Pearl Jam - “Long Strange Road - 25 Years At The Edge” 2xDVD

Repackaged retro

This unauthorized extended documentary combines the previously-released “Under Review” DVD with another previously-released DVD, “In Their Own Words”. So serious fans should scrutinize this accordingly if it’s worth their time. Sure, the gatefold packaging is nice and all, but this isn’t clearly marked as a “re-packaged” set, so the intent is to unscrupulously sell this to the uninformed. Beware!

That said, for the Pearl Jam novice, this set is a massive (170 minutes total) collection of biographical info (DVD 1), with the usual journalists and music writers chiming in their opinions over photos and films. DVD 2 is a load of haphazardly-arranged interviews with the band from TV over the years. Supposedly, most of these are already available online for free viewing, so again, this set is only recommended to the most fervent Pearl Jam fans.

Casual fans need only see Cameron Crowe’s superb official documentary, “Twenty”, rather than this amateurish collection.

Pride/Sexy Intellectual

Pearl Jam official site

Nirvana - “In Utero - 20th Anniversary Tribute” 2xDVD

Repackaged retro

This repackaged set of 2 full-length “unauthorised” DVDs from Pride DVD (aka Sexy Intellectual) is a pretty solid wealth of info for serious Nirvana fans. Disc 1 is simply “In Utero: A Classic Album Under Review” from a few years prior, which of course examines the band’s rise and fall with a focus on their final studio album. Plenty of journalists and biographers are interviewed here, as well as several people who were close to the band. There’s nothing here that will shake the ground for Nirvana fans or solve the supposed mystery/conspiracy theory of Kurt’s suicide, but expect plenty of obscure anecdotes and stories from some folks who were supposedly there for the band’s rise.

Disc 2 is a lengthy (90 minute) collection of extended interviews from the first disc, including deep conversations with Cobain’s grandfather and former Nirvana drummer Chad Channing. Again, there’s a load of collection trivia represented here, and proves a fascinating (if exhausting) watch.

Serious Nirvana fans, this may be a must-see. Casual fans like me? Take it or leave it.

Pride/Sexy Intellectual

Nirvana official site

Beer: Redhook - Winter Hook #30

REDHOOK - WINTER HOOK #30 (Woodinville, WA) - 3.75/5 (good)

Redhook Brewery, based near Seattle, Washington, is, needless to say, a mainstay and innovator in the craft beer world. Having been around since 1981, Redhook has created many beers that have undoubtably inspired countless brewmasters to start their own breweries. In short Redhook is an institution in the craft beer world.

This year’s Winter Hook is Redhook’s 30th year producing this cold weather seasonal beer, and every year’s recipe has been different to some degree. In celebration of its “dirty thirty”, Redhook brewmaster Nick Crandall has revisited some of the best recipes of the past 3 decades and combined some of the ingredients. The result? A nicely warming brew that’s well-balanced for the cold months. Here’s the breakdown:

Appearance: Dark caramel-ruby, with a full-size head of light khaki bubbles. Lace is spoke-like, thick but not too frilly.

Aroma: Dark fruit, yeast, some citrus hops, some spice. Nice potpourri.

Taste: Spice and fruit up front of the palate, mild and easy. Finishes with a hoppy tone, bitter with some spice and heat. A complex and enjoyable winter warmer here, perfectly suited to cold weather.

Redhook dot com

"Mudhoney - I'm Now: The Story Of Mudhoney" DVD (directors: Ryan Short and Adam Pease)

As the great 90's rock scene of the Pacific Northwest (aka the "Seattle/Sub Pop Scene") dissolved due to drugs, death, and self-destruction, one prominent and influential band persevered and survived. Mudhoney may have been cut from similar cloth as Nirvana, Alice In Chains, Pearl Jam, Soundgarden, and others, and perhaps they never had a huge radio hit, but the band did well enough, traveling the globe, playing for rabid fans, and inspiring countless others in their wake.

