(Note: This post originally ran on March 4, 2009. Yes, another one from the vault. Don’t get used to it.)
I just returned home from a screening of the documentary Flustern & SCHREIEN (Whisper & SHOUT) at the Hammer Museum in Westwood. First of all, accolades to the Hammer for consistently providing great, FREE programming to the public. Second, this film totally rules. Released in 1988, it follows several East German bands and their adoring fans as they tour the country. What struck me most, aside from the fabulous German New Wave and punk soundtrack, were the attitudes the featured young people displayed. All of them had marvelously positive outlooks on their lives and what they wanted to achieve, despite the fact that they were already tied down to government-assigned jobs (e.g., chimney-sweep) in a completely isolated land. It was truly amazing to juxtapose their words against the fact that the wall came down only a year later.
The bands themselves (Silly, Feeling B, Chicoree, Sandow, and more) were required to apply for government-issued certifications to play concerts. According to the gent who introduced the film, the bands would have to submit lyrics and perform for the state in order to receive clearance to play a show. Logically, these groups grew to master the use of poetic and subversive language that relayed their rebellious message to their audiences while appeasing the state.
Overall, a must-see — for the music, for the amazing punk attitude of all the kids featured, and for the radical threads rocked by all.
