I got the most intriguing email from the IFC today about two of my favorite YouTuber(s), the following is all it said, followed by a link to the video I’ve posted below:

We all knew Harry Potter fans were a bit rabid for their favorite wizard, [” target=”_blank”>but click on the link below] to see IFC’s own commercial kings, Rhett & Link and their musical homage inspired by one Potter SUPER fan who risked malaria and exposure in the great outdoors in an attempt to express her dismay, anxiety and fear about how the end of the Potter universe will impact her life forever!

This… is perhaps the BEST fan inspired/made homage to the Harry Potter I’ve seen to date (if you don’t count A Very Potter Musical)

Captain America is a rather ubiquitous figure these days, even though Captain America: The First Avenger doesn’t open in movie theaters until July 22.  Directed by Joe Johnston, the film stars Chris Evans as Steve Rogers (a.k.a. Captain America) and Hugo Weaving as his nemesis The Red Skull.

Yesterday, Big Shiny Robot! shared the information that the classic Captain America costume appears in the film, and today Playbill brings us the news that composers Alan Menken and David Zippel have written a song for the highly anticipated Marvel film.

The composers have also written for Broadway, which may draw some vague comparisons between the song for Captain America and the music for another production based on a Marvel supehero:  Spider-Man:  Turn Off the Dark. However, this is just one song for a film as opposed to a train wreck of a bloated and controversial Broadway musical.

This is also not Captain America’s first brush with Broadway.  In 1985, a $4 million musical was announced but never actually materialized.  The plot focused on the hero’s mid-life crisis and the rescue of his girlfriend from terrorists. I’m not sure where his “very special friend” would have fit into the plot, but a casting call searching for girls aged 10-14 can be seen in the picture below:

The song Menken and Zippel penned for Captain America is called “The Star-Spangled Man (With a Plan)” and will be hear during a movie montage.  Ah, the movie montage.  These tend to either be long and boring or incredibly entertaining, so let’s just hope it’s the latter.

In the Playbill article, Zippel explains that the song takes place in the film before Steve Rogers becomes Captain America.  He appears at war bond presentations throughout the country.

Alan Menken is perhaps best known for his work on Disney films.  He and Zippel received an Academy Award for their song “Go the Distance” from Hercules.  Menken also won Academy Awards for Beauty and the Beast, The Little Mermaid, Aladdin, and Pocahontas.  His most recent projects include adapting the film Newsies for Broadway, composing the music for last year’s Tangled, and working on Broadway productions of Aladdin and The Hunchback of Notre Dame.  These follow a pattern of Disney animated films turned into musicals for the stage.

In addition to Hercules, David Zippel has worked on the Disney films Mulan and Tarzan and wrote the lyrics for the Tony Award-winning musical City of Angels. It was his first full-length musical and his most successful.

Captain America: The First Avenger opens in theaters next month.

Viz Media announced last week that they’ve acquired the North American licensing rights for Hatsune Miku, the digital Volcaloid pop star icon who is set to take the world by storm.

“Hatsune Miku is the most popular of the Vocaloid Character Series software created by Crypton. Using their innovative software, users can create synthesized vocals using Hatsune Miku’s vocals just by typing in lyrics or a melody! In Japan, she has become a national phenomenon, appearing not only in video games, music videos, and on a plethora of accessories and goods, but in several sellout “live concerts”, appearing onstage as a 3D hologram, backed by a live band!”

Seriously folks, this is big news. During my most recent trip to Akihabara (last October) the stores were absolutely flooded with character goods, costumes and a ton of other stuff dedicated to Miku. She’s become a huge pop culture icon in Asia and is gaining tons of popularity around the world.

See Hatsune Miku here in action at one of her digital concerts in Japan:

I saw some of this digital projection technology in person at the MTV Video Music Awards Japan – 2006, where the group Def Tech first appeared as a super realistic hologram and then revealed themselves via explosion from backstage. It was really impressive and I can only imagine that the technology has come a long way since I last saw it in action.

Also, I can’t help but be reminded of the digital pop star (Sharon Apple) in the anime Macross Plus but she required a human to function. (While her producers told everyone that she had an artificial intelligence that included emotions, it was later revealed that this programming was incomplete and her emotions were “provided” by Myung Fang Lone.) Hatsune Miku, on the other hand is 100% computer program engineered by technical geniuses who met on the internet. It’s pretty amazing stuff.

