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Kut U Up

Riding In Vans With Boys DVD
2003
Melee Entertainment

Kut U Up - Riding In Vans With Boys DVD (Cover Artwork)


Review by: TheMaestro
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Published on January 20th 2004

There is a scene in "Riding in Vans with Boys" where Billy Joe from Green Day persuades one of the guitarists from Kut U Up to be branded with a pool bridge. The poor sap receives 2nd degree burns on his tail because he either a) Could not say no to Billy Joe from Green Day, or B) Was too intoxicated to process what getting "branded" actually constituted. Despite which one it was, they both sum up what you're in for when you play this DVD that took place during 2002's monster "Pop Disaster" tour.

The Rockumentary, of sorts, is about a little known band called Kut U Up and how they were asked to play one of the biggest tours of 2002. Here's the catch: they cannot play the main stage and instead are forced to set up outside before the show has started and basically perform anywhere that has at least a few power sockets to support their amps, to anyone that is coincidentally passing by and will give it a listen. It follows the boys for two months of alcohol, drugs, food fights, and actual fights. There is some rock involved, but at it's peak you find yourself back in a scene where someone is drunk and causing some sort of mayhem, or talking about being gay. Seriously.

I liked this DVD. It was a gift, and I was aware I was getting it way before Christmas. However I was not aware what exactly it was about. I assumed it would be a documentary about the tour, how it came to be, told through headliners Blink 182, Green Day, and Jimmy Eat World, and in a sense, it is. However the main topic of conversation is this band given the opportunity of a lifetime, and how they handle it.

Kut U Up isn't a horrible band, in fact, some people might even like them. They are described as acid rock, but they reminded me of At the Drive-In with immature lyrics. There are 4 members and they all seem to love to talk about being gay, which turns into the same joke being told 26 times throughout the movie. It just gets old. They fight, like all bands do, and they make up. But most of all, they know how to party.

The DVD reveals what it's like backstage on a tour this huge in sort of an MTV's "Real World"-esque type of format. So if you get a kick out of watching Billy Joe swinging from lights in his dressing room, Mike Dirnt pouring shots all around, and Mark and Tom rubbing food over their bodies, and I know I was, you will definitely enjoy "Riding in Vans with Boys." At a time where bands seem to all sound the same while coming out of the woodwork, all pursuing that one big goal of getting signed and "making it", it's pretty interesting to see how a band of nobodies react to suddenly morphing into a band of semi-nobodies.






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    Posted by Anonymous on Friday, March 24, 2006 at 9:48 PM (EST)
    My Score:

    Very Good Movie...(Excelent), I thought this movie was very entertaining and funny. This movie touches the true meanning of Punk (True Punk). Out of all these crappy pop bands today that claim to be punk, here is some real punk rock. These guys have the souls of true punk rockers. Kut U Up represents many small bands or once small bands, and the struggle it takes in starting and getting your band big. Kut U Up is a very good band I recommend listening to some of their music it's all very good if you just take the time listen to them. All their songs are very good. Kut U Up puts together and brings back the true punk sound into their music. Anyone who has at least a little punk in them will enjoy this film. Great work Bink-182 and Kut U Up, did good job on this film. I also advise watching the movie with the commentary it's great.
    P.S. The biggest band title(name) on the cover of riding in vans with boys is KUT U UP in the middle on the top. The warped tour that year was awsome, with Kut U Up, Blink-182, Greenday, and Jimmy Eat World .

    Posted by Loz on 2004-09-10 10:18:23
    My Score:

    i am such a big fan of Greenday and blink. and when i bought this dvd i did not expect it to be what it is. but i think it is very good and is very good entertainment. it shows how much work people put in to get what they want and for kut u up they wanted to be successful and i think the have done so. i think the dvd show us alot about the artist that arenot as big as greenday and to look at this is good. i so think kut u ups music is awesum and there energy on stage (no mater how big) is graet.
    kut u up keep on rockin your good at it

    Posted by Anonymous on Thursday, July 22, 2004 at 1:17 PM (EDT)
    My Score:

    Kut U Up rocks!!!!! and anyone who doesn't think so has no taste in music. Fuck off losers!

