Directed by Kerthy Fix
2010, USA, 72 mins.
Who Took the Bomp? is as eclectic and hard to pin down as Le Tigre themselves, who have variously been described as electroclash, riot grrrl, and synthpunk. Ostensibly, it is director Kerthy Fix’s coverage of Le Tigre’s 2004 This Island tour. However, the film ends up being much more. Part manifesto, part confession, part swan song, Who Took the Bomp? is everything you’d ever want to know about Le Tigre in one convenient documentary.
Like most tour documentaries, Who Took the Bomp? has a healthy blend of behind-the-scenes antics and awesome concert footage. Unlike most other tour documentaries, this one features the artists talking candidly about sexuality, performing gender, evolving feminism, and feminine identity. Kathleen Hanna discusses the beginnings of riot grrrl and Le Tigre, and JD Samson talks about the challenges of her identity. It’s as though a gender studies class involved spandex, disco lights, and electroclash music. Best class ever? Probably.
To the casual fan reading this, I say that Who Took the Bomp? is fun, smart, and sexy. To the hardcore fan, I say why haven’t you seen this yet? Get on it!
– Dave Robson