Packaging--
The good:
Pretty damn solid looking DVD. The cover has individual band photos plus a group silhouette live shot. It's put together nicely. The back has a cover of the band with the setlist and all that good stuff. A big plus is a classy looking insert with some words from Eddie and production notes. Many band opt out of the insert which is a shame.
The bad:
This comes with a bonus live CD. It is probably not cost effective to do this, but if you ask me...they should have a CD insert so you can toss the disc into a standard jewel case. That way the DVD is on your DVD shelf and the CD is on your CD shelf.
As a compromise, I propose putting a link somewhere in the packaging to a .pdf file of CD artwork. This way they don't have to print up the artwork and it won't go wasted for folks who disagree with me. And to show you how passionate I am about this, I e-mailed the band suggesting this. I really need a hobby. Wait, this is my hobby.
The music:
The good:
The Supersuckers are a force to be reckoned with. They've been doing there thing for years and I find it disturbing they aren't far more popular than they are. The fact that they aren't selling out larger venues proves that, well, people are morons and have lousy taste.
This is the band's first venture into the DVD world and it's pretty damn awesome. It seems that a lot of crappy bands are throwing together pretty mediocre products simply because the price of producing DVDs have dropped so much. This is definitely not the case here.
This DVD is a couple live sets that are edited together. The sound quality on here is excellent. The great thing about DVDs like this is that it really shows what the future of music recordings is going to be...CDs sound great, but this is a whole new level. Audiophiles take note.
I have seen this band live a few times and they are always awesome. They've never been "okay"...they've never been "good"...they've always been awesome. Even the bootlegs I have of theirs are consistent with this...the band is excellent live and put on an incredible show. The performances on here are, as to be expected, superb. During the opening song the band almost seems a bit reserved, perhaps nerves? I don't know, but they quickly loosen up and we get the standard energy of the show.
This is one of the few live DVDs that actually does a good job capturing the show. The video edits aren't nauseating but they're frequent enough to make the video interesting to watch. There are quite a few visual effects that give it texture and make the show more enjoyable. A DVD can never actually give you the feeling that you are there, but this is really the next best thing. I'm going to put this in my top three concert DVDs of all time (nothing beats Anthrax and if you chuckled about that, you obviously haven't seen it).
Extras include a brief Eddie Spaghetti solo instore performance and a pretty hilarious "interview" segment. The interview climaxes in a mind blowing fashion that will leave you questioning the very so-called laws of physics.
The bonus CD is an incomplete (I assume its incomplete) live country show. A different show than "Must've Been Live" and a few different songs that I'm glad made it like "Born With a Tail."
The bad--
The way I see it, if you're going to put out a live DVD, you should put out a show. One show, continuous, no splicing, no interviews or fan comments or whatever between songs. This DVD is a rock and a country show spliced together.
I write this, of course, as a fan. The way I see it, "The Supersuckers Big Show" which lasts around three hours...a lengthy country set and then a shorter, though still fairly long, rock set with Eddie doing a solo song here and there...that would be an excellent DVD. Give me two full sets and I'm happy. Is that realistics? Maybe not. Should I be happy with the fact I even get a DVD? Absolutely.
If you're going to splice together a few shows, then I prefer the songs to flow like a set...
The bonus CD fades in and out between songs. What's peculiar is I don't think the live CD is from multiple shows.
These are, admittedly, pretty minor. Do I think they should've had all the country songs together and then all the rock songs together? Of course. Does the fact that the DVD is arranged like that make it less enjoyable? No. Would I have made the live CD flow together like a single show? Not a doubt, I would. Would I say that asking myself a question and then answering it is far more irritating than any sort of audio/video editing? Absolutely.
At times there seems to be digital pixelization...I assume it's intentional because it's not always present, but it doesn't really look attractive. I'm not sure how they recorded it as sometimes the video looks very clear and sharp, sometimes it has this weird pixelation, and my personal favorite is when the stock has a grainy and dusty feel, which I think is perfect as there is such a thing as being "too clear"...but there's grain and then there's pixels. A minor problem that doesn't effect the whole show, nor does it really detract, but it is worth mentioning.
Recap�
An excellent DVD that effectively captures the band's live show. A must for fan and a useful conversion tool for non-believers. I would suggest attempting to get a wholesale order in and buying them as Christmas gifts for friends and relatives. That's my plan.
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Supersuckers!
Review by Chris