Filmed at Seattle's Showbox Theater in 2007 as the Long Winters were wrapping up yet another long stint on the road, Live at the Showbox provides the viewer an authentic Long Winters concert experience while seated in the comfort of their own living room. I never would have thought that it would be possible to witness a virtual Showbox experience, but as of December 9, 2008 we all have been given that opportunity.

The DVD opens with “Scared Straight” and moves through nineteen tracks in all, including “Cinnamon” and “Fresh Emotion” where lead singer John Roderick gleefully raps while the band plays a montage of Aerosmith tracks. Although this sounds hilarious, and on one hand it is, lead singer John Roderick is an able lyricist and the rhyming doesn’t come off as ironic and over the top as one would assume. If the Long Winters put together a concept album of hip hop, I’m guessing it would be pretty good.

The production of the film is top notch; the lighting and sound are both impeccable, always a challenge when filming in dark, incredibly loud clubs. The first half of the DVD could in fact be called “The Long Winters Up Close” as a large percentage of the shots are close ups of the band. This is a nice change from the majority of concert DVDs I’ve seen where close ups are mixed in sparsely with crowd shots and wide angles of the stage as if the band members don’t want to give away anything or let the viewing audience see too much. In this film the Long Winters are exposed by the cameras and the viewer is given the opportunity to see the show in much the same fashion as a fan crammed up on the rail at the front of the stage would experience it.

Concert DVDs are a tough nut to crack. They’re not a substitute for the live show experience; you simply can’t capture that atmosphere and energy on film and translate the emotion to someone sitting on their couch. So when I sat down to watch The Long Winters: Live at the Showbox, I didn’t have high expectations. I have seen the Long Winters live in the past and came away relatively unimpressed. However after watching this DVD, I think I may have seen them on an off night. I enjoyed this film more than what I saw of them in person. Let me say that again: I preferred a DVD of a live show as opposed to actually attending a show. I can’t think of a higher compliment to pay to a concert film than that.