 Lost Dogs Review |
Captain Pedantic 
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Registration Date: 12-18-2002
Posts: 2,686
Location: "This calls for a very special blend of psychology and extreme violence." - Vyvian - The Young Ones
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No I have not got mine yet - but a reveiwer has
DVD Times - Lost Dogs ...via Chicago
The Lost Dogs... Via Chicago
There\'s something strange about the alt.country genre - it houses some of the most talented bands or artists in operation (Victoria Williams, The Handsome Family, The Jayhawks...) but so far only Ryan Adams and Wilco have achieved the fame they rightly deserve. The Lost Dogs, like most of the other bands, have released their albums with little or no label backing and have all but given up on becoming big stars. Not that they seem to be in the slightest bit bothered by this: over the last decade or so, they have produced a clutch of albums showcasing their rootsy sensitivities, exquisite harmonies and some classic songwriting.
With their trademark gospel tinged style, their lyrics are permeated with tales of haunted gold mines, dying Civil War soldiers and down-on-their-luck cowboys as well as a self-deprecating sense of humour and a sharp taste for satire or political observation (songs like Bush League and Bullet train meant they would never be your average country band).
This DVD brings us an intimate acoustic gig from Chicago with three guitars, three voices and one enraptured audience. The film intersperses interviews with the concert footage but thankfully they have edited it in such a way that the interviews are short enough and don’t really take away from the flow of the music. The cinematography itself is quite low-key keeping with the unpretentious ambience with a tasteful use of B&W for the concert sequences. The on-stage banter is also there in full and none of the goofs or mistakes have been erased leaving an organic feel to the entire proceedings. Despite having probably been filmed on a shoe-string budget, the film has few flaws - it delivers a blistering acoustic performance of a band holding the audience in their palms as well as a small but interesting biography via the interviews, giving us a top-notch end-product.
The DVD:
The image:
Though all the footage was filmed on what seems to be Digital Video, the transfer is good with little to complain about. Granted there’s some digitalisation visible on close inspection but that’s unavoidable when you’re filming with DV. The B&W sections give a good contrast and luminosity and look particularly good. Though filmed in a 1.77:1 aspect ratio, we sadly don\\\'t get an anamorphic transfer but the image looks more than acceptable when zoomed in on a WS TV.
The sound:
We’re given a choice between a traditional stereo mix and a 5.1 mix. I’m not sure which one is the most successful as they’re both rather good. The 2.0 gives a good mix making excellent use of the stereo mirroring the physical position of each band member in the mix (i.e. the guitar on the right of the screen comes out of the right loudspeaker). The 5.1 mix uses the surround speakers for mostly crowd sounds and effectively creates the illusion of sitting in the midst of the crowd. There’s the occasional hiss on the track but never anything that noticeable and overall these two tracks are top-notch.
The menus:
Although simple menus would have been acceptable, we get a very nice piece of work with snippets of the film playing in the background. Very effective and classy.
The extras:
The first 1000 DVDs will come with an audio CD containing 8 of the 13 songs performed on the night running a little short of 40 minutes - a good addition given that few people want to have to turn on their TV just to listen to the tracks.
Added to this, they’ve added one solo song by each band member and an interview (17 mins) as each band member is in fact a member of another band whilst the Lost Dogs was a Travelling Wilburys-like side-project. These are particularly interesting with Mike Roe giving an impromptu rendition of Eve of Destruction as well as a dig at 311 over their plagiarism of one of his songs.
We also get a commentary track - this is mostly limited to the beginning of each song with the band talking for up to a minute about the song, what it means and if they like it or not. I would have probably preferred a full-length commentary (then again what can you expect them to say about a concert?) but this is a good extra bringing out some often hilarious admissions from the band (“That song is quite silly and doesn’t make any sense at all”)...
Finally, there’s a picture gallery of Dinah Kotthoff’s photos of the band on the night.
Conclusions:
When you consider the quality of the work on hand here, you\'re left wondering why more bands can\'t put something as good as this together... The DVD manages on a very small budget to surpass anything that I’ve seen so far from a music DVD and offers the fans something really worth paying for. Priced at $20 (+p&p), the DVD is only available from lo-fidelity’s website for the time being.
Mark Boydell
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07-04-2003 16:51 |
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Ron E
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Location: Central Ontario Canada
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THanks, Captain. THat looks great!
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The opinion expressed is that of the participant and does not necessarily reflect that of Mr Dan Amos. But if it doesn't, he would be wrong.
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07-04-2003 16:55 |
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.backs.
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Yes it does.
