What was all the fuss?

[Enosh]

I got my copy of Farewell today at Family Christian Stores. (They actually had about 10 copies out and ready to sell.)

After watching it I'm wondering what all the complaints were regarding quality. The thing looks great! The editing style is consistant with the styles of today. It's fast paced and makes it look really exciting! the interview parts were really good, including the Peter Furler one. If anything it was much better than the Revival DVD. Peter's comments came across on Farewell as genuine love for the band. The Pethead interviews were heartfelt and expressed the way people feel about this great band. I always thought that the Revival DVD seemed like they were really trying to hard to make Petra appear cool and relevant. Farewell does it easily and honestly.

Inpop, you did a great job! This is a quality product that makles it too bad that Petra has retired because if they play some of these songs on Christian video programs around the country, it could really peak some interest!

I guess it goes to show you that sometimes we should wait until something comes out and reserve judgement.

[Mountain Man]

Check this thread starting with my comments posted on Mar 7, 2006 (look towards the bottom) for the most relevant answers to your question.

[Pethead1]

I think I am just old. All that moving makes me kinda woozie. I am very glad to have the DVD but I would have done it with a LOT less fot all that moving around.


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[Mountain Man]

Personally, I think they could have easily put another month's worth of polish into the DVD. The editing is solid for the most part, and the fast pace really doesn't bother me, but there are places where it seems a little sloppy, like they made a mistake but didn't have the time to fix it.

I also would have appreciated seeing more of the other band members. The video really focused on John Schlitt. There were only a few shots where you could really make out Bob Hartman's finger work or Paul Simmons' drumming, for instance. The rest of them were either too shakey or not held long enough, and I honestly don't think we got a single head-on shot of Greg Bailey where you could actually see the fretboard on his bass.

That said, I do enjoy the video, and I have to admit that it is much better than I was expecting, but it does have some unfortunate fundamental flaws.

[spottacus]

I found the video really aggravating. I like to watch musicians play, but the shaky camera and the constant zoom in, zoom out, zoom in, zoom out is irritating. The camera seldom focuses on anything for more than a split second, and that detracts from my enjoyment of the video. It was like artificial Attention Deficit Disorder.

My poor little boy, who's not quite four years old, complained constantly that he couldn't see anything, and begged me to put CITAS in the VCR for him.

[Epyon5757]

I AGREE WITH ENOSH!!!!!!!!!!!

That being said, I have posted my own comments below.

I personally enjoyed the editing - thought it was done very well...but then again, I'm 24...according to some people that post here, that automatically makes me ADHD because I'm young and enjoyed the way the concert was cut and edited. I have epilepsy and experienced NO problems with the way the DVD was done.

With any type of editing, hindsight is 20/20 - what looks good when you're doing it may not look so good with the finished product.

There were a couple of small ( VERY SMALL) annoyances - there are three noticeable sections - two lasting less than 30 seconds, one lasting less than two minutes, where Petra is not in sync with the soundtrack (or vice-versa) - and a few cutscenes done from the back of the auditorium/studio where someone'ss fist and/or hand pokes into the middle of the screen.

These small things are NOT enough to cause me to not enjoy the DVD, and are NOT enough to make me think of it as a "cheap souvenir" as others have suggested.

I am APPALLED at the torching that InPop, and, by proxy, InPopShara, has received because there are some people on here who think that Petra should have everything done, more or less, perfectly - it's like people here are expecting Inpop to turn out a product on the level of a major movie studio - it just won't happen. The people who have torched InPop don't seem to realize how much InPop could lose on this project - and I guarantee they aren't doing it for profit because, honestly, Petra probably is only going to sell enough units to break the studio even (sad, but probably true).

I am NOT saying that everyone should apologize to Inpop, and I am NOT saying that the DVD was perfect (it wasn't) - I AM saying that criticism of the way Inpop did this project was overdone way too much.

To those of you who have torched Inpop mercilessly, bring on your arguments.

