Jeff Buckley-Live in Chicago (2000) |
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General | Extras | ||
Category | Music |
Menu Animation & Audio Discography Music Video-So Real (Acoustic) (4:41) Music Video-Last Goodbye (Acoustic) (4:38) Featurette-Electronic Press Kit (16:38) Web Links |
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Rating | |||
Year Of Production | 2000 | ||
Running Time | 97:42 (Case: 125) | ||
RSDL / Flipper | RSDL (67:33) | Cast & Crew | |
Start Up | Menu | ||
Region Coding | 1,2,3,4,5,6 | Directed By | None Given |
Studio
Distributor |
Sony Music |
Starring |
Jeff Buckley Mick Grondahl Matt Johnson Michael Tighe |
Case | Amaray-Opaque | ||
RPI | $29.95 | Music |
Jeff Buckley Leonard Cohen |
Video | Audio | ||
Pan & Scan/Full Frame | Full Frame |
English Linear PCM 48/16 2.0 (1536Kb/s) English Dolby Digital 5.1 (448Kb/s) |
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Widescreen Aspect Ratio | None | ||
16x9 Enhancement | No | ||
Video Format | 576i (PAL) | ||
Original Aspect Ratio | 1.33:1 | Miscellaneous | |
Jacket Pictures | No | ||
Subtitles | None | Smoking | Yes |
Annoying Product Placement | No | ||
Action In or After Credits | No |
In the tradition of The Doors and Jimi Hendrix, despite his death, there has still been a slow but steady stream of material released. 1994 masterpiece album Grace was still selling (having gone gold in the USA, Australia and France), so initially Sony re-released his 1993 Live at Sin-e EP. Then in 1998 came Sketches For My Sweetheart The Drunk, a work-in-progress polished a little and put onto two CDs. Now we have a live album, Mystery White Boy, and this DVD has been described as a "companion piece" (i.e. we want you to buy both).
Grace is one of my favourite albums, and Sketches was okay, so I was quite keen to check this one out. Recorded at Cabaret Metro in Chicago May 13, 1995, it captures Jeff Buckley and his band at the height of their powers doing some great songs. The musicians are all in top form, and Jeff Buckley's voice made the hairs on the back of my neck stand up in parts. From pop to grunge to gospel to rock, the music covers anything in which you might find a guitar, its very variety making it unique. The two guitars/bass/drums, together with some heavy reverb cause the music to pulse, building up to crescendos with the often achingly beautiful vocals, and then coming back down into the hooking melodies.
I liked the fact that this is an unedited performance: you get the tuning up, the chats with the roadies and the guitar changes. The venue was quite small, and the cameras all quite close to the band, all of this accentuating the feeling of being at the show, with a 5.1 mix to put you front and centre.
1. Dream Brother 2. Lover, You Should've Come Over 3. Mojo Pin 4. So Real 5. Last Goodbye 6. Eternal Life 7. Kick Out The Jams | 8. Lilac Wine 9. What Will You Say 10. Grace 11. Vancouver 12. Kanga Roo 13. Hallelujah |
The Full Frame 1.33:1 transfer is sharp and well detailed, and the bright stage lights fleshed this detail out.. Sometimes, video can be a little too detailed, and in some close-ups, you could count hairs. The sheer starkness of the light made shadow detail a slight problem (but not of concern). There was no low level noise present.
The colour was a little washed out, but that is to be expected from five year old video, of which the makers could never have anticipated a DVD release. This is accentuated by the fact that the main stage light is a whitish blue, the band are wearing anything but colourful clothing, and guitar bands, by their nature, are pale and weedy individuals. Somewhat annoyingly, the camera placed to the left of the stage got the full brunt of the blue hue, and the camera to the right got a more ambient light, and consequently more natural skin tones. Somewhat excessive switching between the camera angles made the difference a little annoying. With the exception of those angles bathed in blue light, the blacks were as deep as they could be (read: not quite black) considering the source.
No film artefacts, film-to-video artefacts or other defects reared their ugly heads, but there was some grain in a couple of shots of the audience. This was certainly evident in the source material - video cameras shooting into semi-darkness will do it every time. There was also quite a bit of grain in a short black and white sequence shot backstage at the end of the show, but this was no doubt style induced in the filming. This is indicative of the care taken by the DVD authors.
This DVD is RSDL formatted, with the layer change placed at 67:33. There is a noticeable pause, however it is placed between songs, so effects only minimal disruption to the flow of the show.
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Film-To-Video Artefacts | |
Film Artefacts | |
Overall |
The 2.0 track was inferior, and about 5db louder, reminding you that you aren't at the venue, whereas the 5.1 track suggests this even though it sounds a lot like a Pro-Logic mix. Audio sync was not a problem for either track, and there was nothing in the way of defects such as hiss or drop-outs.
In the 5.1 track, the surrounds were constantly in use, and they brilliantly reproduce the type and nature of the sounds that would be reflected from the back and sides of a smallish space the size of Sydney's Metro. The audience, who are quiet during the songs, are placed to the rear and sides of the aural landscape, placing the viewer front and center stage. This is what music on DVD is all about, and if you lament the lack of quality live venues since the introduction of the poker machine invasion like I do, then salvation could be in your lounge room.
The only flaw in the mix was at 71:05, where the drums sounded a little unnaturally-placed in the surrounds, but this lasted only a few seconds, and was so minor that I feel bad mentioning it in light of the quality of the rest of the soundtrack.
The subwoofer was nicely integrated into the overall sound. Mostly, it subtly supported the bass and drums. As with most guitar bands, the music is quite mid-range heavy, so there wasn't a lot to really get the sub going.
Dialogue | |
Audio Sync | |
Clicks/Pops/Dropouts | |
Surround Channel Use | |
Subwoofer | |
Overall |
NOTE: To view non-R4 releases, your equipment needs to be multi-zone compatible and usually also NTSC compatible.
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Extras | |
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Overall |
Review Equipment | |
DVD | Toshiba 2109, using S-Video output |
Display | Sony Trinitron Wega (80cm). Calibrated with AVIA Guide To Home Theatre. This display device is 16x9 capable. |
Audio Decoder | Built in to amplifier/receiver. Calibrated with AVIA Guide To Home Theatre. |
Amplification | Pioneer VSX-D608 |
Speakers | Front: Yamaha NS10M, Rear: Wharfedale Diamond 7.1, Center: Wharfedale Sapphire, Sub: Aaron 120W |