Last Days Here (2011)

Thanks for the memories!

The movie's neither hopeful in contrived ways, nor hopeless in different contrived ways. Somehow it manages to be wonderful

By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.

The acting in this movie is really good.

I had never heard of Pentagram and after hearing their music I'm not surprised that I had not.They didn't become famous because they aren't good, it's that simple.But none of that matters because this guy is definitely fun to watch.He lives with his very supportive parents who look to be about 10 years younger than him.He spends most of his time digging in the couch looking for crack and talking about the 70s.Somehow he has two or three fans and they will do anything for him, so he manages to get drugs and get his records reprinted.This movie definitely needed to be made.I heard that Pentagram is doing really good and touring a lot now.I hope he's giving his parents some money this time.

I saw Robert Oscar Liebling and Pentagram in Socorro, New Mexico in 1974 -- just before I separated from the military. They'd boarded a bus somewhere in Pennsylvania headed for Secaucus, New Jersey, but a couple of them apparently were ticket-impaired so they all ended up in Socorro. Which worked out for me and the lads as we were based nearby and the sergeant announced their show at morning roll-call.They played Tito's Tortilla Station in Socorro, which sounds funky but was actually a nice little restaurant with decent acoustics. A great show, but NOTHING like Bobby's final performance in the documentary. Dood it moved me to tears, to laughter, even did some snickering. His lyrics sunk into my forehead like a rock outta the hand of King David. And I haven't been free of those haunting, marvelous verses since. Nor of the occasional headache.Robert Oscar Liebling was, clearly, the most overlooked major talent in American music, and this no-punches-pulled documentary makes mockery of the critics and music halls who fail to book Robert in, who thought him washed-up and just another crackshack. Instead, as the final performance showed, Robert had EVOLVED so far ahead of them that they cannot fathom his generous and hallowed offerings. But the critics, and club owners, and corporations shall be put to shame in the future, when the songwriting and performing wonders of Robert Oscar Liebling finally . . . finally are committed to Eternity, so that others in their own time may come upon his unique music, and be reborn in their own hope of triumph over a cruel world and against tremendous odds.Inspiring documentary. We love you Bobby! Middle-finger forever baby! Thank you Robert! You'll never know exactly how much you've given us. I mean, how could you. You still have to count your fingers and toes.But, all good. All good. The music still shines!

