Noise Pop pays tribute to gifted San Francisco rock photographer
SAN FRANCISCO -- Several noted San Francisco indie-rock bands will reunite this Sunday for a special sold-out afternoon show at the Bottom of the Hill paying tribute to the memory of beloved music photographer Pete Ellenby with local legends Overwhelming Colorfast headlining.
Friends, music industry collaborators and fans of his work were shocked and saddened by the news that Ellenby had died in his sleep of natural causes at his Portland, Oregon home in late July of last year. He was survived by his wife and young daughter.
A fixture at Bay Area clubs during the 1990s and 2000s, Ellenby was one of the most prolific visual documentarians of the San Francisco modern rock scene thanks to his near ubiquitous presence at shows. His often blurry action shots able captured the kinetic excitement of the city's thriving underground music ecosystem. Ellenby also was regularly commissioned with providing local and national acts with creatively staged and lit promo photos as well as black and white portraits.
Ellenby served as the de facto official photographer for the city's annual Noise Pop Festival from its early days as a one night at a single SF club. His portfolio boasts an impressive list of indie and alternative-rock mainstays both from San Francisco and elsewhere, including such luminaries as the Jesus Lizard, Queens of the Stone Age, Afghan Whigs, the Flaming Lips and LCD Soundsystem.
While he relocated from San Francisco to Portland, Oregon, with his wife and daughter soon after his music photo book "Every Day is Saturday" was published in 2006, it was difficult to separate Ellenby from the scene he was so intrinsically linked to with his frequent visits when friends celebrated birthdays or long dormant local bands reunited for one-off shows.
Last October, the Bottom of the Hill hosted tribute to Ellenby's life and photography that featured a number of old favorites getting back together to perform in his memory including such indie stalwarts as Creeper Lagoon, Rogue Wave, members of the Meices and Noise Pop Fest regulars ¡Carlos! The venue has already been serving as a shrine to his work with a number of his photographs covering several walls in a memorial display since the summer of last year.
For this Sunday afternoon Noise Pop 30 showcase, the Bottom of the Hill hosts a reunion by one of the Bay Area's favorite alt-rock bands to emerge in the late '80s, Overwhelming Colorfast. Formed in the East Bay suburb of Antioch by the brothers Reed with Bob on guitar and vocals and Dan on drums, Overwhelming Colorfast channeled the punk intensity and melodic punch of the Buzzcocks and New Day Rising-era Husker Du with their frenetic three-minute pop explosions. Signed to Relativity Records, the band's self-titled debut was helmed by noted producer Butch Vig (Killdozer, Nirvana, Smashing Pumpkins) before he achieved chart success with his own band Garbage.
The band would garner rave reviews and some MTV play with videos for singles "It's Tomorrow" and their buzzsaw cover of the Beatles hit "She Said." The group recorded its ambitious follow-up effort Two Words with Kurt Bloch (of Fastbacks and Young Fresh Fellows fame), another showcase of Reed's powerful voice and storehouse of potent guitar riffs.
While the band would only release one more full-length effort with Moonlight and Castanets in 1996 -- Reed would end the band after the departure of his brother and latter-era members Matt Harris and Mike Drake, who would found like-minded outfit Oranger -- Overwhelming Colorfast has reunited to play live shows locally to a fervent fan base. The band issued nearly an hour of outtakes from the Two Words sessions in 2019 and had their debut album reissued on vinyl by ORG music last year.
The balance of the Sunday afternoon line-up includes an appearance by Sgt. Major 6, a group of Seattle all-stars featuring Bloch and other northwestern notables, the first full set from explosive late '90s SF favorites Kingdom First in decades and openers Oranger, who will doubtless pay tribute to Harris, who sadly passed away two years ago.
Noise Pop 30: Pete Ellenby tribute with Overwhelming Colorfast and more
Sunday, February 26, 1:30 p.m. $20-$25
The Bottom of the Hill
