Contact The Pure Rock Shop

The Pure Rock Shop (TPRS.com) is your source for hard rock and melodic metal news, interviews, reviews, photographs, and more.

We have been covering music news for more than 25 years, and have attended thousands of concerts locally and around the globe.  You can follow us on social channels @ThePureRockShop (or follow us everywhere here now!)

We are an independent, non-profit publication…in other words, this is a labor of love.  If you enjoyed our photos and reviews, or if you want to share some love in appreciate of a photo we captured.  You can help support our publication with tips through PayPal. You’ll find us under kara@tprs.com. Thank you for your support!

Contact our magazine founder and editor Kara Uhrlen at kara@tprs.com for coverage, photo licensing, and collaboration inquiries.

Meet Our Team

Kara saw the vision for the magazine at TPRS.com in the late 90s while working as a contributing writer for local newspapers and emerging social media platforms.

Transitioning to interviews and reviews was a logical next step following her tenure at WDSR at her alma mater Duquesne University where she earned a degree in communication studies.  In fact, she could be found talking to the likes of Ronnie James Dio, Zakk Wylde, and Sebastian Bach in those early years.

For nearly 25 years, Kara has been covering hard rock and metal concerts and festivals internationally.  She’s photographed arena legends like KISS and Aerosmith, reported on festivals in Europe, the Caribbean and across the United States, and covered the explosion of artists like the Trans-siberian OrchestraButch Walker, and Buckcherry.

While she is a writer first and foremost, her journalistic adventures have given her the opportunity to work in radio again at WNJR most recently and given her decades of experience as a photographer.  This has led to freelance creative work and the use of her images on tour posters, convention booths, social profiles, albums, and more for artists like Beasto Blanco, Testament, Jetboy, Buckcherry, and Leatherwolf.

Kara Uhrlen
Editor/Photographer
Facebook: @kara.uhrlen
Instagram: @karapixburgh
Email: kara@tprs.com

Currently a Staff Photographer for the Monsters of Rock Cruise among others, Joe has been a professional concert photo journalist for almost 10 years.

He originally started his work in photography as a hobby while working as an Elevator Mechanic for over 35 years, but has since expanded his photography career full-time after retiring in March of 2022.

Based in Northern Arizona, most of his coverage includes the Las Vegas and Southern California areas.

Joe’s recent contributions include red carpet coverage of the Bowl for Ronnie fundraiser and the Metal Hall of Fame induction of Twisted Sister.

Joe Schaeffer 
Contributing Photographer
IG: @joeschaefferphotography
Twitter: @joeschaef
Whether she intended to our not, Juliana has been raised on rock ‘n roll.  She started attending concerts in mom’s belly and could soon be found wearing over the head earplugs in the front row.

She performed with an Eastern European Junior Tamburitzan ensemble, where she learned to sing, dance, and play a prim (a musical instrument similar to a guitar) before transitioning to violin and guitar.

Her high school orchestra has performed with electric violinist Mark Wood of Trans-siberian Orchestra fame and for crowds of park-goers at the Disneyworld Theme Park.

Her favorite artist is Taylor Swift.  As she works her way up to that level of coverage, Juliana can be found covering emerging artists locally in the Pittsburgh area in her internship role.  Her credits to date also include notable acts such as Lit, Liliac, and The Wizards of Winter.

Her work has even been shared by Aiden Fisher on Instagram. Aiden is the body double from the “Master of Puppets” scene on the Netflix series Stranger Things, and is also known for his viral video with the band Steel Panther. More recently, bassist Greg Smith (The Guess Who, Ted Nugent, The Turtles, etc.) has share Juliana’s coverage of his performance with The Wizards of Winter.

Juliana Uhrlen
Intern/Contributing Photographer