[ctwomn]

We have had the DVD for quite some time now and we have watched about 3-4 times. I really feel that people HAVE been misjudging the dvd. I had some reservations about the dvd due to the fact that I knew that the budget was not going to be outstanding. Putting all that aside it does capture John and Petra well. Any Petra fan will enjoy the footage. Until you see it please do not make harsh judgments.

There are a few wiggley shots that I do not care for....but as one reviewer stated it almost gives it a raw documentary type feel. The extras are also a interesting bonus too. The interviews were more informative and fun than I had expected...and you get to hear things about the early days that you might not have known.

Inpop did a good job and for that I say...thanks to you!

[spottacus]

I'm in complete agreement that the Inpop bashing is unfair.

But I think it's fair and reasonable to express an opinion about the quality of the DVD itself. I gave away three copies of the Farewell CD because I think it's phenomenal. But I don't care for the camera work on the DVD. I find it annoying.

I did enjoy the rehearsal footage and the interview of Peter Furler. I haven't had a chance to watch the band interview yet, but I expect that to be interesting and informative.

Ben

[Epyon5757]

The band interviews were - more or less - tremendous...once again, like parts of the DVD, there are things that perhaps could have been done differently - the band interview doesn't include Greg Bailey or Paul Simmons...but it does give some significant insight into the people they do interview for that section and into Petra's history...I won't ruin it for you by telling you who they interview.

I have not yet had a chance to watch the fan interviews - due to the fact that my wife does not really care for Petra (and that's a severe understatement).

It will be nice to put some faces on the DVD with some names on this board.

[winterlens]

I'm in complete agreement that the Inpop bashing is unfair.

But I think it's fair and reasonable to express an opinion about the quality of the DVD itself.

That is fair--criticism is fine. What I really object to is that a few people seemed to be accusing Inpop of malicious intent in the way that the CD and DVD were handled, which is simply stupid.


To make this slightly more on topic, I can't order the DVD right now because I am in the process of moving. So I will have to salivate for awhile.

[Kirkman]

After watching it I'm wondering what all the complaints were regarding quality. (snip)
I guess it goes to show you that sometimes we should wait until something comes out and reserve judgement.

Your last sentence is spot-on. The fuss was caused by people who had NOT seen the DVD shredding it to pieces and saying bad things about Inpop. That was wrong and I'm glad that now that many fans have the DVD in their hands, they can see for themselves that it is pretty well-done and enjoyable.

--Josh

[calicowriter]

You don't have to have the DVD in hand to know that there were songs left off that should have been there, that the same amount of time being devoted to the president of Inpop as there was additional Petra footage is wrong, or that audio not matching up with video is unprofessional and cheap. You all can trash me all you like. Maybe Inpop produced the quality of product they felt they could afford, given projected sales. I realize they aren't a mega company. But I maintain Petra, as an importance piece of Christian music (and rock music in general), DESERVED better. Until we as consumers of Christian music demand better, and are willing to pay for it, from the Christian radio and recording industries, we'll continue to get the crumbs that fall from the table. As it stands, I see far too many people settling for second rate as if God's people are second class citizens.

[Enosh]

Hi Bridget,

Hey, You know I love you and I don't want you to take anything I say negetively toward you. OK?

That being said. I've watched the DVD a couple of times now and here is my opinion. The DVD while being a live concert is not just filmed in a one or two shots, dead on live setting. It is made to be more. I can see these more like a music video.

Think about the unseen power videos. There was allot of live concert footage made into videos that didn't all sink up. To me it doesn't have to sink up with everything. I like it that way because it doesn't look like someone just pointed and shot. It's creative. The interviews were edited down to get the best parts too.

As someone who records and plays live I will say this about the songs left off. There can be problems with recordings that happen (Especially live) that can hinder the sound quality. They (Petra and Inpop) have both said that the recordings of Judas Kiss and LILYNOH were not up to snuff. Sure we would have liked to have them on there, but wouldn't it really look stupid to have bad sounding songs on the DVD. Same thing with the drum solo.

