Hard Vision |
January / February 2008This Ain't Your Mom's Hardcore | Quodia | The Pink Floyd & Syd Barrett Story | Queen | The Rolling Stones | Guns 'N Roses | The Byrds | Tim Buckley | Kenneth Keith Kallenbach | Johnny Thunders | Genitorturers | Leonard Cohen | Vader | Dark Funeral | Neo Full Lock Media Presents: This Ain't Your Mom's Hardcore Volume 2 If the first volume is just as good as this release, well, I'm sure you don't need a review to tell you to pick this one up. If that one's in your collection, it's probably a good bet that you either already have this release or you're in the process of getting it. So, let's just type a little something up for the people who may not be familiar with this release. Ah, yeah...first of all...there's way too much music on here for me to go through it and pick out what was cool and what have you. Of course, with personal taste, you're not gonna like every band on here. There were a few that I could've done without and there were a few that caught my attention. But, what I like isn't important. What is important is the quality of the release. If you're gonna spend money on it, that's what you wanna know about, right? Well, you can pick this up for under twenty dollars and, believe me, it's worth every freakin' penny...and I say that being a casual hardcore fan. If you're totally into this style of music, I don't think the price will even matter to you because I'm sure you'll agree that it will be money well spent. Why? Well...you get two and a half hours plus worth of music. Mostly live performance with a video or two thrown in for good measure. The way it's set up, it's a very entertaining viewing experience. You're not gonna get tired of watchin' it once you get into it. I should know...I sat here and watched it from begining to end all in one shot. So, if it held my attention, I'm pretty sure it will hold yours as well. It's almost non-stop energy...and I say "almost" because they throw in some interviews to kind of even things out. Uh, what else...well...it's not just clip after clip of a live performance. Wait...scratch that...that's kind of exactly what it is. But, with the camera work and the special effects that are added to each clip...that's what makes it so pleasing to the eyes. As you're watching this release, it's pretty clear from the word go that a lot of time and effort was put into this release. This wasn't just some compilation that was thrown together. It goes way above and beyond that. Anything I say isn't gonna do this release justice. You have to watch it yourself to understand just how great it really is. That's the only way you're really gonna appreciate what you have here. The line up includes, are you ready for this...22 bands...and they would be As Cities Burn, Remembering Never, Bury Your Dead, Maylene & The Sons Of Disaster, Misery Signals, Drop Dead Grogeous, August Burns Red, Haste The Day, The Chariot, Secret Lives Of The Freemasons, Scarlet, Showbread, Chasing Victory, Ligeia, Thumbscrew, Heavy Heavy Low Low, The Number Twelve Looks Like You, Grace Gale, Becoming The Archetype, Twelve Gauge Valentine, Destroy The Runner and Classic Case. That's enough to make your head spin and then some. There's no question about it, there's no doubt in my mind. You want this release and that's all there is to it. So, if it's not in your collection...get it...and get it NOW! QUODIA I listened to most of this and found it quite boring. The music is spoken word stuff with a synthesizer and a few drum parts. The music is somewhat spacey, but it didn't do anything for me. This would be good as some soundtrack to a movie and stuff, but I can't see many people who read reviews on this website digging this stuff. The words are all spoken word with keyboard parts as backround music. The DVD is some visual stuff that wasn't any better than the CD. Not for me at all as I found this very boring. Info: http://www.quodia.com The Pink Floyd & Syd Barrett Story Syd Barrett was and still is a legendary figure in the world of music. His story has been told over and over again. Some people get it right. Some people don't. Some don't even try. I've seen some other releases which failed to capture my attention due to the fact that I'm not a huge Pink Floyd fan. I basically like "The Wall" and that's about it. Needless to say, I wasn't too happy when I had to sit down to watch this release. I have better things to do with my time than to sit here and watch a film about something that I don't really care about. However, this documentary was done right and I think it did a pretty good job telling the Syd Barrett story, probably because they got the story directly from the people who knew him best...the members of Pink Floyd. No one knows what happened better