Escaped Maniacs

Rare candid interviews w/ Iggy & Ron Ashston plus a blistering stooges set-Also has an Interview w/ Iggy's girlfriend/photographer/Hostage/partner in crime during his Berlin period thru 1981-she was w/him during his 77/78 Bowie colab/era&tour w/him & the incredible HUNT BROs. thru late 70's Ivan Kral/Members of Blondie new values to soldier period up to him moving back to NYC then his re-addiction crash &bottom feeding perod of leaving NYC& the Iriqouis Hotel to Bensonhurst, Brooklyn 1982 Zombie Birdhouse/Run Like A Villian. Besides the Blistering concert of the reformed Stooges in early 2000's on the 1st disc -But What is truly compelling is on the 2nd disc-1 of the most candid interviews both Iggy & Ron has ever gave-Ron is filmed at houses they lived/wrote/played/did gateway drugs to the devastating effect of progressing to much harder drugs.Then he is filmed at the large room in University of Michigan(AnnArbor)where They played in the late 60's & where Danny Fields "Discovered Them" For Fans of Iggy &stooges-Highly Informative/enjoyable

If you are a Stooges / Iggy fan, you must get this! Not only do you get the very cool Stooges show from 2006 on disc one, the second disc contains additional material from Iggy's early years as well as a couple of informative interviews.

**Review originally appeared at [...]Escaped Maniacs is the second live DVD to come out of the Stooges reunion, and, like the first one, it proves yet again that they haven’t lost a step in delivering the goods live. Forget about last year’s terrible reunion album The Weirdness; these days the only place to witness the greatness of Iggy and the gang is on stage. There aren’t many singers, past or present, who can electrify a crowd like Iggy, and nobody backs him up better than The Stooges. This DVD, taken from a 2005 Belgian concert, showcases a fifteen-song set with thankfully only three new numbers – so you get all of the first two Stooges albums with the exception of “LA Blues”, “Ann” and “We Will Fall”. For some strange reason they play “I Wanna Be Your Dog” twice. While the concert is well filmed and has clear sound, the DVD package has a few notable gaffes. For example, you can watch either the Original Version or the Director’s Cut but there’s no explanation of what the difference is. Different track-listing? Different camera angles? Who knows? Also, navigating the menus on the bonus disc is nearly impossible, as there is no cursor or any kind of indication of where you are as you toggle between options. The bonus interviews with the Asheton brothers give a good oral history of the band (although I could really do without hearing Scott Asheton praise Fall Out Boy), but when speaking to Iggy the interviewer suddenly seems nervous, and the questions are bad. I’m happy to hear an hour-long interview with one of the most interesting figures in rock history, but dumb questions like “What’s your favorite color?” are a waste of both his and my time. No wonder a visibly bored Mr. Pop starts asking how much time is left less than halfway through the hour-long discussion. Don’t let the crap bonus features take the focus away from the live show, which is totally worth your rock’n’roll dollar.

Close your eyes, and you might be fooled into thinking this show is an early `70s Stooges set. The performance quality is as raw as ever, Iggy howling over the treble-heavy explosions and shrieks behind him. Open up, and you see a few more pounds, minimal stage violence and even the replacement bassist, the legendary Mike Watt (who knows these songs by working for years with brothers Scott and Ron Asheton), looking old. Though admittedly a "for the money" show, you won't notice the bad blood just under the surface of this shaky reunion as the band tears through their compact-yet-fabulous repertoire (minus "Search and Destroy", sadly). More interesting, however, is the hour-long, unedited interview with Pop by a nervous Tracy Landecker; an amiable Iggy discusses the early days, quotes Marshall McLuhan dishes dirt on Velvet Goldmine producer Michael Stipe and stands up midway to pop his back, shout a curse word and ask "how much time do we have left?"

Interestingly, I find the interviews more compelling than the concert footage. For one thing, they avoided playing any songs from Raw Power, which to my mind is the strongest Stooges album. [Update: I just now see from an Iggy docu on the disc that on the third album, the Asheton brothers were not there. I don't know how they could call it a Stooges album. By the way, Ron Asheton just died in January of a heart attack.] [Update: according to wiki, the Ashetons were actually on it. Odd error in the documentary.] And in extension of that, I don't think Iggy is the greatest song writer on the planet, all my favorite records of his were done in collaboration with Msr. Bowie. (Bowie produced Raw Power. Iggy claimed he ruined it, but see what a classic it became.)I am sure the girls still love Iggy, even at sixty. His stage persona is as kinetic as ever, he is fit, and he's continually fighting the tendency of his trousers to fall down. (I don't understand why he doesn't just buy a belt or suspenders...)I always find it interesting when an artist manages to still be on top after 40 years. That's just a super-human accomplishment.

Well, this knocks "Live In Detroit" into a cocked hat. It's a thrilling, exciting full length Stooges show from 2005, presented in the 'original version' and 'The Directors Cut' : in effect two seperate visual versions of the show but representing the exact same audio and performance. It covers most of their early material, as well as two songs from 2003's "Skull Ring" and a previously unheard song. The image is clear sharp, well presented from at least 10 cameras, with varying stock, styles, and effects that make it an unexpected treat for the fan. You could watch this with the sound off and be entertained by the image alone.The rest of the package contains a 60 minute documentary about Iggy's life his pre-Stooges life to now, alongside a comprehensive set of 2 hous of interviews with all the then surviving members of the original band and some others. If you're a fan of the band, and you want The Stooges on DVD, this is THE one to get.

This is as good as it gets for live video of the Stooges. I wish someone had the foresight to record something in the earyl 70s. Great for fans or new listeners of one of the most important bands ever.

Never heard of the studio 'Charly', but this 2 DVD set was incredibly well produced; and at 58, Iggy still rocks!

iggy, good