Stephanie J. Bartik was always surrounded by photography and music, so it seemed a natural transition to blend two of the things she is most passionate about as her chosen profession. It's been a long road she's traveled to get there: from being “the person with the camera” at family, work, or school events, to photographing families, weddings, and real estate listings, then starting to take headshots. When asked by a friend to photograph a festival for a radio station website, the movement, lights, and music grabbed her and never let go. It was at exactly that moment when she knew she wanted to be a music photographer. “I wanted to show anyone not present, what they missed,” she says. “To share what I saw, and how I felt.”
Leylines, a four-piece technical metal band, headlined the Extreme Music Awards 2026 pre-party at Empire Underground in Albany NY on 1/16/26.Continue Reading
Albany metallic hardcore veterans Crimson Mask helped kick off the Extreme Music Awards 2026, crushing their set at the pre-party at Empire Underground in Albany NY on 1/16/26.Continue Reading
Upstate metal veterans 1000 Yrd Stare sonically brutalized the Extreme Music Awards 2026 pre-party at Empire Underground in Albany NY on 1/16/26.Continue Reading
Hardcore stalwarts Faded Line brought the crunch to the Extreme Music Awards 2026 pre-party at Empire Underground in Albany on 1/16/26.Continue Reading
518 death metallers Incontinence were impossibly heavy at the Extreme Music Awards 2026 pre-party at Empire Underground in Albany NY on 1/16/26.Continue Reading
Upstate metalcore outfit The Lycan were truly rabid at the Extreme Music Awards 2026 pre-party at Empire Underground in Albany on 1/16/26.Continue Reading
Upstate heavyweights Banshee kicked off the Extreme Music Awards 2026 pre-party at Empire Underground in Albany on 1/16/26.Continue Reading
Wilkes-Barre, PA alt rockers Breaking Benjamin co-headlined a soggy, but spirited show at SPAC in Saratoga Springs on 5-23-25.Continue Reading
Ocala, FL metalcore act Wage War brought the heavy to SPAC in Saratoga Springs on 5-23-25, opening for alt rockers Breaking Benjamin.Continue Reading
Lynch Mob, led by ex-Dokken guitar legend George Lynch, rocked the Strand Theatre in Hudson Falls hard on 3/2/25, amid their Final Ride Tour.Continue Reading
Springfield, MO, hard rockers Paralandra kicked off the night at the Strand Theatre in Hudson Falls hard on 3/2/25, opening for Lynch Mob.Continue Reading
Guitar virtuoso and Berklee professor Joe Stump brought his supersonic six-string pyrotechnics to Empire Underground in Albany on 1/18/25.Continue Reading
Hudson Valley prog-metal shredders Last Pharaoh were the ideal complement to axe-man Joe Stump at Empire Underground in Albany on 1/18/25.Continue Reading
Tom Atkins Band brought their fiery licks to the stage in support of iconic axe-man Joe Stump at Empire Underground in Albany on 1/18/25.Continue Reading
Local sludge metal slingers Jupiter Queen helped kick things off in support of axe-man Joe Stump at Empire Underground in Albany on 1/18/25.Continue Reading
Local alt-rock/grunge faves Same Old Rat helped kick things off in support of axe-man Joe Stump at Empire Underground in Albany on 1/18/25.Continue Reading
Trans-Siberian Orchestra returned to Albany on 11/20/24 for the classical-metal group’s beloved annual Christmas show at MVP Arena.Continue Reading
Legendary British hard rockers Deep Purple celebrated “50 Years of Smoke on the Water” at SPAC in Saratoga Springs, NY, on 9/4/24.Continue Reading
British prog rock icons YES gave an astute sendoff to headliners Deep Purple at SPAC in Saratoga Springs on 9/4/24.Continue Reading
South Carolinian singer-guitarist Hannah Wicklund brought a youthful energy to SPAC in Saratoga Springs on 9/4/24, opening for Deep Purple.Continue Reading
Legendary shock rocker Alice Cooper returned to The Palace Theatre in Albany on 7/31/24, featuring guitar wiz Nita Strauss back in the lineup.Continue Reading