If you’ve ever dreamed of being a rock star or wondered what it’s like to be one, here’s a documentary that will bring you that much closer.

The house lights dim and the crowd surges forward. Moments ago the crowd was loud and boisterous; now, they are hushed. It’s a special brand of reverence saved up for this once-in-a-lifetime event. Together they experience the show. The band takes the stage. The lights pulse, the drums kick, the bass pumps, the guitar wails, and the singer croons; it’s magic. There is a sweaty goodbye and the fans are left with an unforgettable night. But what happens to the band after they strike the set? Long Way to the Top, a new rock documentary that recently hit digital outlets, takes you on the road with professional musicians to look at the highs and lows of living the dream.

While newcomers The Sword, Grizfolk, and David Ramirez hold center stage through musical performances and looks behind the scenes of their tours, other interview subjects include members of Def Leppard, Weezer, Phantom Planet, Limp Bizkit, Nine Inch Nails, and more. As director Rob Montague stresses:

It’s important to showcase every genre of music. Though one band may consider themselves heavy metal and another pop, the journey they take is the same. It’s just the details that are different.

Montague and his producers really clicked with metal band The Sword, recognizing a drive and commitment to their art, “They are a blue collar band, living on the road.” Producer Taylor Wallace, who is an event manager for the iconic Red Rocks Amphitheater and other venues, agrees, noting, “The Sword is a band that takes the time to talk to their fans and savor the crowd every show. They’re in it for the music.”

Formed in 2003, and hailing from music capital Austin, Texas, the heavy metal band is currently celebrating the release of their album Low Country. 2012’s Apocryphon debuted at #17 on the Billboard Top 200, marking their highest entry on the chart. Since first emerging with 2006’s Age of Winters, the group has been extolled by everyone from Rolling Stone and The Washington Post to Revolver and Decibel. Metallica personally chose them as support for a global tour, and they’ve earned high-profile syncs in movies including Jennifer’s Body and Jonas Åkerlund’s Horsemen.

Three years in the making, Long Way to the Top is a story about the trials and tribulations of working musicians, with heavy emphasis of life on the road. From unexpected tour line-ups to unforgiving weather, the undying love of their fans to their unsympathetic landlords, LWTTT presents an uncompromising, behind-the-scenes glimpse of what it is really like being a career musician in our modern era.

Says film co-producer Thom Hazart (also responsible for day-to-day operations for powerhouse independent record label EMP Label GroupP) says:

I watched Rob and Taylor work on this film for years, with the kind of determination I can barely even fathom. At the end, it is such an accurate and intimate look at the heart of the independent touring musician. I recommend anyone to check it out.

The film initially screened at the 39th Annual Cleveland International Film Festival, Ink’s Middle of the Map Fest, and Skyline Indie Film Festival. It was nominated for Best Documentary at NewFilmmakers, and won Best Rock Documentary at the Albuquerque Film Festival before signing with Quiver.

Long Way To the Top Synopsis:

Long Way to the Top explores the highs and lows of life on the road as a touring musician. From dive bars to arena shows and everything in between, there’s a lot more going on backstage than you could ever imagine. Featuring performances and interviews from Grizfolk, Def Leppard, Weezer, Taking Back Sunday, David Ramirez, and many more!

For more details, hit up the following locations:
Latemorningfilms.com
Facebook
iTunes

Rock Hard \m/

Has it really been 10 years since the release of Metallica: Some Kind of Monster? Indeed, July 9, 2004, was 10 years ago, and ever since the award-winning documentary has been the brunt of many jokes. Nonetheless, the out-of-print film will be released as a two-disc Blu-ray package come November 24, 2014. The new release will also contain a 25-minute bonus feature called Metallica: This Monster Lives, which was filmed at the Toronto International Film Festival during the release of Metallica: Through the Never.

Metallica: Some Kind of Monster is also going to be released digitally and on VOD.

Metallica: Some Kind of Monster Synopsis:

The documentary follows the band through three of the most turbulent years in their over three-decade long career, and gives viewers an incredibly raw and intimate look into the lives and psyches of the members of one of the most successful rock bands in music history as they battle their way through addiction, domestic life, backlash from their fans, and near-total disintegration during the making of their St. Anger album.

“Lords of Summer” 12″

Additionally, Metallica will release a limited-edition 12” vinyl of “Lords of Summer.” Side A will contain the studio version of the song and a previously unreleased live version from the Rock in Rome Sonisphere Festival on July 1, 2014. Side B will feature a laser etching of the Metallica “M” logo. The vinyl will drop on Black Friday Record Store Day (November 28, 2014) and will only be available through independent retail and at metallica.com.

