I met JL Aaronson at DocuClub and have since been hoping to see his newest film, Danielson: A Family Movie {or, Make Joyful Noise Here}. “The film follows Daniel Smith, an eccentric musician and visual artist, as he leads his four siblings and best friend to indie-rock stardom.” I recently described the music as “Christian punk psychedelica,” which covers it for me but you’ll have to see the film to judge for yourself, as the Danielson Familie Band no longer performs much together. But Danielson (Daniel Smith’s stage name) continues on in a solo career - there are some MP3 downloads on his site. The film premiered at SXSW and last week played to rave reviews at Silverdocs - the band showed up to entertain the crowd.

This film made me realize something about music docs - making one is a bit like adapting a book to a film. You have to make a movie that will entertain the fans, give them what they want because they are likely to be the ones to see it again and again if they enjoy it or totally trash it if they don’t, but also make the subject interesting to a broader audience. JL had his work cut out for him on this front because Danielson’s music is not immediatly enjoyable to everyone (or even a large portion of listeners). What I really appreciated about this doc was that after spending time with the family and their music and the creation of the music, I started to hear it differently with a more positive inclination. I do have a feeling though that it is also experiential music, that being in the audience for a performance adds energy to it and makes it a different experience than simply watching a recording.

Danielson is playing at the Knitting Factory in NYC later in July and I plan to be there to hear it for myself. And, I recommend catching Danielson: A Family Movie.