Ain’t Noise Pollution Whether it be getting showered in dolphins blood, copping a microphone to the head or suffering permanent ear damage, Ben Butcher and Sarah Maddox have been braving the wilds of the Melbourne rock and roll scene for a couple of years and have come away with some photos and a couple of scars to match. Featuring the likes of Six Foot Hick, Bob Log III, Colditz Glider, The White Stripes, The Sailors, Turbonegro, The Sinking Citezenship, Jihad Against America and My Disco, Ain’t Noise Pollution is a collection of photographic works celebrating Melbourne’s live music scene. Using photography’s equivalent of analogue, the works in the exhibition were created using 35mm cameras and negative film. There is colour, black and white and plenty of grain, but not a pixel in sight. After shooting in and around Melbourne for a couple of years, whether it be band promotional shots, shots for local music press, but mostly just because they were there and they liked what they saw, it seemed about time to give the photos a life and space of their own. Ain’t Noise Pollution is showing at Getrudes, 30-32 Gertrude Street, Fitzroy VIC 3065 (03) 9417 6420 from 2-18 December 2004. Opening Night, 2 December 2004 starting at 6pm and featuring local bands …Das Butcher, The Dacios, The Sinking Citizenship… 8:30pm until late. Contact: Ben at long.exposure@gmail.com or Sarah at sarahmaddox@graffiti.net for more information and for high resolution images ready for print. Ben Butcher is a self-taught photographer whose first solo show was a document of his experience of New York during the fortnight of the attacks on the World Trade Centre. Met with great interest, 9 of Ben’s pieces were acquired by the Australian War Memorial in Canberra for a 5-month exhibition. Butcher has immersed himself in the Melbourne music scene in recent years. Ben is a regular presenter at Melbourne’s cornerstone community radio station 106.7 PBS-fm, and played in the sensational punk rock band Jihad Against America, and the world’s first Jet tribute band, Get Bored. Ben can often be spotted at gigs with his camera in his travel bag always eager to experience the most exciting music Melbourne has to offer. His naive style wonderfully captures the energy, colour and movement of his subjects. And boy, are there some colourful characters out there. Ain’t Noise Pollution is a celebration of the vibrant life of the Melbourne music scene. Featuring the most exciting local, Australian and international acts, this exhibition includes images of; The Big Day Out and Meredith Festivals, The White Stripes, The Sailors, Turbonegro, The Ego’s, Young Heart Attack, The Phillips Sisters, Digger and the Pussicats, The Devastations, Clan Zu, Young Professionals, Mclusky, Wagons, Sonic Youth, Love Like Electrocution, Das Butcher, Six Foot Hick, Spod, Sinking Citizenship, Cockfight Shootout, The Stabs, Jihad Against America, Black Level Embassy, The Grey Daturas, Bob Log III, Rotten Chop, Roadhouse, Royalchord, The Homewreckers, The Bronx, The Bites, Niko Case, Belle and Sebastian, The Blacklist, and My Disco.