If you're a Led Zeppelin fan, you have a lot to look forward to in 2019. A new documentary about the band, Becoming Led Zeppelin, is set to hit theaters next year.
It's a first-of-its-kind chronicle of Led Zeppelin's early years. Directed by Bernard MacMahon, and co-written and produced by Allison McGourty, Becoming Led Zeppelin includes a trove of archival footage.
If you're a huge fan of rock music, then you probably already know that Led Zeppelin are considered one of the most famous bands in history. They're also considered one of the best rock 'n' roll bands of all time, which is why it's no wonder that they're now receiving more attention than ever before.
In fact, the band is so acclaimed that a new documentary about them, Becoming Led Zeppelin, recently debuted at the Venice Film Festival. It's a documentary that focuses on the band's early years and how they got to be one of the most famous rock bands of all time.
Becoming Led Zeppelin was directed by Bernard MacMahon and co-written and produced by Allison McGourty. It's a documentary that utilizes a wealth of archival footage to tell the story of how John Bonham, Jimmy Page, Robert Plant and John Paul Jones came together to form one of the most popular bands in rock history.
After the band's initial formation in 1968, Becoming Led Zeppelin follows their journeys across Britain. In addition to showing them performing on some of the biggest hits of the 1960s, it also shows how they met and eventually started their band.
While the first part of Becoming Led Zeppelin is a bit slow, it gets more exciting as it goes on. For example, it features lengthy performances of songs like "How Many More Times" in front of small audiences in Denmark and a performance of the song "Communication Breakdown" on a British TV show where people are grimacing and holding their ears.
As a whole, Becoming Led Zeppelin is an excellent documentary that explores the lives of a band that many people have never heard of before. The film is well-made, and it's filled with great interviews from the band members themselves.
However, the film does suffer from a little bit of a strange hermetic quality. In some ways, it's like an infomercial for Led Zeppelin.
In the film, we see clips of old movies and other music that had a big impact on the band's members when they were growing up in the 1950s. The band members are very animated as they talk about these old films and music, and the film becomes a kind of tribute to the power of music to change their lives.
The first major documentary chronicling the band's career, Becoming Led Zeppelin is a great way to learn about this legendary rock group. It's packed with incredible footage, and offers new interviews from surviving members Jimmy Page, Robert Plant and John Paul Jones.
The film takes an in-depth look at the band's early days, and it covers everything from their first concert to their early studio albums. If you're a fan of the band, you'll love watching this movie.
One of the most popular rock bands of all time, Led Zeppelin has influenced generations of musicians throughout their career. They're known for their passion and their innovation, and they have sold over 200 million records worldwide.
They're also known for their amazing live shows. The band has released many live recordings over the years, including The Song Remains the Same and Celebration Day.
In addition to the music, Becoming Led Zeppelin also includes a lot of behind-the-scenes footage. This includes interviews with surviving members, as well as other people who were in the band at the time.
The first half of the movie covers the band's first two albums. It features lengthy performances of songs like "Dazed and Confused" and "Whole Lotta Love" in their original live contexts.
As expected, the first two albums are full of Zeppelin's trademark riffing and heavy rock rhythms. The album's standout track is "Bring It On Home," an anthem that continues to be played and recorded by metal bands today.
But the band's sonic evolution is arguably best showcased by Houses of the Holy, their 1973 album that was a huge hit for the band. It contains plenty of their blues-riff-ripping prime, but it also introduces a number of other styles that would later become a staple in the band's career.
It also includes a number of classic songs that would make their way into the band's later repertoire, such as "Stairway to Heaven" and "Rock and Roll." If you're a fan of Zeppelin, you will love this DVD. It's a great way to see the band in their prime, and you can find it on Amazon right now.
In the past year we've seen a host of rock documentary movies, from Paul Schrader's Oscar-winning First Reformed to Summer of Soul, and Becoming Led Zeppelin is one of the most impressive. It's not the first time that a rock group has been the subject of a doc, but it is by far the most ambitious.
The premise is simple: to tell the tale of how this band of brothers, with their distinctive brand of rock and roll, changed the face of popular music forever. Director Bernard MacMahon, who is behind this year's American Epic, sets out to do just that with archival footage and interviews from the three surviving members of the legendary group.
But what the film actually delivers is something that's hard to put into words. It's a complex, richly layered documentary that, on some level, feels like the band's personal diary.
Unlike a lot of documentaries that feature famous musicians, Becoming Led Zeppelin is based on extensive research and a great deal of hard work. It's an enlightening look at the band's rise to fame and their subsequent impact on modern music.
It's also a surprisingly enjoyable and occasionally funny romp through a fascinating time in history. The band's storied relationship with Atlantic Records executives in the late '60s and early '70s is a fascinating tale in itself, and this documentary takes full advantage of its wealth of archive material to present an entertainingly detailed account of the band's whirlwind rise.
What makes the movie most noteworthy, however, is its lack of a central storyline and the way that the filmmakers choose to focus on the nitty-gritty details. Instead of a straightforward chronological overview of the band's earliest days, Becoming Led Zeppelin focuses on individual songs and their evolution from demo to anthem.
The result is a complex and fascinating homage to a musical genre that has been inducted into the national cultural lexicon and remains relevant today. The nifty little film may not have the most memorable title, but it's certainly a worthy ode to a rock group that's destined to remain an inspiration for generations of rock fans.
Whether you're new to the band or you've been a fan for years, the Led Zeppelin YouTube channel has an abundance of videos to explore. From new installments of the band's "History of" series to official audio recordings of their music, there's something for everyone.
But for those who have a deep interest in Zep's origin stories, a new authorized documentary called Becoming Led Zeppelin is well worth watching. This debut film, which was recently premiered at the Venice Film Festival, details the band's early days and their meteoric rise to fame.
It's an excellent film, and there's much here to enjoy for Zep fans of all ages. There's a little bit of everything, from Page and Plant reminiscing about their apprenticeship years (they appeared on a skiffle talent show as young children) to Jones recalling how his parents taught him the rudiments of the drumming craft.
There's a lot of great, rare, unseen performance footage too. A 1968 Roundhouse concert in which Plant let rip on a Scandinavian TV show, for instance, or a ferocious 1968 Royal Albert Hall date where Page ripped off his guitar to the point of injury are among the best-edited clips we've seen so far from this film.
This is an authorized documentary, so it contains a wealth of new interviews with Jimmy Page, Robert Plant and John Paul Jones. It also features an interview with the late drummer John Bonham, which MacMahon says took him a year to track down.
The movie also focuses heavily on the music, with a few additional interviews highlighting the lyrical and instrumental elements that defined Led Zeppelin's sound. There are also never-before-seen footage of the band performing songs such as 'How Many More Times' and 'Babe, I'm Gonna Leave You'.
The first teaser clip for the film was shared during the Venice Film Festival this weekend, and it's a brief one-minute preview that combines archival performance footage with footage of a zeppelin, all stitched together to create a fitting trailer soundtrack. It's a fitting way to get the word out about this first-ever film, which was accompanied by an impressive red carpet press conference at the festival, including interviews with Page, Robert Plant and John Paul Jones.