Was Weezer ever cool? Is it their inherent uncoolness that makes them cool? We investigated what Weezer means to the current generation of students at University of Oregon, and studied the nature of uncool-as-cool through the eyes of music critics from Grantland, The Oregonian and The Village Voice. What we found?

Everyone has a Weezer story.

Read the E1 piece here.

When Connor Belisle moved into his new condo on Sept. 18, he used a cable lock to secure his bicycle to a fence in the backyard — an area he thought inaccessible from the outside. The backyard gate was padlocked and the only way for Belisle, a junior accounting major at the University of Oregon, to access the patio was by walking through the condo.

“I thought it was secure because I couldn’t even get back there,” Belisle said.

Six days later, a thief (or thieves) kicked down the gate, clipped the lock and rode off with his bike.

Continued below.

Bikes registered with Project 529 are marked with a shield, which Allard hopes will be a symbol that deters bike thieves. Photo credit: Meerah Powell

Belisle didn’t report the incident to the police. Since his bike’s serial number wasn’t registered with the University of Oregon Police Department, he figured they wouldn’t have been much help anyway; once a bike is recovered, it is often problematic for the police to return to its owner unless it has been properly registered. As a result, most recovered bicycles end up being auctioned off at police auctions or donated to charities.

To encourage students to register their bikes, and hopefully thwart future bike thieves, UOPD now employs an app called 529 Garage, produced by the Portland-based company Project 529. The app, which was adopted by UOPD for bike recovery protocol in April, streamlines bike registration into a five-minute process and brings bicyclists in on the fight against bike theft.

When a bike is stolen, the owner can send a notification to all fellow app users within a 10-mile radius, so that the maximum number of people can recognize and search for a stolen bike.

Continued below.

529 Garage is Project 529’s bike registration app. Submitted photo.

J Allard, 529 CEO and co-founder, was inspired to create this project after his blue Santa Cruz TRC mountain bike was stolen at a mountain bike race. After discovering his bike had gone missing, he sent out as much information as he could about his bike to his 35-person mountain biking team via social media. Within hours, thousands of mutual friends had seen the post. A few months later, someone alerted him that the bike was for sale on Ebay.

The number of bicycle thefts at UO in 2015 is relatively low: from January through October 2015, there have been 97 cases. It’s not clear if the app has affected the numbers, because UOPD is just now seeing an increase in registration, according to UOPD public information officer Kelly McIver.

The 529 app ensures that your bike’s make and model, year, color, serial number and photos are available for the UOPD, insurance agencies and the nearby community if your bike goes missing.

Allard’s goal: Cut North American bike theft in half in 10 years.

“It’s going to take time,” said Allard, the former senior vice president of Microsoft’s Xbox platform.

Continued below.

“Project 529 has been a way to get members of the community crowdsourcing and helping out other people with their stolen bikes,” McIver said.

“I realized there’s not a chance you’re going to get your bike back unless you have all the details you need in order to provide the police with a really good, accurate, complete description,” Allard said.

One of the main goals of 529 is to drive thieves off campus by educating students how to properly lock a bike in addition to registering. Allard believes that if every bike was registered and a part of the 529 Garage app, someone would spot the bike before it left the zip code.

“Locking is just buying time,” Allard said. “Every lock is defeatable.”

Rob Brunt is a constable for the Vancouver, B.C. Police Department, and he reached out to Project 529 after discovering the system had every aspect their department was looking for, only as he put it, “on steroids.”

Continued below.

An advertisement on wheels for Project 529. Photo credit: Meerah Powell

“We want to restore the public’s faith in us. A lot of people don’t report their thefts because they go, well, what’s the point, the police can’t do anything,” Brunt said. “(Allard) has given us a tool where we can do something more than we were doing before.”

About 2,500 bikes are reportedly stolen every year in Vancouver, B.C., but Brunt believes those numbers are “grossly underestimated.” In 2014, Vancouver recovered 2,400 bikes, but were returning less than 4 percent of those bikes. They were looking for a system to help get those bikes back and reduce the number of bikes stolen.

The app launch was far more successful than either Allard or the Vancouver P.D. hoped. Within 10 days, 2,500 bikes were registered.

