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  • Full Frame
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  • English: Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround
  • English: Linear PCM Stereo
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  • Animated menus
Pete Townshend - Music From Lifehouse
Image Entertainment/Warner Vision . R4 . COLOR . 100 mins . G . PAL

  Feature
Contract

Before any attempt can be made to understand and appreciate Music From Lifehouse, it is essential that one knows something about the project as a whole. Lifehouse was an idea that was first talked about over thirty years ago, and was to be a concept piece. It was the dream of one man - Pete Townshend. The plan was to produce a feature film based on Townshend’s original idea, with music provided by The Who. Sadly for Pete Townshend, there were two major factors that unknowingly contributed to the ultimate failure of the project. The first, being that The Who had just finished the rock opera Tommy, and secondly, the futuristic nature of the storyline that is the basis of Lifehouse.

The Lifehouse film was to be an amalgam of science fiction, spirituality, eastern mysticism, rebellion, and domination with some good old rock and roll thrown in for good measure. The story revolves around a post-apocalyptic society where environmental disasters dictate that whole communities have to live indoors and wear protective suits - "experience suits" - that are connected by cables to their TV sets which feed them life "experiences". All of their basic needs such as food, entertainment, news, advertising and even sex are provided this way, all under complete government control and censorship by a system named "The Grid". People have no need for real interaction and thus only folk in rural areas actually have any sense of freedom and independence. A rebel insider, or some sort of revolutionary, manages to hack into the system and, posing as The Grid, invites people to attend a 'real' event scheduled to take place at "The Lifehouse". Here they can congregate and throw off their now redundant suits and experience the power of illicit rock and roll provided, naturally, by The Who.

It is ironic that a project such as Lifehouse should take this long to reach some kind of conclusion, for it makes far more sense, with more relevance, post 2000 than it ever could have in 1970. Web-casts, the Internet and sophisticated modern media already provide us with many of the same ‘life experiences’ as those provided by The Grid. It is not too great a stretch to draw comparisons between Lifehouse and George Orwell’s 1984 as both address the notion of mass control.

It may be seen as a good thing in retrospect that the press at the time "didn't get it", as the end result in 1971 might not have done justice to the idea. In 2002, so much more could be made of the concept. Sadly we will probably never know, and the nearest thing we will get to seeing it may just be this performance of the associated songs by Pete Townshend, in London, February 25 and 26, 2000.

The songs that make up this performance are simply wonderful, with some like Baba O'Riley, Let's See Action and Won't Get Fooled Again now considered Who classics. There is a focus on acoustic music in the presentation of the songs, with Townshend alternating between several acoustic guitars. He is beautifully supported by The London Chamber Orchestra who confirm, yet again, that rock and roll is not as far removed from classical music as many might think. Townshend is singing as good as ever and clearly loves performing. His appreciation of the beauty of music shines through, as does his faith in music's power to heal divisions, lift spirits, and bring people happiness.

In Townshend's own words, the first half of the show is a very "low-key" affair, and those wanting to dance should have a drink at half time and join in for the second half. It may be low-key, but it isn't lacking in good songs, great delivery and obvious passion. Townshend shines throughout and proves once more that he is a gifted guitarist, singer and songwriter. Who knows what may have happened had Lifehouse reached completion back in 1971? After Tommy, and Lifehouse may have come a whole slew of such projects, and maybe Pete Townshend could have become rock and roll's answer to Andrew Lloyd Webber.

Track listing

Fantasia Upon One Note
Teenage Wasteland
Time Is Passing
Love Ain't For Keeping
Greyhound Girl
Mary
I Don't Know Myself
Bargain
Pure And Easy
Behind Blue Eyes
Baba O' Riley
Let's See Action
Getting In Tune
Relay
Join Together
Won't Get Fooled Again
Song Is Over
Can You Help The One You Really Love

  Video
  Audio
  Extras
Contract

Pete Townshend - Music From Lifehouse is presented in full frame and is not 16x9 enhanced. The transfer itself, while not brilliant, is still rather good. Colours are bold and slightly over-saturated. There is some colour bleeding when the stage is predominantly bathed in blue light but this is not surprising. The image is generally sharp and well defined. Shadow detail is a little disappointing, but black levers are fine and no low-level noise could be detected. There are no video glitches to be seen. Overall, this is a more than acceptable transfer.

The audio presentation is even better. There are two options here, being a Dolby Digital 5.1 and a PCM stereo mix. The PCM track is fine, and is perhaps a little louder than the Dolby Digital 5.1 option and the bass is noticeably deeper, but I still cannot recommend it over the Dolby Digital 5.1 which is a fine presentation indeed. The music is nicely placed mainly along the front, with crowd noise evenly balanced between the front and surround speakers. The surrounds are also used for some of the less intrusive instrumentation such as percussion.

Speaking of such things, this performance really showcases a wide and varied array of instruments, but always manages to stay on the right side of credibility. There is nothing worse than a performance that strives too hard to be 'art'. Thankfully, everyone knows when enough is enough. It reminded me of a classier version of Meatloaf, but less melodramatic and not so overblown. Interestingly, there is no drummer as such, but there is a superb percussionist who really knows what she is doing. The instruments and vocals are nicely spaced and remain clear at all times. There are no audio sync problems noted.

There are no extras on offer and even the animated menu (with audio accompaniment) is fairly bland. It is functional but not going to win any design awards. There is however, a nice eight-page booklet that is rather informative.

While a few extras might have been pleasant, Pete Townshend - Music From Lifehouse is still a great show and a worthy purchase. The songs are true to form and instantly likeable. The video presentation is fine, and the audio is even better. As Lifehouse is very unlikely to make it to film, and as we are unlikely to hear the radio version presented on the BBC in 2000, this is probably as close to Lifehouse being finished that we are going to get.


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  •   And I quote...
    "Lifehouse was to be a film about science fiction, spirituality, eastern mysticism, rebellion and domination, with some good old rock and roll thrown in for good measure. At least we still get the rock and roll bit..."
    - Terry Kemp
      Review Equipment
    • DVD Player:
          Akai
    • TV:
          TEAC CT-F803 80cm Super Flat Screen
    • Receiver:
          Pioneer VSX-D409
    • Speakers:
          Wellings
    • Centre Speaker:
          Wellings
    • Surrounds:
          Wellings
    • Subwoofer:
          Sherwood SP 210W
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