I’ll be honest. In 1994, even at 21, I was pretty fucking clueless to a lot of what was going on in the world. All I knew is that I was still living with my parents, managing a fast food restaurant, and wondering if this was pretty much going to be the rest of my life. Around this time, Rob Halford had released an album and was touring with his new band Fight, metal was experiencing somewhat of a decline, and Iron Maiden singer Bruce Dickinson released his 2nd solo album (1st after officially leaving Iron Maiden), Balls to Picasso.
Unbeknownst to me, while I was bitching about living at home, having a shitty job, and no girlfriend, people who were the very same age as me were running, hiding, and losing their lives in the siege of Sarajevo. This wasn’t even something I was aware of until years later but in 2018, Scream for Me Sarajevo not only documents the horrifying events that were going on at this time but it also reminds us all of the powerful healing of music.
The documentary features interviews from audience members, event organizers, and surviving members of the opening bands for the now legendary performance. Also featured in the documentary are interviews with Bruce himself, former bassist Chris Dale, and for drummer Alessandro Elena. The documentary retraces the steps of Bruce’s band Skunkworks during a trip to Sarajevo to perform at the Bosnian Cultural Center but as we see in this film, this was no ordinary “get on the bus, have a good time, and get to the gig” kind of show. This was more of a “here, put this helmet on and hope that they don’t fucking blow up this truck that we’re smuggling you in.”
Hearing the stories of the young musicians themselves and all that they went through just to try to make it through life was beyond inspiring. These kids literally turned to making music as a way to express their anger, their confusion, and their hope and watching them share their memories through tears was something that tore me and hit me at the very core. It made me realize that nearly any “troubles” I may ever have being a musician whether it be with a band member or with booking a gig is no more than a sliver of what these kids went through and honestly makes me grateful to be so fortunate.
The movie itself is both heartbreaking and uplifting and it reminds me just what a powerful force that not only music is but what a force that the music of Bruce Dickinson is. The news of his performance spread like wildfire throughout Sarajevo and the evening of the show, the doors opened as the kids stormed the club and the ticket takers didn’t even bother checking as they just let everyone in to escape the outside chaos even for just one night.
There isn’t a whole lot of live performance footage and while I’ve heard some folks bitch about this, I have to remind you that this isn’t a concert film; it’s not a live DVD. It’s a documentary about all of the turmoil, the sadness, the excitement, the fear, and all of the emotions in between leading up to, during, and following this monumental and now legendary performance.
The most moving part was seeing Bruce and his former band mates (sans Alex Dickson) being in Sarajevo now after more than 20+ years since the show and seeing the emotion in their eyes as they recounted stories and pointed out things that they experienced. It was so hard to not tear up when during the film “Inertia” started playing and those first lines, “These are the pictures. These are the feelings from the front line. Living in silence. Feeling the deafness like heavy smoke.” Even typing this makes me choke up knowing now that these very lyrics are the vivid memories of such a brutal yet life changing experience.
Scream For Me Sarajevo is an amazing documentary and what I loved about it is that it’s not your average band documentary; it’s not just another live DVD; it’s a story about how a man and his band went to a place that even military soldiers were afraid to venture to and brought with them the saving power of their music. For that hour and half or so, those kids didn’t fear being shot, being blown up, or being arrested. They were overjoyed by the presence of Bruce Dickinson who put himself on the frontline and refused to turn back without giving those people an escape from it for even just moment.
This movie really puts things into perspective and it makes me wish that all of the youth of America would watch this. Guess what people? There was a time when there wasn’t the internet, YouTube, live streaming, and smart phones. These people were willing to die to go see Bruce Dickinson live during a heinous time of murder and terror. So what is your excuse for not getting out there and supporting live music? Put the phones down, acknowledge that you’re privileged, and be thankful that you live in a free world where all you need to do is get in your car, hop on a bus, or a train and go get see some live music. Trust me, if the youth of Sarajevo would’ve had it this easy, they would and they did.
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