U.S. Anime conventions have of course already seen a huge influx of Volcaloid related cosplay and goods, but what’s even more amazing is that Hatsune Miku has just starred in an American Toyota commercial – something that honestly blows my mind:

That’s all for anime update this week. I leave you with one more video of digital pop sensation Hatsune Miku: (Select CC button for English Subtitles):

We have our second entry from Dagobot.

Enjoy:

If you are one of those Nintendo heads that gets the latest and greatest at each and every launch then you have been enjoying your 3DS for a little bit now. I’m sure you have spent many hours playing through the depth and distance of ‘Pilotwings’, the fast and fun fluid animations of ‘Super Street Fighter IV’ And reenacting the ‘White Knuckles’ video by OK Go. Besides ALL of that and the pre-loaded amenities something else you might have noticed is that your miniaturized console is a compact music studio. It’s true. The Nintendo DS, DSI & 3DS* handhelds (*thanks to it’s backwards compatibility) can easily be transformed into an imaginative magnum opus where you can create sound design and musical compositions on the fly, at will.

This is good news. Because, the ‘games’ at launch were few and far between (No flagship title? No Zelda? What?) Meaning while you are waiting for ‘Kid Icarus: Uprising’ or the re-mastered ‘Ocarina Of Time’ to drop, you can be brushing up on your ‘Korg DS-10’ skill set with it’s two monophonic synths with their own sequencer tracks and it’s four “percussion/drum” voices- think pocket sized ‘Reason’. Or you can manipulate the experimental sounds of ‘Electroplankton’. Or even better yet, PWN the source code of ‘Nitrotracker’.

All you need is that little inspired urge to make music. From Padawan to Master, there’s something for everyone who wants to make that jump from rotten musician to pro-game composer. I’m not just talking some cheap synth throw away either, national and local artists have been using handheld devices such as these to invent some really complex and dynamic soundscapes. Crafting songs and full albums with a sound quality that rivals some of the most respected music production equipment. Check out the Parlophone release ‘The Fall’ by the British alternative group, Gorillaz as an example of how interesting this type of experiment can get.

I spoke to DJ Shanty, a music producer/artist in Salt Lake City to get his take on the tech, the accessibility of utilizing it and what’s next on the horizon.

BSR- What made you decide to use the Nintendo as a musical instrument?

Shanty- I found myself listening to a lot of ChipTune music, and wanted to find a way to make my own. I was looking into ‘Little Sound DJ’ and ‘Nanoloop’ about the same time that the ‘Korg DS-10’ came out.

BSR- What strengths does a handheld system have versus a keyboard workstation or a production center (like an Akai MPC 3000)?

Shanty- Portability is a huge factor. It’s nice having a small production studio in your pocket or backpack for when inspiration strikes. There are times when you’re in the mood to create, and you might not feel the same way by the time you get back home or to the studio. I also love the happy accidents that would happen with it.

BSR- What weaknesses does a handheld system have versus a keyboard workstation or a production center (like an MPC)?

Shanty- The fact that you don’t have a full sized keyboard to stretch your fingers out on, or an MPC style drum grid to bang out beats. The DS has a touch screen, but there’s not a lot of real estate to play with.

BSR- What would you say are the ‘must have’ apps for the Nintendo DS as far as music production?

Shanty- I would suggest the Korg DS-10 (DS-10+ if you have a DSi or 3DS), Rytmik, Rhythm Core Alpha, NitroTracker (if you have a flashcard) and Electroplankton. Glitch DS and CellsDS are cool as well. Actually, CellsDS is better since it’s loop based and you can make more of a song on it.

BSR- What do you enjoy most about this approach?

Shanty- I’ve felt comfortable on hardware that Nintendo makes since I was a kid. I love playing video games and making music. This way, it feels like I’m doing both at the same time. It feels like your playing a really productive video game and then you have a song to play for people after your done.

BSR- Are there advantages/disadvantages for ‘hacking’ this system? And what are they? (I.E. Homebrew apps)

Shanty- If you own an original DS, or a DS lite, I don’t see any disadvantage to using a flashcard to download homebrew apps or backing up your games. If you have a DSi or 3DS, it gets a little tricky. They both have WiFi, and the ability to connect to the Internet. Periodic hardware updates might render your flashcard useless. That’s a problem if you plan on using your DS to browse the web or to download games and content from Nintendo.

