SUN CITY FAIR here in El Paso, Texas, ran for two weeks, I had the pleasure of shooting all the national acts that
were scheduled to perform during that period of time, and on April 14th it was FILTER's turn to get in front of my
camera. I’m not a huge fan, but you would have to have been living under a rock not to know who they are. They
have been around since 1993, with “Short Bus” being their first release in 1995, and due to the huge success
of the single off of that album, "Hey Man, Nice Shot", that LP went platinum.
RICHARD PATRICK is the only original member. He was a touring guitarist with NINE INCH NAILS, left them to
form Filter--and hasn't looked back since. With 7 albums in 21 years--not to mention, Richard was getting to be
known for his soundtrack contributions. There was a break from ‘03 to ‘08, and when reformed, JOHN 5 was in
the lineup, but just for that year.
I was able to get in on the “meet and greet”
before the show, converse with the band and
grab some photos--that whole experience was a
real treat. Now the downside was, this show was
poorly promoted, no more than 200 people were
in attendance, which does sadden me. But this IS
El Paso, not a huge metropolitan city. Regardless
of this fact, Filter put on one hell of a show! If
Richard wanted to connect with a smaller crowd,
he truly got what he wanted here. The people who
did show up were true fans and got their hair
blown back for those crazy 90 minutes. Richard
Patrick is one of the best, and had the crowd
eating out of his hands with hits like ”What Do
You Say?”, “Welcome to the Fold”, “Soldiers of
Misfortune”, and of course, “Hey Man, Nice
Shot”--which truth be told, was the song I was
waiting for and it was right on point.
I had a great time this year at Sun City Fair. The
bands they had on the roster were top drawer, no
question there. I just wish there had been a better
turn out for the lot, but those that did show up
were thoroughly entertained. No doubt, Filter will
be remembered for the stellar “second to none”
performance they put on--especially by those
rabid fans in the front row. As far as I could tell
Richard can--and will--put a spell on you…a spell
that will turn you into a fan of this classic national
act.
www.officialfilter.com • www.facebook.com/Filter