I finally got out the house. Stretched my legs on a nice subdued Thursday evening and made my way to the upper part of the Tenderloin to see Analog Tattoo‘s new tattoo shop and art show. It’s not as scary as it sounds even though it sits above one of SF’s most poverty stricken areas, but it’s still not a total good idea lugging around thousands of dollars worth of camera equipment. I am usually pretty unfazed by the ghettos here and I’ll gladly bite any hobo in the shin if it meant freeing up my shit. After all…I do have rabies.

Stepping into the newly revamped building, you first notice a sea of work gathered by the collective that are the true masters of tattooing of today. Analog shows it’s high allegiance from the greats with Shawn Barber, Chris O’Donnell, Mutsuo, Ichibay, Mike Davis, Toby Torres, Horitomo and Mike Giant just to name a few.

Tattooing poses a number of myths and facts resulting in some interesting statements and outcomes. Myth: Tattooing your arm miraculously makes your penis bigger! Fact: If a girl has a tramp stamp, always tell her about myth #1. Myth: A girl will go home with you because of your myth #1. Fact: Masturbating with a tattooed arm is like the prison version of the stranger.

Though evidence will prove me wrong, I still like my tattoo artist to have somewhat of a solid background in arts. It’s not so much that it will be reflected in their tattoo work but more so that there are creative juices flowing in their heads whether it’s picking out the right colors or adjusting the composition in seeing how a piece will lay on the body. It shouldn’t be such a cookie cutter system. Every tattoo should be treated as a framed work of art.

Dragon by Philip Leu on the left going for a measly $9,000. Worth every penny. And on the right…if you are seeing a man sucking on his own red penis…then my friend, you do not need glasses.




De La Soul has accepted their fun old age while jarring at the fans this past Friday, saying how they hate performing such great hits as Saturdays because in hindsight, that song is just really stupid to do live. Like three brothers up to no good, Posdnuos, Trugoy, and Maceo proceed to get busy while jabbing subtle lashes at each other the whole time. “Look at this old ass nigga! His kids got kids!”. Proudly Maceo takes a bow saying, “At least it was with one woman!” and the crowd goes nuts. Score one point for monogamy.

It’s been 25 Years since the release of Three Feet High And Rising and as some sort of thank you from artist to fan, De La Soul decided to release their entire catalog up for download just for one day and one day only (but a month ago). It was their way of giving back and offering their music to people that want to listen or have been listening this whole time.

I have still yet to get this photography thing at concerts. It’s like coming to a porn set and you see this guy next to you and just think, damn this guy has a bigger camera than me! I mean I am content with what I have (snub nose 50mm and a 24mm to match) but you can’t help but wonder if this guy is going to outperform you with his girthy zoom and huge flash. So I do a half shiver to spark some blood in my system and get ready to fuck…I mean shoot.

In the beginning I am always slow to the draw. I sort of pop a shot to check the lighting, set my ISO at a proper number and when the tempo starts pumping, I send my camera into AR-15 mode. Click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click……..


……..click, click, click, click…”Thank you San Francisco. GOOD NIGHT!”…and the fingers rest. By the end of it after over 700 shots of pure shit, I was able to capture 12 super clear photos that are now posted on this blog. My ratio is messed up but I still left with what I came for. Praise Allah for digital cameras, memory cards and De La Soul for 25 years of excellence. That was truly one of the funnest shows I have ever been to.