DETROIT - In 1976 the English band The Sex Pistols were formed and caused shockwaves in the recording industry. It was comprised of four gangly teenagers full of spit and vinegar and a general dislike for their current life situation. British politics, arena rock, poverty, and an unending garbage strike kicked off the inspiration for this groundbreaking album. It went against the very grain of what was decent and proper in pop music. Its explosive debut gave birth to the Punk Rock movement.
This short documentary is sweet, short and punchy by focusses on the four original band members Johnny Rotten, Steve Jones, Paul Cook and, Glen Matlock. The story starts in London on the King's Road and a clothing shop called SEX. The shop's proprietor, Malcom McLaren, has the idea to form a band to help promote his edgy clothing designs. He catches Steve Jones stealing swag from the store and nominates him, guitarist. He then locates a scrappy Irish kid with bad teeth and gives him the name Johnny Rotten and he becomes the frontman.
McLaren didn't have much creative influence on the band but offers the advice to make it chaotic. All four band members bicker and argue constantly on and off stage. Steve Jones and bassist Glen Matlock come up with the song narratives and Rotten adds the lyrics. This documentary strips down the song elements by presenting them in the most basic construct. Then the engineer, Chris Spedding, shows us his process of adding distortion and overdubs to create the finished songs. The volume and distortion add an earth-shattering display of power and ferocity. Spedding takes us into the studio where he isolates each track that creates the songs on his mixing board. For the first time, we can hear each sound element on its own.
The best part of this documentary is in its smallest details. Manager McLaren admits that he was sorry that he let bassist Matlock leave the band. He confides that the chemistry of the group was disrupted. Guitarist Steve Jones chimes in that he regrets his petty observations on the bassist as well. Glen Matlock didn't fit in with the other band members and share their vision of a hardcore rock band. Matlock didn't dress like the rest of the Sex Pistols and was often criticized for being too clean. He would wash his feet after every performance which triggered negative comments from Jones and Rotten.
Sid Vicious was Matlock's replacement as the bassist. He was hired for his outrageous look more than his bass playing. Engineer Bill Price remembers trying to incorporate Sid's bass playing into the early mix of the album. The problem was Sid Vicious couldn't play his instrument well. His contribution was largely left off the final mixes. Sid had been admitted to the hospital when "Never Mind The Bullocks" was being finalized with jaundice. Steve Jones ended up adding more guitar accents to his original guitar riffs in the studio to give the final product more sound and texture. To compensate for the lack of Sid's guitar work engineer Chris Spedding played bass behind a curtain during live shows. The engineers also share the subtlety of guitar chords with a lower octave addition which builds up the signature Sex Pistol sound.
Other documentaries do not offer this kind of in-depth insight. They typically focus on the loud sensationalism that surrounds the band. Now for the first time, we are allowed into the studio and hear real commentary from the people who created the band sound.
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