Photos of The Bangles; Or, How To Age Gracefully as a Rock Star

I want to start this by saying that The Bangles performance I attended last Saturday was fun. It wasn't mind-blowing or life-changing, but it was an entertaining evening of music. Also, recall how stoked I was about the prospect of seeing a band with such a long legacy. Keep all of this in mind.

The openers, a group of young guys with forgettable lyrics and mediocre rock melodies, were okay. I actually found myself bouncing along to the music near the end, but I wouldn't say I was even close to interested in seeking out their albums. As expected, I can't find their name anywhere in any of the reviews, even from other cities, on any ticketing sites and The Bangles tour page is currently broken.

It looks like they were a recent addition to The Bangles tour as another group dubbed Vintage Trouble had been the openers until recently. Either way, they didn't really have a fair crack at the audience because it just didn't seem to fit in with their nostalgic headliner. Moving on.

The Bangles' set was really fun. They played several songs from their new album, several covers and a couple of their older songs, namely Manic Monday and Walk Like an Egyptian, both of which I'm fairly sure the audience would not have left without hearing.

But because they did play the hits, the audience ate it up. Packed with thirty-to-fifty- somethings trying to grab onto what they felt at the "prime" of their lives (I never really subscribed to the idea that the twenties are the peak of our lives, but I digress), it was a pretty fun crowd. The Bangles may no longer the icons that they once were (at least for this gal), but they're holding their own, and fans really seem to love it. Which is great.

But it was marred by something else. Something probably beyond the band's control. Something that is a widespread problem.

And a the risk of sounding like a spoiled brat (rather than a respectful member of the press). what I was really disappointed by was the way that their management handled things. Several photographer friends and I took great shots of the night. We were excited to share them with you all, that's why we're there. Despite what it may feel like most of the time, we aren't there to get in the way.

The long and short of the story: the band's management required us to get approval for any photos we planned to use and only offered us one out of the twenty we sent to them. This was after it took them four days to respond with their approval. I begged for more and they offered me two additional shots that look exactly alike, so I chose the one to the right.

What I wonder is whether the band agrees with this policy because they're so concerned about the wrinkles and laugh lines they've accrued over the last thirty years, or if management thinks they should cover up their age to regain the teen idol status.Either way, it's a problem, and it made writing this review tough. I leave you (and the band) with one final thought...

Ladies, you are lovely. You kill it on stage and people love you. Live life to its fullest and show your age because you've earned every year. Don't hide it with low-contrast, retouched photos because we know what you're doing and it just makes things awkward.