BSR- Moving forward, say with the 3Ds- what other types of functionality would you like to see be made either with the system or other applications for handheld music making?

Shanty- I would like to see them use the front facing camera on the DSi and 3DS as a control interface to control echo, decay and filter. It could be used as an instrument, much like a Theremin. The thing it, I have searched the net, and haven’t seen anything documented or in development that any new music software will be coming out this year for 3DS. Something like the Korg M01 that Nintendo released in Japan would be cool. But, I don’t want to have to pay over a hundred dollar for an import.

BSR- Describe your perfect music app for the Nintendo 3D3?

Shanty- I would like a program that had the sampling and wav. Integration of NitroTracker, the analog control of Korg’s DS-10, and the sound library of Rytmik and Rhythm Core Alpha. A 3D MPC style drum grid would be nice too! Since becoming a Korg DS-10 fanboy, I’ve slowly started acquiring a lot of Korg equipment. I currently have the Korg Monotribe in my cross hairs.

BSR- Anything else you would like to add?

Shanty- Check out 8bc.org because it’s a great community of chip tune music makers and producers that upload their music where people can download it for free, you can listen to it and hear what others are coming up with it. It runs the gamut of what can be done.

Shanty can be reached via twitter @djshanty
Download his projects at:
Djshanty.bandcamp.com
RSP-Djshanty.bandcamp.com

We have a guest post from Dagobot!

Enjoy:

They say that every hero needs theme music. A little pick me up to energize you to get by in your day to day. That extra push to get you to level up and button mash your way through the second to last miniboss. Music is important in our lives. Whether it’s that louder than anything on earth latest top 40 ringtone coming out of your friends cell or that one tune you remember couples dancing to what’s her name back in high school. Music can be a place where there is no stress and absolute escapism. Even if its only to break away for couple of minutes at a time throughout the days of our ever so busy lives. Here is a quick rundown of a few releases that have caught my eyes and ears recently.

Mega Ran: Black Materia (Final Fantasy VII)

While the Final Fantasy series might not be that near and dear to my heart, I would be stupid not to acknowledge the amount of love that this iconic touchstone commands. Actually, I have only attempted to play one of the chapters…once and then I gave up on it all too quickly. Mega Rans’ a.k.a. Random’s ‘Black Materia’ is making me rethink my hasty decision. What separates this project from the host of other video game meets rap, rock, polka, etc. efforts are Randoms skillful and precise lyrics about gaming, in this case Final Fantasy VII. He elevates over his ‘Nerdcore’ peers by being able to craft a concept album that is creative and pushes the boundaries of what hip hop and music can be. In a nostalgic way, it reminds me of Deltron’s 3030 LP (google that). I would assume it helps to be a fanboy (or fangirl) of Final Fantasy VII to connect with this universe and pick up on all the shoutouts. However, being the novice that I am with the FF identity it spoke to me on a musical and an RPG level. Random tells the plot and builds this epic tale…rhyme-by-rhyme and song-by-song. His passion for his subject matter shines through. The REALLY crazy thing is that this ambitious LP (running time of over 70 minutes!) blends nonstop with classic rap sensibilities and powerful production. Lost Perception (the albums ‘beat maker’) weaves together a tapestry of electronic and classical sounds filled with more progressive resonance then what is often heard with contemporary producers. Let’s hope some downloadable content drops in the months to come. Must haves: ‘Cry Of The Planet’ & ‘Aerith’s Theme’

Beastie Boys ‘Hot Sauce Committee Part Two’

It’s been seven years since the Beasties dropped the underappreciated ‘To The Five Boroughs’ and while that album was more on the heavy handed side than antic ‘Hot Sauce Committee Part Two’ showcases the three emcee’s and their back to basics party rocking signature. Don’t bother pressing the ‘not interesting’ button, the 16 tracks of distorted melodic strut and rap eclecticism displays the fact that even after thirty plus years in the game their best days might be ahead of them. They sound like they are having a blast while still flexing their talents in new directions. Think more of an electronic ‘Check Your Head’ with nods to Ad-Rocks’ short-lived side project ‘BS 2000’ (google that). ‘Hot Sauce’ has all of the staples that we’ve come to except from a B.B. album; Infectious party mantra (Make Some Noise), Swank instrumental (Multilateral Nuclear Disarmament), Hard hitting punk scat (Lee Majors Come Again) & pitch perfect interludes that let you catch your breath before the next sonic assault (The Bill Harper Collection). ‘Hot Sauce’ is a welcome breath of fresh air in this postmodern ruse of generic musical soundscapes. As usual, the Beasties play it cool by just being themselves and the video for the jump off single ‘Make Some Noise’ is a HOOT. While this is not technically ‘Video Game’ based music it IS recommended listening while playing Co-Op dungeon crawlers and or anything that fits within the action adventure category.

