Michael Hyatt began documenting the Los Angeles punk band X soon after the group released its debut album in 1980. He had already captured images of related acts in the local scene, which drew the attention of singer Exene Cervenka and bassist John Doe.
Hyatt accompanied the band on its first national tour, serving as both photographer and driver of the tour vehicle. He also recorded performances at the Whisky a Go Go and other venues during the first half of the 1980s, according to LAist.
“I never pose people. I find a location, a backdrop and just let them be human beings,” Hyatt said. “People reach a point where they forget the camera — that's when the good photographs happen.”
The photographs appear in the book X: On the Road & At the Crossroads, 1980-2024. An accompanying exhibition opens September 5 at Beyond Baroque in Venice, the same location where Cervenka and Doe first encountered each other in 1976.
The project also includes images from later periods, including the band's final tour in support of its 2024 album. One photograph from Houston recalls a couple who attended an early X show there in 1980 on their first date and returned for the 2024 performance.
Cervenka will join Hyatt for a reading at the exhibition opening. The display runs through October 17.
This report is based on coverage by LAist: https://laist.com/news/los-angeles-activities/45-years-of-x-through-one-photographers-lens