I have long held the opinion that with every album a band releases, there should be change, evolution, and growth. It’s for this reason that there’s a lot of people out there who would probably consider me to be a punk rock heretic; but the fact of the matter is, when it comes to Southern California’s Bad Religion, I just prefer the newer stuff to the old. This isn’t to say that I can’t appreciate their classics, but with every album there’s a noticeable level of improvement in the quality of the songwriting and the production values. Their standout three-part harmonies only seem to get silkier, and there’s no mistaking the overall maturity that is exhibited in their lyrics. Plain and simple, every record is a bit tighter, a bit catchier, and just a bit better than the last. This is the way music should be.

Bad Religion’s new concert DVD, Live at the Palladium, does a fantastic job of proving this point. Drawn from the band’s recent The Empire Strikes First tour, the concert footage features highlights from that 2004 release, complete with all the youthful onstage energy (and lead singer Greg Graffin’s bizarre hand gestures) that fans have grown to expect. This point is especially impressive, considering that most of the members are into their 40s, and guitarist Brett Gurewitz has come to look suspiciously like the decidedly not-so-punk-rock public radio host Ira Glass. Of course, for those who happen to prefer other eras of a career that has spanned over 25 years, there are plenty of other songs from the 2005 concert to please and provide them with the kind of nostalgia that only a genre rooted in adolescent angst can. Indeed, Bad Religion has done a fantastic job of blending their old while promoting their new, and one of the great features of the DVD is that as each song begins, the album cover and title flash on the screen, providing any needed information for the viewer at home.

It’s clear that the decision to film this particular show of the tour was the right one. The energy and mood of the band as they entered the Hollywood Palladium for the obligatory homecoming gig was clearly running high. The same could be said of the fans, and the interviews with concert attendees that open the film give the viewer a sense of Bad Religion’s impact over several generations, and the feeling of excitement is persistent at the show. The main flaw of video as a medium for live music, however, is that no matter how well-done a concert recording is, it can never fully recreate what it’s really like to be at a show – especially something as high-energy as a punk rock gig. It is for this reason that the vast majority of concert DVDs are… mediocre at best. Filmmakers have tried a variety of methods to try and add techniques to circumvent this issue. Take, for example, R.E.M.’s Road Movie, which used one audio track throughout but blended skillfully the video footage from four different shows throughout the tour. Thus, it seems like less of an attempt at recreating the atmosphere of a live show, and more of a promotion of the variation of sound that comes from a live album with visual stimulation. The problem is that such techniques come off more as tacky and irritating than a really well-put together piece of video.

Examining this troublesome issue highlights the real success of Live at the Palladium. Rather than creating a straightforward concert tape, the directors have blended the genre with the much more enjoyable band documentary style. Between every two or three tracks, the footage will change, and the audience will suddenly be in a small room hearing interviews with individual band members that have been perfectly edited together. Each section tackles a different issue or era of the band and we hear a variety of opinions and memories on everything from the choice of Bad Religion’s infamous anti-cross logo, to the difficulties and tensions that arose with trying to juggle their music with the explosion of guitarist and songwriter Brett Gurewitz’s punk label Epitaph. In this way, the viewer gets to slowly hear the entire story of the band’s history and understand how they evolved into the influential political and artistic voice that they are today. And hey, for those who don’t care and simply want to see some grade-A rockin’ out, there’s an option in the main menu to play only the concert footage, too.

Even for those who are still not convinced that this is enough to make it a worthwile purchase, any real fan will be pleased with the bounty of special features offered on the collection. Six of Bad Religion’s stunning music videos are included in digital splendor, which are worth the price tag alone. Even more desirable is the inclusion of early footage of the teenage boys in full-on punk glory performing on the New Wave Theater TV show in 1980 and ’82. If there was any doubt as to how far they’ve come, it will be assuaged by these clips; but they’re enjoyable nonetheless, if even just for novelty’s sake. For the hardcore fans needing more, there’s also a gallery of new and old photos, and it’s worth noting that this disc comes in some of the most gorgeous packaging that this reviewer has ever laid eyes on.

The original bands of the punk era have by and large long-since disbanded, and in the past few years they seem to be dying off at an alarming rate. The second wave groups of Bad Religion’s generation also seem to be fading fast, but despite it all these cats still seem to survive and even grow as musicians. There’s no doubt that a plethora of personal factors have played a role in this, but perhaps a larger explanation can be found in the unique role that they have played in rock and roll history. In a day when every punk act seems to become more and more watered down, Bad Religion has kept their youthful angst and continue to cry out against the values in American society that enraged them as youths. In a day when our nation’s politics sink more and more into depths that have made us the politically backward nation of the modern world, their messages have become increasingly more relevant. They have stood out as not only the most intelligent band of the SoCal scene, but as perhaps the most well-spoken group of songwriters within their genre. Few hardcore rockers can make their fans want to go pick up a dictionary. There has to be something behind that.

Reviewed by Aaron Kahn