I'm a Pavement fan. They were one of my very favourite bands of the 1990s. This double DVD package is a tribute and a testament to one of the greatest alternative rock bands of the last twenty years. It includes Lance Bangs documentary on the band, plus all their videos, commentaries by the band, and by the directors, who include Bangs and Spike "Being John Malkovich" Jonze, and special guests Thurston Moore and Kim Gordon from Sonic Youth. There are also two live gigs, one recorded in Seattle, the other in Manchester, both from 1999 not long before the band disbanded. Altogether it makes a fabulous memento for Pavement fans. Whether a disinterested non-fan will enjoy it anywhere near as much as one of the converted is very difficult for me to judge. I think they will probably enjoy the music but as they don't know the personalities of the band maybe it'll get a bit tedious, I don't know. But it's a moot point, this is obviously aimed at fans, and they will love it, as it is one of the better music DVDs available on the market. Bangs' documentary is consistently interesting, and follows the band from its obscure indie beginnings in the late 80s until its demise around ten years later. Pavement's working life as a band coincided with the mainstream explosion of alternative rock in the early to mid 1990s, spearheaded by Nirvana. Pavement themselves, though they had, and continue to have, a large cult following never really crossed over into MTV/Top 40 land, but neither did Sebadoh, Royal Trux, Dinosaur Jr. or Godfathers of the American indie scene Sonic Youth. Some of these bands still exist, some don't, but their music is out there waiting to be discovered by generations to come, just like previous music fans have rediscovered The Velvet Underground, Big Star, Television, Wire, The Buzzcocks and Pere Ubu, to name a few. Every now and again the mainstream pop audience flirts with the underground, then forgets about it, but these kinds of bands are ALWAYS there, and always will be. I hope that some young kid dissatisfied with the blandness and cynical marketing of mainstream pop and rock will stumble across 'The Slow Century' and discover Pavement's amazing debut album 'Slanted And Enchanted' (recently re-released), and then maybe explore some of the bands influences and inspirations, like those named above, or The Fall or Echo and The Bunnymen (who they cover on the live disc) or their pals The 3Ds. Maybe I'm just dreaming... Anyway, this is a fantastic DVD. An essential purchase to anyone who is remotely interested in the band, and also highly recommended to anyone exploring the history and roots of alternative rock, especially those who have recently had their ears opened by The Strokes, The White Stripes, BRMC et al.