Rock Hard \m/

Despite heavy metal turncoats, Pantera didn’t make it easy to ignore Vulgar, as it was something that most of us weren’t ready for, and it was certainly something we were craving. It was just so fucking heavy and powerful, and while it could be furiously fast, it was thrash. It had a crunch and a bottom end that was all but unheard of in metal. And Phil’s vocals were harsh; they weren’t wailing like power metal, they weren’t growls like the emerging death metal genre, but they definitely weren’t soft and clean, but their hard bite was addictive.

In the following two years, Pantera’s name spread like an STD in a brothel. Amidst a sure-footed grunge culture, and a growing punk scene thanks to Green Day and The Offspring, Pantera emerged with the Billboard Number 1 album in 1994 with Far Beyond Driven. Phil Anselmo used to boast about this fact, and ask audiences the question, “Who says hard music is dead?”

The rest is history, but while Pantera may have forever changed heavy metal, they didn’t do it on their own. There was a small army of like-minded sludge factories in New Orleans, where Phil is from, and elsewhere, such as Crowbar, Eyehategod, Shell Shock, Graveyard Rodeo, Exhorder, Rigor Mortis, and, of course, the Melvins.

This history is what Vice magazine’s Noisey division is attempting to tell in NOLA: Life, Death And Heavy Blues From The Bayou. Part 1 on the 7 part documentary was released yesterday, September 23rd, which you can watch in the player above. You absolutely have to watch this.

Stay tuned as we bring you updates on NOLA.

Rock Hard \m/

One of those “paid dues” mentioned above was the arrest, charges, and trial involving vocalist Randy Blythe in the Czech Republic. Blythe was brought up on charges of committing intentional bodily harm that led to the death of their fan Daniel Nosek, 19. In large part, the documentary As the Palaces Burn is about the trial and its effect on Blythe and the rest of the members of Lamb of God.

But the film didn’t start out with that intention. It began as an account of Lamb of God and heavy metal’s effect on metal fans throughout the world and in various cultures. And since filming began prior to Blythe’s arrest what was shot and conceived remained. In fact, director Don Argott made a perfect and near seamless segue between the two story arcs.

For the first 30 minutes of the film we follow Lamb of God as they traverse the globe in support of their 2012 album Resolution. It’s an enjoyable ride as we learn about Blythe’s outlook on life and commitment to work and music since being sober for two years. As originally intended, we do get to meet a couple of fans: a cabbie in Colombia who, like Blythe, hangs his salvation on heavy metal, and then there’s a female fan in Pakistan who faces the pressures and persecutions of being a female, tattooed metal fan and singer in a culture where heavy metal isn’t as widespread or as visible. All of which is split with epic performance video, shots of fans and audiences, and interviews made all the more intense with Lamb of God’s music.

This was the core concept of the film, and even in its short time the message is not lost, at least not on heavy metal fans. We know that heavy metal is or will be the great unifier, because, as Blythe says toward the end of As the Palaces Burn, this is music that means something.

Heavy metal culture is a beast unto itself, and if you’re outside of it, you probably won’t understand it. Yes, it’s violent, it’s aggressive, it’s abrasive, and it’s intense, but it’s also a release, calming, meditative, inspiring, motivational, and spiritual. It’s more than a genre of music, it’s a lifestyle, a brotherhood, and damn near a religion.

And that is the crux that led to Blythe’s arrest and trial, a lack of understanding the heavy metal culture and fear of it. It’s actually unbelievable that there are still some people who fear music that they don’t understand or find appealing.

As we follow the band on tour and into the Czech Republic, Blythe is taken into custody upon landing. But would that have happened if the people who put his arrest into motion understood metal culture?

From the outside, this culture looks barbaric and violent, and I suppose to a certain extent it is. However, what outsiders may not be aware of is that our intent isn’t to hurt one another as we mosh, stage dive, or let our inner beast out. In some regards it’s not unlike a spiritual ceremony in which we celebrate life, we celebrate the fact that there are others who feel as we do, that there are others who believe what we believe. It’s a brother/sisterhood. It became clear in As the Palaces Burn that this subculture wasn’t understood as Blythe and his legal team prepped him for the proceedings, reviewing the definitions of “moshing,” “slam dancing,” and “stage diving” for the benefit of the judges and the prosecution.