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07-04-2003 16:58 |
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JR88
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Dat's cool
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07-04-2003 16:58 |
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Squidzit
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It was a great night of music that I will never forget! It was the first time Driver and I had seen the Dogs. We were in heaven!! Can't wait for the dvd, great review!
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run out and get me a four year old child, I can't make heads or tails of it."
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07-04-2003 19:39 |
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Mark
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Great review! I loved it. Now I can't wait for my DVD to arrive.
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07-04-2003 19:44 |
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JR88
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Awesome show people 
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07-04-2003 20:56 |
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BD
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I didn't read the review, don't want to spoil it. 
I can't wait to see the DVD
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07-04-2003 23:15 |
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Jevon the Tall
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Location: "You're not from around here are you?" said the stranger to the little man in the wool sweater who looked vaguely like a sheep. Maybe it was the long boots but he was kind of cute. "What's your name?" he asked "My friends call me Theo." he replied
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Spoiler.
Hey BD, apparently at the end of the movie they had to shoot that big old yeller dog, cause he got the rabis.
Very sad.
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07-05-2003 01:05 |
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dorfsmith
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Great review!!!
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07-05-2003 02:36 |
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HEMISPHERICALHEADS
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When I get mine I plan on saving it for a friday night, having my wife my two offspring , and myself sit or lay around the livingroom , crank up the volume , popcorn , beverages , etc.
How long do you think it'll take to get here after Jeffery gets back home for those who ordered within the first day?
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07-05-2003 06:30 |
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Mark
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I don't know, but I'd sure like to be watching it next weekend.
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07-05-2003 08:33 |
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BD
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| quote: |
Originally posted by Jevon the Tall
Spoiler.
Hey BD, apparently at the end of the movie they had to shoot that big old yeller dog, cause he got the rabis.
Very sad.
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thanks allot jevON....
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07-05-2003 10:08 |
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Mark
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But never, never pin your whole faith on any human being: not if he is the best and wisest in the whole world. - C.S. Lewis
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07-05-2003 14:07 |
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Ron E
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Hi Jeffrey, I thought I'd throw this to the top to be sure that you see it. Congratulations on such a great review.
Well when I typed this in he was here. I guess he has things to do, imagine that!!!
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The opinion expressed is that of the participant and does not necessarily reflect that of Mr Dan Amos. But if it doesn't, he would be wrong.
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07-05-2003 19:09 |
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Mark
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I may be watching this at the end of the week.
)
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But never, never pin your whole faith on any human being: not if he is the best and wisest in the whole world. - C.S. Lewis
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07-06-2003 08:26 |
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jiminy
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you should read the review- it'll make ya salivate..
just like that yeller dog that they shoot in th...
never mind.
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jiMinY
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07-06-2003 08:37 |
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Mark
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I read it. I'm so excited.
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But never, never pin your whole faith on any human being: not if he is the best and wisest in the whole world. - C.S. Lewis
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07-06-2003 08:38 |
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Mark
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More shameless posting brought to you by Mark
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But never, never pin your whole faith on any human being: not if he is the best and wisest in the whole world. - C.S. Lewis
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07-06-2003 13:24 |
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BigDork
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| quote: |
Originally posted by jiminy
you should read the review- it'll make ya salivate..
just like that yeller dog that they shoot in th...
never mind.
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Now don't start with me JimiKnEE!
I cry every time you mention that dog.... I had a Yellow Lab you know... 
I miss the way he used to dig holes in my back yard, and how he would almost push us out of bed at night so he could have more room so we would have to literally smash him back to get him to move, and how he would wake us up in the middle of the night howling in his dreams, and all the vet bill that pilled up over the years (that's why his name was Charger) and the way he would drink out of the toilet, and how when he got older he would lay on the ground to play tug of war because he was too tired to stand up, and how he used to want to go out early in the morning to pee and then he would get all wet because the sprinklers had just gone off and when you let him back in he would run and steal you spot on the bed because it was warm but now your bed was all wet and he wouldn't move because he was a stubborn old dog, this happened to my wife more than me because I could pretend to be asleep longer than she could when Charger wanted out, and how he used to jump in my truck whenever the door was opened and he would not get out until I drove him around the block, and how he used to hang out front with me while I did the yard work, and when he was about 1 year old I took him and me through obedience school and he could walk with me anywhere without a leash, that is until he became old and stubborn and would do whatever he wanted, and how when the kids were young he would let them climb all over him and they would pull his hair to help them stand up, and then how he just went to sleep that day in the vets office... he didn't come home with us that day.
Everyone should have a dog like this. 
BD
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07-06-2003 13:51 |
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