Another thing to consider. Sometimes when you are there and caught up in the moment, things sound better in your memory than they actually were. We have recorded live performances that we thought were awesome only to hear things later that we and others totally missed. I have had to re-record whole portions of songs in the studio before because of a glitch here or there that nobody heard until later. It happens. That drum solo may have seemed cool at the time but not been as good later when it was looked at.

I think allot of the complaints that have been voiced are really personal preferences as opposed to actually bad filming/editing. You may not like the way this was shot or the way that was edited, or even how this sinks up with that, or that you can't see Bob doing something while the closeup is of John. That doesn't mean that Inpop did a poor job, it just means that you would have done it differently with your creative knowledge.

Hey, I would have cranked up Bob's guitars and turned down the keyboards back in 1984 ever since Beat the System, but there are those who love keys and like it the way it is. The guitar sounds are weak for some of Petra's greatest albums, Bob's solos are buried in the mix. Jekyll and Hyde and Farewell proved that Bob has great tone and can carry things with excellence! You don't see me coming on here and bashing all those who produced and released those albums, saying that Petra didn't get what they deserved because of my creative difference of opinion. It's just not realistic.

I think Petra: Farewell the DVD is awesome. I don't think they were cheated or that it looks cheap. Someone may disagree with me, but in the end it's only our creative opinion. Not everyone is going to like what gets put out. I know people who hate JH because it has no keyboards. That in my opinion is their greates album ever. I've heard, "The guitars are too loud!" That's rediculous!

Peter Furler is there to put his stamp of approval on the thing. He's highly respected in Christian music, and a peer. Therefore it's good to see him on the DVD praising Petra for who they are. He talks about how professional they are, how they were good to the Newsboys when they were starting, of how he was at John Schlitt's first concert with Petra. Those are good things to have on the video, especially with people who have come this board bad mouthing management and others associated with the band. Peter lets it be known that Petra is great and shares some anecdotes from his time spent with the band.

Again, there is nothing wrong with this DVD other than that of which we may differnces of execution. There is no evidence of Petra just not getting what they diserve that I can see. The footage loks and feels much cooler and bigger than actually being there that night.

I love Star Wars, but there are many things that ended up on the cutting room floor that I think should have been included. The problem here is that we know what was cut, so we want it to be in there regardless. Everything can't always be in there. It's not Prego Speghetti sauce (It's in there) it's a DVD.

In love

[calicowriter]

Well Enosh, I glad SOMEBODY loves me!

I know that Petra doesn't have the selling potential they once had and yada, yada, yada. But, it will be interesting to see how much more professional, how much better the packaging, and extras that will be included in the Newsboys Live DVD when it comes out. I'm betting night and day different. I'll also bet they will spend a few dollars on advertising and publicity too (like it will need any). I've heard a couple of different opinions on why things were left off, so I'm not sure where the absolute truth is on that subject. I just can't help feeling that when the CD didn't take off and sell real well, Inpop decided to cut their losses and do the minimum. Again, it might make good business sense, but not what I think Petra deserved.

[calicowriter]

OK, I hope this is my last post on the subject, but since I have been attacked for my criticisms without haveing seen the DVD, I felt I needed to say this:

I've seen it, glad I have it, and enjoyed parts of it, but I still think it is a mediorce product. The packaging just screams cheap. The videography is awful. My roommate said that in a couple of songs the "effects" were making her sick. I had to agree. It was too much, like a schoolkid trying everything in the instruction manual. It wasn't so much the quick cuts or zooming in and out (although that was way overdone for this old fogey), but the blurring and shaky shots. As much as I like John, I would have liked to have had more shots that included the whole band or him and another band member. And I can't begin to tell you what my roommate said when Bob's solo was so badly cut.

My favorite part was the rehearsal footage. I also think it was a shame they didn't give at least a minute or two to Greg Bailey and Paul.

Funniest moment while watching -- when I pointed to the TV and showed my roommate, "Oh, there's the woman whose belly John signed!"