From their classic debut single, "Touch Me I'm Sick" (which still stands as a scuzz-rock landmark), Mudhoney crafted a series of solid albums that joined heavy "superfuzz" rock with sixties-inspired pop (aka "songs"). They survived Sub Pop's lean period, a major label signing, a member leaving, and the inevitable drug and alcohol abuse. And they're still around.

Short and Pease's superb documentary includes the participation of all Mudhoney members, and the interviews and footage here are as world class as it gets. Sub Pop's owners (Pavitt and Poneman), affiliated bands (Sonic Youth, Soundgarden, Pearl Jam, Tad), label personnel, and friends are all interviewed, and there's plenty of old live and promo footage as well. As far as rock docs go, "I'm Now" is as comprehensive as I've seen. Kudos to everyone involved for a well-done history (and celebration) of this band's life and times, from the underground to the "grunge" explosion to now. Excellence.

King Of Hearts Productions

Mudhoney Movie site

Sky Cries Mary - "Small Town" CD

Rewinding to the mid-1990's, Seattle. Musically, the 'boom' of post-flannel rock bands is in full swing. Bands both unconventional and uncommercial (Melvins, anyone?) are being signed to major labels and getting videos placed on MTV.

Fronted by the lovely earthy vocalist/painter Anisa Romero, and co-fronted by conceptualist and visual artist husband Roderick Romero, Seattle's Sky Cries Mary created spacious and jammy psychedelic space-rock with a beautiful ambient world vibe, and heavenly dual male/female vocal interplay. No 'grunge' here, thanks. The group even experimented with electronic and hip-hop music around the edges of their forward-thinking sound, and this connection and interest led to some fine remixes as well as Anisa's collaborations with Seattle ambient composer Jeff Greinke as Hana.

Sky Cries Mary's unique and accessable sounds didn't find their 'commercial' audience, though, as their doomed but lovely 1997 release on Warner, 'Moonbathing On Sleeping Leaves', was effectively the end of the band (save for a collection of remixes and B-sides released a year or two later).

They split for some years, only to re-group to release an EP and a live recording (this time on their own personal label) in the early 2000's. 'Small Town' is the first full-length studio release from the band in 10 years, and it picks up amicably where 'Moonbathing' left off. The opening title track is a beautifully understated pop song that reaffirms that SCM are back, and they are more mature, melodic, and developed than before. Some would call this more 'commercial', and that could be another way of putting it. Nonetheless, this is Sky Cries Mary through and through. Old fans will not be let down, and hopefully some new ones will come aboard.

Catchy tunes are everywhere on 'Small Town', and the combination of Anisa's soaring, ethereal vocals and Roderick's rougher counterpoint provide an enveloping and balanced presence. 'You Are' is another transcendent pop-love-song that could find itself some radio play, even. 'Heart Above' is a sweet little vocal track by Anisa that adds mood and depth in-between songs, while the whimsical sound-poetry of Roderick's 'Land Of All' drops in some exotic vibes. A joyous release deserving of your ears. (Hoodooh Music)

Tad - "Busted Circuits And Ringing Ears" DVD

The life and times of the grunge-era Seattle band once deemed 'too ugly for MTV' is revisited here in a sympathetic and thoroughly well-produced documentary. Thankfully, input from the band is included, and fellow period scenesters like members of Nirvana, Soundgarden, and Mudhoney all contribute their thoughts and reflections on Tad's 'heavier than God' sound. The band's rise on the influential Sub Pop Records label in the late 80's is detailed here, as is the major label courting that inevitably came and contributed to the band's quiet demise. From the best of times to the worst, these grizzled rockers rode the Seattle grunge wave and subsequently imploded through a series of bad business choices, drug addiction, and personal strife. Amidst this all, some rather classic noise-addled rock excesses were produced, and this DVD is a definitive look at one of the more interesting Northwest acts of the era. The inclusion of Tad's promo videos is an added bonus. Essential for fans, and pretty interesting even for those merely curious. (MVD Visual)