Review by marcuslaw
Rating:
First, a confession. I am not, nor have ever been, a die hard Jane’s Addiction fan. The closest I might have ever come is commandeering my brother’s cassette tape of Ritual de lo Habitual (RDLH) back in the early 90′s. Aside from stopping to surf the radio dial over the years whenever “Been Caught Stealing” was playing, my music of choice over the last decade has largely been Zepp, Rush, various types of reggae and even some fusion. Not too long ago, I had the sudden craving for RDLH and so purchased a copy on iTunes. Not long after, I found myself listening to “Three Days” and “Then She did” over and over while working out at the gym. Without exaggerating, I have probably heard those two songs streaming over my iPod Touch well over a hundred times in the last month or two. Now, I might not be a lifelong fan, but when I read the news release for the forthcoming “Live Voodoo” on Blu-ray, I pre-ordered without blinking an eye. Now, for the part most of you probably care about. I am a Blu-ray enthusiast having embraced the format during the war with HD DVD and digested every bit of news and magazine article since. I also happen to have a good pair of eyes and at least one very good ear and own several hundred Blu-ray disc. So, it’s probably fair to say I know a good high definition title when I see, and hear, one. That takes me to “Live Voodoo”. Here’s my take and I’ll be brief. I just got done viewing it all the way through and while I did see occasional motion judder, usually from the quick movement of one of the band members and usually Perry Farrell, it was never too distracting. Like other “reviewers”, I did see some mild background noise in some darker scenes and even some black crush, but overall, the blacks are inky and the image quality very strong. There were a few instances during “Three Days” when I had to lean a little closer toward my Polk CS10 monitor to hear Farrell’s vocals. Otherwise, the DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track really shines especially for Eric Avery’s bass guitar. I did not sample the other audio tracks (English Dolby Digital 5.1 and and a LPCM 2.0). “Live Voodoo” definitely comes with a lot of magic that without a doubt has Marie Laveau and Rosita Zerruda dancing in their graves. Jane’s Addiction has come and gone in my life’s ever evolving music interest, but “Live Voodoo” has managed to capture a mature snapshot of the band in the most modern of ways. Buy this now and for once in your life, select next day delivery. You will not be disappointed.

P.S. Let’s hope that Jane’s Addiction’s recent re-break-up [...] isn’t a permanent one. If so, it will make this release all the more special.

Review by mikeynardcore
Rating:
One word, Eric !! Why o why couldn’t this go round work? This dvd is worth it just for the fact that the original members are in it. Thank you Jane’s for all the great music and memories of the greatest band on Earth.

Review by John D. Kurc
Rating:
I loved the show and the chemistry between the band members was fantastic. [...] for some of the other shots I took.