The biggest challenge the app — and crowdsourced crimefighting — faces is the fact that if not enough people use it, it loses a lot of its functionality.

“Ultimately, we are just a tool and it’s the community that has to make it work,” said Lara Ferroni, who co-founded the app with Allard. “If you care about your bike, you should register it.”

Ferroni knows the app won’t end bike theft, but it can help.

“If you can prevent 20 percent of bike theft just by having things registered,” Ferroni said, “and you can get 50 percent more bikes back to bike owners, that’s a win, we think.”

Belisle wishes he had registered his bike.

“It’s good to take extra precaution, but I didn’t do that,” he said. “I’m stuck walking to school now.”

Mötley Crüe, the beloved hard rock band from Los Angeles, has been touring the world for the last time on what has been declared “The Final Tour.” The slogan “All Bad Things Must Come To An End,” has been the basis of the tour, as the band has signed a “tour cessation” agreement, effective January 1, 2016.

If this is the actual final tour, they are going out with a literal bang. Mötley Crüe delivered a testosterone-fueled assault on Matthew Knight Arena in a set bursting with flames, fireworks and a light show capable of inducing seizures. The timed explosions seemed to grow louder as the night went on, and the flames leaped higher until they could be felt from the upper bowl.

Alice Cooper set the standard for the night with a brilliant opening performance. He exploded onto the stage sporting a red-and-black pinstripe suit under the shadow of the Crüecifly roller coaster with “Hello Hooray.” A discomforting black and white backdrop of his eyes illuminated by spotlights created the atmosphere for the shock rocker.

Cooper explored every inch of the stage, with his band following suit in a tightly choreographed act that never felt forced or dated. Many of his famous props made appearances, such as the guillotine which cut his head off (briefly) while he was restrained by a straitjacket and an evil nurse wearing blood-spattered scrubs. With a freshly decapitated head in hand, the rest of the five-piece band sang “I Love The Dead” while the executioner showed off Cooper’s head.

A giant skeleton who danced about during “Feed My Frankenstein” took Cooper’s place after he entered the Frankenstein re-animator machine and disappeared in a blinding flash of light and smoke.

As the house lights faded to darkness, Mötley Crüe slowly materialized onstage surrounded by heavy fog. Mick Mars was the first to appear, as the stage’s spikes glowered a demonic red around him. Bassist Nikki Sixx was next, then drummer Tommy Lee joined in to set the beat “Girls, Girls, Girls,” the fan favorite. It was clear early on that they were aware of the quality performance Alice Cooper had given and started with one of their greatest hits.

For this tour, Tommy Lee performs his drum solos from the “Crüecifly” roller coaster, which takes him above the arena, flips him around and provides him with a bird’s eye view of the crowd. Though the trip could have been a bit shorter, it is still a unique sight to see a musician strapped into a rotating drum set while playing on a roller coaster.

The best song of the night was “Kickstart My Heart” from 1989’s Dr. Feelgood. Not only were the fireworks and lights the best, the band nailed every note and made it impossible not to chant the chorus.

By the end of the night, the taste of stale gasoline hung heavy on the crowd’s tongues. The air was thick with smoke that illuminated the stellar light show.

The pairing of bands combined for a truly entertaining show that reminds us of what a high-end arena show used to be like. Sure, the bands have gotten older, but they never forgot how to put on an unforgettable show that will force an adrenaline-fueled smile that stretches from ear to ear.

Fans in Oregon will receive one final chance to see Mötley Crüe and Alice Cooper at the Moda Center in Portland on Dec. 15.

When Van Halen, whose founding members are all past the age of 60, appeared on Jimmy Kimmel in late March to announce a new live album and summer tour, it looked as if the best days of the band had long passed.

Lead singer David Lee Roth hit himself in the face while twirling the microphone stand, which led to him needing bandages and attempting the song a second time, while missing enough notes to upset even the most patient fans. In addition, Billboard Magazine reported some tension in Roth and Eddie Van Halen’s relationship days before the tour began.

The stage was set for a potentially tumultuous tour before a single note had been played.

