If you’ve attended a show at Hotel Vegas or Chess Club in recent memory, odds are you’ve crossed paths with David Fox. From his freewheeling live shots of grunge staples Die Spitz to an album insert for Being Dead’s 2023 debut When Horses Would Run, the photographer stands out as one of Austin’s most dedicated live music documentarians.
Fox is no newcomer to the scene, though – he’s kept his boots on the ground of Austin venues for nearly half a century. His long-overdue first-ever official photo showcase – along with a birthday celebration of Velvet Underground guitarist Sterling Morrison – takes over Tweedy’s on Friday night. Billed as a “rock and roll memorabilia extravaganza,” the collection documents Austin’s nascent punk and New Wave scenes from 1978 to 1988 as seen through the eyes of Fox.
“I had this collection of pictures [in my house] called the Music Box, and I’d started putting them on Instagram,” explains Fox, who posts under the handle @musicboxatx. “I’ve always wanted to do something with them, because I felt like it was a really cool body of work about a time that some people might be interested in besides me.”
Among the interested was Jason McNeely, part-owner of West Campus hot spot Tweedy’s. In particular, a photograph of Sterling Morrison exiting famed West Campus punk club Raul’s caught his attention. An enlarged print of the black-and-white shot has graced the inside wall of the hangout since its opening days.
McNeely’s support paved the way for Fox to showcase his work in a brick-and-mortar setting. A house band – fittingly dubbed Raul’s Class of ’78 – will soundtrack the opening soiree. Many of its members consist of the very same musicians represented in the exhibition, including Jesse Sublett of the Skunks, Larry Seaman of Standing Waves, Ty Gavin of the Next, and Lisa Gamache of Max & the Makeups. Other subjects in the entirely black-and-white gallery include legendary producer Spot, punk pioneers Big Boys, and the Huns, infamous for a riot-inducing kiss of a cop at a 1978 Raul’s gig.
The exhibition will remain open for at least a month, with some of the photographs migrating next door to the adjoining 29th Street Ballroom after the show wraps. Individual prints will be available for sale, along with a tabloid-sized zine featuring standouts from the collection.
Over the decades, Fox has worn many different hats, including a role as an archivist/office manager at South by Southwest for over a decade. While aspects of Austin are unrecognizable from the time period captured in his photographs, Fox’s love for his art – and the art of others – has never wavered.
“When I first started taking pictures at live music events,” Fox says, “I felt like I was really making a contribution as a documenter. Now, when there are billions of photographers on the planet, I don’t think that’s so much the issue.” And yet, he continues to shoot an average of three live shows a week throughout the year. “I still like doing it – trying to fit everything important in the frame and capture a bit of the emotion and excitement.”
“A famous photographer, Robert Capa, once said, ‘If your pictures aren’t any good, then you’re not close enough,’” Fox adds. “On the other hand, he died from stepping on a land mine.”
Sterling Morrison’s Birthday & Exhibition of Photography by David Fox
Friday 29, Tweedy’s
This article appears in August 29 • 2025.