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Wow Ivan, thanks for that very long review!
I watched the Bambi Molesters DVD last night and I was very
impressed. It was so incredibly cool to see and hear the band
members speak, rehearse, and perform in front of audiences both
large and small. Don't worry if you don't speak Croatian, Lada has
translated and she and Hrvoje did the English subtitles. I really
want to see this band live, even more than before. The best part of
this DVD is catching snippets of them playing live, just ripping the
place up. They have footage of them playing in small clubs, on TV
shows, and to large audiences. Dalibor explains the history of the
band, and each member talks a little bit about their sudden rise to
fame in Croatia and Europe. They talk a bit about each band members
role, what touring is like, having good and bad shows, etc. Its
great stuff! You really must own this if you are a fan.
The few quibbles I have: the 2nd half of the DVD turns into a "look
at us, we are touring with REM! REM! REM!" I can appreciate the
honor and opportunity, and it is richly deserved. At this point the
DVD drifts into their collaborations with REM and the REM sidemen.
It is interesting, but I want to see the Bambi Molesters play!! It
was very cool however, to see a "surf" band play in front of
enormous audiences, and it is apparent they are very well known in
Croatia and Europe. Its great to see that kind of success for them.
The other thing I didn't care for was the way surf music seemed to
be discounted or tossed aside, even laughed at. This attitude did
not come from the band directly, but from various other people being
interviewed. Notably the Croatian music critic. Over and over it was
stressed that the Bambi Molesters are *so* much more than a surf
band, that surf is a limited genre with no future. Well that's the
feeling I got anyway. I felt a little hurt and annoyed by this. I
mean, c'mon, surf isn't any more limited a genre than the say, the
blues. Look at the Bambi Molesters, Slacktone, The Space Cossacks
(and now The Madeira), etc, etc. These are all bands that can take
surf in dangerous new directions but can still be called surf, and
there is nothing to laugh about or be ashamed of. Sheesh.
Anyway, don't let my minor ranting dissuade you from picking this
up. In fact, you better do it now as this will probably be very hard
to get. Contact our friend Dave Wood to get a copy:
The DVD is in PAL format, which means you can't play it on your TV
in the US, but your computer should be able to play it (if you have
a DVD drive, that is, duh).
I would really, really like to see a Bambi Molesters performance
captured in its entirety on DVD since they may not make it over to
the US in the near future. That would make a great companion DVD
alongside this documentary.
Oh yeah, in addition to the documentary 3 of their music videos are
included. These videos are very well made and actually look like
they had a decent budget to make them on! Again, so nice to see them
doing so well.
BN