All these worries were quickly abandoned as soon as “Light Up The Sky” kick-started the show at Amphitheater Northwest in Ridgefield, Washington on Tuesday night.

The second stop on the 41-date tour found the band in top form with the instrumentation of the three Van Halens, Eddie (guitar), Alex (drums) and Eddie’s son — Wolfgang (bass) — for the entire duration of the two-hour show.

“Runnin’ With The Devil” followed, and though it was clear that Roth’s squealing vocals had deteriorated, the long golden locks of blonde hair have turned to a bald spot and the high flying gymnast kicks that once propelled Van Halen in the early days have become stationary kicks, he still knows how to front a band convincingly.

Instead of attempting to hit every high note, he stretched out the words or let the audience sing. It sounds like cheating, but it was an effective way to cover his voice’s shortcomings.

The set emphasized the band’s 1978 debut album, “Van Halen II,” as well as “1984”. Standouts included Alex Van Halen’s drum solo, “Dance The Night Away” and “Somebody Get Me A Doctor.”

During “Hot For Teacher,” Roth’s stage performance seemed to find another gear as he rediscovered his voice and swagger, matching the rest of the band in the high-quality performance. Every song after “Teacher” had increased energy, including the rarity ‘“Dirty Movies”’ from the album “Fair Warning,” the classic “Ain’t Talkin’ ‘Bout Love” and The Kinks’ “You Really Got Me.”

Roth sat alone on stage with an acoustic guitar propped on his lap and a harmonica to sing “Ice Cream Man.”

Interjections about the U.S. Women’s World Cup Soccer team’s victory paved the way for a surprisingly eloquent speech about women’s rights and how the team broke down gender barriers. In honor of the two years he has lived in Japan, Roth translated each verse into Japanese in hopes that the Japanese team, and the country as a whole, will one day have as much freedom as the women of America.

He also promised to eat ice cream after the show.

“Eruption” solidified Eddie Van Halen’s status as a guitar god. The extended, blistering guitar solo let Van Halen boast his unmatched skills and knowledge of every possible sound a guitar can make. The solo showcased his speed, his signature gut-wrenching shrieks, masterful use of feedback and his ability to make music by tapping the back of the fretboard.

As expected, the final two songs were “1984’s” highlights — “Panama” and “Jump.” With everyone in the crowd singing along and the young-at-heart actually jumping along to “Jump,” the night came to a close in a show that far exceeded all expectations.

The largest demographic in the not-quite sold-out audience was middle-aged men, but a surprisingly wide range of ages was present. Kids who were dragged to the concert by their parents slowly conceded that they were having a good time.

By the end, the majority of the kids who clearly felt they were too cool to attend found hope that maybe, just maybe, their parents may actually have been cool in the ‘80s.

Click here for the full setlist.

Follow Craig on Twitter @wgwcraig

Stories of professional wrestling, addiction and paranoia all found a harmonious home on Saturday night at the Wonder Ballroom in Portland as The Mountain Goats returned as a four-piece band. Touring in support of Beat The Champ, the band’s new album about the professional wrestlers who singer/songwriter John Darnielle worshipped as a child, the concert featured a mixture of new wrestling themed songs, as well as energetic takes on fan favorites.

The band opened with “Blood Capsules,” a bonus track off Beat the Champ, followed by a bass heavy rendition of “Cry for Judas” from 2012’s Transcendental Youth. As is required by all great wrestlers, “Heel Turn 2″ received an extended introduction as Darnielle cautioned the crowd to, “Never trust anyone who says there are only two types of people, unless it’s in professional wrestling. Then there are. There are good guys, and there are bad guys. That’s why we like wrestling, it boils it all down to two types of people.”

At the end of the song, bassist Peter Hughes finished playing his part and subtly exited the stage. The rest of the band followed suit, leaving Darnielle alone at the piano before he transitioned into a solo portion of the set including “Damn These Vampires” from All Eternals Deck. After beginning the night with a fairly energetic display, the toned down solo portion maintained the audience’s engagement.

