By ALYSON CAMUS
LOS ANGELES – “Boom: A Film About The Sonics” is a labor of love and determination. Director Jordan Albertsen worked for 15 years on the movie and overcame many obstacles to bring it together. He obviously was on a mission, on a mission to make this band more known.
“They were such a mystery to me for so long,” Albertsen told us after the screening of the movie. “When they reunited and I saw that they were selling out arenas in Europe, I thought there’s something else going on here”
Although it was not his first idea, Jordan Albertsen narrated the film and chose to incorporate a very personal story: his relationship with his father and their bonding over music. This idea came very late in the making of the movie as Jordan was trying to find a way to engage his audience, and to make a movie that didn’t just speak to fans of the Sonics but bring an audience in that was not too familiar with the music. “I wanted to give them something they can relate to,” he explained.
Four or five years into the making of the movie, when he was trying to find a narrative, he realized that he couldn’t afford Dave Grohl or Henry Rollins or any of those typical rockstar voice-overs. Thus, he started to record narration and put the father-son connection at the center of the movie to make it interesting. Since his father introduced him to the band and the music brought them together, the movie became a sort of universal story that a lot of people can relate to. We never think of our parents been cool, but it turns out that Jordan’s dad was cool: he knew garage punk music, saw the Sonics many times and even got to see legendary acts like the Beatles, Jimi Hendrix or The Beach Boys. “We bonded over music, and we went to concerts together every year” said Jordan who introduced his dad to Led Zeppelin, ACDC, and Metallica.
This charming father-son connection parallels what happened to the members of the Sonics, whose children and grandchildren had no idea of their past. “My dad used to be cool” …“my dad was in this hip band” is a big part of the movie since the Sonics’ music adventure in the ‘60s was not a part of their lives later on.
The story of the Sonics starts like many rock and roll stories: teenagers from a small town (in this case, Tacoma, a working-class port city) meet, begin to play music and form a band in 1960. However, the kind of music this band started to play was different from anything people had heard at the time: it was loud and aggressive, a vision of what was about to come with punk rock acts like MC5, The Sex Pistols, and the Stooges.
The hard-rocking quintet soon grew a local following from playing teen dances, before releasing their first singles, “The Witch” and “Psycho.” The documentary gives members – Rob Lind (saxophone), Gerry Roslie (lead vocals, keys), brothers Larry and Andy Parypa (guitar and bass), and Bob Bennett (drums) plenty of on-camera time to relive the beginning of the band.
Etiquette Records’ Buck Ormsby, who also has a large part in the movie, signed them and they soon released two albums: “Here are the Sonics” and “Boom.” Because of its content– it was “the devil’s music” – the single “The Witch” couldn’t get any airplay first, but when the song charted regionally (it went #1!), it was finally played “but only after 3 p.m.”
After a disastrous tour with The Shangri-Las – the Sonics were hired to be the backing band for the pop girl group but didn’t know any of the music – and a commercial failure of their third album, “Introducing the Sonics,” they disbanded. It was a fast but short ascension, but unaware of the influence of their music and their growing underground fame, the Sonics went on with their normal lives for many years.
The late Buck Ormsby spends a lot of time on screen telling the story of the band: without him the film wouldn’t have been made. Buck, who knew the band better than anyone, worked very hard to make The Sonic name known worldwide. After re-releasing the material in the ‘80s, Ormsby went to Europe with a suitcase full of vinyl to promote the band, giving away records everywhere. Meanwhile, the Sonics were living their family lives and had no plans to get back together.
However, they finally reunited – although with a different lineup – and played Cavestomp in 2008, a hometown show at Seattle’s Paramount Theater followed by a world tour. They released their final album “This is the Sonics” in 2015 and their April 2015 concert in Seattle was the last one Ormsby attended before his death a year later.
But a rock documentary wouldn’t be complete without a few rockstars praising the band. When Jordan Albertsen was trying to fund his movie, the lack of interest from music personalities he had tried to contact was another deception he encountered. “No one was answering my phone calls.” So how did he manage to get Heart’s Nancy Wilson or Mudhoney frontman Mark Arm?
At the time, Jordan had almost given up since “money never happened” and all hope was falling apart. Buck had passed away and with him, Jordan’s connection to rock stars was gone. Depressed and broke, he had moved to Bozeman, Montana and was working at a Sushi restaurant. However, one night he had the chance to hold a table for Pearl Jam’s Mike McCready. “I recognized him from behind. As a kid from the northwest, I had Pearl Jam posters all over my walls, so this guy turns around and I looked at him and I go ‘holy shit you are Mike McCready!’” He instantly mentioned his Sonics project: “I’ve been trying to get in touch with you for 10 years and make this movie about the Sonics!” Jordan could not believe it. Not only McCready immediately accepted to be part of the movie, but he soon texted all of these rock stars. Jordan finally got the validation he was looking for and decided to make the movie without any money. Mike McCready probably saved the movie in a sushi restaurant in Montana.
In the film, McCready says that the band “just sounded fucking dangerous,” Wilson tells us that she and sister Ann would play The Sonics on their jukeboxes, and Mudhoney’s Mark Arm admits that the Sonics, The Stooges, and The Scientists were the only bands he really focused on. We also get to see Chris Ballew of Presidents of the United States of America, legendary producer Jack Endino, Kurt Bloch of The Fastbacks, and Kim Thaylis of Soundgarden who adds that “their influence on Soundgarden was profound.”
“The Sonics are kind of the Unicorn on the scene.” They were way ahead their time and have a unique place in the history of northwest rock and roll. But the most surprising part is that they had (and still have) no idea of their legacy. They did this thing for 4 or 5 years when they were kids and then moved on without really thinking about it. They never realized that they were influencing punk rockers, and reluctantly participated in the movie. Some of them were also reluctant to participate in the reunion: “It was such a weird abstract thing when they were offered money to reunite,” Jordan added.
Although it was a different version, a little longer and a little rough around the edges, the movie premiered on the festival circuit starting in 2018. So, Jordan’s dad got to see the film before he passed away a couple of years ago, and he truly loved the film.
“Boom: A Film About The Sonics” plays in select theaters in September. Check out the official website.
List of “Boom” theatrical screenings (more to be added):
Wichita, KS – Emily Bonavia Tallgrass Film Center – Thu, Sep. 12
Leederville, AUS – Luna Palace Luna Cinema – Fri, Sep. 13
Tacoma, WA – Grand Cinema – Fri, Sep. 13
Maitland, FL – Enzian – Mon, Sep. 16
Arlington, MA – Regent Theatre – Wed, Sep. 18
Montreal, QB – BBAM! Gallery – Thu, Sep. 19
Pittsburgh, PA – Harris Theater – Thu, Sep. 19
Glendale, CA – Laemmle Glendale – Fri, Sep. 20
Bainbridge Island, WA – Lynwood Theater – Sat, Sep. 21
Jersey City, NJ – Monty Hall (WFMU) – Sun, Sep. 22
Cincinnati, OH – Woodward Theater – Mon, Sep. 30
Asheville, NC – Grail Moviehouse – Mon, Oct. 14
New York, NY – Metropolitan Pavilion (WFMU) – Sat, Nov. 2
Sarasota, FL – Burns Court Cinema – Mon, Feb. 3, 2025
Kingston, WA – Firehouse Theater – TBD