by John Gentile
Although they are among the most hallowed of music documentaries, Penelope Spheeris' The Decline of Western Civilization films have never received wide-spread, official, home distribution. Well, that's about to change. On June 30, 2015. Shout Factory will release all three of the Decline films, which focus on early West Coast punk, 80's heavy metal, and crust punk, respectively. The films will be out on DVD and Blu-ray and will feature a 40-page book along with bonus commentary from Dave Grohl.
Of course, as you may know, the first The Decline of Western Civilization is a landmark document, showing early West coast punk performances by The Germs, The Circle Jerks, Alice Bag, Black Flag with Ron Reyes, Fear and others.