You have got to see this movie. Hands down. Califone have made a habit out of choosing diverse and whimsical themes for their albums and this album/film combo is no different.  It’s not everyday that such a talented set of artists decides to mix media in such an original and refreshing way. Both pieces of the project are so well developed and executed that standing alone they already would be considered stellar. Together…well, that’s the stroke of genius.

The film follows the life of a young psychic living alone in a house in the woods with the ghosts of the band and others. The ghosts discover they are trapped and the resulting conflict builds in intensity. Examining the chaos between life and death, the film presents poignant questions about the nature of death steeped in a tea of superstition.  Sprinkled with absurdist comedy (“Hey baby, why don’t I come over later with a bottle of wine and a bucket of chicken?” , “I guess it’s always been one of my wildest fantasies to look up and see Jesus on the other side of a threesome”) AMFAFS defies genre lines in the style of classics like The Big Lebowski.

The band played along for all but 4-5 minutes of the movie and often it was hard to remember that none of the music was on the tape. The soundtrack consisted of the album’s worth of finished songs dismantled to the myriad ideas that make up each song and presented scattered across the film. The fluid presentation throughout this tour will help them nail down what will be the final version of the soundtrack which bandleader Tim Rutili mentioned they would be tracking this winter in time to send the film to festivals next year. No question, it will be well received.

After the movie the band took a short intermission before playing a short set of old favorites. Due a broken string and other time-consuming, music-inhibiting mishaps, the band spent about half the time answering questions and half the time playing music. The question and answer session was filled with discussions of D level comedians, the merits of interns, Tim’s never to be repeated stage banter in Buffalo, and taking a few requests from the crowd (“Bottles and Bones”). One of the highlights for me was an amazing new song that turned up the fuzz and was insanely catchy.  I can’t wait for the next Califone project whatever it may be and especially for the final version of All My Friends Are Funeral Singers.

VIDEO FROM THE SHOW AFTER THE FILM: http://www.downeffect.com/laina/califone/the_orchids.mov

Photos Angelina C.