Text © Robert Barry Francos /
FFanzeen, 2015
Images from the Internet
Subterranean Productions / A Middle East Tour Film
MVD Visual
79 minutes, 2012 / 2013
www.mvdvisual.com
Images from the Internet
Black Lips – Kids Like You & Me
Written and directed by Bill CodySubterranean Productions / A Middle East Tour Film
MVD Visual
79 minutes, 2012 / 2013
www.mvdvisual.com
A week after huge anti-United States
riots in Cairo in 2012 that included storming of the embassy, the Atlanta-native
pop-punk band Black Lips began a tour of the Middle East. It was two years of
preparation to line up all their punks in a row, and they were on their way.
I was touring around in Egypt for a
week in 1993, and while there was a level of happiness by businesses that we
were there spending tourist money, there was also an undercurrent of suspicion,
even then, about us scholars from New York University traipsing around the Nile
tombs and valleys. I certainly did not hear any Western music there back then,
never mind punk rock. Post-9/11, it is even more astonishing to have this band
touring the countries of Cyprus, Egypt, U.A.E., Iraq, Jordan and Lebanon. I am
going to assume that no member of the band was a – er – of the Hebraic faith.
The documentary of this tour begins
with news broadcasts of the riots, leading into a live performance by the band.
This is a nicely handled juxtaposition. There are a couple of other wise
choices, such as starting in Cyprus, which is an easier country to transition
into the tour. The band also picks Lebanese “indie rockers” Lazzy Lung to share
the bill. The lead singer moved to Lebanon just as the Israeli conflict
happened and formed his band then.
For the first show in Egypt (where a
majority of this documentary takes place), we see a clip of the band playing,
the audience bouncing, mixed with annotated film excerpts of the Arab Spring
two years earlier. The added historical video bites include sound that drowns
out the band, which does seem like an unwise choice because in this context it
sounds preachy. See the band or hear a history lesson? Both important, but both
conflict. It’s the same mindset as having a PowerPoint slide that says one
thing and the person at the podium saying something else. Well, it can be read
or heard, but not both. By presenting the history lesson during the song, it takes
the emphasis away from both.
The band also starts off coming
across as a bit shallow to me, I’m sorry to say, but I think that's more of the director's choices. I mean, we follow one of them
in an excursion to buy aftershave. You’re in Egypt and that’s what interests
you? Then they’re skateboarding on some steps; well, falling more than skating.
I would have not bothered including that footage, as it has nothing to do with
anything. Plus, they’re touring with a band that speaks the language, so why
not show them as interpreters (which they probably were)? The answer is
probably that theoretically, cinematic “confusion = chaos = interest.”
Now before you think I’m talking all
doom’n’gloom, there are way more positive things about the film than not. Besides
many shots of Black Lips playing, as well as giving some nice time to Lazzy
Lung, we do get to see some really interesting current news, such as a brief
commentary by an ex-pat (woman) writer, and we watch the band listen to an NPR
report about them being in the Middle East.
More interesting than bad
skateboarding is seeing them at the Giza pyramids (a life highlight when I did
it), and talking to locals who are interested in who the band are, and what
Westerners are doing there, braving possibly dangerous waters of political and
cultural change. I met up with some of that as well. It’s both scary and
thrilling to have complete strangers in that part of the world walk up to you
and try to talk to you because you are different.
One thing I noticed is that at their
shows, there seems to be a lot of Westerners, including blonde women. However,
you never see the band do any hook-ups, with men or women (I have no idea about
their orientation, honestly), which is fine with me. Another female-related
aspect I was interested in is that the film is shown being shot by a Western woman
with dyed blonde hair, and wondered how the locals would react to her.
Apparently, this is never mentioned or touched upon, which I think is a
mistake, even if she isn’t a member of the band.
It gets more interesting as they head
off to play in Erbil, Iraq, not a place you may imagine as being welcoming to
an American band. Also, comparing the extreme opulence of Dubai to the more austere
Erbil is a lesson all in itself to this viewer.
I also found the interviews with
members of Lazzy Lung talking about living through the civil war in Lebanon,
and how “normal” life became in the midst of it, more fascinating than most of
what is said by Black Lips, and wanted to hear more about that.
For me, the big flaw of the film is
that we never really get to know much about the band as individuals. Yes, they
are interviewed separately, but nothing deep. I know as little about the band’s
personnel as when I started the film, other than they like to skateboard,
nearly all have facial hair of some sort, one of them is a “news junkie,” and
one of them always annoyingly wears an oversized baseball cap. What we do learn
about them, and this is a strong point in the film for me, is that we see the
band interviewed on numerous media in various countries, including Cairo and
Dubai.
Also, it would have helped if their
music had a caption crawl. Speaking of which, to be honest, I wasn’t really
familiar with the Black Lips, musically, before this, and I was grateful to
have the opportunity to hear what they sound like. Definitely not my taste, and
they reminded me of the slickness of the Eagles of Death Metal more than punk,
which is fine, just not something I’m going to run out and buy. I found the
music of Lazzy Lung more interesting.
There isn’t anything really controversial
here; nothing to make you say “wow,” but it is interesting how the news footage
is interspersed with the location of the band. The closest they get is a very
quick discussion of how one of the venues cancelled because the band had once
been in Israel, but they get another gig in that city in Egypt, so all is good,
I guess. The tour seems to have been a success, and when they talk about how an
earlier excursion in India did not go well or as expected, I wanted to see the
film of that. Perhaps a prequel?
The extras are the trailer (natch),
an almost three minute clip in Cairo of the complete song “Oh Katrina” by Black
Lips, a (more interesting) complete song by Lazzy Lung at the same venue, and a
nearly 8-minute interview on Lebanese MTV (I kid you not).
If you’re a fan of the band, or
curious about them, this is a release that is worth the view; if not, well…
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