Drum Attix

This past weekend Drum Attix founder 100dBs and I visited the music photography exhibit Who Shot Rock & Roll at the Brooklyn Museum of Art. A large show taking up several long rooms, Who Shot Rock & Roll is an engaging look at musicians--and their fans--on and off stage. Among the exhibit's highlights are the original photos used in iconic album covers, sweaty and spontaneous concert shots and intimate photos of daily life including numerous images from the early careers of Elvis and Bob Dylan.

Yet, while the overall quality of the images is high, other curatorial decisions are confusing. As to be expected, the show largely features famous musicians from early innovators like Little Richard and Ike Turner to more contemporary artists like Bjork and Radiohead. Questions start to arise when more outre faces show up. It's great to see the likes of Fugazi, Lydia Lunch and Grace Jones--who commanded half a small room displaying several photographs and a video installation--sharing wall space with the obligatory John Lennon and Mick Jagger shots, but one wonders why these were included and not other sort-of obscure luminaries. There's a has-been like Eminem looking supremely douchey with a rocket on his dick but where's say, Kraftwerk, who have remained influential for years? Then there was a superfluously tiny section I like to think of as Who Shot Tupac and Biggie (Plus A Couple Other Rappers Who Haven't Been Shot Yet). While these photos have merit--particularly the mid-90s era photo of Method Man posing with an undoubtedly colorful hobo named Huckleberry something or other--their inclusion in a self-proclaimed rock-and-roll exhibit seems tacked on hastily. If anything, such a limited nod highlights the narrowness of mainstream rock.

Despite these flaws, Who Shot Rock & Roll is an excellent way to spend an afternoon. Plus, there's 2 for 1 admission until the end of December when you present your metro card.

(As a nice supplement to the exhibit, check out the museum's online collection of 1960s psychedelic concert posters from San Francisco).