Picturing Music: Shervin Lainez

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SHUTTERBUG SHERVIN LAINEZ claimed he's "pretty uneducated about photographers and what is going on in that world right now."

That's not to say Lainez is blissfully ignorant of contemporary artistic types; in fact, musicians are among this D.C.-area photographer's primary influences.

"Bjork changed my life, along with David Bowie," he said. "Their clothes, their concerts made me appreciate color in a way I never would have otherwise."

While those superstars would look great on the other side of Lainez's lens, he's aimed his camera on musicians closer to home for his first book, "Happy Accidents."

The collection includes photographs of 25 area indie rock bands/artists, including bigger names, such as Travis Morrison and Georgie James, and relative newcomers, such as Alexis George Band and Pash (shown above). "Happy Accidents" also includes short essays by Paul Michel, Carol Bui and Laura Burhenn, as well as a CD with songs by 12 of the photographed bands.

"I think photographers and musicians are natural allies," said Lainez, pictured at right. "They need each other and they both have the opportunity to create something useful to both sides."

Lainez calls the self-published book a "community art project, not something that was meant for stores. ... I wanted to think of a more interesting way to have an 'art show.' I didn't want anything in frames, and most of all I wanted it to be something with an audio component. A book seemed like the most obvious choice."

The 76-page "Happy Accidents" is part of the small but growing photographic tradition established by Cynthia Connolly's "Banned in D.C." (Sun Dog Propaganda), which focused on this area's early punk rock scene, and Pat Graham's forthcoming work "Silent Pictures" (Akashic Books), which concentrates more on the District's music community in the 1990s.

One of Lainez's most frequent subjects is Laura Burhenn (at left), a solo artist and half of the creative team behind the band Georgie James, which will perform acoustically at DC9 on Wednesday as part of the release party for "Happy Accidents." Lainez took all the photos that accompany George James' debut CD, "Places" (Saddle Creek), and shots of Burhenn appear in several places in his book.

"I think because my relationship with Laura began with taking pictures, we have always had that trust between us," Lainez said of his sorta muse. "Now that I work with her band, Georgie James, I'm realizing that the best artistic environments are among people who really care about what they do."

While shooting Burhenn is a snap, Lainez said the hardest photos to take "are when the subject is completely unwilling to open up. It makes it incredibly hard to capture something when the person you are shooting is emotionally closed off in some way. Luckily, I haven't had many of those."

Lainez has only scratched the surface of the area bands he'd like to photograph, naming Exit Clov and Le Loup at the top of his list, but for now "Happy Accidents" is a nice Polaroid of D.C. indie rock circa 2007.

» DC9, 1940 9th St. NW; with Jesse Elliott (These United States), Wed., 8 p.m., free; 202-483-5000. (U St.-Cardozo)

» Download a 16-page PDF preview of the book here.

Photos courtesy ShervinFoto