Big week at Flashpoint

<-- Click to view photos in Flickr.

This week at Flashpoint has been huge. Apart from students wrapping up the semester and making sure all of their final projects and resumes are in order, some of them have had some other mighty big fish to fry.

On Thursday, Flashpoint Academy welcomed Matt Walker's MDR (Most Dangerous Race) for the rock show of a lifetime at the brand new FPA studio at CBS 2 Chicago. First year (yes, first year) students in all disciplines had a hand in the production, filming, and recording of the concert, and it was without a doubt the coolest thing I have seen since I've been working there.

NBC 5 stopped by to do a piece before the event. You can watch it here:

Flashpoint Students Get a Taste of the Big Time

The press is great, and once the DVD of the show is released that's going to be awesome too, but let me tell you: there is no substitute for having been there. Our students were the utmost professionals. The sound was great, the lights were exciting, the stage was visually interesting. Every detail, right down to the student animations running during the performance, was perfectly choreographed to deliver the most killer concert I've been to in recent memory.

Of course I can't give Flashpoint all the credit. The MDR was out of control good. If you haven't heard of them you've got to check them out. Matt Walker is a staple of the Chicago scene and has toured with basically every band you've ever heard of. Most recently he's been touring with Morrissey (you know, that guy from The Smiths). Anyway, you can hear a bunch of the band's music here, on their MySpace page.

The MDR guys were so cool, too. I've always heard Walker is a very classy guy, and the whole band was very approachable. I got a chance to thank JT McCluskey (singer) after the show. He was so humble and unpretentious that it made me wonder why I ever gave up my dream of being a music journalist. If everyone in Chicago music were as cool of him, maybe I wouldn't have.

Even Billy Corgan of the Smashing Pumpkins, a great supporter and enthusiast of local music, came by to watch the set. As someone who grew up worshiping Billy, I can't imagine the thrill these students must have gotten to have him there. He was there to admire their work! Unbelievable. Where else but Flashpoint?

In any event, last night was a truly magical experience. I can't wait to share more info about the DVD release when I get it. In the meantime, please take a look at the photos from last night that we posted on Flickr, and check out our time lapse videos of yesterday's production below.

To me, this project is absolute proof that Flashpoint Academy is THE place to go for an education in recording arts, film, animation, and game development. When my cousins are old enough I am dragging each and every one of them here for a tour. I would have kids just so they could go here. It's amazing.

Plug time:

For more information on Flashpoint Academy, please click here. And don't forget about our High School Institute! There's still time to sign up!