Review: July Talk: Love Lives Here

By John Corrado

★★★ (out of 4)

In the summer of 2020, after having to cancel their tour due to COVID, the Canadian indie rock band July Talk decided to do a concert at the Stardust Drive-In in Sharon, Ontario.

But this came with its own unique set of challenges, including figuring out the logistics of performing to an audience of people in cars at a drive-in movie theatre, and complying with stringent social distancing measures that were in place at the time.

This process is documented in director Brittany Farhat’s mostly black-and-white documentary July Talk: Love Lives Here, a mix of concert film and behind-the-scenes portrait that mainly follows the band’s co-leads Leah Fay Goldstein and Peter Dreimanis as they adjust to pandemic life and prepare for this unique show.

Because July Talk is a band that is known for their kinetic live shows at more intimate venues like Danforth Music Hall, one of the biggest challenges involves trying to translate this energy to a drive-in venue with audience members largely stuck in their cars. Farhat’s film documents how the band’s own evolution over the years allowed them to meet this moment, including the release of their more stripped down third album Pray For It in the summer of 2020. Farhat also touches on how the protests around the killing of George Floyd had an impact on the show, including changing the meaning of a song like “Champagne.”

Instead of just being a film of their outdoor concert, July Talk: Love Lives Here is more of a look at the logistics of actually pulling off this event. As such, Farhat’s 83 minute film perhaps could have used a bit more footage of the show itself, since the few performances we do see are excellent. But the artful black-and-white cinematography and tantalizing concert footage make Love Lives Here a mostly compelling portrait of a band adapting to unique circumstances to still put on one hell of a show.