Customer Reviews

MC5 - Kick Out the Jams

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

What you basically have here is old, old Super 8 movies of the band shown over a musical soundtrack of average bootleg quality at best. Some of the soundtrack (and I use the term soundtrack in the loosest possible sense) sounds like it may be from the legit "Kick Out The Jams" album, while other music may be from the various lo-fi cds that have circulated for years like the Strugis Armory & Saginaw Civic Center show.

Yes, there is MC5 concert footage, yes there is a concert soundtrack, but they are never from the same source. You might be hearing "Kick Out The Jams", but based on the video, you have no idea what the band is playing. The various concert shots are spliced in to mimic the actual concert, but the editing job is not very good. What your eyes are seeing is totally different from what you are hearing. There is often "non-live" footage mixed in which has absolutely nothing to do with anything. Finally the dvd is only 35 minutes long, pretty short considering the amount of material a dvd can contain.

For any newcomer to the MC5, who is reading this. Take a big pass here & drop your cash on the "Purity, Accuracy" box. For a diehard MC5 fan, seeing the video is really a must; especially with so little if any live video footage available, albeit "silent". It's like watching an old home movie while playing the "Kick Out The Jams" lp on the stereo. I guess I need to change my title for this review, I doubt the producers of this "film" could have done much considering the material they had to work with. I would actually rate it 2 1/2 stars if I could.

There really hasn't been much documented on the Mc5 until a few years ago that I really know of. This film in particular is great if you are really wanting to see any footage of the Mc5. If you are a purist for well put together films you may not like this. The flashing lights and the tripy images can be distracting and I couldn't even imagine how that would be on acid. At any rate the music is great but it is not in synch with the actual home movies which are silent pieces. I'm just happy that there is some documentation coming out on the Mc5 and I'm hoping that the surviving members of the Mc5 will put out the documentary "a true testimonial." The interview with John Sinclair is interesting and worth checking out. I met him at a coffee shop in Memphis as he was doing a radio show there and he was a really nice guy and quite a charater as that footage shows. Again if you are looking for a full fledge documentary you won't find it there. I give this 3 stars because it's really a montage with the music over it but it is good to see footage of the Mc5 playing.

"Kick Out The Jams", with it's jerky footage and for the most part, overdubbed audio, could disappoint the neophyte who has just become aware of the MC5.

But, for us who were there, in 1969, it is manna from heaven. Having been in NYC at that time, and seen their 8 shows at Ungano's, the apocolyptic performances at the NY State Pavilion with the Stooges, and the frightening mess at the Fillmore, this disc is a wonderful link to the past.

The MC5 were the prototype heavy metal band, the prototype punk band, the inspiration for every garage band, and the definition of High Energy. Anyone who was in their presence knew the power of their performances. They were as important as any rock band in existence. And, it is a shame that they weren't better documented.

With this CD and a little imagination, you can experience the power, commitment, energy and fun of the rock band you always wished you were in.

There will never be any band like them.

I love the MC5 as much as anyone but this is ridiculous. I knew before I bought this that the audio and the video were not synced up; however, I thought that I would get 30 minutes of raw live footage of the MC5. WRONG! This DVD has maybe five minutes of live footage of the MC5 that has been annoyingly sped up, slowed down, colorized, looped, etc. This is absolutely and totally worthless. Just when you think Music Video Distribution can't sink any lower something like this comes out. Is this John Sinclair's attempt to destroy the legacy of the MC5 or cash in on the legacy of the MC5 at any cost?

Ok, back in the day they did. Their heyday, that is. This DVD was something to watch and I'm just really glad I didn't pay full price for it!

It's very cool to see the MC5 rockin' out. The footage on this DVD was pretty much live footage, but the music in the background was not in sync due to it just being background music. That kinda sucks!

There was a lotta psychedelic colors coming at you during the songs and that can be kinda distracting to say the least.

It was very cool to see Wayne Kramer playin' the stars and stripes guitar and Fred Sonic Smith playing a white Mosrite and then a black Mosrite and then a Fender Jazzmaster. That was cool.

