Watch Parallel Love: The Story of a Band Called Luxury

Parallel Love: The Story of a Band Called Luxury is a feature-length documentary that chronicles the history of a now-cult-favorite indie rock band from the American South. Founded in the early 1990s in the small college town of Toccoa, Georgia, Luxury was an unlikely success story in many ways, and Parallel Love tells their tale with humor, heart, and a healthy dose of nostalgia.

Led by frontman Lee Bozeman, Luxury gained a reputation for their unique blend of dark, brooding lyrics and soaring, anthemic melodies. They toured relentlessly, building a dedicated fan base and earning critical acclaim from the likes of Spin and Rolling Stone. But for all their success, Luxury remained outsiders in the larger music industry - too underground for the mainstream, too quirky for the emo scene, and too influenced by their Christian faith to fit into any neat box.

Parallel Love weaves together archival footage, interviews with band members and fans, and animated sequences to paint a vivid portrait of Luxury's rise and fall. Director Matt Hinton captures the band's early days, when they were a group of misfits playing for tips at local coffee shops and house parties. He explores their complicated relationship with the evangelical church, which both supported and scrutinized their music. And he doesn't shy away from the darker moments in Luxury's history, including their eventual breakup and the tragic death of guitarist Chris Foley.

One of the most compelling aspects of Parallel Love is the way it balances the personal and the political. On one hand, it's a film about a group of friends who bonded over their love of music and their desire to make something beautiful. On the other hand, it's a film about the culture wars of the 1990s, when the rise of the Moral Majority and the backlash against grunge and DIY music threatened to silence voices like Luxury's.

Throughout the film, we see how the band's faith both bolstered and constrained their artistry. Lee Bozeman, the band's chief songwriter, reflects on how he struggled to reconcile his belief in a loving God with the pain and suffering he saw in the world. Meanwhile, drummer Glenn Black and bassist Jamey Bozeman (Lee's brother) recount the tensions that arose when the church and the music scene clashed.

But Parallel Love does more than just explore the conflicts of the past. It also celebrates the enduring legacy of Luxury's music, which has continued to resonate with fans years after the band's dissolution. Hinton lets the fans speak for themselves, showing us how Luxury's songs have touched their lives and helped them grapple with their own doubts and anxieties.

At its core, Parallel Love is a movie about the power of art to transcend boundaries and change lives. Through its deeply personal focus on Luxury, it speaks to larger questions about identity, faith, and the creative process. Whether you're a fan of the band or just appreciate a good music documentary, this film is well worth checking out.

Parallel Love: The Story of a Band Called Luxury is a 2021 documentary with a runtime of 1 hour and 40 minutes. It has received mostly positive reviews from critics and viewers, who have given it an IMDb score of 7.6.