All photos © Laura Levine/courtesy of Steven Kasher Gallery. Above: R.E.M., Walter’s Bar-B-Que, Athens, GA, 1984

Laura Levine’s portraits of the leading punk, post punk, hip hop and New Wave musicians of the Eighties and early Nineties are on view at the Steven Kasher Gallery in New York City until August 19. For many of us who used to eagerly await each new issue of Creem, Rolling Stone and Trouser Press, Levine’s photos offered access to the Ramones, Afrika Bambaataa, X, Blondie, the Clash and a promising band called REM (back when singer Michael Stipe still had hair).  Since 1994, when Levine stopped shooting, she has focused primarily on her painting and illustration, and also directed films and videos.

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© Bao Nguyen

Hours of pent up energy explode at New York’s Madison Square Garden as Bao Nguyen captures the moment Arcade Fire finally takes the stage. This crowd shot was included in the winners gallery of the 2010 Ultimate Music Moment contest.

All Images © Olaf Heine.

Above: Anna Loos, Berlin, 2010.

Music has been a great source of inspiration for German photographer, Olaf Heine. I Love You but I’ve Chosen Rock is an intimate visual diary of international rock and pop celebrity portraits, and 15 years of  music memorabilia collected over the photographer’s career which will be published by Hatje Cantz in September 2010.

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© Rich Gastwirt

Music photographer Rich Gastwirt captures James Hetfield of Metallica handing his pick to a lucky fan. The band “had a theater in the round situation and were running all about the stage, making photographers chase them around whack-a-mole style.”

This image was the People’s Choice winner in the Ultimate Music Moment Contest. See more rockin’ images here.