Rock docs are a dime a dozen. Every week there is a new one; some getting a full-scale theatrical release, some created on the sham of what now passes for music television. They can range in scope from the creation of one particular album, to encapsulating an entire career. With all of that in mind, it’s tricky to make a music documentary stick out…which is exactly what COLOR ME OBSESSED manages to do.

The film is a documentary about The Replacements, a band that exemplified college rock before “college rock” was truly a scene. They came together in the early 80’s in Minnesota, played some legendary live shows, , and went on to record four great albums before moving on to three less-than-great ones (depending on who you ask). Their whole sordid tale is told to us by people who love them, people who critiqued them, people who recorded with them, people who “were there”, and people who wish they were.

Judging by all of that, it sounds like just another rock doc, right? Well what makes COLOR ME OBSESSED isn’t what’s in the film so much as what is not in the film. Left on the sidelines are details like interviews with the surviving band members, archival concert footage and interviews, photographs – new or archival, and music. All music. Yes my friends, director Gorman Bechard has made a documentary about a rock & roll band, and not included so much as drumbeat of their music within the film.

When I asked Bechard about the decision, he explained that “The Replacements were god-like to me. We never see or hear God in films, yet people always believe. So I thought, what if I do a rock doc where we never see or hear the band.”

What we’re left with is scores of people speaking passionately, and if there’s one thing I’m drawn to, it’s passionate discussion. Think about times in the past where you might not have liked, or even known about, a musician, or a film, or a book. You meet somebody and as they begin to recommend it to you, their eyes begin to smile, and their voice takes on a loving tone. In hearing it described so lovingly, the enthusiasm rubs off…and the next thing you know, you’re rooting through record stores looking for the very LP that was just talked up.

That’s COLOR ME OBSESSED.

It’s not just because the glowing praise comes from cool kids like The Decemberists’ Colin Meloy, or Hold Steady’s Craig Finn (although that doesn’t hurt). It’s because they all seem to be able to articulate that moment when The Replacements’ music spoke to them. They describe that all-to-familiar feeling of not seeming cool enough, or good-looking enough. The people interviewed in this doc are like the vast majority of us that don’t relate to rock Gods, sand find ourselves wanting a different type of rock God. That’s what The Replacements are to them, and through their stories and opinions, that’s what they want The Replacements to be for anyone who sees this film.

For my money – money which was handed over to iTunes when this screening let out – this bank-shot of a rock doc is a success. I came into the film knowing sweet nothing about The Replacements, and I left wanting to own their complete works. Wanting that of a band without hearing a chord or a chorus is a rare feat. Fitting for COLOR ME OBSESSED, since it’s truly a rare film.