Other Music Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		3.5
Overall		4.0

Other Music Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Brian Orndorf May 3, 2022

2019’s “Other Music” is a documentary about a store in New York City that meant the world to its customers. Other Music specialized in album sales, opening its doors in 1995, when the music business was red hot, giving owners Josh Madell and Chris Vanderloo a chance to create a space catering to a more obsessive type of music fan interested in burgeoning sounds and scenes. In 2016, Other Music closed, with directors Puloma Basu and Rob Hatch-Miller picking up cameras to cover the establishment’s final six weeks of life, trying to make sense of this special relationship between the business and its loyal customers.

“Other Music” offers a traditional documentary approach to the story of the store, examining the lives of Vanderloo and Madell, who launched the business with hopes to reach a different kind of music enthusiast, especially one who would avoid shopping at Tower Records, which was located directly across the street. Biographical information is presented, but the film is more interesting in fly-on-the-wall mode, observing how the staff interacts with customers (including Benicio del Toro, who stops by), armed with defined opinions on artists and releases. Basu and Hatch-Miller highlight the workers and the appeal of Other Music, which helped to launch various artists over the decades, establishing a space for unusual and unsigned acts to flourish.

Other Music Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The AVC encoded image (1.78:1 aspect ratio) presentation for "Other Music" primarily explores the small spaces inside the store. Detail is satisfactory, with the production using commercial grade cameras to examine customers and decorative additions, which carry some texture. Colors are respectable, handling various album covers and clothing choices, and trips outside offer cooler hues. Delineation is acceptable. Some mild banding is present.

Other Music Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The 2.0 Dolby Digital mix provides a basic understanding of interviewees, with clear voices and emotionality. Store atmospherics capture the bustle of customers, and musical performances vary in source quality, but most emerge with appealing clarity.

Other Music Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Commentary features directors Paloma Basu and Rob Hatch-Miller, Other Music store owners Chris Vanderloo and Josh Madell, and employee Duane Harriott.

• Additional Scenes (43:30, HD) include store performances, daily business moments, and extended interviews.

• And a Trailer (1:59, HD) is included.

Other Music Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

"Other Music" successfully captures the curve of the music business, with the internet changing the rules for labels and consumers, putting the store in a difficult position before its closure. There's emotion and memories, and while the directors get a little too caught up in the New York-ness of it all (intense feelings about streets and neighborhoods are for locals, not a wider audience), they do grasp a time of change and a sense of loss, especially for those who live and breathe a sense of exploration when it comes to music appreciation.