Darnielle controls the crowd not by being a flashy entertainer, but by being an endearing storyteller who earns the crowd’s undivided attention. When he sings, the crowd sings along with a baffling display of lyrical knowledge, and when the music quiets down, the venue responds with rapt silence. Darnielle briefly stumbled upon the lyrics of two consecutive songs, which the crowd quickly assisted in correcting. Few cell phones left the pockets and purses they rightfully should dwell in during a concert.

During the encore, the crowd reached its boiling point and sang louder than Darnielle’s microphone, to the delight of the band. The venue was hot and humid but it did little to prevent the crowd from dancing and jumping, adding to the thick air.

“This Year” was sung with a sped up intensity not found on the recorded version. “Up The Wolves” similarly pressed on with added jazz cymbal flourishes from drummer Jon Wurster.

After the first encore ended with “Amy aka Spent Gladiator 1,” the crowd attempted to will the band back for more, but as the lights flickered on, Wurster popped through the black curtain. The final song of the night was “No Children,” which Darnielle expressed his wish to one day play alongside Van Morrison.

There is something inexplicable about being in a room full of people gleefully chanting lines such as “I hope you die, I hope we both die,” and “I personally will stab you in the eye with a foreign object” with tightly shut eyes cast upwards at the vaulted ceilings and smiles plastered across their faces. The stories Darnielle crafts are engaging, and it doesn’t matter if they are about wrestling, addiction or love; the songs are always going to force smiles and empower people to dance in a carefree manner.

Follow Craig on Twitter @wgwcraig

It’s not everyday that a performer earns one of the largest cheers of the night by telling a crowd member, “Fuck you from the bottom of my beautiful heart.”

While it may seem funny for people in the crowd to yell out for “Summer of ‘69,” the 1984 hit from Bryan Adams at a Ryan Adams show, Ryan Adams shared during his concert at the Les Schwab Amphitheater in Bend, Oregon, that he has dealt with the joke his whole career, and the joke has run its course.

“There’s always one prick at the show who’s going to yell for it,” Adams said. “But I still love you and I’m going to give you all I’ve got.”

Adams spent a fair amount of time engaging with the crowd, gauging the areas where the people were the most “turn’t up,” and playfully begging a shrieking young girl in the front row to put her vocal chords to better use in a Lita Ford cover band. One man shamelessly barked like a sea lion between songs and asked for Adams to dedicate a song to his mom. The request was misheard by Adams, and he instead dedicated the song to the man’s “bone.”

The set contained songs from across Adams’ prolific career, beginning with “Gimme Something Good” from his eponymous album of 2014. Early in the set was an extended “Dirty Rain” from Ashes And Fire that tested the abilities of the comically large twin stack Fender amps onstage.

The vast assortment of stage decorations included two full size retro arcade games, a classic Dr. Pepper vending machine, a stuffed tiger, pirate swords dangling from mic stands, cat cutouts perching on the amps.

The band played faithful renditions of many of Adams’ hits, including “To Be Young (Is To Be Sad, Is To Be High),” “New York, New York,” “Nobody Girl,” and a duet with opening act Jenny Lewis on “Oh My Sweet Caroline.” Also included was a “Norwegian metal” version of the Whiskeytown classic “16 Days,” which was aided by an overabundance of fog that engulfed the entire stage.

Adams played a solo acoustic version of Oasis’s smash hit “Wonderwall,” which won the crowd’s trust and had the majority of people singing along with a version that rivals the Oasis original.

The concert began 40 minutes earlier than scheduled as Jenny Lewis, in her rainbow themed suit, strapped on her acoustic guitar and took the stage, along with her five piece band. The sun was still high in the sky to the left of the stage, blinding portions of the audience, but Lewis commanded the stage as the band alternated between Rilo Kiley classics, and her more recent solo material.

Ryan Adams joined the band for two songs, playing guitar and kicking the bass player. The highlight of Lewis’s set was the final number, “Acid Tongue”, an acoustic ballad in which her band locked arms behind her as they sang harmony.

Jenny Lewis plays WOW Hall on May 26 with guest Nikki Lane, after she and Adams both play Sasquatch! this weekend.

“My fellow Americans, our long national nightmare is over,” Presidents Gerald Ford, George H.W. Bush, Bill Clinton, George W. Bush and Barack Obama all said in a joint video statement. “Letterman is retiring,” Obama elaborated for the final Late Show With David Letterman’s cold open.