L.A. Noire Soundtrack(s)
Possibly the most anticipated video game title of 2011, Rockstar’s detective simulator ‘L.A. Noire’ is set to drop on May 17th. I have never regretted buying a Rockstar game (The GTA series, Red Dead Redemption). In my opinion they are in an elite class of publishers/developers (Bioware is still number one!) and consistently reach for the upper echelon with each and every release. In their games, the devil is in the details from the meticulous environments to the polished scripts…and even in the sound design. The game boasts not one but two soundtracks. The official soundtrack, composed by Andrew Hale (Scott Pilgrim vs. The World), draws heavily from the sounds of the 1940’s. A homage in the likes of Jerry Goldsmith and Max Steiner. It’s a mosaic mingling commonplace symphonic arrangements with re-visioned Jazz originals. It also boasts more than 30 classic tracks including Thelonious Monk, Ella Fitzgerald, Louis Armstrong, Billie Holiday & others. The second, ‘L.A. Noire/Remixed’ is a six song mash up EP. Taking musical compositions of Jazz greats and having their songs reworked by some of today’s most diverse and creative producers & disc jockeys (I.E. Louis Jordan- Ain’t Nobody Here But Us Chickens DJ Premier remix). Still, I can’t help to think what Danger Mouse, Gaslamp Killer or Damon Albarn could have done to some of these standards. Maybe, Rockstar and Verve records s saving that for the sequel. Both Soundtracks will be available on Itunes the same day that the game launches.

-Dagobot

I came across this at Bleeding Cool today. Coroner records has put out an album featuring metal versions of songs from the Studio Ghibli movies! Take a look at the trailer down below! If you like what you hear and want to pick it up it available on both iTunes and Amazon. I really like the songs that are in the trailer and am thinking I’m gonna check it out. The tracklist and official press release from Coroner Records will be up after the trailer:

1. Tonari No Totoro (My Neighbor Totoro) – Disarmonia Mundi feat. Sophia Aslanidou
2. Kimi Wo Nosete (Laputa：Castle In The Sky) – Disarmonia Mundi feat. Yoko Hallelujah
3. Teru No Uta (Tales From Earthsea) – Blood Stain Child feat. Ettore Rigotti
4. Gake No Ue No Ponyo (Ponyo On The Cliff) – Destrage feat. Yoko Hallelujah
5. Mononoke Hime (Princess Mononoke) – Living Corpse feat Yoko Hallelujah
6. Country Road (Whisper Of The Heart) – Disarmonia Mundi feat. Sophia Aslanidou
7. Itsumo Nandodemo (Spirited Away) – Blood Stain Child feat. Claudio Ravinale
8. Arrietty’s Song (Japanese version) (The Borrower Arrietty) – Disarmonia Mundi feat. Sophia Aslanidou
9. Yasashisa Ni Tsutsumaretanara (Kiki’s Delivery Service) – Destrage feat. Yoko Hallelujah
10. Toki niwa Mukashi no hanashio (Porco Rosso) – Disarmonia Mundi feat. Yoko Hallelujah
11. Sanpo (My Neighbor Totoro) – Living Corpse feat. Yoko Hallelujah
12. Nausicaa requiem (Nausicaa Of The Valley Of The Wind) – Neroargento feat. Yoko Hallelujah

Coroner Records is really proud to announce the upcoming release of a new album of extreme metal covers of Studio Ghibli songs entitled “Princess Ghibli”.

The project called “Imaginary Flying Machines” (from the title of a short film written and directed by Hayao Miyazaki, which is exclusively shown daily at the Ghibli Museum) puts together bands from Europe and Japan (Disarmonia Mundi, Blood Stain Child, Destrage, Living Corpse and Neroargento) that reinterpret 12 very famous songs taken from the films produced by Studio Ghibli, bringing the soundtracks that have made ​​dream many fans of Miyazaki in a new musical dimension, more aggressive and faster, without ever losing the melody and the magical atmospheres typical of the original versions.

