Tweet
Released by: Fat Wreck Chords
Released on: 3/17/2009
Director: Various
Cast: Fat Mike, El Hefe, Erik Melvin, Smelly
Year: 2007
Purchase From Amazon
The Movie:
In 2006, NOFX decided to launch a world tour and rather than play the usual 'western nations' in North America and Europe, they opted to try something a little different. Bored of playing to the same old types of crowds and wanting to bring their music to countries that don't usually get to see western bands, let alone punk bands, they figured they'd circle the globe and play some more remote locations. The results were documented in a TV series that originally aired on the FUSE channel called NOFX: Backstage Passport and all eight episodes of the series are compiled on one fancy DVD set from NOFX's own label (or at least, vocalist/bass player Fat Mike's label), Fat Wreck Chords.
When the series begin, the four band members - Fat Mike (vocals, bass), El Hefe (guitar), Eric Melvin (guitar) and Smelly (drums) plan their tour with the help of their manager and go to guy, Kent, a hard drinking guy who always seem to get the job done even if it never seems he'll be able to. Things start off reasonably well as they head to South America until Kent gets drunk off his ass and causes problems. Shady promoters and booking agents are a constant issue throughout the entire tour, and they wind up in a few different countries on the continent where highlights include a run in with the police in Peru who won't let their crew leave the dirt lot they've set up in, playing a tennis court in Ecuador, and a cancelled show that results in Mike giving an impromptu acoustic performance for fans waiting patiently outside their hotel the next day (a sincerely touching scene and possibly the best part of the entire show).
From there they hop a plane and head to Asia where they enjoy a stint at a Japanese S&M club where one of their crew lets a beautiful Japanese girl clamp his nipples, whip him, bind him, and pour wax on him. In Singapore, where the 'trafficking of illegal drugs carries a death penalty' the band 'get high on the DL' when they come across some strange green powder (which they refer to as the Green Dragon) that they promptly snort. Mike has a bad trip and has to hug Eric constantly for reassurance before they calm down and head out on the town to enjoy what Singapore has to offer. From there, they play Malaysia, South Korea, Taiwan and China - the first American punk band to play the later country. Shady promoters rip them off on a regular basis. They head to Indonesia and play one of the biggest headlining shows of their entire career where hundreds of cops show up to make sure things don't get out of hand, and then they're off to Israel where Fat Mike is absconded by a Rabbi for not wearing a Yamaka at the Wailing Wall. Soldiers prove to be a problem at one of the shows there and a fight breaks out at which point, Mike, who is emotionally burnt from missing his daughter's birthday, jumps in.
The show finishes up when the band heads to Russia, a country they tried to play years before when they were turned away at the border. It all culminates when the band plays South Africa and is put up in a hotel surrounded in fences and razor wire, which isn't the most welcoming environment. There they play a show to a rabid crowd made up of fans and newbies alike, some of whom have never even heard of punk rock, let alone NOFX.
Throughout the series we're given an honest and unflinching look at life on the road. NOFX is big enough that they're not crammed into the back of a van and doing their own roadying like some bands still have to do. They've paid their dues and have a small but effective crew to do that for them. This doesn't take away from the sincerity of their work though, nor does it take away from the entertainment value that this series provides. The band gets ripped off constantly, half the time playing shows at a loss and you can see the tensions rise throughout the series. We also get an honest look at the emotional ups and downs that occur from being away from loved ones and family members for such a long period of time. The band members are all approaching middle age now and have families of their own, so the lure of playing anywhere and everywhere has to dissipate to an extent, and it does, culminating in a sad scene where Fat Mike's young daughter just doesn't really want to talk to him on the phone at all.
There are plenty of funny moments - such as when El Hefe loses track of time and just doesn't show up or when Mike whacks Eric in the head with his bass accidently in the middle of a song (thankfully and amazingly not doing any serious, permanent damage) - and as the series progresses you get to know, and like, not only the band members but the crew as well.
It should be noted that the episodes are censored as far as language gores. Fat's official statement on this issue is:
We'd like to set the record straight about the bleeps in NOFX: Backstage Passport. We sent the original tapes for the show to FUSE back in 2007, they digitized them and edited them for TV, and then they “LOST†the unedited masters. After two months of FUSE “looking for them†we decided to move on. Therefore, our only choice was to use Fuse's edited version for the DVD. We agree, it totally sucks that all the colorful language has been censored, but we're just glad that the DVD will make Backstage Passport accessible to more people than originally saw it when FUSE aired it…Plus, we did our very best to make up for all that bleeping in the 2 hours of bonus footage—there's something in there to offend everybody! Hurray!
Video/Audio/Extras:
The content is all presented fullframe, which appears to be how it was shot. The transfers are interlaced and video quality varies from scene to scene, sometimes dependent on conditions and what it was shot with. Either way, it's all perfectly watchable. Most of this material was shot on the fly as it happened so it's not always perfect, but in this case, who cares? It doesn't need to be.
The only audio option on this set is an English language Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo track. Optional English subtitles are provided (which, oddly enough, are uncut and include all the bad four letter words that the track bleeps out). For the most part, the sound quality is pretty good. Dialogue is always easy to understand and the levels are well balanced. Some of the stuff that was shot under more adverse conditions is a little muffled but that's to be expected. There's really nothing to complain about here, all things considered.
While the episodes might be 'bleeped' the extra footage is not, and there's a lot of it here. If you liked the series, this is basically more of the same. We get extended bits from pretty much every stop on the tour and tons of deleted scenes. While often times the material that winds up on the cutting room floor generally finds its way there for a reason, in the case of Backstage Passport a lot of the content that was excised is just as good as what made its way into the broadcast episodes. There's loads of deleted bits here, hours of content, and it's all worth checking out.
On top of that, we get some nifty animated menus (done up to look like different passports) and inside the digipack case is a color booklet that contains episode synopsis for each of the eight parts as well as credits, thank you's, and some cool pictures. This all helps to round out the package nicely!
The Final Word:
You don't have to be a NOFX fan to appreciate Backstage Passport, as it's not just about the band but also about how different cultures relate to music. It's more of a bizarre travelogue than it is a concert DVD, with some 'cult of personality' bits thrown in - either way, it's pretty fascinating stuff and it provides a very atypical look at different countries and cultures. Fat's DVD release includes loads of not used in the broadcast versions and is definitely worth checking out.