After 33 years, 6,028 shows, 16 Emmy awards and the title of longest-running late night host, David Letterman retired. Letterman joked in his opening monologue that after all this time: “Stephen Hawking did the math, and it equated to eight minutes of laughter.”

As Letterman walked to the front of the Ed Sullivan Theater in New York City to begin the broadcast, wave after wave of chants for Letterman continued past Letterman’s point of comfort, as he told the crowd, “Please be seated. I don’t know what to do.”

The final show served as a retrospective highlight show, combining clips from Late Night on NBC (where Letterman began hosting in 1982), as well as clips from the last 22 years he has spent on The Late Show. There was also a day in the life of The Late Show, and of course, there was a “Top Ten List” featuring A-list celebrities including Steve Martin, Bill Murray, Tina Fey and Barbara Walters, saying the “Things I’ve always wanted to say to Dave.”

At number five, Chris Rock said, “I’m just glad your show is being given to another white guy.”

Julia Louis Dreyfus included, “Thanks for letting me take part in another hugely disappointing series finale,” just inches away from Jerry Seinfeld who cast a sideways glance back at her, alluding to the widely disliked finale of Seinfeld.

Other late night talk show hosts paid their respects to Letterman either before or during their shows, proving the lasting impact he has made across the late night comedy world. Jimmy Kimmel, a direct competitor to Letterman, decided not to broadcast a new show, and also held back tears while speaking about the importance David Letterman has had in his life.

“I have too much respect for Dave to do anything that would distract viewers from watching his final show,” Kimmel told The New York Times. “Plus, I’ll probably be crying all day which makes it hard to work.”

Conan O’Brien also pleaded for his “seven viewers” to change the channel once the Late Show began, cutting into guest Patton Oswalt’s interview time. O’Brien begged viewers to “record us, but turn on Dave.”

At the top of his monologue, O’Brien delivered a touching speech about how Letterman saved his career 22 years ago and said, “(Letterman) has been the North Star for me, and for every comedian of my generation.”

To close the broadcast, Letterman thanked his entire crew, his family, all of the fans who watch the show and everyone involved in the process of creating it before introducing his favorite band, Foo Fighters, for the final performance on the Late Show. Foo Fighters played “Everlong,” the same song the band played for Letterman’s first show back after open heart surgery in 1998. As the band played, a quick montage of photos and videos of all the crazy stunts, in-studio explosions and stupid pet tricks rapidly flashed by, proving that time flies, even if that time is 33 long years.

For perspective, the 6,038 shows Letterman hosted equates to 17.3 years in total days he has hosted late night television. The average age for a student entering college is approximately 18 years old, meaning Letterman has nearly as many shows as incoming college freshman are days old.

The montage ended with a simple freeze frame of Letterman waving at the crowd as Paul Shaffer and the CBS Orchestra played out the end of the show.

The man who popularized the “Top 10” list will surely be ranked near the top of every list of greatest late night talk show hosts of all time. Stephen Colbert will take over the Late Show in September, but until then, there will be an irreplaceable void left in the world of light night television.

“Do me a favor,” Letterman quipped in the final goodbye sequence, “save me a little for my funeral.”

Follow Craig Wright on Twitter @wgwcraig

My Morning Jacket is a band that is constantly evolving. Classifying the sound of the band usually falls in the beyond-broad tag of “alternative” because no one genre is big enough to contain the sound of My Morning Jacket.

On 2007’s Evil Urges, the band proved its mastery of genre jumping by bouncing between hard rock (“Remnants,” “Aluminum Park”), folk/country (“Sec Walkin’,” “Librarian”) and keyboard driven rock songs (“Touch Me I’m Going To Scream pts. 1 and 2,” “Highly Suspicious”).

The Louisville, Kentucky based band has the ability to play any type of music, with Jim James’ room engulfing voice serving as a sonic source of comfort. The current lineup of the band of James, Tom Blankenship, Carl Broemel, Bo Koster and Patrick Hallahan has been together since 2004, and are well versed with each member’s playing style, making them one of the most exciting live acts of this generation.

