After the first song (a knockout btw), PJ Harvey appears with a video camera in the dressing room, saying she doesn't really like live concerts and videos, but that she hopes to do something new, artistic, whatever. I rolled my eyes and said oh no! Well, no fear. Those back stage moments are few, and look, despite Harvey's "artistic" claim, pretty familiar when compared to other live concert efforts by other groups and singers. The real story here is Harvey as a performer. I only have one album by her, and what I know of her career is pretty slim, though what I've heard, I've liked. Well, the dvd reveals one overwhelming fact: she's a dynamic performer! She rules the stage like only the best rockers have done. Kind of like a blend of Patty Smith and Chrissie Hynde, but entirely her own artist/performer. And at 80 minutes or so, the movie has the good sense to know its limits. One curious aspect of the film is that in most of the songs the camera keeps switching, seamlessly, to different concerts (different rock star outfits (and shoes) for Harvey), without any bumps in song delivery. I don't know if this is great editing, incredibly tight band play, or a combination of both. Whatever it is, it works. Check it out.
September 3, 2007 |  | Ladies & Gentlemen--the great Polly Harvey.. |  |
I had heard that this DVD would be different than your typical run of the mill concert DVD--which I immediately thought was a good thing. It chronicles PJ's 2004 tour in support of the "Uh Huh Her" album. Instead of long uninterrupted footage from one concert, this DVD intersplices footage from other concert dates, during the same song. This can be disconcerting, but it's cool to see Polly suddenly change outfit mid-song.
The backstage stuff is really what will have PJ fans salivating. It shows her clowning with her band and for the camera, being hungover, & driving around LA. It also has a nice interview segment with Polly. There are no earth-shattering revelations, but it's a nice look at the touring life of this seemingly humble and somewhat mysterious artist.
The chosen material comes off great, and her band on this tour rocked. The only gripe I really have with this disc is that out of the many songs included here, you can only select one at a time to play, and there's no "play all" option on the disc, which is annoying. I don't want to always have to pick another track to play at the end of every song but just let it play. But that's not really a deal breaker, however. This is DVD is surely a must.
July 17, 2007I can't get over how good PJ's voice sounds on this DVD . She sounds better live on some of these then the studio versions did . If I had a minor complaint , it would be that I personally would have liked to seen more complete versions of some of the songs & not just the bits & pieces offered . But really , if you're a fan already , you know you'll love this .
March 9, 2007I'd always been a somewhat reluctant fan of P.J.Harvey. I find her studio albums to be uneven in quality with the exception of the two standouts "4-Track Demos" and "Dry". But now that this dvd has been released I've become a major fan (I've viewed this dvd at least 20 times, so duh- a fan). Seeing some of her songs performed live sent me back to the albums from which the songs were derived with a greater appreciation for what she was trying to accomplish. This is a well produced dvd and an intense look at one of music's most dynamic, "ramshackle", and "unhinged" artists. My only criticisms of the disc are that there is no way to play the concert continuously and in whole and the fact that the dvd case tends to destroy the plastic surrounding the hole in the disc.
January 10, 2007I love PJ Harvey and have been listening to her for about 12 years now, I was SO excited when this DVD came out...what a disappointment.
The live footage isn't very high quality, some of it almost looks like it was filmed with a camera phone!??!...the interviews are alright, but all in all I don't think there was as much thought put into this as there should have been considering how great it finally was to have some PJH to play on the TV!
January 5, 2007More reviews at Amazon.com ...
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