Worker atop CN Tower in 1976 points to exclamation mark from 2013 

Yup, we’re finally going to do a make-over of our site that we started back in June 2006 when we started making the film.  Should be done in a few weeks.  Just in time to announce some screenings that will be open to the public!   For sure we’re going to have a week long run in Toronto, and a few dates scattered across Canada.  (Bonjour, Montreal — Fantasia Festival s’il vous plait?)

Poster by artist Rick Trembles

Even with our very limited exposure to date (two cast ‘n’ crew screenings;  World Premiere at Canadian Music Week), we’ve done well with reviewers.

In Mechanical Forest Sound, blogger Joe said:  “A true labour of love, this film is a worthy testament to a brief spurt of under-documented and under-appreciated history.” 

Sarah Gopaul, posting in Digital Journel:  ” More than just a chronicle of the city’s culture, it’s also a historic overview of Toronto’s venues.” 

Less Lee Moore of Popshifter had our favourite comment, hands down.  Reflecting on the unusual length (3 hrs, 20 minutes): “It’s all killer, no filler.”  And this:  “…is going to come as an unexpected and delightful shock to the system, especially if you’re not Canadian.”  And then this:  “It’s infinitely quotable and thought provoking as well as frequently hilarious and distressing.”

Geoff Pevere, writing for the Globe & Mail wrote a terrific overview of the film and the scene, but the venerable Globe has gone all paywall on us, so no link for that one.  But Geoff also has his own blog, and wrote in his Directory of Intemperate Enthusiasms: “(The Last Pogo Jumps Again) is something of a major find:  not only does it restore this period and its players to something like rightful status in civic history, it reiterates just how explosive the movement was and how fucked it is that its been forgotten.”

Don Pyle summed it up with this on Trouble in the Camera Club:  “…enthralling and brilliant, hilarious and sad.”

And the final words go to Greg Klymkiw, who lost his shit, gave it four stars, and wrote a review worthy of Lester Bangs while suffering the effects of four days of nicotine withdrawal.  Here’s some of the stuff he writes in his review on his popular blog Canadian Film Corner:  “…alternately thrilling and depressing but ultimately powerful.”  And this:  “Blending new and archival interviews and footage with all the onstage and behind the scenes players, the movie tells a tale as inspiring as it is sad – but what keeps the whole thing buoyant is the mad genius on view in both the words and performances of the likes of D.O.A. (sic), The Viletones, Teenage Head and all the rest of this Scene of gloriously talented purveyors of fuck-you-and-the-horse-you-fucking-rode-in-on. Some of those interviewed keep playing, others have morphed their love of music into other areas of the music business while some have chosen to grow up and get real jobs – and it’s a testament to the obsessive qualities of the filmmaking itself that it’s simply impossible to NOT like anyone in the picture.”  And then this:  “Some of the interview highlights for me were poignant moments with the late Frankie Venom of Teenage Head, the brilliant, erudite Andy Paterson of The Government and without question, the vitriol-and-venom spewing Steve Leckie from the Viletones – a poet, an artist, a gentleman curmudgeon of the highest order.”

(Hey, we would’ve added some pics, but The World Wide Information Superhighway wasn’t being nice to us...)

A small wet crowd at This Ain’t Hollywood last night in Hamilton for the cast ‘n’ crew screening — but they were enthusiastic, and were there to watch the movie, and not just drink beer.  A handful of people from Toronto made the drive out to The Hammer to see the film for the second or third time (that’s batting .667 or .1000, baseball friends!), and some nice hoots and hollers (and vaguely un-PC insults) from the bar where The Forgotten Rebels’ Chris Houston and Mickey DeSadist held court (happy birthday, Mickey.)  Big thanks to head honcho Lou “Looooooooooooou” Molinaro and whoever did the awesome job of projecting and blasting out the sound.   Alas, Michael Dent could not find a ride.

Rock ‘n’ roll bars have the best bathrooms.

Late notice, but there’s going to be a free “cast ‘n’ crew” screening at the venerable This Ain’t Hollywood tavern in The Hammer on Tuesday night, named after the same song by locals The Forgotten Rebels.  If you were in the film, or helped us wrangle music or posters or photos or handbills, or were friends with someone who did, then consider yourself invited.  Like, we’re not checking I.D. (except for the 19+ thing, of course.)  Starts at 8:30 sharp.  It’s three hours and twenty minutes plus an intermission, so pick your poison.  (NB:  If you don’t know where This Ain’t Hollywood is, or worse, what The Hammer is — then you weren’t cast and crew, so stay tuned for some public screenings.)

This is the site (but not the style) of the very first Tim Horton’s donut and coffee joint, in Hamilton Ontario.

“The farther away I get from Hamilton, the less interesting the world becomes.” — poet/novelist/gentleman David McFadden.

Teenage Head.  Photo by Dan Huziak.