The Waterfall feels like the pseudo-sequel to 2011’s Circuital, as it sticks more closely to a unifying album sound, centered around the themes of waterfalls, belief and love.

“Believe (Nobody Knows)” begins the album with an almost Disney-like anthem. Bo Koster’s keyboards mix with the strings to lay the groundwork, clearing the path for the rest of the band to sneak in and fill the sound, building up to a climactic first song. James never explicitly says what he wants the listener to believe in; it could be God, or maybe just a hint that it is best to travel through the world with a belief that is true to your heart.

It may seem risky to put a climactic song like “Believe” at the front end of the album, but instead of causing a late album crash, it sets a high standard that the rest of the album easily lives up to. Songs like “Compound Fracture,” “Spring (Among The Living)” and the radio friendly “Big Decisions” follow suit as grand scale songs that propel the album.

“In It’s Infancy (The Waterfall)” creates the feeling of a cascading waterfall, beginning with a choppy start leading to a sense of impending doom. As the tempo increases, dissonant chords battle repeated chants of “again” that linger and reverberate in the background. The journey is then smooth with a gently strummed acoustic guitar alongside Carl Broemel’s mellow electric picking, creating a majestic, free flowing section before once again taking the plunge into dissonance.

The acoustic break-up ballad “Get The Point” finds James confronting the end of a relationship that has run its course, saying gently, “I wish you all the love in this world and beyond, I hope you get the point, the thrill is gone.” It doesn’t feel like an angry breakup, rather a disappointing conclusion to a relationship and is the foil to “Wonderful (The Way I Feel)” from Circuital.

After continually redefining the band’s sound on each album, The Waterfall allows the band to pause for a moment and polish the already sharp sound of Circuital and Evil Urges. That’s not to say it’s a collection of recycled sounds, rather it is a more developed second crack at the style My Morning Jacket has crafted. This is an album that will age gracefully as it grows stronger and more cohesive with each listen, aided by the stunning album artwork.

Follow Craig on Twitter: @wgwcraig

Nine years ago, Sleater-Kinney (SK) played its final show, and it was widely believed until this past year that the riot grrrl group originating from Olympia, Washington would never reform. The release of a new album and guitarist Carrie Brownstein’s time spent on Portlandia with Fred Armisen, generated a newfound buzz on the band that has bridged the gap between the group’s die-hard fans, and the next generation who were too young to know the band before the split.

The legacy of their legendary live shows never faded from the memory of anyone who had experienced a Sleater-Kinney concert before. There is a good reason for that.

The three piece group’s final show in 2006 was held at the Crystal Ballroom in the band’s adopted home of Portland, Oregon. With a wide variation of age groups present, many fans reunited with the band, while others were lucky enough to experience SK for the first time. Everyone in the building, including the band, was ready for SK to come back to Portland.

“This song is not about Portland,” Carrie Brownstein said before playing the title track of the new album, “No Cities To Love.” “It’s good to be home for 20 hours,” she added. For the first song of the encore, Brownstein dedicated “Light Rail Coyote” to Portland, a song about the city’s downtown life.

The trio, which features two guitars tuned to drop C-sharp to substitute for a bass guitar, is Brownstein, lead singer Corin Tucker, and drummer Janet Weiss. Tucker and Brownstein consistently interlock guitars and vocals, creating a sense of impending chaos. For this tour, SK has enlisted Katie Harkin to aid the band’s sound, adding extra guitar parts, and keyboards to “Modern Girl,” and “Oh!”

While the new material such as “Bury Our Friends,” “No Anthems”, and “Price Tag” was excellent live, the early material boasted an unmatched energy that had the sprung floor of the ballroom bouncing like a trampoline. The sellout crowd that packed the Crystal Ballroom attempted to match the energy of Brownstein, but her high kicking and charismatic guitar playing found her jumping across the stage for a majority of the set, playing on her knees and back, and climbing to the summit of Janet Weiss’ bass drum.

Weiss very well could be the human incarnation of a perfectly programmed drum machine, as she never missed a beat, making complicated drum parts seem trivial, attacking with a power and unrelenting aggression that never let up for the whole show.

