|
 When
I found out that there was a documentary on Boston's own sugar-crunchy
garage rockers the Charms, I thought that it was a little premature,
really. I mean, The Charms aren't exactly a household name yet. And as the
first hour rolled on, I still felt like they should've let this one bake a
little longer, since it's really just a month-by-month guide to the band's
slight ascent over the past few years, touring the Boston area, making
their first video, and putting out self-released albums. The doc mixes
fun-but-brief band footage with talking head segments from Boston rock
journo Brett Milano, the Charms' high-powered glam rock manager Steev
Ricardo, one-time Charms' producer Marc Schleicher, and others. Most of
the narration, however, is provided by the band's affable frontfox Ellie
Vee, who remains buoyant and incapable of dealing dirt, even when
discussing her nearly physical confrontations with ex-keyboard player Kat
("So, I wasn't too psyched about that.."). It's all breezily entertaining,
but the drama really doesn't kick in until the Charms are discovered by
Little Steven, who takes them under his wing and aggressively promotes
them with his Underground Garage radio show. The Charms finally start
building steam, and like all great bands, start falling apart immediately
once a little success comes their way. Their first attempt at a national
tour with very little money and a part-time rhythm section makes for
harrowing, occasionally hilarious stuff. Ultimately, everything works our
for this infectiously poppy garage-rock band, but the film does a
fantastic job of showing how even small bands walk through the fire to get
to the next step.
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-Sleazegrinder
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