Courtesy of Andrew Reich
Audio By Carbonatix
The universe takes its time sometimes, but like “The Dude,” it usually abides. In the case of Redd Kross, the legendary Los Angeles band who have always been on the verge of rock superstardom, the universe has taken its sweet-ass time getting around to truly recognizing the band’s greatness.
But maybe, this is the time.
Local fans both new and old will get a chance to see the documentary “Born Innocent: The Redd Kross Story,” on Friday, Dec. 6, when local culture hub Wastoids host a screening at Hello Lincoln in downtown Phoenix. Steven McDonald of Redd Kross will be on hand for a Q&A at the event.
In “Born Innocent: The Redd Kross Story,” director/producer Andrew Reich delivers a pitch-perfect glimpse into the band that introduced the McDonald brothers, Jeff and Steven, to the world. Not only does Reich excel in framing a decades-long career beautifully in a 90-minute window, but he also gives the brothers room to tell their story in the form of an entertaining and insightful documentary.
And what a story it is.
“I have been a huge Redd Kross fan since 1984. I have been fascinated by them and had this sense they would be an incredible subject for a documentary,” says Reich, who cut his teeth in television and won an Emmy as an executive producer on a little show called “Friends” in 2001.
Reich approached the McDonald brothers through a mutual friend a little over eight years ago to broach the subject. It took a little convincing and a lot of conversation.
Steven McDonald, one of the best and most inventive bass players in rock today (also a member of The Melvins), remembers being a bit skeptical about how it could happen, even though the thought may have crossed their minds prior to meeting Reich.
“We would never make our own documentary, as impressed as we are by ourselves,” Steven McDonald says. “There was another director that beat Andrew to the punch by a couple of years, but he couldn’t figure out how to cram, at that point, 38 years of history into a 90-minute format, and that fizzled out. So, when Andrew came into the picture, my attitude was like, ‘Sure, give it a shot, if you want. I hope it works out for you.'”
Considering Redd Kross celebrates 45 years of being a band in 2024, it was not a simple task for Reich, or Jeff and Steven McDonald for that matter, to figure out how to tell their story without making a miniseries. Without giving away any spoilers, there is a lot to unpack about the McDonald brothers and their band quite apart from the music.
Fortunately, Reich was able to coax a beautifully nuanced vulnerability out of both Jeff and Steven.
“There was a little bit of trust that had to take place. Neither Jeff nor myself wanted to make something that was insincere. If we were going to tell our story, we wanted to really dig into the weeds and get real. I think we are aware of the fact that our story is not a common story,” Steven McDonald says.
Not many bands last this long, for example, nor do they start when one of the principal members, Steven, was just 10 years old. Redd Kross gained a ton of notoriety in the early 1980s, but the commercial success never really followed in a way that was similar to their Los Angeles punk scene contemporaries such as the Red Hot Chili Peppers or, to a lesser extent, a band like Social Distortion.
Redd Kross carved out a niche, though, that celebrated the spectacle and unique sound of the McDonald brothers, who were always doing something a little bit different than the bands they started out playing with in Hollywood punk rock clubs. When hardcore became a thing, Redd Kross went the other route and embraced a mixture of ’70s glam and explosive power pop. As grunge took over in the late ’80s and ’90s, Redd Kross zig-zagged again to become the kings of psychedelic ’60s retro, while using their punk rock roots to make a record like “Neurotica.”
During these years, the band created an almost mythological story about themselves by embracing what made them different and not attempting to play along with contemporary trends. Always one or two steps ahead of everyone else, Redd Kross were able to remain somewhat misunderstood for the bulk of their career.
This made Reich take an interesting approach to his film.
“I didn’t know what I was going to get from these guys. I grew up reading a lot of snarky, prankster-y interviews with Jeff and Steve that didn’t come off as sincere, so I didn’t know if I was going to get that version, but it was clear from the beginning that they were both ready and willing to be extremely open and honest about everything,” he says.
Jeff McDonald, who has served as the band’s lead singer and principal songwriter over the course of their career, says quite succinctly, “We tried our best for Andrew and the film.” The effort is clear when you watch the documentary.
“Born Innocent: The Redd Kross Story,” gives the audience a different type of look at the band than what some longtime fans will expect. The documentary is brilliantly paced and glides effortlessly from the beginnings of the band in Hawthorne, California, through exciting and turbulent times in the 1980s Los Angeles punk rock scene, and then into the various stages, lineups and records across the ’90s, 2000s and beyond. Along the way, there are several revelations that will keep fans glued to their seat.
“More people need to know Redd Kross,” Reich says, “and the film has always come from a place of love for the band.”
The documentary definitely comes off as a celebration, even though it does show some of the darker aspects of 45 years of rocking and rolling. The band haveseemingly put any darkness behind them, though, as they have spent 2024 seeing the release of what is arguably their best record, the self-titled “Redd Kross,” a highly successful U.S. and European tour, and the release of their book, “Now You’re One of Us: The Incredible Story of Redd Kross.”
“It’s been really exciting,” Jeff McDonald says. “Everything seems to be rolling out at the right time. We’ve got some time off from playing live and it’s completely exciting to concentrate on the movie and see what people think. People seem to love it, so that is a huge relief, and we can just enjoy the ride.”
“Born Innocent: The Redd Kross Story.” Presented by Wastoids. 7 p.m. Friday, Dec. 6. Hello Lincoln, 850 W. Lincoln St. Tickets are $10 on the Hello Merch website.