A prime example of the band’s cohesion unfurled itself during “Let’s Call It Love,” the epic 11 minute climax from the near-perfect album The Woods. Each member had a chance to showcase their greatest skills as Brownstein’s extensive guitar solo and desperate vocals clash with Corin Tucker’s powerful banshee-esque howl. Weiss locked into an extended groove with Tucker during Brownstein’s solo, but explored her drum kit with forceful reckless abandon.

“Words And Guitar” crescendoed into a formidable wall of sound before leading into the chaotic “Entertain.” After a brief silent and motionless timeout, the regular set was concluded with “Jumpers.”

For the encore, Tucker delivered a brief speech about Planned Parenthood, an organization that has accompanied the band on the tour, before singing “Gimme Love” with only a microphone in hand, passing guitar duties to Harkin.

The show closed with an energetic take on “Dig Me Out,” and a venue wide sing-along to “Modern Girl.” Few bands provide as much fun and sheer joy at a concert as Sleater-Kinney. The term nostalgia act gets tossed around anytime a band reforms after a breakup, but this is no nostalgia act. Sleater-Kinney picked up on the peak it temporarily departed from, and the old fans should be just as thankful as the new generation that is finally able to experience a Sleater-Kinney show.

Follow Craig on Twitter: @wgwcraig

Two years before his death, Kurt Cobain was pushed onstage at the 1992 Reading Festival, hunched over in a wheelchair, wearing a white hospital gown, a long blond wig and a look of frailty. After feebly attempting to sing to the masses gathered, he collapsed spread eagle on the stage, to the delight of the crowd.

This concert footage serves as a great introduction to the new documentary Kurt Cobain: Montage Of Heck because it instantly provides an example of Cobain’s up-and-down nature. Moments later, Cobain grabs his guitar and Nirvana blasts through “Breed,” a hard driving rock song. The show ends with the utter destruction of the stage during “Territorial Pissings.” Cobain knocks over his twin stack guitar amplifiers, having rediscovered his destructive side.

As bassist Krist Novoselic explains, the signs were “as plain as day” that Cobain needed help, but the calls for help remained unmentioned. This led to further need for self destructive tendencies and ultimately, the suicide of the misunderstood outcast turned internationally adored superstar.

Montage Of Heck explores more than just Cobain’s life and death. As the first documentary made with cooperation from the singer’s family, Heck allowed Academy Award nominated director Brett Morgen full access to Cobain’s storage unit loaded with drawings, journals, audio recordings and unreleased songs. The film incorporates animation based on drawings created by Cobain, while other animated sequences are narrated by Cobain’s recordings, citing specific scenes from his youth that tormented him while in Aberdeen, Washington.

“Kurt had to be born. It was a must,” Wendy Cobain, Kurt Cobain’s mother, said. Wendy loved her son, and clearly still does, but he was a restless spirit who was prescribed Ritalin.

His father was unsure how to raise him, so he ridiculed and shamed Kurt, providing the basis for Kurt’s hatred of authority and lack of self esteem. At nine years old, his parents divorced, and Kurt spent much of his youth bouncing in and out of family members houses, as no one was able or willing to properly care for him.

The discovery of music and marijuana allowed Cobain outlets for his anger, but it led to a life of heroin addiction, rock stardom and self-hatred that propelled Nirvana out of the Seattle grunge scene and into the international spotlight.

Heck closely examines what made Cobain resort to his lifestyle, and why the birth of his only daughter, Frances Cobain, was the only thing that could have made him give up the fame Nirvana earned. The film does a great job of not glamorizing his death by highlighting the emotional abyss he plunged into, culminating with the pages of journals he filed with, “Kill yourself” written repeatedly.

The little boy who dressed up as Batman for home movies was no less human than any of us. Kurt Cobain was a human who was horribly mistreated as a child, then suddenly idolized as an adult and hailed as the voice of his generation. His death is tragic and heartbreaking, and was the result of a call for help from a broken, reclusive man that was never received.

Kurt Cobain: Montage of Heck is currently available to stream on HBO GO, and HBO Now.

Follow Craig on Twitter: @wgwcraig