The Google Alert we got today at Pogo H.Q. alerted us to this page on the Information Superhighway.  The mangled English is the best.

Watch The Last Pogo Jumps Again (2013) Streaming Tv and Movies Online Still remember the crew act crazy serial? Well now you can again enjoy their crazy act and this time it will be more exciting again. Why? Because they are present in threedimensional format. A few stories above clearly already familiar to fans of strong action movie This Movie. The Last Pogo Jumps Again (2013) Streaming Movies Free Online Watch  To be honest the basic idea of the film is actually strong This Movie is quite interesting. Get The Last Pogo Jumps Again (2013) Streaming Full Movies Free Online Digging cuteness seems the main purpose of the film is strong This Movie This cool directed.

(What it really is, is a link to a seven minute interview about the film on the web series “Katie Chats”, with Katie Uhlman.)

“Enthralling and brilliant, hilarious and sad.”  So said photographer/musician/producer Don Pyle, late of first wave punk/new-wave band Crash Kills Nine, then Crash Kills Five, and then the surf-punk instrumentalists Shadowy Men on a Shadowy Planet.  Don was all of 14 years old when he used to hang out at the Crash ‘n’ Burn and Horseshoe Tavern.  “Did we never check i.d.?”, Pogo co-director Brunton asked legendary promoter Gary Topp (of The Garys) in the film; referencing the fact that a 14-year-old kid was able to enter the fable Horseshoe. “No,” said Gary. “The only people who would give us a hard time was the musicians union.  They were full of shit.  They’re still full of shit.”

We were the opening band for our World Premiere on the last day of Canadian Music Week Film Festival last week.  Saturday Afternoon at the Movies, and we sold out, man.

Hat tip to thriftyvinyl.wordpress.com

The people at the TIFF Bell Lightbox were great (thanks kids with walkie-talkies!  thanks Jeff Wright!);  filmmakers Colin Brunton and Kire Paputts got there early to set the volume for the pre-show music, an awesome (for sure) mix-tape made by legendary promoter Gary Topp (featured in the doc);  Lou Reed’s Metal Machine Music dubbed in with disco, Eagles, a Rolling Stones cover band and more.  We played it loud.   

Mechanical Forest Sound writer Joe said in his review:  “When we walked into the theatre, Queen’s “Bohemian Rhapsody” was playing at ear-splitting volume — and with some sort of harsh white noise behind it … At that, one of the middle-aged A&R types stormed out of the theatre to complain. This was a two-hundred-twelve minute movie that had people fleeing the room before it started. I took that as a good sign.”

What was most impressive and intriguing about Jon Wurster’s (Mountain Goats, Superchunk, bon-vivant and wit) kind words was the timing:  he had pounded the drums for Bob Mould at Toronto’s Horseshoe Tavern the night before, and at 9:30 in the morning he was watching it.  At 9:30 in the morning.  (This was back in March, so perhaps now he’s seen another doc he likes better, but hey, thanks.) Mould and Wurster played their cover of the Viletones’ Screamin’ Fist, with Perfect Youth author Sam Sutherland guesting on vocals, much to the delight of the crowd, and more for Sam we’re sure.)

Kind words by LA-based TV screenwriter and friend Rob Sheridan. (Rob worked with Pogo co-director/producer Brunton on the Canadian TV series Little Mosque on the Prairie.)

Happy Viletones Day, lovers.

The world premiere of The Last Pogo Jumps Again will take place at 1:00 in the afternoon at the Bell Lightbox in Toronto, March 23rd, as part of Canadian Music Week.

Note from an editor

We clock in at three hours, twenty minutes.  Plus an intermission, old skool.

Tickets are $10 — cheap! Get them by clicking here:  http://www.ticketfly.com/purchase/eventV2/224953?utm_medium=bks&wrKey=17986E02C4104BA63986AAACF6EF640A

We mixed at Theatre D Digital at the Royal Theatre in Toronto.

So, we had a pretty raucous cast and crew screening at the lovely run-down Projection Booth Theatre in Toronto in December, and now its time to apply to festivals and maybe a little tour of sorts.

It was only for “cast and crew” and there were a couple of hundred people and a couple of hundred beers there.  If you’ve never, y’know, spent over six years making a documentary about a bunch of people you mostly know and you’re delving into a period of their lives that was pretty fantastic and important to them, then lemme tell you — it’s a bit nerve-wracking.  We won’t go into details, but all in all our little epic got a strong reaction, and now we’re sending off copies to festivals, and hoping for a good fit somewhere (Hi, SXSW!  Well, hello Hot Docs!  How’s it hangin’, TIFF?!) Once we can premiere this somewhere, then we’ll figure out how to go public.  And the rest will be history.  Meanwhile, we’re going to do a few changes to the website, but we’ll be back soon.  Hey ho!