Many musicians I've met over the years have proudly proclaimed "Music is all I have man, it's all I know". But what happens when the years pass by, the success is few and far between and the musician is reduced to a withered husk waxing nostalgia? After a while, that declaration becomes a sad one, and it leaves said person in a questionable state. Last Days Here is an intense and unflinching look at the life of Bobby Liebling, lead singer for underground doom metal legends Pentagram. For many this will feel familiar, either like an episode of the reality show Intervention or along the lines of "from obscurity to greatness" rockumentaries, but there's something else to it. It's extremely raw.Last Days Here will inevitably draw comparisons to Anvil: The Story of Anvil, but there are major differences. First and foremost, unlike Anvil, Pentagram was actually a good band in their day. Anvil were lauded by some as being pioneers of thrash metal of sorts, but watching that film it became apparent that the reason they never made it big was simply that they weren't very good, and that their music was far too cheesy and badly dated to be taken seriously. Bobby Liebling actually had considerable songwriting skills and came very close to securing a deal with Columbia Records. I could easily see old Pentagram songs such as "Forever My Queen" and "Wheel of Fortune" being played on classic rock radio stations alongside Black Sabbath, Led Zeppelin and Deep Purple. Second, while the people in Anvil were struggling, they were not in the state that Liebling was. And third, The Story of Anvil turned out to be a rather dishonest film in terms of the continuity editing, whereas Last Days Here plays out from start to finish, and the stakes are much higher.After decades of drug abuse and failure, Bobby spends his days consuming crack, heroin and whatever else in his parent's basement in rural Maryland. He's an awful sight, looking just as ghastly as the ghouls he sings about in his songs. His parents, though well meaning, are profoundly naive and gutless. He has no real friends left. But then we meet Sean "Pellet" Pelletier, a die hard music fan and employee of the highly respected record label, Relapse Records. Pellet is the secondary protagonist of this story, a die hard fanboy who worships Pentagram and wants to share their music with the world. He becomes Bobby's manager, friend and number one supporter. For the duration of the film, Pellet does his best to wrangle Bobby into some kind of productivity of sorts, but it's an EXTREMELY bumpy ride.What makes this documentary compelling is the position the viewer is put in while watching Bobby. It's strange, because most of the time you don't really feel sorry for him. He is his own worst enemy and is the main saboteur of Pentagram's success. He has burned countless bridges, destroyed many relationships, ruined promising opportunities of major label deals and has ripped a lot of people off. There's no real back story of childhood abuse or any personal tragedy to warrant his self-destructive lifestyle and arrogant behavior. Indeed, if anything his family is too supportive of him and are enablers of his addiction. What makes you believe in Bobby is the fact that Pellet believes in him. In many ways Last Days Here is about an unusual friendship between musician and fan rather than a narrative of a rocker's resurrection.Things get more intriguing when Bobby has a romance with a very attractive 20 something music fan named Hallie. It presents both a boon to his existence and a challenge to Pellet's efforts to get him on the right track.As a Washington DC native, I had never heard of bands like Pentagram or the Obsessed growing up. To me DC was all about hardcore punk and Go Go. But today, people of all ages are hungry again for solid heavy rock, and a lot of obscure bands are finally seeing their dues. Bobby may have been a jerk and junkie for most of his life but his art does stand on its own and redemption appears possible. Last Days Here is often not easy to watch, but it has its rewards.

Folks, I have been in the music business for 20 years now, and up until 4 or 5 albums back, I had no idea who Pentagram was. I had always heard the name, but never heard the music; however when I finally did, I was blown away. An American doom metal band that had been around as long as Black Sabbath, IE The U.S.'s oldest and longest running doom metal band... I remember the "First Days Here" compilation CD on Relapse, and I ALSO remember "Pellet" as he was affectionately known, handing me CD copies of their stuff and helping me do a phone interview with Bobby Liebling. I've interviewed him not once but TWICE, and of course had tears in my eyes when Pentagram FINALLY played a show down here in Atlanta being ever the mysterious and kick ass front man he's always been.It was nice to finally connect a face to the publicist I had dealt with; many times the record label personnel I deal with I never get to meet. Pellet is obviously VERY driven and passionate about his subject, a fact that has driven me to do what I do for 20 years now. It's always amazing to me to see someone that seems to have a magnetic aura about them that draws people in. Sometimes you wonder if the lyrics in Bobby's songs reveal self-fulfilling prophecies, as there are MANY setbacks, disasters and near-death calls for Bobby. The sheer fact that he survived the amount of drugs that would kill TWENTY men half his age is proof positive that this life was DESTINED to be noticed. The settings were very endearing and this isn't some pompous, egotistical rock god (although his earlier band mates have different views on Liebling), and it's very touching to see his thanks and praise for the help he received throughout life. Some would say that if not for Pellet he might no longer be here, which would be an even BIGGER tragedy... Especially with all the metal legends who have passed away recently...(SPOILER ALERT): You KNOW the man has done great things in music when even Phil Anselmo from Pantera, who obviously has sold more records and made more money than Bobby's ever SEEN, gives him extremely high praise. (*END ALERT*) Okay, that may not be a HUGE spoiler, but then again, it is great to see a man who wrote SO many amazing songs finally get his due. And I mean in the early 70's there was this sinister vibe to his heavy, HEAVY music, the man was ahead of his time. And when I first read Bobby's lyrics, I was sure this guy was from Europe, mainly by the way he wrote. Folks, get to know this man and then go out and buy EVERY Pentagram album you can find. He's loved, lost and bounced back, a true testament to the fact that oftentimes when you have hit rock bottom, if you're open and willing, there WILL be help to get you back up...