    Posted by Anonymous on Monday, January 26, 2004 at 9:49 AM (EST)
    My Score:

    DVD is fun. Good soundtrack.

    Posted by Anonymous on Saturday, January 24, 2004 at 1:47 PM (EST)
    My Score:

    Worst. Band. Ever.

    Posted by Anonymous on Saturday, January 24, 2004 at 12:31 PM (EST)
    My Score:

    and streetpunk is the lowest form of punk rock. they give leather jackets a bad name and make me feel sorry that tim armstrong has a mohawk.

    CASUALTIES DUDE! OI OI CREW!

    Posted by FortyMinutesWest on 2004-01-23 13:51:46
    My Score:

    Because the street punk fans haven't written them. Hint hint.

    Posted by Anonymous on Friday, January 23, 2004 at 11:53 AM (EST)
    My Score:

    why aren't there any fuckin street punk reviews.

    Posted by soulbleed on 2004-01-21 14:06:26
    My Score:

    this is a great documentary. it's funny as hell, and shows the struggles this band had to go through just to be given the opportunity to suck in front of thousands of people. rock on.

    Posted by Anonymous on Wednesday, January 21, 2004 at 11:22 AM (EST)
    My Score:

    Kut U Up is a great band. Their music is a departure from anything that would be considered "trendy". But what eludes me is how you own this dvd and didn't even know which member of the band was branded...were you looking to learn more about a band you didn't know or just looking for the hijinx. And it was Chris Cote that was branded. Buy Kut U Up's cd it is good.

    Posted by Anonymous on Wednesday, January 21, 2004 at 5:38 AM (EST)
    My Score:

    I liked this DVD, even though I hated the pop disaster tour...well, Blink's set at the Pop Disaster tour. I actually watched Kut U Up play and they're not even all that bad, not great, but not bad.

    Anyways, back to the point. This is actually a pretty good video. It's not unlike "Almost Famous" but more punk (ok, pop-punk) oriented, and with more alcohol.

    At times I thought it was hilarious, at times I wanted to slap some of the band members, but I liked it.

    Posted by Anonymous on Wednesday, January 21, 2004 at 4:06 AM (EST)
    My Score:

    www.geocities.com/blacktiebombers

    Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, January 20, 2004 at 10:25 PM (EST)
    My Score:

    I bought this DVD because I like Green Day, and, to a much lesser extent, Blink 182.

    I didn't know, nor care about Kut U Up, and after watching this DVD, I STILL don't care about Kut U Up.

    I feel totally ripped off with this crappy DVD. Instead of saying "starring... blink 182....green day" is should say "featuring extremely brief cameo appearences by..."

    Bogus.

    Posted by FortyMinutesWest on 2004-01-20 21:12:09
    My Score:

    Well, I wasn't going to buy this, but since Eddie says it's ok, I'm there!

    Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, January 20, 2004 at 6:10 PM (EST)
    My Score:

    A band called Kut U Up minus black guys = something I won't listen to.

    -BSD

    Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, January 20, 2004 at 5:13 PM (EST)
    My Score:

    wasnt this dvd or at least part of it on mtv or mtv2 as some kind of special... i remember watching it a few weeks ago

    Posted by Eddie on 2004-01-20 16:32:10
    My Score:

    Kut U Up is okay, but their band name is beyond awful.

    Posted by Rhythm on 2004-01-20 14:02:06
    My Score:

    yovee is an awesome band. 2 of the guys in kut u up hold it as their side project and you wouldn't know they were even in the band. you can find like 4 songs off the dvd.

    Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, January 20, 2004 at 1:22 PM (EST)
    My Score:

    this score is for the guy who got branded. i dont even listen to green day and i wouldve done it. rock n roll.

    Posted by inagreendase on 2004-01-20 10:36:37
    My Score:

    I got this as a Christmas present too and haven't watched it yet, I actually forgot I had it. Thanks for the reminder.

    Posted by ashton on 2004-01-20 09:23:33
    My Score:

    dude...
    JO GAT PONKT

    Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, January 20, 2004 at 8:51 AM (EST)
    My Score:

    1st

    Posted by ashton on 2004-01-20 08:51:15
    My Score:

    they sound like small brown bike... and boy are they stupid.

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