Life After Death from Above 1979

The Canadian noise-rock duo Death from Above 1979 recounts their history—from the beginning to the end to the new beginning—in Eva Michon's engaging documentary. Singer and drummer Sebastien Grainger recalls his roots in the Toronto group Femme Fatale, which led to a friendship with singer and bassist Jesse F. Keeler. The pair hit it off, recording several singles and EPs, which led to local gigs that brought them to the attention of other bands, such as Metric, and labels, like Last Gang, which released their 2004 debut, You're a Woman, I'm a Machine. After that, the duo played 546 shows between 2001 and 2005. During that time, Grainger says that they would ingest anything to stay awake, from energy drinks to ephedrine. But while touring with Nine Inch Nails and Queens of the Stone Age, the friendship soured, and in 2006, the band broke up. Keeler formed the electro-pop outfit MSTRKRFT and continued to drink and tour, while Grainger settled down and went solo. During the next five years, they both got married (director Michon is Grainger's wife, and one had a child, while the other bought a house. The documentary concludes with their 2011 reunion, which began with a surprise show at Austin's South by Southwest conference, where fans became so excited that they broke down the perimeter fence. Cops shut down the gig, but the band continued to tour for the next year, and in 2014 they finally released their long-awaited follow-up, The Physical World, although it remains to be seen whether more will follow. An interesting portrait of an oddball band, this is recommended. (K. Fennessy)