Another State of Mind (film)
| Another State of Mind | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Directed by | Adam Small Peter Stuart |
| Produced by | Adam Small Peter Stuart |
| Starring | Mike Ness Dennis Danell Brent Liles Derek O'Brien Monk Adam Stern Shawn Stern Keith Morris Ian MacKaye |
| Music by | Social Distortion Youth Brigade Minor Threat |
| Distributed by | Time Bomb |
Release date |
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Running time | 77 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
Another State of Mind is a documentary film made in the summer of 1982 chronicling the adventure of two punk bands, Social Distortion and Youth Brigade, as they embark on their first international tour.[1] Along the way they meet up with another band, Minor Threat, whom they hang out with at the Dischord house for about a week near the end of their ill-fated tour.
Synopsis
[edit]In the summer of 1982, two southern California punk rock bands — Youth Brigade from Hollywood and Social Distortion from Fullerton — prepare to embark together on their first North American tour, planning to play over 30 shows in 35 days on a meager budget. Youth Brigade consists of brothers Shawn (vocals, guitar), Adam (bass), and Mark Stern (drums), while Social Distortion consists of Mike Ness (vocals, guitar), Dennis Danell (guitar), Brent Liles (bass), Derek O'Brien (drums), and their manager Mark "Monk" Wilson. The tour is financed by the Better Youth Organization, run by Shawn and Mark Stern, who have purchased a used school bus to serve as the touring vehicle. The band members, Wilson, and roadies Mike Brinson, Louis Dufau, and Marlon Whitfield convert the bus' interior to fit all 11 people plus the instruments and gear.
The tour begins on August 18, with its first stop in San Francisco where the bands have to pressure the club owner for their agreed-upon pay and are given rolls of pennies. They continue to Seattle, Calgary, and Winnipeg. By the time they reach Montreal, morale is declining as the bus has mechanical issues, money is running low, and the bands are kicked out of a café by the police. In their third week on the road they reach Chicago, then Detroit, where the bus breaks down. Dufau and Whitfield quit, catching a Greyhound bus back to California. With the bus repaired, the bands push on to New York City in the fourth week of the tour.
Along the way, interviews with the touring party, fans, and fellow musicians including Keith Morris discuss punk philosophies, fashions, social dynamics, local scenes, slam dancing, and stage diving. The dynamic between punk rock and religion is touched on, including a group trying to "save" punks by preaching Christianity to them. Throughout the tour, Ness works on a new song titled "Another State of Mind", which he continues to develop and teaches to his bandmates.
In Washington, D.C. the bus breaks down again. Danell, Liles, and Brinson go to stay with a friend of Brinson's, while the others go to stay at the "Dischord House", home of Dischord Records. They hang out with the band Minor Threat, whose vocalist Ian MacKaye discusses his reasons for joining the punk scene and following a straight edge lifestyle. A Minor Threat performance in Baltimore is featured. After a week in D.C. with the bus still inoperable, Danell, Liles, and O'Brien abandon the tour and head back to California. Left without his band, Ness takes a flight home himself.
Youth Brigade stays through what would have been the tour's final night, and leaves the broken-down bus behind; Adam and Mark Stern fly back to Los Angeles, while Shawn Stern, Wilson, and Brinson make the two-day ride in the back of the film crew's box truck. Once home, Shawn reflects that while the tour was a financial failure, they accomplished their goals by spreading their music and message and meeting many like-minded people. The completed Social Distortion recording of "Another State of Mind" plays over the end credits.
Cast
[edit]- Youth Brigade
- Adam Stern – bass
- Mark Stern – drums
- Shawn Stern – guitar, lead vocals
- Social Distortion
- Mike Ness – vocals, lead guitar
- Dennis Danell – rhythm guitar
- Brent Liles (credited as Brent Lyle) – bass
- Derek O'Brien – drums
- Mark "Monk" Wilson – band manager
- Road crew
- Mike Brinson
- Louis Dufau
- Marlon Whitfield
References
[edit]- ^ Mark Deming (2007). "Another State of Mind". Movies & TV Dept. The New York Times. Archived from the original on 2007-11-12.