Bleeding Audio details the rollercoaster career of the Oakland pop punk band The Matches. Like many acts in the early 2000s, they were set to be the next big thing. After building a tight- knit music community in the Bay Area, The Matches broke out and became an internationally touring act. An eclectic group of artistic weirdos, the band grew a thriving cult fanbase worldwide, yet remained virtually penniless. Their story overlaps with the drastic changes of the music industry since the takeover of the digital revolution— from declining sales, to excessive touring, to illegal downloading and streaming. With interviews from some of music’s biggest names like Mark Hoppus (Blink 182), Nick Hexum (311) and Tom Higgenson (Plain White T’s), Bay Area filmmaker Chelsea Christer’s uplifting tribute tracks The Matches’ history and recent reunion to dig deeper into the challenges the average musician faces in the digital age of the industry—and the community that keeps our artists alive.
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[youtube https://youtu.be/efN0xEaN8f0?t=3532]
Video Quality
Bleeding Audio comes to Blu-Ray from Good Deed Entertainment with a very fetching high definition master that suits the film pretty much perfectly. This is a feature that showcases a lot of different material in varying degrees of quality due to its structure. The archival footage used seems to be in the best shape possible given the variable quality of the source material. This includes vintage music videos and amateur candid material shot in the band’s infancy. Newer interview segments look incredibly sleek and clear with natural skin tones and some detailed facial features. As you almost expect from musicians, we have a lot of facial hair which appears quite detailed in HD. The colors featured in the footage have an impressive sense of vibrancy to them. The transfer does not fall victim to any compression artifacts or digital nuisances of the sort. Good Deed Entertainment has delivered a solid presentation that should please any fan.
Audio Quality
This Blu-Ray disc comes with a DTS-HD 5.1 and 2.0 Master Audio track that perfectly suits the source material with the immersive quality you want from these tunes. While this primarily acts as an interview showcase with a good amount of talking heads, the sound quality of the songs they do include is without fault and fills the room in a wonderful way that is the next best thing to attending a show. The surround sound presentation makes these songs come alive in a way that makes you understand why they quickly gained the following that they did. Dialogue is a focus right up front in the center channel as you get colorful anecdotes filmed in stable environments. The archival clips do not feature much in the way of age-related wear outside the odd moment here or there. You really could not ask for better from this presentation. There are optional English subtitles provided.
Special Features
- Trailers: The minute-and-a-half trailer for Bleeding Audio is provided here. There are also trailers provided for Alaskan Nets, Charlotte, Cosmic Dawn and Moon Manor.
Final Thoughts
Bleeding Audio is a fun documentary which gives you great insight into a band with a passionate fanbase who never quite made it to the level of success their potential positioned them to reach. While this is sure to play great to those already familiar with the band, the film itself offers a nice entry point into the band as a whole along with context for why we should care about their story. The details are specific, but the overall journey is a universal one that is easy to relate to and empathize with, and it keeps your attention throughout. Good Deed Entertainment and Kino Lorber have released a Blu-Ray featuring a strong A/V presentation and a few fun deleted scenes. If you are a music documentary fan, this is an enjoyable watch. Recommended
Bleeding Audio is currently available to purchase on Blu-Ray and Digital.
Note: Images presented in this review are not reflective of the image quality of the Blu-Ray.
Disclaimer: Good Deed Entertainment & Kino Lorber have supplied a copy of this disc free of charge for review purposes. All opinions in this review are the honest reactions of the author.
Dillon is most comfortable sitting around in a theatre all day watching both big budget and independent movies.
