World Famous Comics: Spend an Evening With Saddle Creek, Bright Eyes, The Faint, Cursive et al
Spend an Evening With Saddle Creek, Bright Eyes, The Faint, Cursive et al
Starring: Maria Taylor, Matt Maginn, Clint Schnase, Andy LeMaster, Mike Mogis Directed By: Jason Kulbel, Rob Walters (II) Average Rating: Aspect Ratio: 1.78:1 Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated) Binding: DVD Format: Color, Dolby, DVD-Video, Soundtrack, Widescreen, NTSC Label: Plexifilm Number of Discs: 1 Number of Items: 1 Release Date: August 23, 2005 Running Time: 90 minutes Theatrical Release Date: August 23, 2005
Description: In 1993, a group of childhood friends in Omaha, Nebraska released 100 copies of a cassette tape by a 13 year-old singer-songwriter Conor Oberst. Three years later, the name Saddle Creek Records was etched in vinyl and what began as a collective local music scene would soon gain attention as a center of independent music in America.
SPEND AN EVENING WITH SADDLE CREEK is the story of the record label as told by the people who made it happen. With extensive interviews, rare performances and archival footage, the film is an oral and visual history of how the combination of talent, dedication and collaboration launched bands like Bright Eyes, Cursive and The Faint into the national eye and has fostered a close-knit family of artists that continues to inspire each other and their fans.
Amazon.com: Named after an early showcase, Spend an Evening With Saddle Creek traces the history of the celebrated independent label. Jason Kulbel and Rob Walters, who've long been associated with the Omaha-based imprint, allow the bands and employees to tell the story in their own words (although a little outside perspective would have been nice). Founded by Justin Oberst in 1993, the first release was younger brother Conor's "Water" cassette. At that time, the label was called Lumberjack Records, finally becoming Saddle Creek in 1995. Along with live footage, archival photographs, and such, Kulbel and Walters profile 15 acts (11 currently associated with the label), concentrating on the Faint, Bright Eyes, and Cursive. (Yet another Oberst, Matt, is in the group Sorry About Dresden.) Extras include interviews and early performances from Norman Bailer (the Faint’s original incarnation), Commander Venus (featuring Conor Oberst), and local legends Slowdown Virginia (featuring Cursive’s Tim Kasher). --Kathleen C. Fennessy
Very Enjoyable... I enjoyed this documentary thoroughly. I had originally bought it for it's Bright Eyes/Cursive content, although now i've started to listen to these other great groups out of Saddle Creek. It covers a wide range of SC's groups and goes into great depth into the workings and histories of the groups. I would liked to have had each groups "section" be a little longer, but none the less, it was very enjoyable!
its a Documentary and a documentary only .... this being in my first 5 band dvds bought, i was disappointed in that thers hardly ANY actual live footage. In fact, not a single song is seen the whole way through. So, be true fans of the bands, to enjoy !!
Orgins of Saddle Creek I remember when I was deployed to Kosovo and discovering "The Faint" back in 2002. It was so good, I kept looking in to them only to get a Saddle Creek catolog. I took a chance on a band called "Cursive".... The rest is history... I've seen the Faint twice, Bright Eyes, and the Good Life... This DVD has so much information and is put together so good.. I hate the fact that not alot of concert footage is available, but to just get an insight as to how these bands tick is well worth the purchase of this DVD. Omaha, Nebraska was the last place on Earth I'd expect to explode with musical nobility. I'm still to this days surprised not to many people have heard of these bands... I know I've turned alot of people on tp the label. If you like any of these Saddle Creek bands, trust me... This is for you!!!
feel good movie about sad music This is a good movie to watch if you are a fan of Saddle Creek music. It details how the label built an impressive roster of bands through friendship and mutual support. It is a subject with rich potential because of all the relationships, but there is hardly any mention of interpersonal conflict. Over and over again you're given the impression that everyone is one big happy family, but even happy families disagree.
The label's break out disc is Bright Eyes' Fevers and Mirrors, a concept album centering around Conor Oberst's depression (I'm not here to diagnose, I'll just say it's an intensely personal work that was obviously born from a lot of pain) but you have to go deep into the hidden extras (only a dozen are listed but if you chose "play all", after the last listed one there's another 30 or so) to find Conor discussing how he felt about packaging up his problems for retail.
Any good rock documentary, or any good piece of art for that matter, will delve into some kind of conflict. There is no conflict here. Friends started a record label. They put out their friends' music. People liked the music, so they were able to grow and put out more music. Everything else in this documentary is just details. Don't get me wrong, it's a great story in light of all the terrible music out there released by four music company conglomerates. But Tim Kasher of Cursive and Conor Oberst are very fine songwriters, and I wish there had been at least discussion of how they write songs. The evolution of creative partnerships kind of gets a short shrift too because 20 bands get covered in less than 90 minutes. In this feel good movie you only scratch the surface of fairly complicated of not feeling so good music.
I appreciated getting exposed to Slowdown Virginia, the snowy vistas of Omaha (I'd wondered what it looked like) and the hidden buried extra of Conor stumbling through his first performance of "When the Curious Girl Realizes she's under glass", though his cute rapport with the supportive audience is totally incongruous with the passionately sad song as he flubs his way through the piano chords.
Be a part of the Saddle Creek family I'm just going to get straight to the point. If you are a Cursive, Bright Eyes, and Faint fan then purchase this dvd now. The three bands I mentioned were primarily covered the most in the dvd. The entire documentary includes the history of Saddle Creek, the formation of the bands on the label, and home videos that will make you feel like you're part of the family. It's informative, witty, raw, and absolute fun to watch. It's not like any other ordinary documentary of a band with professionally recorded concert footage and that is what makes this dvd all the more special.
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