Review: Green Day Doc ‘Turn It Around’ Explores the California Scene that Defined a Genre
As an avid follower of the punk-rock scene, I was ecstatic to hear about the release of Turn It Around: The Story of East Bay Punk, a documentary which looked to explore the story of the northern California punk scene. Although not the first film to explore the topic, Turn It Around appears to be very much the definitive catch-all film surrounding this pivotal movement and location that launched the careers of some of the most influential punk bands of all time as well as a space that curated and cultivated what would become a genre of music that exploded in the 90’s and would spur pockets of counterculture all around the US. Executive produced by Green Day (who are rather a direct result of the East Bay scene) Turn It Around manages to explore the topic in fascinating detail and seemingly uses every archive of information imaginable to peel back the layers of the scene and bring the viewer back to the roots and leave you itching to find an underground punk club near you. Either that or you’ll want to pickup making fanzines as a hobby (probably whichever one is more accessible to you).
With an impressive line-up featuring pretty much every band you could think of if someone said ‘east bay punk’, the doc features the likes of Tim Armstrong and Matt Freeman of Rancid and previously Operation Ivy, Ian MacKaye of Minor Threat and later Fugazi, Fat Mike of NOFX, Brett Gurewitz and Jay Bentley of Bad Religion, and of course the Green Day trio themselves with many, many more. With this incredible list of interviewees, it would be hard to believe the doc would have any trouble doing the scene justice and it doesn’t struggle at all. However, don’t go to see this film thinking you’re going to get long and in-depth interviews with any of your favorite rockers as many appear very little and somewhat sporadically throughout the doc. I’m not sure if Bad Religion’s Jay Bentley ever actually said anything or if he was just there to keep the seat next to Brett Gurewitz warm, and NOFX’s Fat Mike, who is hilarious by the way, was featured twice, maybe three times very quickly. But, if you love Green Day you will not leave disappointed at all. Just expect to also learn about bands like Isocracy, Sweet Baby Jesus, Filth, Crimpshrine and even more which I was unaware of.
Operation Ivy at Gilman in 1988 (Photo by Murray Bowles from eastbaypunk.com)
Regardless of how much, or how little specific artists are featured in the documentary it gives an amazing, in-depth and informed look at the scene as a whole and evenly splits its time between satisfying fans with rare footage of their favorite bands (really if you are on the edge at all about seeing this doc, go only to see a 30 second clip of Billie Joe Armstrong with the best 80s hair I have ever seen). Turn It Around also does a great job at shedding light on other aspects of the scene taking a look at the influence of Maximum RocknRoll, riot girls, and what happens when punks and skin-heads clash. I was blown away with the amount of detail and care that went into the making of this documentary, to the point that it’s almost immersive and makes you want to lace up your boots, kick down a club door and start your own punk-rock band.
Turn It Around proved to be exactly my kind of documentary as both a fan of the genre and of Green Day. It manages to find a great balance between giving Green Day fans what they want, which I would assume is more Green Day, and doing everything else justice. The doc definitely has no trouble paying its respects to every element from covering in-depth the influence of 924 Gilman Street, Tim Yohannan, Lookout Records, and the individual's responsible for everything we owe the genre to today.
Directed by Corbett Redford, narrated by Iggy Pop, and a cast featuring some 130 people, Turn It Around: The Story of East Bay Punk gives an amazing insider look at how punk-rock as fans know it today came to be so if that’s something you’re interested in at all I would highly recommend seeing this documentary.
With the unique distribution plan of having the documentary screen in conjunction with Green Day’s 2017 Revolution Radio Tour, it’s bound to round up fans of the band and genre alike, exposing many new young faces to the fascinating and tight-knit history of the scene. This is how Turn It Around appears to be unique as it tries to rope in newer fans that either were not alive at the time the punk rock scene broke or discovered bands like Green Day through pop and mainstream media as a single unit completely separate of the entire East Bay punk scene. For Green Day it has been no secret the impact the scene had on their formation and style as a band. The group not only covered Operation Ivy’s Knowledge on their debut studio album 39/Smooth but recently, as part of their Revolution Radio tour have made the cover an addition to their live set.
The film premiered in May followed by a week of sold-out screenings in San Francisco. I caught the film during its stretch at the IFC Center in New York City. The films theatrical campaign is set to end this September in Los Angeles. Needless to say, it’ll be interesting to see how Turn It Around will fare in this era of increased nostalgia.
Check out eastbaypunk.com to find local screenings and a fuller list of those featured in the film.
Also, here’s the trailer just to spark your interest.