Pavements: Alex Ross Perry’s genre-bending (and truth-bending) tribute to Pavement

Alex Ross Perry's highly anticipated film Pavements, inspired by the iconic indie rock band Pavement, made its debut at the Venice Film Festival and has been acquired by streaming service MUBI. This unique project is a blend of biopic, musical, and documentary genres, capturing both fictionalized and real aspects of the band's history.

A recently released clip, available through Vanity Fair, gives viewers a sneak peek at Joe Keery's portrayal of Pavement frontman Stephen Malkmus. Perry said "It’s every Pavement movie that I, as a fan, would ever want to watch—or hate-watch."

In the scene, Keery's character turns down an opportunity to perform on Saturday Night Live, which is supposedly being hosted by Quentin Tarantino. The scene, while fictional, draws on multiple real-life events in Malkmus' career where he declined various high-profile opportunities. Perry, in an interview with Vanity Fair, explained (or justified) the rationale behind the creative liberties taken in Pavements: "Every music biopic is blending the relationship between history and fiction."

It is true: Every music biopic merges history and fiction to some degree. If you believe these scenes are all completely factual, you're mistaken. The scene with Tarantino is a composite of several real instances where Malkmus turned down offers. They didn't need to show all the actual events, so they combined them into one major scenario that never really happened. Get it? Got it? Good!

More about the film Pavements and the band Pavement

Alongside Joe Keery, the film features notable actors Jason Schwartzman and Tim Heidecker, who portray "real" Matador Records executives Chris Lombardi and Gerard Cosloy. These figures played a pivotal role in shaping Pavement's career, as Matador was the band's label for much of their run. Pavement, formed in 1989, became one of the defining bands of the 1990s indie rock scene, despite mainly gaining attention for their track "Cut Your Hair."

Their lo-fi sound, clever lyrics, and laid-back approach resonated with a generation, making them underground icons. Albums like Slanted and Enchanted (1992) and Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain (1994) are regarded as landmarks in the genre, earning the band a dedicated following despite never achieving mainstream stardom similar to what Nirvana found with "Smells Like Teen Spirit." Pavement has been inspiring countless indie acts that followed in their wake., so they could be considered a band that significantly influenced rock.

Though the band officially disbanded in 1999, they have since reunited several times for tours, and their legacy remains strong in indie music circles. In addition to its Venice premiere, Pavements is also scheduled to be screened at the New York Film Festival in early October (apparently the 4th and the 7th), with a wider theatrical release slated for next year.

Does Pavement have a future?

While Pavements brings Pavement's history to the screen, the real Stephen Malkmus continues to push forward in his musical career. Recently, Malkmus formed a new indie supergroup called The Hard Quartet, collaborating with renowned musicians Emmett Kelly, Matt Sweeney, and Jim White. The group's debut, a self-titled album, is set for release on October 4th through Matador Records—the same label that helped bring Pavement to prominence, and they released a single, "Rio’s Song," in advance.

The album will be supported by performances in key cities like Los Angeles, New York, and London. Pavement have recently performed, but suggest it's the end of their era. Then again, bands say that a lot yet get back together again, for one reason or another.

Pavement’s music and Malkmus’ solo efforts have always carried a certain unpredictability and wit, much like the hybrid nature of Perry’s Pavements, which seeks to capture not just the essence of the band’s career but also the spirit of their idiosyncratic place in music history. As film reviewer Nicolas Rapold noted: This is a band that started an album with the line "Pigs, they tend to wiggle when they walk."

Fans of Pavement and indie rock alike will undoubtedly be eager to see how this film blends fiction and reality, offering a fresh perspective on one of the genre’s most beloved acts. Or, at the very least, they could hate-watch it, as suggested by the director himself.