Horseshoes & Hand Grenades Memorial Day Weekend

Been awhile since I posted anything on here. It has been a crazy busy summer so far! So many festivals and concerts. Lots of travels as well. Lets hit the first one.  I spent a weekend on the road with Horseshoes & Hand Grenades over Memorial Day Weekend going to two festivals. Dark Star Jubilee in Ohio and Summercamp Music Festival in Illinois.  It was about 1400 miles in 3 days in the ole blue bus.  Got to see some great music besides HHG like Dark Star Orchestra, Railroad Earth and Infamous String Dusters. As per the trip with these guys many laughs as well.

Dark Star Jubilee was a great time and so well run by great people.  HHG kicked off the weekend festival.  Afterwords we all hung out wandered the grounds and took in some Railroad Earth before catching some of Dark Star Orchestra before we had to depart for Illinois.

We arrived the next day at Summercamp Music Festival and were greeted by mud. Lots of mud.   A large storm we had driven through had hit the festival grounds the night before.  We had to leave the bus out by artists check in and get taken back with equipment by Gators. Before load in time on the stage Adam and Myself went and caught The Infamous String Dusters set at the VIP tent.  HHG sound check was against the pulsing sounds of the EDM tent on the opposite end of the field where the stage was.  Awesome.  When showtime hit there had to have been three thousand people in a space where 45 minutes earlier there was not one person.  I think that says something about what these guys in Horseshoes & Hand Grenades are doing and what they provide for music and fun.  We took off shortly after that to get back to Wisconsin and our own beds but it was a great trip and I hope for many more!

Here are some photos from that trip.  There are many more on my Ty Helbach Photography Facebook page!

Dark Star Jubilee

Summercamp Music Festival

Horseshoes & Hand Grenades at Granite Peak

This last weekend got to meet back up with the boys from Horseshoes and Hand Grenades. It was a Central Wisconsin hometown throw down.  The band formed in Stevens point so when they come back to Central Wisconsin its always one hell of a show.  The pre show rainbow should have been a indicator of what kinda night it would be.  This one did not disappoint. Two sets wrapping up a little after midnight. Some of the gang from Dig Deep came and played the encore which ended with a group sing a long. Its moments like that that make live shows so great.  Frogleg kicked off the show and tore it up big time.

 The great part about doing Horseshoes shows is not only are they are great group of guys to hang with but i get a lot of access. So you get some great images on and off stage sometimes.  I have always said I'm a candid guy. Like to slip those shots when no one is looking.   Be a fly on the wall and stay out of the way.  Don't interrupt the show in anyway or the flow of the artists.  I will always be thankful for the trust these guys put in me.

Here are some of the photos from the night.

Pre show rainbow. 

I love the look on Adams face in this one while Maxaphone rips a solo. 

"I brought flowers for the stage instead of whiskey..."

On tour with Horseshoes and Hand Grenades

Recently I had the great privilege to travel on 5 tour stops with the great bluegrass band Horseshoes and Hand Grenades.  We traveled from Sacramento to Las Vegas opening up dates for The Infamous String Dusters.  It was a great insight into being on the road with a band...which i fell in love with. I have always looked at tour productions when I went to a concert and wanted to run away with the circus.  Sometimes i feel more at home traveling then I do at home.  Anywho the band played 5 Venues.

Harlows in Sacramento
The Fillmore in San Francisco
Troubadour in Hollywood
Belly Up in Solana Beach
Brooklyn Bowl in Las Vegas.

Being able to shoot photos and hang out at legendary venues like The Fillmore and the Troubadour was amazing.  There are places you walk into and you can FEEL the history. Both of those venues were like that. You could feel the music that has been played in those rooms.  Big thanks to the gang from Horseshoes and Hand Grenades for inviting me along!

Go to www.hhgmusic.com to find a tour date for these guys near you! Its a heck of a good time.

Here are some photos!

you can go to www.facebook.com/tyhelbachphotography to see more photos from the tour.