Punk rockers and the F-word: They go together, as a very different sort of musician might have said, like love and marriage, or a horse and carriage. That’s clearly evidenced in this documentary, in which the salty word is sprinkled throughout conversations like, well, liberal doses of salt. But what about, as the title has it, “The Other F Word”? No, you don’t normally think of “fatherhood” when you see the heavily tattooed and pierced men behind the bands that sing (if that’s the right word) songs about giving the powerful the finger. But punks are people, too, and the destiny of most people is to propagate. That unlikely image — of boys who have railed against authority turning into men who have it — is explored in Andrea Blaugrund Nevins’ entertaining, even eye-opening doc.
” ‘Having a baby changed everything.’ You hear that, you hear that. And it totally did,” marvels Jim Lindberg, longtime frontman of Pennywise, one of those bands the average person hasn’t heard of, but which has proven influential to many bands he has. Lindberg is one enthusiastic father: He even wrote a book titled “Punk Rock Dad.” But that doesn’t mean he’s lost his edge. He’s still a hardworking musician, but one who also works hard to fit in family time in between the tours and stints in the studio.
| On screen |
| ‘The Other F Word’ |
| 3 out of 4 stars |
| Stars: Tony Adolescent, Art Alexakis, Rob Chaos |
| Director: Andrea Blaugrund Nevins |
| Rated: Not rated (adult language) |
| Running time: 99 minutes |
The film focuses on Lindberg, but there are plenty of other, more recognizable faces here: Flea, the inimitable bassist of the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Mark Hoppus, singer and bassist in Blink-182, Tim McIlrath of Rise Against, Ron Reyes of Black Flag, and Fat Mike from NOFX.
What sort of audience will this film find? It’s hard to imagine many of heavy music’s fans wanting to sit through a doc in which their idols talk about how changing diapers has changed their lives. But there’s more to this film than that (nearly universal) revelation. “The Other F Word” offers a mini-history of American punk as well, one that divulges what being on the road requires of those who manage to keep working in a field historically ruled by the young.
“Antacids,” Lindberg says, in showing us his touring “kit.” “Superimportant because you eat like s–t.” The guy whose band sang “F–k Authority” also carries hand sanitizer, because of all the glad-handing he has to do. And there’s hair dye: “You’ve got to keep the dream alive.”
What makes this look at a much-discussed genre special, though, are the more personal disclosures. Many of these musicians who shout out angry songs had fathers who abandoned them. They’re determined to be better men for their sons and daughters — whether it suits their image or not.