Throughout the legal aspects shown in the film, it was touching to see how the band came together to raise money for the legal fees, by auctioning off some priceless memorabilia, and how the band actually got closer to one another than ever before. The outpouring of support from fans was also shown, as well as peers like Slash and Corey Taylor. Additionally, it was very revealing of the band members’ character as they expressed the paradox of emotions they were going through.

As the Palaces Burn comes to DVD on October 14th. Pre-order your copy here: myplaydirect.com

I just stated that The Creep Behind the Camera is high-production, and it might not be, I don’t really know for sure because the budget isn’t listed. However, from what I saw during the screening, I can tell you straight off the bat the team behind this documentary put a lot of effort into telling the story of Vic Savage and the worst movie ever made, The Creeping Terror.

It was extremely well shot and very eye-catching; the director of photography should get an award for this documentary. Director Pete Schuermann also did a superb job in his effort to deviate from the traditional documentary that you typically see on A&E. That’s the most interesting aspect of The Creep Behind the Camera.

It’s filmed just like a movie with good actors and the story flows extremely well, scene after scene, with real interviews. I’ll point out that actress Jodi Lynn Thomas did a fantastic job portraying Vic Savage’s wife; she delivers all the tears in the story. Unfortunately, you feel bad for the real wife because the documentary is funny and absurd for the most part, but doesn’t do a great job at telling the serious parts of her relationship with Vic Savage. Who really is a lunatic around her because he cheats, treats her like crap, and even attempts to kill her at one point.

The part that made the experience frustrating during the North American premiere was the fact that the whole story of Vic Savage gets really boring, real quick, and it just drags by the time you reach the film’s end. It feels even forced at times. In the first half you get all the goodies like how Vic Savage met the producer who financed The Creeping Terror, how the monster came about, how he scammed actors to be in his so called epic movie at the time, and much more. But the nonsense just never seems to end.

Although, the Crystal Lake Memories video documentary was previously announced for release in August, 1428 Films, Panic Productions, and Hutson Ranch Media announced a new release date because more time was needed to complete it.

“Having spent well over a year in production on Crystal Lake Memories, we wanted to take a little more time to give fans the definitive Friday the 13th documentary they’ve been waiting for,” explains writer/director Daniel Farrands. “Not only were we able to line up a couple of last-minute interviews for our bonus disc and record a full filmmaker commentary track, it just made more sense to wait a couple of weeks and release Crystal Lake Memories on the ‘unlucky day’ it celebrates: Friday the 13th.”

Crystal Lake Memories promises to be the definitive retrospective featuring interviews with Kane Hodder, Robert Englund, Tom Savini, Danielle Panabaker, Sean S. Cunningham, Derek Mears, Betsy Palmer, Wes Craven, Robert Shaye, Alice Cooper, and many more.

Your bad luck begins in 30 days, so mark your calender on Friday, September 13th, 2013 for this must-have Friday the 13th documentary disc set .

This mini-documentary follows an 80-year-old German man named Werner Freund who prefers to be a wolf than a man, and lives with wild wolves. What the hell, right?

He’s been raising and living with wild wolves in Germany for the last 30 years and considers them his family. Last January, Gersin Paya from VICE Germany and a small crew drove to the town of Merzig to meet Werner and help him feed raw deer meat to his furry brethren.

Is the “Wolf Man” just crazy or insane? Watch the video above and you be the judge. Also, drop your thoughts off in the comment section below.

If you’ve ever wondered about Australian metal, then you’ll be pleased to know that Nick Calpakdjian and David Hawkins are putting together a film that documents the history of metal in Australia. According to the press release, Metal Down Under will discuss the significance and influence of such bands as Psycroptic, Pegazus, Psychonaut, Allegiance, Slaughter Lord, and Blood Duster

An interactive website is also being released in conjunction with Metal Down Under. You can visit www.metaldownunder.com now, and that’s going to have to do for now as the documentary is currently being filmed and an official release date hasn’t been announced yet.

Check out the rest of the Metal Down Under press release below, and as always…

Rock Hard \m/

Animus Industries is producing a feature-length documentary about the history of heavy metal music in Australia. The film will trace the origins of metal in Australia and explore this ever-evolving genre of extreme music. From grindcore, thrash, death metal, black metal, hardcore, doom, melodic metal, sludge, power metal, and the many more sub genres that exist, Metal Down Under will cover it all.

