Red hot and blue

Patricia Chica’s Rockabilly 514 shows the
good and bad sides of a Montreal subculture

by MALCOLM FRASER

Drop the phrase “Montreal music scene,” and the average mind will probably conjure up something to do with Mile-End and wolves, or possibly ponies. Of course, the sophisticates among us have a wider sense of our town’s musical diversity. But the city’s rockabilly scene has largely stayed under the radar—until being scrutinized in Patricia Chica and Mike Wafer’s documentary Rockabilly 514.

Much more than the general overview that often typifies rockumentaries, the film delves deep into the lives and motivations of several Montreal rockabilly lifers, including hard-touring troubadour Bloodshot Bill, hot-rod enthusiast Guillaume Ozoux, burlesque promoters Mister Blue Eyes and Mademoiselle Oui Oui Encore, and Nathalie Lavergne, tireless promoter of the annual Red Hot and Blue rockabilly festival.

Native Montrealer Chica and her co-director Wafer met Lavergne in 2003; immediately seized by the nostalgic subculture, they began shooting. “We started filming random shows and people throughout the summer and early fall,” Chica recalls. “After a year of filming here and there, with no idea of where this could lead us or if it could end up being a film, we decided to edit a demo with all the visuals and interviews.”

This demo got them some initial funding from arts channel Bravo, who “loved it and got on board instantly,” says Chica. “But the thing is, we wanted to make sure we filmed the people for at least one year, to follow them around so we got a sense of what their life is about. We decided to reinvest our salaries into buying a camera.” Chica and Wafer ended up spending the next two years filming on the budget for a few weeks’ shoot.

The result gives the film a degree of depth that elevates it beyond a mere snapshot of a scene. From the subtle cracks in Bloodshot Bill’s happy-go-lucky façade from the rigours of the road, to Lavergne’s stress from her perpetually money-losing festival, Chica and Wafer don’t shy away from the darker sides of their subjects. “For me, it was important to show the real side, not just the fun parts,” says Chica. “It’s really sad, but it’s a reality. And when you do documentary, you have to show the real stuff.”

For anyone not already invested in rockabilly culture, this human angle is the most interesting part of the film. I asked Chica what attracted her to this subculture in particular. She explains that in spite of the retro trappings, “these people don’t see themselves as nostalgic. They think that what they’re doing is current, and the way it should be done… it’s also a negation of today’s trends and consumer culture. In the ’50s, things were made to last. The clothing and the cars made then are still of good quality.”

Since completing the film last year, Chica has taken it on the international circuit, with successful visits to both film and music festivals. “It was worth it, and I’m very proud of it. You can see the budget limitations, but it was done from the heart and we put blood, sweat and tears into it,” she says. “I don’t care if I win awards. What I want is the respect of the rockabilly people, and that you can’t buy.”

ROCKABILLY 514 PREMIERES AT
POP MONTREAL ON FRIDAY,
OCT. 3, 7 P.M. AT THE PORTUGUESE
ASSOCIATION, FOLLOWED
BY A PERFORMANCE BY
BLOODSHOT BILL, AND RUNS AT THE
CINÉMA DU PARC OCT. 6-9.