The album has been recorded, produced and mixed by Ettore Rigotti at The Metal House Studio (Disarmonia Mundi, Destrage, Slowmotion Apocalypse, Stigma, etc…) and mastered by Alessandro Vanara.

This album is an immediate masterpiece for anyone who likes big loud guitars, tight melodies and harmonies, and ass-kicking rhythms. If you even liked the Foo Fighters before, you will fall in love with this album.  When the eagerly anticipated album leaked to the internet last week, the Foos said “F#$% it! Here you go, internet– streaming for free on our website!” If you don’t already own it, go buy it now!  Ok?  Ok.

Now let’s talk about the story behind the album. If you saw the documentary Back and Forth that premiered at SXSW (my review here) and is currently in rotation on VH1 Classics, you know the story behind the album: Dave Grohl wanted to go back and record an album “the way we used to” in his garage, all on analog tape. As someone who used to mess around with recording on analog 4-tracks back in the day in various drummers’ garages and basements (or certain log cabins on Timpview Drive in Provo….) I remember the analog days well and understand the nostalgia- they were just somehow warmer and more real than the digital approximations with 1s and os. Especially since on some of those 4 track recordings we did covers of old Foo songs Big Me, For All the Cows, I’ll Stick Around, Walking After You…. ah, the 90’s. (And a shout out to anyone who ever came to a show to see me play in The Basement, Roger the Shrubber, Waiting for Godot, or any other bands I was in around various Utah County venues.)

And then came digital recorders. And ProTools. And you could fix everything on your computer or autotune your vocals so Britney Spears had talent, etc. And maybe I’m getting too old and falling into “Kids these days and their music” but I just can’t get as excited about a lot of mainstream music that sounds so overproduced and manufactured. And so I love the idea of Foo Fighters trying something revolutionary by recording how albums used to be recorded.

This also fits well into the oeuvre of Foo Fighters, who have had a history of doing low budget recordings and getting superior results to over-produced albums. The 1995 Foo Fighters album was recorded basically as a demo cassette by Dave Grohl playing all the instruments himself. 2000’s There is Nothing Left to Lose, for which they won 3 Grammys, was recorded in Dave Grohl’s basement. The follow-up, One by One, cost a million dollars to record and was basically unreleasable. Grohl and co re-did it in a week, again with help from his home studio, and it was a hit.

And now enter Butch Vig, he the drummer/songwriter/co-producer of Garbage, he the producer of Nirvana’s Nevermind, Smashing Pumpkins’ Gish and Siamese Dream, Helmet’s Betty, and various awesomeness by Freedy Johnston, Soul Asylum… oh, and he’s also recently produced for Muse and Green Day’s 21st Century Breakdown if you need an album produced after 2005.  So Dave Grohl tells him he wants to record on analog tape in his garage- and Butch goes for it. In some ways, this seems very simple: Butch just pointed a mic at the band and they do what they do. The results are pure Foo.

So much of this reminds me of Dethklok complaining that their music sounded “too digital” and so they engineer a way to record on water. But for Foo Fighters, the result is an amazingly warm and personal album. Let’s get to the tracks:

1. “Bridge Burning” The album starts with a bang, the first line a scream, “THESE ARE MY FAMOUS LAST WORDS!!!!!!” Amazing rock track with a chorus hook that if you aren’t singing all day long I may doubt your humanity. Oh yeah, they played this on The Daily Show last night.

2. “Rope” Am I the only one who thinks the opening riff sounds like King Missle’s “Detachable Penis”?  It’s seems so blatant that this has to be an homage of some sort. But another amazing rock track and I would not have picked this for a single over other, more obvious choices.

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=byDiILrNbM4

3. “Dear Rosemary”  Featuring vocals from Husker Du/Sugar frontman/legend Bob Mould, this is an amazing rock ballad that really takes advantage not only of having three guitars in the band, but each of their individual styles mixed to perfection. The harmonies from Mould also just perfectly make this song, and lead to a bridge with one of the best hooks of an album full of amazing ones.

4. “White Limo” This song and video have been around for a while (Foos released it as a “valentine” to their fans on Feb 12), but it just reminds me so perfectly of earlier, playful Foo songs of balls-to-the-wall punk metal like Watershed, Weenie Beenie, or Nirvana’s Radio Friendly Unit Shifter. Don’t know what it has to do with a white limo since I can’t understand the words, but I’ll bang my head to it regardless.

