Bane: Holding These Memories Documentary
About 2 months ago I spent 2 hours of my time relaxing at home while watching Bane’s last set at The Palladium in Worcester, MA, filmed by Hate5six the one man operation known for documenting live music shows. Every second that went by on the 2 hour long performance was worth the bad posture I may experience as I get older: from the chaotic energy, crowd participation and even the somber sad moments was what made it compelling to watch. Shortly after the video, it was brought to my attention that there will be a Bane documentary that will be available to watch on October 13th. Earlier today, I rushed to Amazon Prime Video to make the full purchase, made my bowl of oatmeal with honey, walnut and blueberries in my red flannel robe and sat back on the couch and pressed play.
My introduction into hardcore was 2004, after a few years of engaging my ears into early punk rock and metal. After acquiring the knowledge of Bad Brains, Minor Threat and Black Flag, I fell down a hardcore rabbit hole into the Boston Hardcore scene after discovering Death Before Dishonor, Blood for Blood and Colin of Arabia. What attracted me the most, like many hardcore kids old and young, was the very inclusive vibe and the sense of community involved. Throughout the time I spent in the sub genre in my early years, I’ve also gather knowledge of the hardcore scene through documentaries; The Decline of the Western Civilization: the 1981 documentary of the Los Angeles punk scene, American Hardcore: 2006 documentary that explains the 1980-1986 punk rock scene across the nation and Boston Beatdown: the 2004 hard hitting documentary that showcases a violent perspective on the Boston hardcore scene. I have yet to watch The Godfathers of Hardcore for the simple fact that haven’t gathered enough interest…yet.
My introduction to Bane was in 2005 when they released a commercial promoting their album The Note. I can’t remember where I seen this commercial but it was a vivid memory. The band name seem pretty straight forward to me and the artwork was visually appealing. The way the fan talked about Bane on the commercial raise my level of curiosity; from the positive energy to the lyricism, Bane seems like the poster band for hardcore during that time. The live show shots were the final staples into my perception of the band.
Over the next 15 years, I spent my life deeply invested into hardcore, from the local scene to keeping up with the latest releases. New faces, new bands, new styles, new friendships have surfaced within the years with sense of community getting stronger. Bane, along with many other bands that had an extensive run never left my side and helped me through the thickest of the thick and the thinnest of thin.
Even though I wasn’t tapped into Bane as much as many of my peers were, when the band released their last LP and announced their final tour dates, it brought upon a similar feeling equivalent to a friend or a loved one telling you one last goodbye. It was bittersweet because Bane had a beautiful run and they saved so many lives through their music but no one was truly ready for them to end. I didn’t get a chance to attend their last show in Dallas but luckily their music lives on.
Bane: Holding These Memories is roughly an hour and a half long of the journey of Bane, through the good, bad and the ugly, from beginning to end. The documentary doesn’t go into great detail of the band’s journey, considering of the time taken to create this film and imagining there would be a drastic increase the duration of the film, but the information given is enough to acquire a summary of Bane’s back story. The films spends a good portion of time explaining the constant band member changes and gives an inside look of life through the eyes of a band that tours relentlessly. For those who have no idea or have somewhat of an idea of who Bane is or what hardcore is, Holding These Memories is the entry into the music culture.
Holding These Memories is a monumental film for those who live the lifestyle that comes with the hardcore culture. The sense of community, decades of friendships and relationships that were built over time, their involvement with Team Skylar, the many lives they touched and so much more is embedded into this film. That alone really explains the importance of Bane and the documentary. Towards the last 20-30 minutes reminds you that Bane is no longer here and the ride then becomes bittersweet. The overwhelming, heartfelt response of fans traveling all over the world for Bane’s last tour and the sold out venues was truly awe- inspiring For a lot of hardcore kids, Bane was the model of what hardcore is, should be and was teacher of wisdom, strength and holding on to what you love most. If you love Bane, hardcore or both, you might need to grab a box of tissue.
Available now to rent or purchase on Google Play, Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV or other streaming services .
