influence in my life, they’re also just a lot of fun… very interactive with the audience and great stage presence.

Now, as mentioned, SR doesn’t tour, and they rarely play. They’re still busy though – Mike Ruocco (bass) is now in the band Cinder Road, John Allen (drums) is in Charm City Devils, and Mitch Allan (vocals) does a ton of writing and producing. However, once a year, or once every other year, they all get back together again to play a Thanksgiving show in Baltimore. It’s always great timing for me, because I’m always in Maryland during Thanksgiving week at my big family gathering and can usually sneak away for an evening, which was the case for this show.

This set specifically was a treat – not only did they play for around an hour and a half, but John took over vocals and played a Charm City Devils song. The set also included some acoustic-ness which was a nice change from some of the more upbeat songs.

(more…)