Oztix | News | Sure, 'Tiger King' Is Great, But Have You Seen These Must-watch Music Docos?

Wanna feel productive in self-isolation? We’ve pieced together a list of our favourite music documentaries to help pass the time.

Binge away and then the next time someone tries to grill you on your iso productivity you can say you’ve been studying music history.

The Last Waltz (1978)

If nothing else watch it just to see an obviously trollied Van Morrison absolutely belt Caravan. The biggest artists of the '60s and '70s hit the stage for The Last Waltz - Joni Mitchel, Neil Young, Bob Dylan, The Staple Sisters, everybody. Morrison comes out, dances like a toddler kicking a football, sings like an angel on a bender, steals the show, drops the mic and fucks off. It’s very entertaining.

Available on: On Stan

Metallica: Some Kind Of Monster (2004)

It's a doco that's at times more Spinal Tap than Spinal Tap as we watch before our eyes the biggest metal band on the planet almost self destruct as members leave or go AWOL and the band hits a creative rut. Enter "performance enchancement coach" Phil Towle (and his many loud sweaters) to try and steer the band through the tough times, and it almost seems as if he's inching himself to be the fifth member of the band.

Seeing as the band is still an ongoing concern, then yes, spoiler alert, they make it through, but you get to see how close things came to them being no more. It stands on its own as a quality music doco and can be enjoyed as such by those who don't even consider themselves Metallica fans.

Available on: DVD

Her Sound, Her Story (2018)

Described by Jen Cloher as “the documentary Australian music has been waiting for”, Her Sound, Her Story is relatively new compared to our other picks, but it’s quickly established itself as an important film. Directed by Claudia Sangiorgi Dalimore, the film asks the question "Where do we want women's voices to sit in the world today?” and features interviews with more than 45 artists, including Montaigne, Vera Blue, Julia Stone, Ecca Vandal, Sampa The Great and more.

Available on: Vimeo

Angels & Airwaves: Start The Machine (2008)

If you're a blink-182 fan, then you probably had a few questions when the band first broke up in 2005: Why did Tom Delonge really quit at the height of their success? Why did he start a new band so soon after? Why in the fuck was he publicly stating that said band's debut album would be "the greatest rock and roll revolution for this generation"? Start The Machine answers all of those questions and is a must-watch for any blink, Angels & Airwaves and Tom Delonge fan.

Available on: DVD

Pearl Jam Twenty (2011)

Pearl Jam Twenty does just what it says on the box - it looks back at the first 20 years of Seattle rock group Pearl Jam. Directed by longtime friend of the band, Cameron Crowe (Singles, Almost Famous) and featuring interviews with Pearl Jam members (and Soundgarden’s Chris Cornell), as well as a stack of archival footage, the film will give you a solid look at why the band have become so loved.

Available on: iTunes

One Nine Nine Four (2012)

This doco is wholesome punk rock viewing. As its official synopsis reads, One Nine Nine Four documents “the birth, growth and eventual tipping point of punk rock during the 90s" and features interviews with Green Day, The Offspring, blink-182, Bad Religion, Rancid and stacks more, while being narrated by Tony Hawk.

It was written and directed by Aussie Jai Al-Attas, who founded Below Par Records in the early 2000s and signed the likes of Kisschasy and Something With Numbers. Unfortunately, music licencing issues caused a slew of problems around the film’s release and after screening at only two film festivals, filmmakers said “fuck it” and dropped the documentary on YouTube for free.

Available on: YouTube