The history of metal in Australia has never been fully told and this film attempts to rectify that. Rather than a backstage interview film with a bit of live footage in between, Metal Down Under will tell the story of Aussie metal through formal interviews, archival, animation, candid observation-style footage and first-person narration. The film will be accompanied by an interactive website that will document the production of the film as well as profile and publicize many of the bands and identities involved in heavy metal. Released in conjunction with the documentary DVD will be a bonus DVD of music videos, interviews, and extended material, as well as a compilation CD.

Metal Down Under

According to the press release below, Kyle is working by himself to bring this ambitious film together about horror conventions, but still needs your help for support. All one must do is follow Fantasm on Twitter or Facebook, like we already did, and that, my friend, is a great starting point to keep his motivation level up to complete Fantasm.

He will be traveling all across America to meet fans like himself at conventions in the months ahead, so make sure you attend the next one coming up in or near your hometown. Because you never know, you might just appear in Fantasm one day.

If you want to know more about Fantasm, continue reading the full press release below.

Press Release

Fantasm, a new documentary about horror conventions and the tight-knit community of fans who attend them, is currently in production under the direction of Kyle Kuchta.

Kyle Kuchta has a self-proclaimed obsession with horror films. Upon discovering the phenomenon of horror conventions, the young genre fanatic finally felt like a part of a community. He connected with like-minded individuals with whom he shares his love for the genre. Now he’s traveling to conventions all across America to find out why horror brings people together.

In addition to legions of devoted fans, the documentary will feature insight from iconic actors and filmmakers. Interview subjects who have already participated in Fantasm include Heather Langenkamp (A Nightmare on Elm Street, New Nightmare), Tom Atkins (Halloween III, Escape from New York), Joe Lynch (Chillerama, Wrong Turn 2), Amanda Wyss (A Nightmare on Elm Street) and more.

Fantasm began as aspiring filmmaker Kyle Kuchta‘s thesis in pursuit of his film degree from Syracuse University’s College of Visual and Performing Arts.

“I wanted to do a documentary on horror conventions, because I didn’t feel as if a lot of people knew about them or the loving community that they are a part of.”

The documentary was partially funded via Kickstarter. Further proving the enthusiastic support of the horror community, the project reached its goal in just 11 days. The 21-year-old Kuchta is currently working as a one-man film crew, serving as director, camera operator, interviewer, and editor, among other duties.

Production will continue in March at the upcoming Monster-Mania in Cherry Hill, NJ and HorrorHound Weekend in Cincinnati, OH. Filming has previously taken place at such fan-favorite conventions as Monster-Mania (Hunt Valley, MD), Rock and Shock (Worcester, MA), Spooky Empire (Orlando, FL) and HorrorHound Weekend (Indianapolis, IL). The documentary is expected to be completed in May 2013.

Keep up to date with Fantasm on Facebook and Twitter.

“Fantasm” A Horror Convention Documentary For The Lunatics

This is relatively old news, but I came across it lately and have shared the link with a number of friends that I thought would enjoy it – and none of them have heard of it, much less seen it. So, I wanted to share it with the Yellers out there.

Heavy Metal Parking Lot is a found-footage “documentary” that captures the essence of what it meant to be a metalhead in the mid-’80s. Filmed by John Heyn and Jeff Krulik in a Landover parking lot prior to a 1986 Judas Priest/Dokken concert, Heavy Metal Parking Lot has big hair, girls in tight jeans, guys in cut-off T-shirts, 20 year olds dating 13 year olds, stoned redheads, Firebirds, ghetto blasters, lots of beer, unseen pot, feathered hair, swearing, and much more to educate you on the metal scene of days gone by.

Contrary to those (cough, cough, Tipper Gore, cough, cough) who would have you believe otherwise, Heavy Metal Parking Lot is evidence that the heshers back in the day were much more about good spirits and fun than demonic spirits and suicide.

A rumored favorite on the Nirvana tour bus, the film celebrated its 25th anniversary last year as it was screened at the Found Footage Festival. And don’t think this thing has gone unnoticed; Roger Ebert commented on the film’s subjects, referring to them as “stoned worshippers at the shrine of their own bewilderment.” Even Sophia Coppola called the filmmakers at one point to request permission to show it on Comedy Central.

As much fun as they’re having, these kids look utterly stupid. It’s like watching a lost Beavis and Butt-head society come to life, and it’s fucking great. It was certainly a different time. Less (at least different) worries, more lenient laws, and maybe a bit more fun. I’d venture to say that there was more community among the heshers in the ’80s, but I’m a strong proponent for the sense of solidarity and kinship among even today’s metal crowd.

If you haven’t seen Heavy Metal Parking Lot, do so. You owe it to yourself.

Rock Hard \m/