Pavement

Filmmaker Alex Ross Perry‘s Pavements is a fitting tribute to a band known for its stubborn idiosyncrasies: sarcasm, disregard for convention, esoteric lyrics, and indifference to success. Singer/guitarist Stephen Malkmus plays the role of the enfant terrible.

The band Pavement (without the -s) made critically acclaimed albums, drawing comparisons to The Fall and Lou Reed. But they never signed with a major record label.

This film intertwines four stories. First, there’s the documentary about Pavement’s return to live performances in 2022, complete with hazy flashbacks to their 90s heyday. Second, a report on a traveling museum exhibition about the band. Third, a story about a musical project about the band. And fourthly, the filming of a biopic about the band, starring Joe Keery (Stranger Things) as lead singer Stephen Malkmus. Incidentally, it’s unclear whether that film actually exists or is just the film within the film.

Everything overlaps, until the actors are barely distinguishable from the real band. For example, actor Joe Keery, in a panic, confides to his dialect coach that he’s slowly turning into the real Stephen Malkmus.

Music Film Festival: A film Pavement fans can’t ignore.