Customer Reviews

Screamers - Live in San Francisco September 2nd, 1978

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

watching this DVD made me realize a few things. it first made me realize what I miss most about the bands of those now far-off times is: INTELLIGENCE. humor, conceptual and performance art all writhed together in bed with primal beats to produced pure, blood-pumping magic. the Screamers represent the absolute apex of this.

what an amazing creature Tomata du Plenty was! he was the focal point for the terrible, white-hot energy transmuted by the Screamers. in his performances he is 100% committed; he almost explodes with power. [hence the famous Gary Panter screaming Tomata-head Screamers logo, now iconic everywhere- I wouldn't be surprised if its on t-shirts at Hot Topic, worn by people who have no idea what they're REALLY wearing.]

Tomata obviously influenced Biafra [and countless others, probably] in his stage-craft. he seems to be parts vaudevillian, crazed Catholic priest, rock idol, Joker, shaman- and so much more; sometimes, he is all at once. KK is an INCREDIBLE drummer. I forgot how amazing he was. Tommy Gear driving it all along with his organ giving voice to the shrieks from the asylum. Paul Roessler, weaving counterpoint keyboard mayhem. the Screamers make me want to run amok, to smash things with joy... the joy of being alive. it's like when you are laughing, with tears streaming down your face. this force defied description, and still does.
it would be like seeing a Sabertooth or a Triceratops walk into your local Starbucks. it would just blow your little mind. and you'd love it.
this incredible life-form that was the Screamers touched to earth, burned like a nova, and puffed out all too soon. powerful art is like this. it drops, detonates, explodes... the smoke clears, and it's gone. you just had to be there.

I wasn't at this Mabuhay show, but I had heard it on bootlegs. I was lucky enough to see the Screamers at California Hall with Tuxedomoon opening [another underrated, amazing band.] the Screamers were so amazing that I literally could not talk for at least two hours after that show. I was transported by this band into another state of being. I was a kid, but still- that kind of performance radiation- it was the real thing, pure, distilled from the source. and words failed me, describing it. they still do.
I forgot how the Mab looked. I saw so many familiar faces. I forgot the sweaty, wonderful torture of that club when it was packed. and wow, what a show! though plagued with technical problems- dead mikes, Tommy Gear's organ cutting out- the Screamers fire on all pistons. Tomata is a man possessed. the world will not see his like again. you can't put a tiger into a can. it prowls the jungle, eyes burning, and will not be tamed. wherever you are Tomata- thank you.

I defy you not to groove. 'Beat Goes On' made me laugh again at how bands like this took the mundane and elevated it to the sublime with intensity and humor. so many great songs- 'Punish Or Be Damned'- a masterpiece of s/m intellect. 'Vertigo'- a blasting circus anthem of mayhem, of maddening joy. 'Magazine Love'- it's all about image. 'Last Four Digits'- you are a number. 'Better World' ['everyone would feel important']- in this digital age of MySpace and web pages, eveyone is made to feel 'important.' is that a good thing? ...the oracle was speaking.

the Target Promo reel at the end almost made me weep; how spoiled we were back then with all that wonderful music, all those amazing shows. if we only knew! I thought music would always continue to be as great as this, as the virus had been unleashed. now, what do we have---? if there's any music this amazing out there, please, let me know! I've yet to encounter its like. at least Joe Rees and his crew were there so we can remember, and the Screamers can scream again. and for a little moment in the greyness of the early 21st Century this sparkling, multi-hued, HAPPY animal that was real punk with all of its glimmering facets and brutal, funny smarts can rise again and shake its happy, spiky head.

This DVD is without a doubt not just a great performance, but a snapshot in time of one of the most different and essential punk bands ever. They were never properly recorded and their live shows were incendiary. As a result, this DVD is a document that captures the brilliance, fire, and innovation of a band WAY ahead of their time. The next best thing to a time machine...the Screamers rule.

The Screamers are one the best bands of all time, and every punk fan should check them out. Unlike numerous punk bands who lived fast and burned out quick, and were utterly forgettable. The Screamers were so ahead of their time, I still listen to them and see sooo many bands biting their style, not jut musically either. I love their concept, a singer, a drummer, and two keyboardists, and with that minimumism they created such great music. This dvd has such great footage, and is basically all you can find of them.

I don't care what your idea of punk rock is, this concert captures a place and a time in American music that defies definition. The Screamers were and will always be one of the best punk rock bands. . .period. The recording may not be top notch, but who cares. The band never recdorded and this may be the only chance for anyone of us to experience even a fraction of what they may have been like up close. Plus, if you look closely, Jello Biafra just happens to fall by. An absolute must have for any punk rock collector!!!

It looks like Target is finally rereleasing some of their coveted and out-of-print live videos from back in the day and if this release is any example, they've done their homework. It doesn't look like there will be any extras on this, but if there are it could even eclipse the video version (which I've seen go for $75 on eBay).
To the uneducated, The Screamers were a great bunch of fellas from the mid-Seventies punk scene who had roots in Ze Whiz Kids from Seattle, the Northwest new wave band The Tupperwares, and the Cockettes (Namely in lead frontman Tomato du Plenty).
Their performances became legend and has since spawned a cottage industry of synth punk (or the more current "synthpunk") genrefied bands around the USA.
As far as I'm concerned, this DVD is required viewing for any music fan.

I never really "got" The Screamers until I watched this DVD transfer of a 1978 concert video from the legendary Target Video empire of Joe Rees. Never formally recorded, the circulated demos' prominent feature is an annoying hum while the band is minimally represented in the background as loud, fast and noisy. Here, in seven live songs and five Target Studio performances you see the intersection of underground art and hardcore punk, and the results are mind-blowing. We'll never know what they were capable of in a recording studio but this Screamers DVD is a substantive and exhilarating documentation of what they did and how well they did it.

This is one of the rare hardcore shows worth watching all the way through.

"Back in the late 70's- I used to be a punker!" ~ Tomata Du Plenty~ This is important seminal punk rawk and the message is transcendent... Love-love you TDP! (noting is real)

WOW! What a show!!! 122 moments of fear....122.......122