Feature Articles

Through These Hardcore Eyes

Smother's interview with one of Hardcore's finest photographic talents

Danielle Dombrowski

Hardcore is a musical genre all to itself. It's characterized by intense live shows with bodies flying through the air and an attitude of motivation towards certain ethics, whether it be Straight-Edge or standing your ground. A lot of "rock stars" have great songs but lack much intelligence when it comes to living or explaining themselves. Hardcore is the total opposite. Every person I've met in a Hardcore band has been quite intellectual and sincere about there beliefs.

In the field of Photography it is very hard for young, new talent to get noticed and with as many people that photograph shows, it's even harder. But, every once in a while someone comes along whose talents shine brighter than the rest and get the recognition they deserve...enter Danielle Dombrowski. She has done photo work for Victory Records and has done covers and insert pictures for such bands as Blood For Blood, Hatebreed, Earth Crisis, Snapcase, and One King Down (just to name a few) and worked with various online and physical magazines.

So, who exactly is Danielle Dombrowski and why should you care? Read and see for yourselves...

Smother: When did you first get into Hardcore?

Dana: My first memories of hardcore are when I was a Junior in High School, June will be 3 yrs. since I graduated. I was more into punk then, like NOFX, The Descendants, Bad Religion, Op. Ivy...etc. The first Hardcore show I went to was a Madball, 25 'ta life, and Biohazard show. That was when I had a simple $50 auto camera. I though those kids were crazy! Remember, that was when I was into punk, so to see a bunch of Hardcore kids beating the crap out of each other was definitely new to me, but I loved it!

Smother: What setup do you use (camera, lens, etc.) to photograph shows?

Dana: Well, like I said before, I started out with a little hand camera. When I graduated, my parents got me a minolta x-700. I used that for a long time...about a year and a half (that's a lotta HC shows) until it got stolen at a Hatebreed show in Conn. My best friend's car was robbed. It sucked, but I had enough money saved up to by a new camera. I was so used to the x-700, that I bought the same one, but a few months after that one of my clients (I'm a hairdresser) made me an offer I couldn't = refuse, so I bought a used nikon n8008s, with a 28-85 nikkor af zoom and a sb-22 speedlight flash. I wasn't so sure about it at first. Using an af slr is a lot different from a manual. For a while I took both cameras to shows, but now I love my nikkon. I've been using that one a lot lately.

Smother: Give us a little background about yourself.

Dana: I'm 20, own part of a salon, stopped going to college to free up some time to do this. I'm also an only child. I'm planning to move in with my boyfriend, Kevin, soon...I guess I'll have to learn how to share right? And I love Hardcore, and take tons of photos....I have only been to one show that I didn't photograph, and that was the day after my camera was robbed.

Smother: Do you make any money doing your photography?

Dana: About 5% of what I spend. That's all I have to say about that!

Smother: How did you get hooked up with Victory Records? Was it through the label itself or through the bands first?

Dana: Two key words here...SELF-PROMOTION! I sent my photos to Victory, a few months later they got back to me, and because of them I've gotten my work in 4 magazines, and on 4 cds of theirs. The live Earth Crisis, Shutdown, Blood For Blood, and the cover for the new Victory singles. It doesn't pay any, but in return they get me into shows and send me lots of merch. Making up for the money I spend on film and developing.

Smother: Do you ever lose any film because of the roughness of the crowds...for example, a stage dive taking out a camera or some freak incident like that?

Dana: No, not really, I try to be carefull. Plus I've been doing this for a while now, so I know where the safest places are to stand on each stage, and the safest bands to be on stage for!

Smother: What was the best show you've ever been to?

Dana: This is a hard question. The first one that comes to mind is the Burn show at the Tune Inn. I sat on the amps the whole time, I had a good view and got awsome photos. There was so much energy at that show.

Smother: In Hardcore, it seems like more of a "macho" toughguy scene, but your photos and dedication show that you are very much a part of it and have contributed much to the scene. How do you feel about the male-dominant overtones of Hardcore?

Dana: That doesn't bother me, that's just the way it is. What I do notice though is that the few girls involved in the scene are usually very dedicated. I wish I had the guts to jump in the pit though. More girls should do that, just to prove that we're not as fragile as society portrays us to be. There's a girl from Syracuse that gets in the pit and kicks all the guys asses. I really admire her. Plus, in my line work, owning part of a salon, I'm around mostly women all day, then at night I'm around mostly males at shows. So it balances out.

Smother: What's right and wrong with music today?

Dana: Freedom of expression is what's right with music, what's wrong is that people are constantly finding a way to criticize that...mostly due to ignorance.

Smother: I've noticed that most females I know don't get involved much in heavy music, especially at shows where a lot of physical activity is going on in the pits and stage diving and such. Why do you think this is? Do you feel that traditional Hardcore kids tend to look down on girls getting involved in "their" scene?

Dana: No, in fact I think its just the opposite. I think they look up to us because we're different than other girls. And I don't really know why a lot girls don't like heavy music. I'm sure a lot of them haven't been exposed to it, and if they were, I hope they would love it.

Smother: What were some of the most intriguing people (in bands) that you've met and why?

Dana: Definitely without a doubt Karl from Earth Crisis. He's a sweet guy. He's different because he shows a lot interest in his fans.

Dana: Thanks everyone for reading this, Mr. Christopher for creating this...and I'd especially like to thank every hardcore band for existing, cause if it wasn't for them, I wouldn't have my photo career. Also thanks to my best friend Nikki for always driving me to all the shows that I photograph, and to my boyfriend Kevin for supporting me all the way!

You can contact Dana by e-mail.
www.meltdown43.com (click on band photos, scroll down to her name and click on it, and theres her photo section)
One King Down page

Next time you open a cd, look for the photographer's name, you might run into Ms. Dombrowski's work.