I'm one of the judges in a music DVD competition, so the house has been filled with tunes good and bad over the past few weeks. Kiss is pounding it out to an empty living room as I write. This sort of thing has its downside (Engelbert, anyone?) and its upside (read on). Haven't filled out the ballot yet, but a discovery worth sharing is the music docu "Luna: Tell Me Do You Miss Me"
Luna was a New York-based indie band that fell somewhere between, say, Tindersticks and Sonic Youth, complete with miniskirted blonde bass player. They made eight albums and were popular enough to tour Europe and Japan -- but still had to haul their own gear and live off T-shirt sales. Much of their time since 1992 was spent traveling around the U.S. in a van: "I don't want to ride that bus," singer/songwriter Dean Wareham sings in a mournful number about band life. "I am tired of all of us."
The docu covers their farewell tour. It's surprisingly well done and moving in a low-key way, with beautifully composed hand-held cinematograpy. The drama comes from the friction between Wareham and guitarist Sean Eden, but this is no "Let It Be" battle royale. More like an old married couple whose affections break through the bickering here and there. No need to take sides: These seem like good people who've simply come to the end of the line.
One critic summed up the band as "always pleasant but rarely exceptional," which feels about right based on this DVD and their greatest hits CD. But this film is exceptional, one of the best in a great year for music documentaries. Chances are you'll like the band but love the movie.
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