The music kinda reminded me of the cd releases from Revenge records that I bought in the early 90's. Much like a boombox recording of a band. Very raw and unmixed. Cool to have, but not really to listen to.

I guess for people who love the MC5 and just wanna own some footage, any footage of the band, it's really cool. But very short! There's a John Sinclair interview at the end. He's talkin' about how it was back in the day with the MC5.

I wanna see some footage of that Epiphone Crestwood deluxe used by Fred Sonic Smith! That would've been cool.

But if yer a big fan of the band and want some footage, any footage, go get this DVD!

If yer not a fan and was curious, this is for you too! Go get the albums as well!

I can't tell you how thrilled I was to find this DVD. A must have for any fan of the MC5. So little has been recorded and preserved that I must savor every last bit. Yes the sound quality and video is not that great. But you know what, they weren't that great live to start with as far as being in tune and hitting the right notes. Still they had such a HUGE influence on all of that were to follow, you've just got to love it.

Saw a review somewhere that this DVD featured maybe five minutes of actual footage of the MC 5 performing live on stage. Wrong! There's more like between 20 to 30 minutes with scenes edited into the DVD program but most of the time, the other scenes, snippets, etc. are usually MC 5-related anyway. Film makers Leni Sinclair and Cary Loren pulled together to assemble this retrospect of the life, good times and career of the Motor City Five. I'm assuming they managed to collect several super 8 silent home movies of the band playing at a college campus, a school party and at regular concert venues. Did a decent job of 'synchronizing' the home movies along with some MC 5 songs. Picture quality is (a bit grainy during a few spots) but still good, CONSIDERING the age of these precious films. Good bits and pieces of vintage hard rock treasures like "Ramblin' Rose", "Kick Out The Jams", "I Want You Right Now" (a possibly love song?), "Starship", the seven-minute "Motor City Is Burning" and the absolute foot-stomping "Shaking Street" make this DVD a must-see. Also dug the semi-humorous twenty-minute interview with John Sinclair {the sixth MC 5 member?}. Liked the way they spliced psychedelic images in here and there. Almost appears as if these film clips were manually transfered from super 8 to video, then onto the DVD. I've never seen a DVD like this. Very nice. Recommended.

I now have to wonder if this original footage actually had sound. This 'product' was filmed at some amazing live MC5 performances, yet the footage, as engaging as it is, is spliced erratically with no real relation to the music. The track selection is excellent, but these performances are available on cd already (the DVD features a surround sound option for audio). Soon I found myself more annoyed with the erratic editing than entertained, and it was only the sheer awe of seeing them in action that held my interest throughout this release.

The Sinclair interview is interesting, but also marred by an audio track that runs throughout the interview in which Sinclair and another musician make loopy beatnik sounds and words, distracting from the Sinclair interview.

I guess when you've done that many drugs, you'll throw anything together to make a buck.

There are enough spectacular glimpses of the MC5 performing (and also what I believe to be the entire "video single" that Elektra released to promote "Kick Out the Jams") to more than justify the purchase of this DVD, but the repetition of non-band clips, the annoyingly dated Joshua-light-show-style psychedelia, and way too much accent on the political and philosophical cult of John Sinclair quickly gets old. Lets all hope that Wayne and Michael and Dennis (the surviving members of the band) will someday allow the release of "A True Testimonial," a truly reverent and lasting documentary of the MC5's history with more and better concert performances.

First off I enjoy Leni's photos and always will. Her film making talents were OK as home movies, but this mish-mash with some 3 or 4 different bootleg recordings is a bit much. At best there are about 12 minutes of the 5 here, but with reverses, color drops and posterizations she was able to milk it out for about a half hour. A simple one shot run through with commentary by the remaining members would be fine. The sound is the best we can ever hope to get as well, but a single source would have been sufficient. The bonus feature with John is a bit embarrassing. If that's how he wants to be remembered, fine. I've seen him doing poetry readings and talked with him on occasion but this is sad. As someone once said, there's nothing worse than an aging hipster.