Ladies and Gentlemen, I'd like to introduce myself. My name is Cary Christopher and I am a Pixies fan. In fact, on my list of top
10 favorite bands of all time, The Pixies sit firmly nestled in the top 5
alongside The Who, The Beatles, Wilco and Guided By Voices, in no particular
order. I'm telling you  this so that you know one thing up front. There is no
way I can be unbiased when writing about loudQUIETloud: A Film About The
Pixies. It's just not possible.
That said, though, my love of all things Pixies is
something I can't really explain. Of the other bands in that list of favorites,
I can easily tell you exactly what it is about them that I love (for instance,
The Beatles masterful songwriting or Wilco's constant ability to push themselves
in new directions with every release). However, when it comes to the Pixies, I
just can't put it into words. There is just something about their music that
connects with me on a level I can't define.
What amazed me while watching loudQUIETloud: A
Film About The Pixies is that the band themselves seem to feel exactly same
way. Here are four people who genuinely find something magical when playing
together on stage, but who have no idea why or how. It just happens.
For those of you who do not know, The Pixies are
credited as one of the most influential bands of the late 80's/early 90's. In
fact, this film starts with a quote from Nirvana's Kurt Cobain regarding "Smells
Like Teen Spirit" where he stated, "I was basically trying to rip off The
Pixies. "
As these things tend to happen, though, The Pixies
never experienced huge sales or popularity in their heyday. They were popular
within the pre-alternative-boom indie music scene, but had broken up by the time
the record companies came calling with big contracts in the 1990s. In fact,
it is the band's acrimonious demise that sets the stage for this documentary.  The story goes that Charles Thompson (aka Frank Black/Black Francis, main
songwriter for the band) sent the other members a fax telling them the band was
finished. This was only after he announced the break up on the radio in the
UK. Yes, it was an asshole thing to do, but this had been preceded by years of
"we're breaking up" threats by various band members.
When the dust settled, practically nobody was talking
to each other and each went on to do their own thing for the next 12 years. All this time, The Pixies legend grew to a point where there was a whole new
group of rabid fans who completely missed seeing them live. What's better is
that the majority of the band never seemed to notice this had happened. They
were too busy struggling with things like addiction, growing families and
general aimlessness. It seems that without the other three, each person was in
their own way kind of lost.
 In 2004, The Pixies reunited to play eight shows
around the world. They openly admitted that money was the major factor that
brought them together, but by the end of the tour it seemed there was much more
to it than that. Directors Steven Cantor and Matthew Galkin were given complete
access to them during the rehearsals and subsequent tour. Instead of making a
movie about a band basking in the glow of success that's finally coming their
way, Cantor and Galkin have made a film about four people approaching middle age
who seem to genuinely care about each other but have loads of trouble
communicating on any level other than musically.
That, not the reunion tour itself, makes for
compelling subject matter. They are not dysfunctional in the usual "rock star"
ways. In fact, the only person who really starts drinking heavily is drummer
David Lovering and that is only after the death of his father pushes him over
the edge.
They are dysfunctional in that they just can't
communicate. For instance, when Lovering begins abusing his valium prescription
everyone talks about it amongst friends but no one will confront him or even
speak about it with each other. What constitutes an intervention here ends up
being an off-handed remark in the van by bassist Kim Deal about how difficult
valium is to kick and a follow-up comment from Black about therapy. That's
it. End of conversation. The fact that Lovering actually curtails his intake
based on these remarks speaks volumes about how big a step Deal's making that
remark was.
 It may seem that watching a movie about people who
can't communicate would be boring or stressful, but that's not the case at all. In fact, the greatest thing about loudQUIETloud: A Film About The Pixies is that it captures truly magical moments amongst the four that convey just
how much they appreciate each other even though they can't talk about it.
Probably my favorite example is when Kim Deal comes down with pre-show jitters
only to have Thompson (the person who she had the most conflict with back in the
1990s) console her just before they walk out of the dressing room. He brings
a calming voice to her when she needs it most, and then just as they are about to
walk on stage, he turns to the camera and reveals his own nervousness saying, “I
think I'm going to throw up.” Contrast that with scenes where the four sit for
long stretches without uttering a word to each other, in some cases doing
everything humanly possible to avoid a conversation (checking cell phone
messages, drumming on chairs, etc. ). It's amazingly humanizing to watch these
four people figuring out how to deal with this absurd situation.
Even more endearing (and the thing that actually
brought tears to my eyes) is watching the band start to come to grips with just
how popular they have become. After the very first warm-up gig in an 800-seat
club, Kim Deal is flabbergasted. She asks her sister if she thinks the crowds
(who knew every word and sang along to every song) are going to be like that  on
every stop or if it was just because it was the first show. Her sister assures
her it's going to be worse… and it is, as that atmosphere continues in the 10,000
seat venues as well.
Another telling moment later on in the film involves
a 15-year-old girl who passes Deal a book where the main character is a Pixies
fan. The girl had highlighted all the places the band is mentioned and told
Deal that the book was what first led her to check out the band. Watching
Deal's face on the tour bus that night as she reads the highlights, you start to
realize that she's never thought about how important her music has been to other
people. It's an amazing moment, and it's just one of many captured in this
film.
I could go on for another fifteen paragraphs about
how great loudQUIETloud: A Film About The Pixies is, but you've probably
already stopped reading by now.
Trust me on this one. Pick it up for yourself.
You won't be disappointed.
Presentation
This film looks absolutely amazing. Cantor and
Galkin have done an outstanding job capturing both the band on stage and the
band on the road. The colors are rich and vibrant. The framing is beautiful. It's recorded in 5.1 Surround Sound and it's used very well. The band's music
sounds fantastic, and there's never a moment where you have to strain to hear a
conversation. These guys obviously knew what they were doing and it shows. Also
check out the incredible soundtrack provided by Daniel Lanois.
Extras
If you like the film itself, you are really going to
love the commentary on this. Directors Cantor and Galkin sit down with editor
Trevor Ristow and go into a lot of the details left out of the actual film. You
get some commentary on shooting the film, but really you get more insight into
the stories behind the film. One of the best themes that they keep revisiting
is how hard it was to make a documentary about a band that doesn't talk to each
other. The filmmakers specifically chose to stay away from "interviews" as much
as possible, and in fact there  are only one or two in the whole film. It's an
interesting comment that two guys making a film about their favorite band had hundreds of hours of film but were concerned
they may not have enough material to work with because of the band's
dysfunction.
They also go into great detail about the Pixies
un-rock star mentalities and most surprising for me was the story that none of
the band members had played any Pixies songs since the band's demise. Cantor
and Galkin discuss just how worried they were that this whole thing would fall
through when they filmed the first rehearsal. In fact, they borrowed Galkin's
iPod so they could listen to "Where Is My Mind" because none of them remembered
how it went.
In case you don't know it either, it's the song that
plays over the closing scene and credits to Fight Club.
Also included on this disc are some bonus
scenes that don't add much to the film but are still fun to watch. Finally,
there is a 16-page booklet featuring a short piece by the directors and
an essay from a rock critic. It's a fun but quick read.
The Bottom Line
In the last four years, some truly great rock
documentaries have surfaced. I Am Trying To Break Your Heart, End Of
The Century and now loudQUIETloud: A Film About The Pixies are all
fantastic films. If you haven't seen any of them, I would recommend this one as
a great place to start. It's not only a compelling story but also a very well
made film.
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