Ben Folds Five
"Transmissions From Jupiter" DVD [NTSC]
April 24th, 1997
The Metro
Chicago, IL

Lineage: Cable TV broadcast > VHS master > [unknown generations] > VHS > Hauppauge WinTV USB PVR2 (composite a/v outputs) > WinTV capture software > MPEG2 (VBR min 6400 bps/max 8000 bps) > Womble MPEG-VCR (editing) > Womble MPEG Video Wizard (synched audio with video, no re-encoding) > Ulead DVD Workshop 2.0 > chapter/menu creation > VOB files


Chapters:

1) Intro
2) Philosophy
3) Alice Childress
4) Brick
5) Robert Spaced
6) Steven's Last Night in Town
7) Jackson Cannery
8) Fair
9) Theme From Dr. Peyser
10) Battle of Who Could Care Less
11) Best Imitation of Myself
12) She Don't Use Jelly
13) Safety Color
14) Underground

Notes:  This DVD was created from a VHS tape I received in a trade a couple of years ago.  The show is an episode of "JBTV", a public access TV show in the Chicago area hosted by Jerry Bryant.  It mainly consists of footage from the April 24th, 1997 Ben Folds Five show at the Metro in Chicago.  

It contains 11 complete songs, along with some very brief "interview" segments with Jerry and the band (more like them hanging out and saying some stupid/funny things, one of which spawned the title of this boot).  These segments are at chapters 5 and 13.  The show was "pro shot" with camcorders (if that's possible) by Jerry himself and a couple of other people, and the audio sounds to be from the soundboard.

The source tape definitely has some generations, exactly how many I'm not sure, but I'm guessing 3 or 4.  The color is not too vibrant (in fact, everything has a slight purplish tint), and it appears washed out in bright spots.  The detail is pretty weak, especially in long shots.  The audio has a lot of hiss, not much bass, and not much stereo separation (it could be mono, in fact).  

Despite all this, the show is still very watchable.  The audio and video are adequate (if not stellar), and they are not bad enough to detract from your enjoyment of the show.  If I had to, I'd probably rate it as a B-.  The band's performance is top notch, as it always was.  If you are a Ben Folds (Five) fan or are somewhat interested in his/their music, it's definitely worth the download!

Thanks to whoever I traded with to get this tape (I forgot!) and SmokingPanda for finding the correct date for the show, and in no small part for seeding it!


Captured and produced by TheAntipop (antipop42@gmail.com), July 2006