Companion viewing
"The Decline of Western Civilization" (1981)
"The Filth and the Fury" (2000)
"Records Collecting Dust" (2015)
The Locals is Digital Gym Cinema’s ongoing film series highlighting regional filmmakers. Thursday night through Saturday audiences can meet San Diego based director Jason Blackmore at screenings of his documentary "Records Collecting Dust 2."
"Records Collecting Dust 2" is Blackmore’s follow up to his 2015 documentary about artists sharing their experiences about the punk rock scene and the records that influenced them.
Like musician Dante Ferrando who recalls, "when I was five or six I used to take out the triple-gatefold 'Tommy' album, and there were three copies in the house so I would set up all three copies and build like a little fort. You could sit in it or dance in it and try to figure out what it was all about."
The sequel looks to 28 people from the 1980s hardcore punk music scene of Boston, New York and Washington, D.C. Blackmore asks them to talk about the first records they remember buying and uses that as a jumping off point to expand to other topics.
Memories range from falling in love with the music they discover on an LP to the anger and disappointment of having felt tricked into buying an album containing crappy music.
I have to confess that I didn't know or recognize most of the people interviewed in the film. I am a film geek and since that consumes most of my time, I have little left to indulge in music. So I felt a little lost during the long stretches at the beginning where no one is identified. This makes it feel like a documentary tailored for a niche community but the minutia with which these people recall favorite albums or music is likely to appeal to anyone who has a passion for something. Blackmore captures the passion these people have for music and that's something that is easy to relate to and enjoy.
Blackmore will be at screenings Thursday night through Saturday to present his film and answer questions after screenings. This is a great opportunity to support local filmmakers and to speak with a filmmaker about his work.
