In this latest installment of Quick Flicks, Kevin Wierzbicki takes a look at new DVD releases from The Sex Pistols, Demon Hunter and Marc Almond.Sex Pistols- There'll Always Be an England (Live from Brixton Academy)
Rhino
This is a Julian Temple film featuring a full-length (no, you won't feel that you've been cheated
) concert performance filmed in 2007 as part of the 30th anniversary celebration of the release of the Never Mind the Bullocks album. The guys perform every song from that album, though out of sequence, with singer John Lydon doing his best to channel the Johnny Rotten of yesteryear. The punk icon spits, curses up a storm and even (oh boy!) blows snot out of his nose just like it is 1977 all over again. The Sex Pistols were once known for being extremely sloppy musicians and it's interesting to see Lydon flash back to that era, acting like a kid again despite the fact that he and his mates (Paul Cook, Steve Jones, Glen Matlock) are all now seasoned vets and approaching geezerdom. As a musical unit the Sex Pistols have never sounded better and here they augment the set list with Iggy Pop's "No Fun," Boyce & Hart's "I'm Not Your Stepping Stone" (a hit for the Monkees) and the set closing "Roadrunner." An additional feature of the film is a segment called The Knowledge---The Pistols' Guide to London where the camera follows band members as they walk around the city pointing out some of their old haunts. Most of the places are long gone but amazingly they find a restaurant that they say looks exactly the same as it did back in the day.
Demon Hunter-45 Days (2 X DVD + CD)
Solid State
These Seattle-based hardcore metal heads are Christians but don't expect them to be quoting any head banging scripture. The spiritual messages are there if you can sort them out from the thunder but more likely you'll get a glimpse of what these guys have in their hearts from things like singer Ryan Clark's spoken introduction to "I Am You" where he tells disaffected members of the audience "In this crowd you're not alone. We all have the same weaknesses and the same strengths." The message especially hits home since it is tenderly spoken, coming from a man who howls like the devil through a good portion of the program. Clark does actually sing on a few numbers here instead of scream and those songs tend to be Creed-like. This package includes one performance DVD titled Live in Nashville, Tennessee that features a handful of new songs and fan favorites like "The Soldier's Song" and encores "Not I" and "Not Ready to Die." The second DVD, 45 Days, is a documentary that follows the band during their 2008 Stronger Than Hell tour and while it is well done it is toned-down considerably compared to the tomfoolery that is usually shown on most docs of this type, perhaps in deference to the band's beliefs. Also included in the package is a CD of the Nashville show.
Marc Almond-Live at the Lokerse Feesten 2000
Charly
Almond, the former front man for synth-poppers Soft Cell shows his sense of humor when he introduces "My Love" by dedicating the song to an ex-lover, describing the person as "Some trash I met along the way." A few beats later before he starts singing he quickly interjects, "I said trash with the fondest affection of course." Not all of Almond's between-song patter is that witty but he is quite chatty as he runs through a set that includes "My Hand over My Heart," "Love to Die For" and "Open All Night." At this point in his career Almond tends to come across as a Barry Manilow for the younger generation and a lot of the material here lacks genuine excitement. The audience comes alive though when they get what probably most of them came for; a set-closing Soft Cell double-whammy of "Bedsitter" and "Tainted Love."
