Having been a fan of Frank Turner for a few years now (and having met him and seen him live numerous times), I was excited to hear that he was releasing a live/documentary DVD, entitled "All About the Destination." Now that it's been released, what better to do than tell everyone how bloody good it is?
The most important thing to note about this DVD is that Frank is not the kind of bloke who will be appeaing on Cribs any time soon (he was effectively homeless at the time of filming). He goes everywhere by train rather than tourbus, and he has to ask members of the audience for a place to stay the night rather than being put up in a fancy hotel. It's more than likely that "All About the Destination" won't make you want to become a rockstar - yet at the same time, it's a true portrait of life as a touring musician trying to make his way in life by doing what he loves, almost a tip of the hat to all the other hundreds and thousands of bands out there doing exactly the same thing.
Though it's interspersed with live footage shot while on-tour, the documentary is much more about the man rather than the music. During some brutally honest interviews we hear about Turner's difficult relationship with his father, about his degree in history (clearly they're not a guarantee of a successful, well-paid job) and about the loneliness that life on the road can bring. Too many people these days see musicians as uneducated, moronic dropouts - and all those people should be made to watch "All About The Destination" and see just how narrow-minded and arrogant a viewpoint that is.
Though the main feature is, undoubtedly, the documentary, "All About The Destination" also features a few other bits and pieces. During his last tour, Turner went against the increasing trend of banning cameras from gigs (see two posts down) and encouraged the filming of his live sets by fans. Footage from six of those gigs appears on the DVD, as well fan-made music videos for Turner's songs, which appear alongside their official counterparts. And as if the man hadn't done enough for the fans he holds so dear, there's also photos of the guitar music for every single song on the album "Sleep is for the Week."
In my humble opinion, based on my own experiences, Frank Turner is a very nice man. But that's no reason to by his releases. Millions of teenagers grow up dreaming of making music all their lives for a living before ending up working 9 - 5 in an office for 40 years - the fact that Turner has done just what they thought was unachievable means he deserves all the support he gets, and probably more. Which is why "All About The Destination" is, for me, the most essential musical purchase of the year.
Now go and buy it.
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