Pat Blashill's photographs still make noise

'Photographer Pat Blashill.'

By Brit Jones

If you were into punk rock in Texas, or indeed the United States, in the late ‘70s to the mid-80s, you’ve more than likely encountered Pat Blashill’s photos of the punk scene during that time period. His work was ubiquitous, and in addition to candid shots of bands playing live, he also shot many band promo pics.

One of his better-known photos appears on the cover of Dissonant Identities: The Rock ‘n’ Roll Scene in Austin, TX by Barry Shank, featuring the band Criminal Crew, in full punk regalia, walking through a crowd of churchgoers in their Sunday best. Pat has released two books: Texas if the Reason, a photo history of Texas punk bands, and Someday All the Adults Will Die, a more oral-history take on the same.

I had a chance to chat with Pat recently and, beyond what I already knew, he filled in a lot of blanks for me. As a fixture on the punk scene, his experiences as he relates them are invaluable.

Brit Jones: How old were you when you got into photography? Was it just a hobby or something you wanted to pursue?

Pat Blashill: I was using Kodak Instamatic cameras on our family vacations when I was just a tater tot. Then I started learning 35mm photography when I was about 14 and took a photography class in high school. The teacher of that class drafted me onto the yearbook staff as a photographer, and suddenly I was very popular with my classmates, even cheerleaders and football players! But the more important thing that first photography teacher did for me was to loan me a book of photographs by Robert Frank. I’d never seen black-and-white photos that were so ugly and beautiful at the same time. That’s when I became a photographer.

You’re a very talented photographer with a knack for capturing engaging, action-oriented shots. Did this come naturally, or did it take a lot of practice?

Thank you! Following on from my previous answer, I think I learned a lot from three or four different teachers that I had in high school and college, from reading about photography, and especially from looking at tons and tons of pictures and trying to figure out why I liked certain ones more than others. I lived at the Austin Public Library for a few years, looking at every photobook they had and learning about composition.

Then when I started photographing punk shows and musicians in Austin, I learned by doing. It took me a good three years before I was very good. That’s about how long it takes a lot of punks to learn to really play their instruments well, soooo…

'Butthole Surfers’ GibbyHaynes by Pat Blashill.'

Around what year did you discover punk?

I snuck into punk from the side door. In 1979, my best friend Steve and I were really into Cheap Trick and Devo. We were both ushers at a multiplex movie theatre, and on our breaks, we’d sit in his purple Camaro and listen to Devo’s song “Blockhead” and ask each other, “Why did the guitar player stop in the middle of the solo, then start again, then stop again, man?!”

Then one day, Steve told me his band was playing at a “punk” club downtown, and he said I should come see them. The club was called Raul’s, and Steve was the drummer for the Big Boys. On the appointed night, I walked in, and Steve and all of the Big Boys were onstage. In drag. It seemed unusual, but the Big Boys got their hooks in me, and I was converted. I became a punk rocker.

What led you to punk rock as your primary subject matter? Well, I started university that fall, at the same time that I was going to my first punk shows. Eventually, one of my photography teachers suggested that we should document our own lives, because those pictures would eventually be more valuable to us as people. I was becoming friends with all these characters, like David Yow and David Sims, who would eventually form Scratch Acid and then The Jesus Lizard. I wanted to photograph all these curious people, their bands, their houses, and everything else in the scene because I loved the bands and the music, and it was becoming my life.

Tell us about the wildest thing you witnessed, and did you get photographic evidence of it?

Butthole Surfers shows were always wild. I wish I had seen the Dicks and photographed them more, but they were absolutely terrifying people. It was rare, but I did witness some real violence at parties and shows and tried to photograph it, but I didn’t really capture it. The problem with taking pictures like that is that you have to decide: am I gonna take a picture, or am I gonna try to stop the violence and help the people right in front of me? Or just get out of the way! I was lucky I never had to make those choices.

Speaking as a mostly retired musician, I always loved being photographed on stage. Did you ever encounter any pushback from bands who didn’t want to be photographed or wanted to be paid?

I didn’t. Most of the bands in Austin knew me, or at least had seen me around before, so they didn’t feel like I was a tourist. Nobody ever wanted to be paid, and if I got the feeling that I was bugging people, I’d back off or leave the room. People got used to me. I would also usually ask if I wanted to take a more formal, posed portrait of someone.

These days, I almost always ask the band before I start shooting, especially because they might not know me. It’s a fine line, but I believe you have to try to respect anyone you’re photographing.

Did you ever do a promo picture of a band? If so, which band/s?

Oh yes. I started doing posed group photos in 1984, and even if neither the group nor I said it, all of us understood that every band needs a good group photo to express their style and spread their fame. I think the first ones I did expressly for use as promotion were for Scratch Acid and the Butthole Surfers, but eventually I did promo or album photos for Glass Eye, Doctor’s Mob, Babes in Toyland, Sonic Youth, and Dinosaur Jr. Nick Cave even used one of my pictures of him for a box set of his music.

Posed group photos are a really great way to show people the band and illustrate their vibe. Growing up, I always loved the photos on album covers and sleeves. The individual portraits of the band on the back of Led Zeppelin III are still some of my favorites — very mystical and compelling.

I know you live in Germany now. How long did you call Austin home?

Close, but not Germany! I live in Vienna, Austria, with my wife and two daughters. I try my best to speak German, but I end up murdering the language every time I open my mouth.

I left Austin in 1987 and moved to New York City. Lived in New York till 2005, when my wife and I decided to try Vienna. I’ll most likely stay here until I leave this dimension…

Those three cities define my life. I still go back home to Texas and New York, and I miss the USA, but Vienna is beautiful and peaceful and, most importantly, it’s where my people are now.

'Steve Albini at Julian's Billiards in New York City, 1990 by Pat Blashill.'

What were your favorite Austin / Texas bands to capture live?

I loved photographing everything about the Texas punk scene, including people in their homes or on the street. But for live performance photography, the most exciting and unpredictable bands to shoot were Butthole Surfers, Scratch Acid, Poison 13, and the Dicks. I never knew what any of those cats were going to do onstage, but I was sure it would look sick!

You’ve released two books:** Texas is the Reason, a photo history of Texas punk, and Someday All the Adults Will Die, which is more of an oral history. They’re both fantastic, and I’m not just saying that because you quoted me in Someday. How are they selling, and what kind of feedback are you getting?**

I’m over the moon about how well-received our books have been. The best thing is that the people in the pictures and those whom I interviewed have mostly been really happy about the books and proud of the way they turned out. My feeling is that the people who were there at the time feel the books are a good representation of what we all experienced back in the day. That’s very gratifying. And we got some great reviews from music critics I admire, so that’s the icing on the cake.

***Texas is the Reason, and Someday All the Adults Will Die are available at fine brick-and-mortar stores and via the provided links. ***

About Brit Jones:

Brit Jones spent 35 years in Austin, TX, ostensibly to attend The University of Texas but received his real education immersing himself in the Austin music scene. During that time, he played guitar in punk, rockabilly, and country bands and met a ton of interesting people; he later played with national acts ranging from mediocre one-hit wonders to those with staying power and real success. In 2019, out of gas, he relocated to Houston with his little dog Maya. But music has a way of sinking its hooks in you, and he now travels to Austin to play music with old bandmates and, of course, write for this fine publication.

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