Directed by Laurie Anderson, Home of the Brave documents the musician and artist's performance with her band at New Jersey's Park Theater in the summer of 1985. Tonight, Metrograph hosts a live screening of the film via its online streaming platform, where it will remain available to watch on-demand through the end of the week.
Staged during Anderson's first world tour, the concert captured in Home of the Brave blends multimedia elements in a manner that, even today, feels virtually unparalleled: from Anderson's hypnotic vocalizations that accompany rhythmic mixtures of electronically-manipulated noises and crisp, natural instrumentals; to wonderfully strange interludes—one of which features an appearance by William S. Burroughs; to irreverent props, costumes, lighting, and video projections that curiously enhance the poignancy of quieter moments.
More than three decades later, Anderson's film still effectively conveys the delicate balance between whimsical aesthetics and avant-garde musicality—a combination to which the concert owes its enduring, striking novelty.
Still from Laurie Anderson's Home of the Brave, 1986.
