Armed by their love of rock and roll, filmmaker Scott Sloan and writer Steve LaBate (Paste magazine) created this documentary which chronicles their trips in a van all across America in search of an answer on whether rock is still a vital force in 2010. In their own words:
“The film is a state of the union on the American Rock n’ Roll scene. And, at its core, 40 Nights of motherfucking Rock & Roll is about piling into a van for days on end, striking out into the heart of this mixed-up country and grabbing hold of your very own piece of the time-honored American tradition of self discovery through wandering; Lewis & Clark on expedition, Huck & Jim atop a river raft, Kerouac sucking down wine spodeeodee in a box car or careening across the twisting miles of asphalt with Neal Cassady at the wheel.
It’s about the road as a vehicle for transcendence, as some spirit-swallowing rain-slick obsidian snake devouring your psyche and spitting it back up renewed, reborn. It’s about chasing a dream and not giving a fuck about the naysayers, cranking it to 11 and letting it ride.
They’ll watch a different rock show every night (from high-school garage bands and indie upstarts to green-M&M- and large-bread-demanding arena rockers), cranking out a documentary and accompanying book about their adventure to prove just how much relevance and life is left in this 50-plus-year-old genre.”
5/5 – Boston, Mass.
5/6 – RATT @ Ram’s Head Live – Baltimore, Md.
5/7 – Charlotte, NC
5/8 – The Moaners @ The Nightlight – Chapel Hill, N.C.
5/9 – Future Islands, Reptar, Bubbly Mommy Gun @ Secret Squirrel – Athens, Ga.
5/10 – Tendaberry (location tbd) – Atlanta, Ga.
5/11 – Charlie Louvin (location tbd) and Shotgun Lover (location tbd) – Nashville, Tenn.
5/12 – St. Louis, Mo.
5/13 – Summerfest – Battle of the Bands Final @ Club Garibaldi – Milwaukee, Wisc.
5/14 – Torche @ Congress Theatre – Chicago, Ill.
5/15 – Those Darlins @ Nelsonville Music Festival – Nelsonville, Ohio
5/16 – Rev. Horton Heat @ Beachland Ballroom – Cleveland, Ohio
5/17 The Go @ – Detroit, Mich.
5/18 – Madison, Wisc.
5/19 – Minneapolis, Minn.
5/20 – Capgun Coup (location tbd) – Omaha, Neb.
5/21 – Kansas City, Mo.
5/22 – Fayettville, Ark.
5/23 – Tulsa, Okla.
5/24 – Of Montreal @ Granada Theater – Dallas, Texas
5/25 – Centro-Matic‘s Will Johnson (location tbd) – Austin, Texas
5/26 – Denton, Texas
5/27 – Wichita, Kansas
5/28 – Ümlaüt @ Road 34 Bike Bar – Fort Collins, Colo.
5/29 – Billings, Mont.
5/30 – Spokane, Wash.
5/31 – Drive-By Truckers @ The Gorge Amphitheater/Sasquatch! Festival – George, Wash.
6/1 – Seattle, Wash.
6/2 – Ketchum, Idaho
6/3 – Salt Lake City, Utah
6/4 – Young Dubliners @ The Sands Casino/Eurofest – Reno, Nev.
6/5 – San Francisco, Cali.
6/6 – Subhumans @ Echo – Los Angeles
6/7 – Las Vegas, Nevada
6/8 – Albuquerque, NM
6/9 – Josiah Wolf (of WHY?) @ Hi-Dive – Denver
