After The Fire - Live At Greenbelt...Plus (2023)

Most of this DVD is devoted to After the Fire's live set at the 2004 Greenbelt Arts Festival, an event they had played 25 years before. The lineup is considerably altered from the band's heyday -- Peter Banks is the only original member, though guitarist John Russell, who joined shortly after the band started releasing albums, is present as well (as is his son on drums). While the cover says this was "originally filmed as a private record of the event" and it's not as slick as, say, a Huey Lewis concert DVD, it's still pretty professional, bar a few camera shakes here and there. It's not exactly After the Fire in their hitmaking prime, however, though it does include versions of all their chart entries: "One Rule for You," "Laser Love," and of course their U.S. Top Five single, "Der Kommissar." Musically, it's an odd mix of bland mainstream late-'70s/early-'80s rock with progressive rock instrumentation and hints of Police-like pop, some lighting and steam effects adding to the arena-rock-in-a-smaller-than-arena-venue atmosphere. Most of the extra features are devoted to a radio tape (with some slight sonic distortion) combining interview segments and stripped-down musical performances, accompanied by still photographs. Still photos also accompany a brief interview segment in which Banks and Russell are heard (but not seen) discussing the Greenbelt performance. © Richie Unterberger