Bad Religion – Along
The Way (DVD-Video)
Picture: C+
Sound: C+ Extras: D Main Program: B-
Originally released in 1990 on VHS, Along The Way
offers concert footage with a few brief interview clips with the band Bad
Religion. During their post-Punk reign
in the 1980s and 1990s, there were times I would hear people actually
criticizing this band, but they always seemed interesting. After taking the time to watch this show, it
turns out they were much better than many were giving them credit for.
The majority concert portions of this program are from an
August 1989 date on the band’s Suffer Tour in Germany. It captures the band in good form and shows
their energy while showing off their outspoken material that is actually about
something. Too bad this was too much
for the mainstream and even those who would be more likely to support them,
supposedly who know music. The songs
are:
1) Suffer
2) Land Of
Competition
3) 1000
More Fools
4) Doing
Time
5) Damned
To Be Free
6) Latch
Key Kids
7) Part II
(The Numbers Game)
8) How Much
Is Enough? [Interview 1]
9) Along
The Way
10) Do What You Want
11) Faith In God
12) We’re Only Gonna Die (From Our Own
Arrogance)/Part III
13) Drastic Action [Interview 2]
14) Delirium Of Disorder
15) You Are (The Government)
16) Yesterday
17) Forbidden Beat
18) Voice Of God Is Government
19) Frogger [Interview 3]
20) When
21) F@*# Armageddon, This Is Hell
22) Give You Nothing
23) Best For You [Interview 4]
24) Bad Religion
25) Politics
26) World War III
At first, al the music may “sound the same” until you
really hear what is being sung and the idea is to do it at a high-level of
energy. Co-edited, produced and taped
by Matthias Kollek and Thorsten Bach, it holds up well enough for a project
that was taped, partly because the band at hand is as good as they are, but
then I realized this is not as long as it could have been considering how many
tracks are here. Playing faster goes
through material faster.
Lead singer Greg Graffin has a great voice for this kind
of material and with drummer Peter Finestone, bassist Jay Bentley, and
co-guitarists Brett Gurrewitz and Greg Hetson, they make up one of the few
second-generation Punk bands that really will ever matter. Most are about no ideas, constant angst and
populism, but Bad Religion even challenged the slacker/posers and that is a
real Rock victory these days if there ever was one.
The full frame 1.33 X 1 image was taped on analog
videotape back in 1990 and shows its age.
The limits of definition and color, especially in the dark, but I am
more likely to believe this was PAL than NTSC, as it does not bleed badly. The Dolby Digital 2.0 is simple stereo at
best with no surround information at all, though I had to wonder if this might
have sounded clearer in a PCM playback, but there is some compression from the
time of the taping throughout that extends to the master. Some unnecessary compression from the Dolby
has to be figured in due to the nature of the format. There are no extras, except the interview snippets within the
main program, but there is much here to experience in its 70 minutes. Too bad there is not more or that the band
was still together. No wonder the
country is in such trouble.
- Nicholas Sheffo
