Lime Cordiale in Tassie (Tour Diary!)
How exactly did Aedan O’Donnell end up in Tasmania on the tour bus with Lime Cordiale, as his first ever tour-photographer experience? Who’s the most ticklish band member, and what’s the weirdest place their tour manager’s ever fallen asleep on tour? Luckily, we just so happen to have the answers to ALL these burning questions, as well as a fantastic gallery of behind-the-scenes shots from the Tasmanian leg of Lime Cordiale’s recent tour. Read on for it all!
So, how did you end up on tour with Lime Cordiale? And how would you describe the experience?
I live in a share house with Oli and Louis in Sydney. I was quietly editing away when Oli approached me asking if I would like to go on tour with them in Tasmania. Unfortunately, no better alternative presented itself and I reluctantly accepted. A few days later we were in Tasmania and I was trying to figure out how best to avoid Louis' deadly farts in the tour van.
Have you been on tour with any bands before?
No, this was my first time on tour. I used to shoot gigs when I left high school, but eventually moved more towards the outdoor and commercial realms of photography.
How do you find your experience with landscape photography translates to music and tour photography?
In my mind, photography is primarily about constructing an interpretation of your environment. It’s about observing all the goings on around you and then creating an image that conveys the story of that moment. In landscape photography the observations and story are generally related to the changing quality of light over time and it's affect on the environment you're trying to capture - it’s about being in the right place and waiting to see what unfolds in front of you. In the same sense shooting music and tours in a reportage style is about being in the right place and waiting to see what unfolds.
What was your favourite show from Tassie? And why?
The venue for the show in Launceston was a quirky little Irish pub, it was a beautiful venue and the rain outside certainly added to its authenticity. While the guys were sound checking in the afternoon, about 15 locals got together in the bar to play some traditional Irish folk music. It was definitely memorable.
Weirdest/funniest memories from the tour?
After one of the shows a decision was made to to leave the venue in search of Hobart's best (and seemingly only) night club. On the way there, Louis managed to sweet talk his way out of a minor infringement with a friendly neighbourhood police officer. Arriving at the club, we immersed ourselves in some greasy techno until everyone decided to make their way back to bed in hope of a good nights sleep. That is, everyone except Adam the tour manager. The man who holds everything together and makes sure everything runs smoothly and stress-free decided he needed to blow off some accumulated steam. Little did we know he didn't have a key to the hotel room and when he did eventually decide to go to bed at who knows what time, the best option available was the comfy carpet in front of his hotel room door, which is where we found him in the morning.
Weirdest thing about the band you’ve come to know?
Oli is very ticklish and therefore despises the action he likes to call "Ticklies".
Best piece of advice you’d throw out to young photographers who want to head out on tour?
I think that regardless of the genre the best thing to do is to shoot as often as possible. The more you photograph and the more varied the areas of photography you experiment with, the more you'll learn about your own style and subject preferences. No doubt in this exploration of the medium you will meet people and discover opportunities to work with them along the way as your practice develops.