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ebJ2brErERQ

5. “Arlandria” Again an incredibly catchy song in the rock ballad realm with a chorus tailor made to be sung along with in a summer stadium tour. I’d say this is a favorite, but it’s hard to pick among these songs because so much of the album is so good. They also played this on The Daily Show where Dave Grohl discusses haircare and how the collective Foo children destroy backstage greenrooms that rival Van Halen.

6. “These Days” This song starts off so innocent and pretty and then RAWKS into a power anthem. Again, this just perfectly showcases the hard edge and soft underside of the essence of what it is to be Foo Fighters.

7. “Back & Forth” This seems so obviously to be a personal reflection by Grohl on his musical career and what he’s looking for now. This song obviously also provided the director of the Foo documentary with a title because of its meaning about the evolution of the band over the last decade and a half.

8. “A Matter of Time” Another uptempo rock number with a prechorus that would rock your sock off if he didn’t punctuate it with a “woo-oo!” to give it a little pop edge. Here’s where the Foos always surprise me- as such an amazing rock band they throw in these little pop punctuations and it’s just amazing.

9. “Miss the Misery” Starting with feedback and a distorted wah-wah pedal, this sounds more like some of Grohl’s other Seattle compatriots (Soundgraden, Alice in Chains) in its melancholy melodies and tight harmonies backed by heavy guitar riffs and screaming choruses. Yes, all of those are good things, especially in an album which tilts towards pop rock. This provides some needed balance and we head into…

10. “I Should Have Known” Featuring Krist Novoselic on bass and accordion (you remember his accordion from Nirvana Unplugged’s Jesus Don’t Want Me for a Sunbeam, right?) Grohl described this a song about a relationship, but as he thought more about it he looked back on all the times in his life he should’ve seen something coming. This song also contains the most powerful and memorable musical phrases of the album in the chorus. This also starts off really unassuming and pretty and ends up a bloody screaming mess. And you can tell Novoselic’s bass as you really hear that grungy, fuzzy bass that permeated Nirvana’s signature sound.

11. “Walk” The perfect chaser to the melancholy portions of the album. You could cobble this together with Learn to Fly and Times Like These into a power trio of songs of rock redemption. And for an album that began with a prophecy of famous last words, Grohl repeats over and over, almost mantra like, I never wanna die, I never wanna die.  Agreed. And if you’re going to keep making music like this, same here.

And that’s Wasting Light. You already bought it– so go listen to it! Enjoy! I haven’t bought an honest to goodness physical CD in… 5, 7 years? It’s been mp3s and ipods for me exclusively. Somehow it seemed right to buy this on an actual CD (and the vinyl version is coming in two weeks for you true analog fiends– I applaud you) – and it now sits in my car’s CD player and is unlikely to leave that place for the rest of the year. Yes, the mp3s will go on my ipod, but this will be enjoyed as a cohesive album and not just in my ADD-laden playlists and random selections.

Thank you Foo Fighters. Thank you Dave Grohl.

5 Stars.

One for Dave, one for Pat, one for Taylor, one for Nate, one for Chris.  Wait. Can I give an extra star to Butch Vig for producing this? 6 stars? Unprecedented. But perhaps worthy.

Today was the last day of SXSW Interactive, which set a new attendance record of almost 20,000. And to celebrate the transition from the interactive portion of the festival to the music portion, SXSW hosted the world premiere of this groundbreaking documentary on the full history of the Foo Fighters.

Before the screening, the Foo Fighters showed up in their white limo… yes, “>that“> White Limo. While introducing the film, in his typical self-effacing fashion, Dave Grohl says he’s blown away that people would be lined up around the block to get into see a movie about his band.

This is a monster of a documentary, trying to tell the story of a band whose genesis came out of tragedy and whose early years were mired in lineup changes and expectations relating to Nirvana, coming to maturity in one of the biggest rock bands in the world. What shines through here is the humanity of their story. The Foo Fighters are not Led Zeppelin,  shrouded in mystique and mystery. These are very real people with real emotions and conflicts, and the storytelling ability of filmmaker, Academy-award-winner James Moll. In a Q&A after the screening, Moll said that after doing such serious fare revolving around the Holocaust, running through the Sahara Desert, etc, he just really wanted to make a “rock doc.” Executive Producer Nigel Sinclair had been approached by Dave Grohl about filming the making of the new album, and he called Moll and asked if he knew who the Foo Fighters were. “Know who the Foo Fighters are? They’re my favorite band!”

