Jebediah: Are We OK?

Take a 30-year journey with the beloved Australian alternative rock band, from humble beginnings to the harder aspects of growing up.

Perth alt rockers Jebediah were a breed apart in the halcyon days of the late-90s and early-2000s Australian indie music scene. In stark contrast to the often volatile and soon-to-splinter groups they toured with, the easy-going quartet – lead singer Kevin Mitchell (aka Bob Evans), his drummer brother Brett, bassist Ness Thornton and lead guitarist Chris Daymond – stuck fast to one another. Commanding national attention on Triple J and soon channelling the cred of multiple studio albums into their own record label, Jebediah seemed like quintessential industry survivors. But as the band entered its third decade, the freewheeling lifestyle of their youth had begun to cast a shadow. With recreation shifting to addiction and connections fraying, will these lifelong friends and creative partners find a way to keep the music alive?

Built from a wealth of archival and home-movie footage ranging from the band’s humble high school beginnings through to the current day, as well as firsthand perspectives from local music icons such as Tim Rogers, Phil Jamieson and Janet English, Arlo Dean Cook’s documentary is a rocking roller-coaster ride and a candid cautionary tale about the price of fame.

At a cultural moment when 1990s Australian music, youth culture and the pre-digital era are being re-examined, Jebediah: Are We OK? arrives as both a portrait of longevity and a time capsule of a defining era. It captures not only the evolution of a band, but the passage of time across a generation shaped by alternative music, Triple J, and a distinctly Australian independent scene.

Jebediah: Are We OK? is both a celebration of a beloved band and a cinematic time capsule of a generation.  

Screening for a limited season from Oct 8 - Oct 21 at Luna Leederville and Luna on SX.