CREATORS CONNECT – MARK MCNULTY
Hello people of Liverpool city, it’s KOJ back again with a legendary interview for Creators Connect.
This time I’m connecting with one of the most dedicated and prolific music photographers from this city, Mark McNulty. Mark started out as a photographer for the likes of I-D Magazine, Face, DJ Magazine and Mixmag and has shot portraits with the likes of Bjork, Vivienne Westwood and Johnny Marr. He’s worked for Paul McCartney and Yoko Ono and has been the in house photographer for O2 Academy, Sound City, Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra, LIMF and Africa Oyé. Mark has an unbeatable resume and unparalleled experience.
We explore how Mark got started on his journey, his favourite elements of his work and he lets us in on some of the magic that makes his shots feel so special. Let’s get into it!
Renowned for your photography within the music scene dating back to the mid-80s, tell us what was the moment that told you this was your calling?
I’d been into both photography and music since I was about 14 but when I was about 20, I got really into documentary photography and started to take things seriously. I was also in a band for about 5 minutes. We were called Eat My Dog and our first gig was at the Earthbeat Festival in Sefton Park in 1987. However, I ended up leaving the band straight after the gig, but stuck around for the weekend and photographed some of the other bands. I always see that as the starting point.
You’ve done a lot of photography for artists and bands – whether for magazine shoots, promo shots or album covers – what is your process of getting the best out of the subject and to represent them fully?
Whilst over the years, I’ve worked with artists on a very commercial level, often working with stylists and art directors, I always have that love of documentary photography in the background. So I prefer to keep it real and honest and I always want the musicians themselves be happy, as it’s their story that I’m trying to tell.
Your photos often give off a feel of a motion picture. What’s your method of capturing the energy and the vibe of the occasion in the way you do?
I did a lot of editorial work back in the 90s and beyond, so a sense of narrative has always been important. I also started out photographing the rave scene. Being part of that scene and being in the middle of it was important to capturing the best of it, so I still love to shoot in that sort of way. To be part of something, quickly getting an understanding of the story and trying to relay that story back in an honest fashion is the way I always like to work.
You are synonymous with Liverpool music. What’s been your favourite musical period that you’ve captured and why?
I’m older now and I go out less, so I’m always going to look back on the late 80s and 90s as a big favourite and the part that Liverpool played in the rave scene. And how that scene and clubs like Cream helped shape and regenerate the city. More recently I’ve loved the work that I’ve produced with the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra, Liverpool’s biggest band, as I’ve photographed them for over fifteen years. And another great scene that I loved being part of was the bands that formed around and hung out in Evol and Korova Bar in the early noughties and seeing how Revo, the lynchpin of that scene, has just put on a massive arena gig with Red Rum Club. The perfect example of how important it is to both support and nurture the roots music scene of a city.
How important is photography and the visual aspects to music and music culture?
The first record I owned was Revolver by The Beatles. Someone said I could pick that or Abbey Road and I chose Revolver because I thought it had a better cover, so I’ve never been able to separate the music from the visual.
How important is music in the world of a photographer?
Well, personally I couldn’t live without it, whether my subjects are music related or not.
What 3 songs would you choose to be on the soundtrack of your career and why?
Only 3?
Public Enemy – Yo! Bum Rush The Show – the soundtrack to the summer of 1987, the year I started to take photography seriously
Marina Van Rooy – Sly One – One of the first and greatest dance records to come out of Liverpool and the late 80’s/90’s rave scene
Michael Head & the Red Elastic Band – Connemara – A recent single from a forthcoming album. Mick’s been a constant soundtrack in my life, since the early days of Pale Fountains and Shack and I’m well excited to hear the new album, out this year on Modern Sky.
Words by KOJ / @bigdaddykoj
