Descendents

This Christmas my little brother gave me a small tattoo using a needle, a lighter, some Indian ink and the trust that his undergraduate art degree meant he was good as this DIY stuff. What was it of? A square, spectacled, odd little emblem - a caricature of Milo Aukerman, the sometimes singer of the Descendents.   

Now obviously tattoos are the norm nowadays and for the most part connote a notion of “cool” but so far none of mine could be considered such. Wrestling logos, Dickens novels and now some pop-punk dweeb feature on my naturally disgusting body, but this isn’t about tattoos. This is about a band, a documentary film and a tweet I read the night after I got my Milo.

Descendents forever. Both literally and figuratively in my case. This tweet, the square-in-both-senses drawing on my ankle and my recent viewing of Filamge: The Story of Descendents / ALL got me thinking just why I, and so many others (evidently including the awesome pop-punk group The Swellers), love this band.

 The history of the Descendents is somewhat complex and too name change heavy for a lazy writer such as myself to attempt to detail, but Filmage manages to explain it with a comprehendable flair far superior to anything I could churn out. What is more important however, is that through the various periods and changes of their disjointed career the Descendents managed to become one of the most essiential, influential and universally loved bands of the punk genre. Their pop-punk energy, high-school problems lyrics and overall champion of the adolescent persona has always just felt so natural and uncomplicated. This is a notion clearly felt by many, as Filmage features interviews from the likes of Dave Grohl, Mark Hoppus, Tim McIlgrath and Greg Graffin to name a few, highlighting the importance of the Descendents in shaping the punk rock landscape throughout their scrambled history that began in the late seventies and continues in some form today.

However, it’s not just an A-grade punk history lesson that Filmage provides. Directors Deedle Lacour and Matt Riggle manage to capture the very essence of the band through their fast paced, light hearted documentary. They portray the confusion that fuels Descendents with a firm clarity, detailing the juxtapositions of exactly why a cherished lead singer chose being a scientist over a rockstar, why the band morphed into the side-group ALL and exactly how that silly little logo came to mean so much to so many. Every grim, flatulant and embarassing story is revealed and that’s what makes it such an accurate reflection of the group. Descendents are farts, doing your homework, wanking because you can’t get laid, choosing petri dishes over platinum records and ultimately fantasising over what it must be like to NOT be a Descendent. 

So many bands, particularly in the punk genre have an overblown sense of self-importance, but not Bill, Milo and co. Descendents capture first world problems with the unexplainable aggression with which they occur. Their music has more to do with being annoyed at a girl you’ve never actually spoke to than the regime of a democratically elected president and above all captures that quintessential problem of youth; being bored.

Despite this Filmage is far from tedious. Unlike many rockumentaries it is able to provide clips from the bands discography to soundtrack the film, keeping you continously hooked and offering engaging moments where you could actually visably witness members of the audience’s face light up, as a track perhaps not heard since they left their parents basement twenty years ago rages into the spotlight.

Filmage: The Story of Descendents/ ALL is essential viewing for everyone with an interest in music. Whether, you’ve got the Milo tattoo, are simply curious about those weird album covers, or just fancy watching a music film that doesn’t centre around doom and drugs, this is entirely for you.

Descendents Forever.