This hilarious and heartbreaking rockumentary charts the near success and further tribulations of the veteran Canadian headbangers. The unsung heroes of 80s metal and a major influence on Anthrax, Guns N’ Roses and Metallica, Anvil never quite hit the big time that their energetic live shows promised. But their performance at Glasgow’s Cineworld, part of their world tour of cinemas, proved their naysayers wrong and their supporters right: Anvil, quite simply, ROCK! It was Gervasi’s idea to create this “Anvil Experience”, and the band were more than enthusiastic. As Robb said, “We thought about it, experimented, tested it out, now we’ve been doing it, ten or twelve times, it’s awesome! I wish we could do this everywhere, no one’s ever done it”. It’s also good to know that Glasgow has a place in Anvil’s hearts. “I’ve always loved Scotland, we haven’t been here in 27 years, it’s been too long”. Lips was equally enthusiastic, “When we went on tour with Motorhead this was the best place of the entire tour”. The band then gave their renditions of what Gervasi deemed “some of the worst Scottish accents I’ve ever heard”.
The director made the film as a tribute to the band he toured with as a teenager (he even took them on a tour of London), and if it resembles Spinal Tap, that’s not unintentional. “We saw Spinal Tap as our trojan horse: the audience comes to see it and they laugh… but then they’re surprised that it becomes so emotional. It’s because we have the laughs that it gets so emotional”. Emotional because the band have endured serious hardships since their heyday, with work and finances running low. But unlike Metallica, subjects of seminal metal doc Some Kind of Monster, spirits remain strong: “When things are tough it creates even more of a bond. We have nothing but ourselves. Lars (Ulrich, Metallica drummer) would say we’ve been having a better time”.
The success of the film has had an immeasurable effect on the band’s lives. “We now have real representation, a real agent, and we’re entertaining some serious recording contracts”. For all those companies about to rock with Anvil, we salute you!
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