than those guys. They worked with Syd and they experienced both the good and bad times. There was one release that I saw where they had people who maybe wrote about the band or decided to study their career for an article and it was like, "well...maybe he did this...maybe he did that" and "this band member was probably thinking this and that band member was thinking about that" and blah, blah, blah. If you're gonna do a story on someone who many people consider to be a legendary figure, it's not good to just throw any old opinion out there. At least this release goes right to the source and that's the beauty of it. You're not getting second hand information here. If you're a real Syd Barrett fan, this is the release to have...end of story. Besides the main program, you also get a bonus DVD that features that features the complete interviews with Pink Floyd members and acoustic performances by Robyn Hitchcock and ex-Blur member Graham Coxton. From what I understand, this release has seen the light of day at least three times in the past. I haven't seen the previous versions. So, I can't comment on them. However, from everything I've read, the other reviews seem to agree that this is, indeed, the best version. If you already have a previous version of this one, it may be time to upgrade your collection...again. If you're a fan, I believe it will be worth it for you. http://www.otmoorproductions.com QUEEN I have always thought Queen was a cool band and I watched this with great interest as I think Freddie Mercury was one of the best rock singers period. This includes interviews with some rock journalists and 2 singers that are in Queen tribute bands. This is a cool DVD that any fan of Queen would want in their collection and the quiz in the bonus features is insane as I hardly got any answers right ha ha. Info: http://www.mvdb2b.com THE ROLLING STONES I am not a huge Rolling Stones fan, but I do like some of their songs and I respect what they have done over the years and the fact that they still have it live amazes me. This DVD takes you back to the bands early days and I really didn't know much about the band, but watching this I learned a few things and some of their early stuff is the best stuff they have put out. You get some live footage and the people they interview know the band well and they trace the early versions of the band. How can you go wrong with: Jumping Jack Flash, Brown Sugar, etc. 90 minutes and if your a Stones fan this is a must get. Info: http://www.mvdb2b.com GUNS N ROSES I always thought Guns and Roses was an overrated band and that "Appetite For Destruction" was one of the most over rated albums ever. I didn't like Use Your Illusion 1 or 2 and after watching most of this DVD my opinion didn't change. I think the band was a poor man's Aerosmith and while they have a couple decent tunes, I think the band is way overrated. Now if your a fan of the band, you'll like this as the interviews with the band are cool and since the band is no longer around, this might be a nice trip back in time for all you hair metal freaks. Me I'll pass on this. Info: http://www.mvdb2b.com THE BYRDS This is by far the most detailed under review I have ever seen. This is a double disc and clocks in at over 3 hours. The Byrds were a 60's rock/folk group that had some hits like "Mr Tambourine Man and "Eight Miles High". I liked some of the stuff this band put out and watching the story of how the band came together was quite fascinating and like I said this goes into great detail and stuff, which made it cool to watch. You also get some live stuff and if your a fan of the band, this is A MUST GET. I mean cmon at 3 hours you get the whole history of the band and then some and while I am not a huge fan of the band, after watching this I got a new found respect for the band and they did write some really good songs for their era. Info: http://www.mvdb2b.com Tim Buckley Kenneth Keith Kallenbach Uh, who is this guy and who thought it would be a good idea to give him enough money to release a DVD? Luckily, I had a fresh pot of coffee made when I sat down to watch this release because it just about put me to sleep. I mean, seriously, this was flat out boring. There was a Superman skit that was pretty lame. Crank phone calls...lame. He was interviewing people on the street...again...lame. Actually, it was a bit funny when the one dude he interviewed had to clean up dog shit and he asked Keith if he wanted it. That got a laugh out of me. To be honest, he does have some decent stand up material. There's a clip or two on here of him doing most of the same jokes. They're not bust a nut funny. But, he does fire off a few good ones and I think he'd do rather well if he'd focus on stand up instead of doing those lame