Nathaniel Riley Opening for Oliver Hazard at the Fox

There’s something sacred about live music—the kind that’s stripped back and soul-deep, where the lyrics land heavy and the room leans in. As a concert photographer based in Colorado, I’ve photographed my fair share of shows, but the ones that stay with me are always the ones that mean something more. This night at the Fox Theater in Boulder? It was exactly that.

Watching Nathaniel Riley, a Fort Collins-based musician I’m lucky to call a friend, open for Oliver Hazard at the Fox Theater in Boulder was one of those slow-burning, quietly significant nights I won’t forget. It wasn’t about flashing lights or a big crowd (though the crowd was plenty and the lights were beautiful). It was about the why behind it. The moment in the moment. The “this matters” part.

Nathaniel and I met a couple of years ago—maybe 2022 or 2023—when I photographed a show for his friend, Joe Kaplow, another musician I admire. Joe was headlining that night at Lulu’s Upstairs when it was still up in Manitou Springs (it’s downtown now), and Nathaniel was the opener. We didn’t know each other then, but I remember how easy it was to see that he was the real deal. Not in the “trying to impress” kind of way, but in the quiet steadiness that tells you this person has stories worth hearing.

We stayed connected after that night. And when I saw he was opening for Oliver Hazard—a band I also happen to really love—I knew I wanted to be there. Not just to hear the music. But to document it. To hold the moment still for him, for his story, for his people. Because I knew what it meant. And I also knew what a gift it is to have someone show up and see you at a moment like this.

So I made the drive to Boulder and walked into the Fox Theater, one of my favorite music venues in Colorado. It’s a space built for listening, you know? A little nostalgic, a little grungy, and always full of heart.

The room filled slowly, the kind of buzz that builds with anticipation. And then Nathaniel stepped on stage—and the energy shifted. It wasn’t loud. It was intentional. Present. His set had this quiet intensity, like he was letting us borrow a piece of something he’d carried for a long time.

He played Hands, his newest release—a song written during what he called a “down in the dumps, too tired to talk kind of depression.” He shared more in a recent Instagram post (which, sweetly, featured one of the images I made for him that night):

“I remember sitting at the kitchen table while this song unfolded, reflecting on how hard it was to be anything for anyone when I hardly was feeling myself...

So the feeling of having to ‘show up’ every day is not always so easy when losing touch deeply within ourselves. Yet still, we show up—and for me, as hard as that can be sometimes, it also can be the very important first steps of healing.”

I felt that.
Deeply.

And I think the crowd did too. You could feel it in the stillness between chords. The kind of shared silence that tells you everyone is with you. Not out of politeness—but out of respect.

As a concert photographer, especially for these more intimate, heart-led shows, I’m not there to just capture a performance. I’m there to hold space with my camera. To catch the nuance—the weight in the shoulders, the flicker of connection, the way music pulls emotion out of the artist and hands it to the room. That’s what I try to document.

And this night? It gave me all of that and more.

I’m so grateful I got to be there—not just because it was a beautiful show, but because I got to give something back to someone whose music has moved me. I wanted Nathaniel to have images that reflect the weight and warmth of that night. Not just what it looked like, but what it felt like to stand in that light, in that moment, in that truth.

If you haven’t listened to Hands yet, please do. It’s soft and strong and everything in between.

And if you’re a musician—especially one writing from the marrow of real life—let’s work together.
I offer concert and live music photography in Colorado and beyond. From Boulder’s beloved Fox Theater to tucked-away mountain venues, I show up with my whole heart and a camera to match.

Let’s make something that lasts.