The love shows through the filmmaking process, as the interviews are probing and personal but never feel exploitative. Everything is treated with the sincerity and reverence of someone who truly understands their subject, but is willing to show everything of note in the narrative, warts and all. It’s tone is neither fawning nor skeptical, but genuinely reflects how the band seems to conceive of themselves: How the hell did we get here? And that’s the narrative Moll tells perfectly.

The film starts with baby pictures and home movies of Dave Grohl and other band members, set to the music of Queen, then The Ramones, Fugazi, etc as the opening credits role, to reflect Grohl’s deepening depth as a musician and harder edge, then begins in earnest with the recording of Nirvana’s Nevermind. It spends a solid first chapter on the history and legacy of Nirvana and introducing Pat Smear in the band, then Grohl recording his demo tape on his own that eventually became the first Foo Fighters album as a way to deal with the funk he was in following Kurt Cobain’s suicide. And they continue the story of the band through albums, lineup changes, successes and failures, near breakups, overdoses, up to the recording of their newest album, Wasting Light, due out April 16.

Of note here is that the only people interviewed in the documentary are the members of Foo Fighters, and super-producer Butch Vig, who produced not only Wasting Light (recorded in Grohl’s garage only on analog tape) but also Nirvana’s Nevermind. But they get all of the members- including those who have come in and out of the band in very public, sometimes acrimonious, lineup changes. There are some extremely tense and touching moments regarding the conflict between Grohl and former drummer William Goldsmith that led to his ouster. Grohl is honest about his shortcomings and maniacal genius qualities- but ultimately, it’s what makes Foo Fighters The Foo Fighters. Grohl is also open about what happened with Kurt Cobain, his overdose in Rome, his suicide, and the effect this had on him personally, emotionally, and musically. How he got tired of answering the same questions over and over during the first Foo tour about whether this song or that was about Cobain. Again, this is treated with exactly the right lens.

This documentary has a big heart. Not just in its honesty and more serious moments, but in how incredibly funny it is. There were more real laughs in this than most of the “comedies” Hollywood has been foisting on us recently, and the crowd in the Paramount just ate it up. I won’t spoil it for you, but one of the best moments of the film comes from Dave Grohl’s daughter interrupting a recording session- a universal moment any parent who tries to accomplish work at home while your kids want your attention can appreciate. It is one of the most moving and life-affirming moments I’ve had in a film since…. The King’s Speech? It’s seriously that good.

Also, I was never more grateful to be in a theater with a truly amazing sound system. When the Foo Fighters play Wembley Stadium and Grohl screams, “Is someone getting the best, the best, the best of you?!?!” and we see and hear “The Pretender”– chills, seriously, chills running up my spine. And I started to tear up from sheer joy and amazement at the talent and the raw emotion packed into these songs.

Your first opportunity to see Back and Forth (unless you can make it to the Friday, 3pm screening here at SXSW) will be April 5th, when it will be shown along with a live-streamed concert at 80 theaters nationwide.  For you readers in the SLC area, you’re going to have to go to Provo to the Carmike 12 in the Riverwoods shopping center (oh noez! Not to Utah County!) but I promise it’s well worth even a trip to The UC.

Go to http://foofighters.cinedigm.com/ for more information on theaters and tickets

The rest of us can check it out on VH1 on April 8th if you can’t make it to a theater. But remember what I said above about being in a theater with an amazing sound system. Unless you’ve got a pretty sweet system yourself, this is not something a Foo fan would want to miss.

This is not only an excellent documentary and one of the best of that genre I have seen in a while, but simply one of the best films I’ve seen in a while. Granted, I am a huge Foo Fighters fan, so I am biased, but the way the music is so seamlessly blended in between familiar studio tracks and live performances and then used in service of the overall narrative is a tribute to Moll’s skills- he’s worthy not only of the Oscar he has previously won but also of a nomination for this work. This is a treat for not only Foo Fighters fans, but fans of music, fans of documentaries, and fans of just great storytelling and character development.

4 stars.

Seriously. I’ve never given a movie 4 stars before. The only 4 star movies I saw last year were Toy Story and True Grit. But this is that worthy. It is the best thing I’ve done at SXSW and probably will not be topped. (I’m daring you, universe!!!)

