Recommendations of the Editorial team
When the first authorized documentary about Led Zeppelin was announced some time ago, I thought that there was actually nothing that corresponds to the zeitgeist less than this band.
All of the criticisms attached to enlightened discourses and, through the Rammstein case, virulent in rock music – cultural appropriation, sexism, abuse of power, underage groupies, violence, etc. – seem to fit this band. And, yes, that’s probably the reason why they became the largest rock band of the planet in the seventies.
Now suddenly sexism, abuse of power and male-white superiority in American politics are on the agenda. And an LED-Zeppelin T-shirt is something like the Tesla of the little man.
Back out of the crypt
“Becoming Led Zeppelin” of course tells nothing of all of this. Because it is the band told here. The diabolical and vain Jimmy Page, who plans jovial Robert and the mischievous John Paul Jones speak separately from each other in dark wooden chairs with carved ornaments. As if they had emerged from their luxurious private crypt in a crow -swarming English castle to tell the old stories again. And the spirit of John Bonham also haunted the rooms in the form of an interview that has never been previously belonged and occasionally conjures up a smile on the faces of his former bandmates.
Explosive mixture
The highlight of “Becoming Led Zeppelin” is, as the title already reveals that a band is shown here. That we can get a feel for the mood in post -warland using fabulous researched and assembled archive material and that we can track the individual stories of the four men. We see how a band is formed in the head of the professional virtuoso page because, as a studio musician, you can never be an adored god. Like the already established Jones followed him in this adventure. As the drifter sees his last chance, not to land on the street and persuaded his already sunken friend John Bonham against the will to join his wife. We get to know the recipe of this explosive mix, before everything in August 1968 was poured together in a basement in the London Gerrard Street.
However, it took a while to ignite it. Because the world didn’t seem ready yet. The American Rolling Stone revealed the first album and at home the band that refused to publish a single was largely ignored. Until the will of the US rock fans only broke through a long US tour and finally the British homeland was also conquered with the second album and the mighty single “Whole Lotta Love”. The film ends with a triumphal return: a acclaimed concert in the London of the Royal Albert Hall.
Rock gods on the cloud
In the second part of the film, director Bernard Macmahon (“American Epic”) and co-author Allison McGoury are particularly overwhelming, the band shows in action, lets long performances of songs such as “How many more times” and “Dazed in confused” speak. Already impressive how the sound presses you into the cinema chair – but the pictures at the same time reveal that this band seems unable to contact the audience. Everyone plays for themselves, Plant has closed their eyes. Rock gods on a cloud, among them the congregation.
“Becoming Led Zeppelin” is an event for the fans. If you don’t belong to this community, you will probably not love the band after “Becoming Led Zeppelin” (lake, what i did here?), But he or she will understand it much better. And it is particularly important in times like this to know the enemy.
“Becoming Led Zeppelin” has been available at Netflix since August 18.