‘All Tomorrow Parties’ hits (but largely misses) L.A.
Kevin Bronson on
1
[Buzz Bands LA today welcomes a contribution from Richard Cromelin, former pop music writer for the Los Angeles Times, who weighs in on the new “All Tomorrow’s Parties” documentary:]
By Richard Cromelin
Los Angeles fringe-rock followers might be forgiven if they have mixed feelings about “All Tomorrow’s Parties,” a documentary DVD marking the 10th anniversary of the patriarch of” non-mainstream music festivals. The film offers glimpses of some great performances and offstage antics, but it’s also a reminder that when it comes to All Tomorrow’s Parties, L.A. is on the outside looking in.
ATP is still going great guns in its native England, it’s hit the ground running in Australia, and it will bring its clamor to upstate New York for the third time next summer. But its expansion into Southern California earlier this decade ended with a thud, as Parties poobah Barry Hogan eyed the disappointing ledger and surmised that the city was too star-oriented to support his extravaganza of esoterica.
And of the more than 20 Los Angeles artists who have appeared at ATP’s shows in England, only one, the Mars Volta, gets any screen time in “All Tomorrow’s Parties,” which was released last week by Warp X and debuts in L.A. at Cinefamily at the Silent Movie Theatre with two screenings on Tuesday.
Not to suggest a deliberate bias – the availability of footage and issues of permission and contracts might play a part – but the absence of Angelenos (from Love to Madlib, John Frusciante to the Watts Prophets) leaves the film’s vision of underground music less than comprehensive.
But the documentary doesn’t really aim that high. It’s happy to wander a spacey, nonlinear course through the festival’s history, starting with the 1999 Bowlie Weekender, the Belle and Sebastian brainstorm that mutated into All Tomorrow’s Parties.
The film’s style mirrors the experimental spirit of the event itself, combining footage from fans, artists and filmmakers, be it Super 8, cell phone or camcorder, often displayed on side-by-side screens.
More than 30 acts appear, most at hello-goodbye duration, though several full songs are available in the bonus features. Highlights, even in truncated turns, include Grinderman frontman Nick Cave bawling “No Pussy Blues,” and Les Savy Fav leading its audience into another other room where another band is playing.
Akron/Family stirs up some tribal ecstasy with a stage full of fans, and Lightning Bolt delivers an awesome, drums-fronted fusillade at a cluster of headbanding fans standing at point-blank range.
More fun than the formal performances is the portrait of the ATP lifestyle, one that’s determined by the festival’s location in two of England’s old holiday camps, at Minehead and Camber Sands.
With artists and fans installed in the resorts’ apartments, the weekends take on the form of free-form dorms full of great mix tapes.
Micah P. Hinson and accompanists set up and play on the patio, Daniel Johnston sings and strums sitting on the lawn, Two Gallants kick back and play in their room. Thurston Moore interviews attendees about the state of music. In game arcades and garden paths, fans and artists alike get progressively wasted.
L.A. quickly filled the void after ATP decamped, making its own noise with homegrown events such as Arthur Fest and the FYF Fest. I bet if Hogan wanted to give it another try here, he could get his party restarted.
||| See: “All Tomorrow’s Parties” screens at 8 and 11 p.m. Tuesday at the Cinefamily at the Silent Movie Theatre, 611 N. Fairfax. Tickets.
||| Watch: Here’s the film’s trailer:
When they moved the festival to Long Beach (2004?) they had a good set up and amazing lineups. It just seemed like people didn’t care enough to drive 30 minutes south so attendance was low. I bet if they tried again it would stick.