Wednesday, October 19 2005
Death Cab for Cutie: Drive Well, Sleep Carefully [DVD]
The goodness of this film relates directly to the viewers' like or dislike of Death Cab for Cutie songs.
Friday, October 14 2005
Baaba Maal: Baaba Maal: Senegal [DVD and CD]
Baaba Maal: Senegal is a trip to another world with Baaba leading the way through music, dance, and spirituality.
Thursday, October 13 2005
Metallica: The History of Metallica: Out of the Loop [DVD]
Everything about this DVD reeks of crass exploitation at its worst.
Friday, October 7 2005
Dizzy Gillespie: A Night in Havana: Dizzy Gillespie in Cuba [DVD]
DG can also mean Deo gratias, and this, by the grace of God, is Dizzy Gillespie in terrific trumpet form when not bringing together his verbal reflections on jazz, its African cultural roots, and continuities across political boundaries and stormy, oily seas.
Tuesday, October 4 2005
New Order: Item [DVD]
This new two-DVD set from New Order reveals a band comfortably situated between art and commerce.
Friday, September 30 2005
Kool Keith: Kool Keith Presents Global Enlightenment, Part 1 [DVD]
News Flash! Kool Keith is Kra~zy! What, you knew that already?"
Monday, September 19 2005
Wire: The Scottish Play: 2004 [DVD]
Two distinct performances from post-punk pioneers Wire; one consistent vision.
Wednesday, September 14 2005
Green Day: The History of Green Day: Suburbia Bomb [DVD]
It's a DVD for those who enjoy interviews of people who knew Green Day in retrospect, but lacks in any actual show of music.
Monday, September 12 2005
The English Beat: In Concert at the Royal Festival Hall [DVD]
Although usually lumped in with the ska revival bands, the English Beat's exhilarating blend of pop hooks, reggae rhythms, jazzy sax breaks, and punky attitude is difficult enough to categorize that they wouldn't stand a chance on today's genre-driven radio or MTV.
Thursday, August 25 2005
Eric Lewis: Hopscotch [CD and DVD]
A non-anonymous set by a pianist the expert employment agency of the Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra booked, trio then suddenly unaccompanied swinging in a two-handed style with Jaki Byard for precedent. You get to see him play all but one track on an accompanying DVD.
Tuesday, August 23 2005
The Mamas and the Papas: California Dreamin’: The Songs of the Mamas and Papas [DVD]
The band's comet-like rise and fall is a great story, but you won't learn about it here.
Monday, August 1 2005
Devo: Devo - Live 1980 [DVD]
In spite of the poor video quality, the new Dual Disc release is a historical document worth preserving, remarkable for the fact that a record of the show even exists.
Thursday, July 28 2005
The Pretenders: The Pretenders Greatest Hits [DVD]
While the Pretenders admittedly aren't saving the world, in High Fidelity Nick Hornby suggested that some people might be able to extract the meaning of life from one of their chord changes.
Wednesday, July 27 2005
The Sex Pistols: The Great Rock and Roll Swindle [DVD]
Still, 250 hours of footage, and none of it showed up on this DVD...? Ever get the feeling you've been cheated?"
Tuesday, July 26 2005
Einsturzende Neubauten: 1/2 Mensch [DVD]
Of course, there is always something perpetually upsetting about seeing an animated fetus moving through an inky-black universe of German screams and scraping metal.
Monday, July 25 2005
Natacha Atlas: Transglobal Underground [DVD]
She's your private belly dancer and singer who knows what love has got to do with it.
Tuesday, July 19 2005
Eminem: The Anger Management Tour [DVD]
Performances like this are the reason people get hooked on caffeine pills. You'll need a box just to stay awake.
Friday, July 15 2005
Femi Kuti: Live at the Shrine [DVD]
Half concert recording, half character study, this documentary is a striking depiction of the effect artists can have on society when they give their all. And the music's sublime.
Thursday, July 14 2005
Public Enemy: It Takes a Nation: The First London Invasion Tour 1987 [DVD]
With flame in their eyes and clocks around their necks, Public Enemy were setting stages on fire, as showmen with a larger sense of social purpose.
Wednesday, July 13 2005
Paul McCartney: Paul McCartney in Red Square [DVD]
For decades, the Beatles' albums were banned from the Russian people, who risked imprisonment if caught owning them. Nearly four decades later, Paul McCartney played Red Square; as this film shows, the night was magical, joyous, and more than a little heartbreaking.
