On May 1, 2011 there will be a screening of The Family Jams at The 12th Cathedral Quarter Arts Festival in Belfast.

The low-key, hand-held “Family Jams” may not ever attain the stature of, say, a concert film like D. A. Pennebaker’s “Don’t Look Back.” But it should, as a record of musicians in youthful flower, sharing a loose, heartfelt camaraderie and lack of pretension.

Webster, Andy, “A ‘Freak Folk’ Music Moment” The New York Times, April 7, 2011.

A curiously effective musical docu that captures the raw dynamics of collective creativity, “The Family Jams” was shot during the 2004 tour of an eclectic traveling troupe composed of “freak folk” artist Devendra Banhart, polyrhythmic harpist/singer Joanna Newsom and Andy Cabic’s group Vetiver.

Scheib, Ronne, “Film Reviews: The Family Jams” Variety, April 7, 2011.

The film’s scrapbook style fits with the performances and with the anecdotal episodes in between—as when the notoriously hirsute Mr. Banhart recounts being mistaken for Jesus during an overnight stay in a Brooklyn jail.

Time makes Mr. Barker’s modest film a more valuable pop-culture artifact than he might have imagined, but its charms guarantee enjoyable viewing even if these folks had vanished into obscurity.

Dollar, Steve, “Awakened Identities” The Wall Street Journal, April 7, 2011.

When you land on the Wall Street Journal’s page, you’ll need to scroll down to see their review of The Family Jams.

With little insight into either the musical process or what it means to be a makeshift family, Barker’s eye-gouging project definitively gives the lie to the notion that any asshole with a digital camera can magically turn out cinema.

Schenker, Andrew, “The Family Jams: Only for Die-Hard ‘Freak Folk’ Fanatics” The Village Voice, April 6, 2011.

Especially considering how much has changed for these performers in the past seven years, this final scene is nostalgic, intimate and kind of bittersweet. But above all, it makes you so glad you came along for the ride.

Darwin, Liza, “Movie Review: The Family Jams.” Nylon Magazine, March 31, 2011.

And now on May 14, 2011 you can watch a screening of The Family Jams at The Thing in the Spring in Peterborough, NH.

You can buy tickets online for only $10, or $5 if you’re a student.

What do you think of the poster they made for the film? Pretty nice, right?

Come to any screening on Friday, Saturday, or Sunday to meet director Kevin Barker in person.

You can order tickets in advance. We look forward to seeing you!

Enjoy The Family Jams trailer as the site is redesigned for the new year.

Even during the redesign, we’ll post here about upcoming screenings. You can also find out about them from the The Family Jams Facebook page.

We’ll see you soon!