Last night, Vannen Watches, Epitaph Records, and the Art Theatre on 4th Street hosted a family and friends screening of Filmage, a documentary about two of my favorite bands, the Descendents and ALL. (The filmmakers, above.) The Descendents emerged from The Last out of the late 1970s South Bay punk scene and released records on the Minutemen and Black Flag’s record labels before the iconic singer Milo Auckerman left the band to pursue science. I got to catch them at Fender’s Ballroom (right down the street) on the FinALL tour in 1987. The openers were MIA and Social Unrest, and the flyer said, “Milo Goes To College M.D.” I still have the ticket…
The movie goes on to show drummer and original member Bill Stevenson, along with the Descendents’ last lineup of bassist Karl Alvarez and guitarist Stephen Egerton, plowing on in pursuit of ALL. Interviews include the succession of singers Dave Smalley (who just left Dag Nasty), Scott Reynolds (a homeless, jobless neighbor), and Chad Price (a neighbor). They continued to crank out the most crushing yet melodic punk, yet eked out a meager existence in compound-like quarters on the rare occasion that they weren’t playing to dwindling crowds on the road.
The filmmakers do an impressive job balancing two groups’ changing lineups and communicating the unwavering quality of the musical output via interviews with the likes of musicians and peers Mike Watt, Robert Hecker, Bret Gurewitz, Brian Baker, Dave Naz, and Dave Grohl. They also collected a wealth of rare video and key photos, with many famous shots by Glen E. Friedman. And while I know the bands’ songs inside and out, I really didn’t know any details about Bill’s rocky relationship with his dad and his brain tumor. When Bill is about to die and his doctor reveals himself to be a Black Flag and Descendents fan, it’s a great moment–as if the world is ready to pay back the band for its ridiculous work ethic and catalog of insanely good yet mostly unheard songs. These days, festival appearances by the Descendents pay his medical bills. Meanwhile, ALL still toils…
If you’re a fan who won tickets to see the movie at the Art Theatre on Sunday, you’ll have a blast. The songs sound great loud! Buy a shirt to support the filmmakers and load up at the snack bar to reward the Art Theatre for hosting these free screenings about a much-loved band with Long Beach roots. If not, check out the trailer above and then go to the Filmage site for information on future screenings and an eventual DVD release when permissions are cleared.