The only thing I’d change? The stupid, @#@$%#$ girls sitting next to me on their goddamn phones texting and emailing all movie long.  You know, we all stood in a long line to get in here, and so I don’t know what’s so important you have to be on your phone talking with someone rather than enjoying this movie. You used your phone like a flashlight to try and find your seats at the beginning of the screening, so you know how much light your screen is giving off. Seriously. Someone better have been in the hospital for you to be messaging them so much. People like you need your phones taken away, ground into tiny bits, and your fingers gnawed off by rodents so you figure out how not to be a douche at a premier screening. </rant>

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6-tS8mlfEKM

Here’s your latest reason to hate NPR: When the latest R.E.M. album, “Collapse Into Now,” was released earlier this month, hosts, pundits, commentators and various hangers-on for the revered radio news source hyperbolically claimed it was the music set longtime fans of the band have desired for years.

Forget, if you can, that the band and its label had given NPR the rights to “stream” the full album on its site, and that the move made it look like NPR was, in essence, patting itself on the back for the seeming coup.

And forget, if you can, that NPR apparently forgot all about R.E.M.’s 2008 release, “Accelerate,” and the accompanying two-disc live set, “Live at the Olympia in Dublin: 39 Songs.” Both of these were assured returns-to-form that sated many an R.E.M. fans’ appetite for confident, jangly, hooky guitar/folk-pop.

Also forget that the NPR claims made a lot of R.E.M. aficionados sound like lifeless music dinosaurs who had nothing better to do with their time than await some sort of musical Second Coming.

Now for the good news part of our program: “Collapse Into Now” is a decent little R.E.M. album. There’s a lot to like in the dozen song selection. If nothing else, this and “Accelerate” show the band has left the poorly received “Around the Sun’s” gimmicky electronica and sound effects behind.

(The core trio of vocalist/lyricist Michael Stipe, guitarist/stringed instrument wiz Peter Buck and bass guitarist Mike continues to be augmented by co-producer Jacknife Lee, Ministry and Revolting Cocks skins pounder William Rieflin and multi-instrumentalist Scott McCaughey, of Young Fresh Fellows and various guitar-pop endeavors.)

Unlike “Accelerate,” which seemed to take its cues from the no-nonsense R.E.M. rockers “Fables of the Reconstruction” and “Lifes Rich Pageants” (sic), the songs here recall both the poppier relaxed rock aspects of “Out of Time” and “Automatic for the People.”

“All the Best” and its boastful “let’s show the kids how to do it” line, as well as both “Every Day is Yours to Win” and “That Someone is You” are all clear, anthemic winners.

But the whole collection is not without its share of clinkers. “Oh My Heart” may have that customary R.E.M. jangle, but its tune is stuck in neutral, with Stipe has written some less than inspired lyrical couplets for it. As for “Alligator_Aviator-Autopilot_Antimatter” … seriously, WTF?

Look, this is not all-time classic R.E.M. At this point in their career, we’re lucky just to get a solidly enjoyable album. Luckily, most of the musical quibbles here are minor ones. And besides, in a musical landscape ruled by Justin Biebers, Black Eyed Peas and American Idol competitors, we should just be grateful to still have R.E.M. So maybe NPR had it right all along …

Jerk-Bot is the robotic nom de plume of Utah-based movie reviewer and writer Jeff Michael Vice, who invites you to enjoy his other endeavors, for Xfinity’s Big Movie Mouth-Off review program, MSN’s Parallel Universe, X-96’s Radio From Hell, Geek Show Podcast and the Mediocre Show.

Mark Dago is a good friend of the site. He comes to to the Big Shiny Geek Show Pub Quiz every week and he and I have been occupying space at various coffee shops, each of us working on our own novels.

He’s also an accomplished musician, both solo and with a hip-hop act called NUMBS, and he plays plenty of shows in and around the Salt Lake City area. Over the years they’ve gotten the attention of Chuck D and Public Enemy. Chuck D plays his music on his radio show now and again. But it was to Mark’s eternal surprise at the Public Enemy show over the weekend that Chuck D called him up onto the stage out of the blue and had him freestyle, Flava Flav backing them up on drums.

He’s a fan of Big Shiny Robot! and I thought it would be cool to share the video of his freestyle. You should all check out his music if you’re so inclined.