While playing with Hole in the ‘90s, drummer and out lesbian Patty Schemel shot over 40 hours of footage of the band. Twenty years later, her plan was to simply have the Hi-8 tapes transferred to a more sustainable format, but her partner saw something bigger. The result is director P. David Ebersole’s first feature documentary, Hit So Hard, referencing the 1998 Hole song of the same name.

Although hailing from a small farm town outside of Seattle, Schemel is ever the outsider. Hole fans (and haters) may already familiar with the main plot: the dramatic, drug-filled rise and fall of grunge darlings thrust into the limelight, a story full of darkness, suicides, and overdoses. Schemel’s personal story is gripping, from her time in the early ‘90s Seattle punk scene to the cover of Rolling Stone. From Schemel’s close friendship with Nirvana star Kurt Cobain to her struggles with addition and survival, Ebersole digs below the surface, alternately splicing the gritty ‘90s footage with more recent interviews. A now-sober Schemel, Hole bandmates Courtney Love, Eric Erlandson, and Melissa Auf der Maur, as well as friends like Nina Gordon (Veruca Salt), piece together a complex picture of a chaotic life.

Concert footage, a soundtrack of Hole songs, and rare clips of Kurt, Courtney and baby Frances coalesce into a nostalgic documentary that will make you want to dust off your baby barrettes and flannel shirts. — ALLISON STELLY