comedy skits. He also has a musical project, The Kenneth Keith Kallenbach Band. That was pretty cool. It had kind of a raw, punk feel to it. I'd probably dig his music more than I did this release. I don't know...maybe you need to be high to watch this. It might actually be funny if you're stoned. Since I don't do drugs, I guess I'll never know, huh? Maybe they should re-release this one and throw in a free joint in with the package. Might get a better response. Johnny Thunders The bottom of the DVD cover mentions that this is rare live footage from the last recorded concert. Okay, so, it's rare. That's a good thing. But, the footage itself looks like it came from a VHS tape that was going bad. It had a slight blur to it and, in a few places, the camera work was simply horrible. It almost has a feel of a bootleg tape. With that in mind, you think whoever put this release together might have included some bonus features. Instead, it's just the concert performance. Well, there is a Johnny Thunders bio on the disc. Most people are already aware of his musical history. So, that seems a bit pointless. I think there's also a song or two missing from this performance. I don't remember hearing "Wipe Out" or "Gloria," which are listed on the back. Still, there's about 20 songs on here, has a run time of 99 minutes. So, I guess you can't really complain if you're a fan. But, I think some people might have a complaint or two about the quality. Then again, if this is the only footage of this show, which was filmed in Osaka, Japan, you've gotta take what you can. Might wanna pass on this if you're just a casual fan. GENITORTURERS I wish this had been from one live show, but it is taken from several. With that being said this is still a cool DVD. The band put on a hell of a live show complete with props and naked girls and as a guy that wasn't a bad thing in my book ha ha. Some of the camera work I wish was a bit better as they have too many close up shots and they don't stick to shots too long. The band do sound tight and they come across as a must see live band and more than give you your money's worth. Extras on here include a cool mud wrestling clip and some more nude woman ha ha. Info: http://www.mvdb2b.com LEONARD COHEN I have never heard of this guy before, but about 5 minutes into this I realized most of the stuff he did was when I was a little boy and hadn't discovered music yet. This guy apparently wrote and played some folk music in the 60's and early 70's and influenced quite a few people along the way as the people being interviewed for this speak quite fondly of him. I am not into his music, but I didn't find this all a bore neither. If your into the man and his music, here is his life story for you to see and hear. As usual MVD as gathered a nice panel of people who knew the man well and this is well produced. Info: http://www.mvdb2bcom Vader Vader blast through a 20 song set on this DVD. The camera work is outstanding and lets you feel as if your right in the front row. The lighting is perfect and the crowd is into it and the sound quality is top notch. As extras you also get 2 video clips of the band and if your a fan of the band or quality death metal, then you'll need this baby in your collection. Info: http://www.metalmind.com.pl DARK FUNERAL Wow this is one masive DVD and it is actually 2 DVD's. It features 3 different shows, one from Poland, one from The Netherlands, and a 3rd from France. The band just toally crush on all 3 shows as they are tight, fast and extreme to the bone. This is the way black metal should sound and the band has been doing it for over 12 years now. What I liked apart from the 3 shows was the bonus material which featured clips of the band back in the mid 90's, including their 1st show in Norway. The quality isn't as good as the concert footage, but it shows the baby steps of the band and how they became the band that they are today. They were the same band back in the day as they are now, only better, tighter and just as fast ha ha. If your a fan of this band it is a must get and black metal doesn't get much btter than this and with 2 discs it is value for your money. Info: http://www.regainrtecords.com NEO This is some really progressive stuff. I am not a huge fan of progressive music, but I do enjoy it at times and this was one of those times. The band is just tight and flawless in their playing and the camera work and sound are just mind boggling at times. The band sound and are tight and every note sounds crisp to perfection. The camera work makes you feel as if your in the front row and the band seems to be enjoying themselves as they rip through each tune. If your into King Crimson, old Yes or Genesis, then you'll love this baby. Info: http://www.mvdb2b.com |