The Stranglers – Live ‘78, San
Francisco
Picture: C
Sound: C Extras: C
Film: B
The Stranglers
were one of the first bands to rise out of the British Punk scene of the late
80’s. Their first album, Rattus Norvegicus, was released in 1977,
preceding albums by more famous counterparts like the Sex Pistols and The
Clash. The Stranglers – Live ‘78,
San Francisco has been issued on DVD and gives all a chance to see one of
the most important bands of its day in peak form.
Frank sexuality, heavy bass-line hooks, deep working-class British accents, and
an electric keyboard defined their sound. It was challenging to the
average listener then, but was one of the steps that led Punk to become the
more radio-friendly New Wave movement.
The DVD captures their live show. The concert was filmed with a hand-held
video camera of the era in a 1.33 X 1 ratio, so the picture and sound are not
of the highest quality. It’s dark in the club, and the videographer is
jostled around. Ghostly afterimages of the bands stream across the
screen. The music drops in and out.
Video special
effects, color swirls primarily, were added in post-production for a couple of
songs; it’s more distracting than entertaining. That said, for a fan of
the Punk scene, this DVD is an important artifact of the time and well worth
watching. No one knew if any of these
bands would ever be considered important or influential. This chance to experience them in their
prime is an important piece of Rock and Roll history.
The extra feature is one long commercial for other Target Video products, not
to be confused with the retail chain, of course. It gives tantalizing
glimpses of other bands in the line, but really adds nothing to the package.
- Wayne Wise
