Movies Like Sound City (2013)

Sound City is a 2013 documentary, music film from Dave Grohl with a MovieMagicScore of 7.3/10. Here are 20 similar films, ranked by real viewer ratings — starting with Once and Folklore: The Long Pond Studio Sessions.

Documentary Music

Once

2007

A vacuum repairman moonlights as a street musician and hopes for his big break. One day a Czech immigrant, who earns a living selling flowers, approaches him with the news that she is also an aspiring singer-songwriter. The pair decide to collaborate, and the songs that they compose reflect the story of their blossoming love.

7.4

MagicScore

Folklore: The Long Pond Studio Sessions

2020

An intimate concert film, in which Taylor Swift performs each song from her album 'folklore' in order, as she reveals the meaning and the stories behind all 17 tracks for the very first time.

8.5

MagicScore

Artifact

2012

Follow 30 Seconds to Mars as they record their latest album, This Is War, and their battle against record label EMI.

7.4

MagicScore

Radiohead: In Rainbows - From the Basement

2008

A live performance by Radiohead of their 2007 album In Rainbows. This was their first of two full-episode performances, filmed at Maida Vale Studios in London, as part of the ‘From The Basement’ television series produced by Nigel Godrich, Dilly Gent, James Chads and John Woollcombe.

7.8

MagicScore

Love & Mercy

2015

In the late 1960s, the Beach Boys' Brian Wilson stops touring, produces "Pet Sounds" and begins to lose his grip on reality. By the 1980s, under the sway of a controlling therapist, he finds a savior in Melinda Ledbetter.

7.1

MagicScore

The Go-Go's

2021

As the first all-female band to play their instruments, write their songs and have a No. 1 album, The Go-Go’s made history. Underpinned by candid testimonies, this film chronicles the meteoric rise to fame of a band born in the LA punk scene who became a pop phenomenon.

7.2

MagicScore

Prey for Rock & Roll

2003

In late 1980s Los Angeles, Jacki and her all-girl punk rock band, Clam Dandy, are trying to make it big. On the verge of turning 40, Jacki decides that if the band's one last shot at the big time is unsuccessful, she will give up her dreams of stardom.

4.7

MagicScore

Twenty One Pilots: Livestream Experience

2022

A one-night livestream concert performed by Twenty One Pilots on May 21, 2021, introducing their newest album "Scaled and Icy".

9.1

MagicScore

Pink Floyd: The Story of Wish You Were Here

2012

Wish You Were Here, released in September 1975, was the follow up album to the globally successful The Dark Side Of The Moon and is cited by many fans, as well as band members Richard Wright and David Gilmour, as their favorite Pink Floyd album. On release it went straight to Number One in both the UK and the US and topped the charts in many other countries around the world. This program tells the story of the making of this landmark release through new interviews with Roger Waters, David Gilmour and Nick Mason and archive interviews with the late Richard Wright. Also featured are sleeve designer Storm Thorgerson, guest vocalist Roy Harper, front cover burning man Ronnie Rondell and others involved in the creation of the album. In addition, original recording engineer Brian Humphries revisits the master tapes at Abbey Road Studios to illustrate aspects of the songs construction.

7.3

MagicScore

#10

Classic Albums: Pink Floyd - The Making of The Dark Side of the Moon

2003

Released to coincide with the 30th anniversary of this classic album, learn how Pink Floyd assembled "Dark Side of the Moon" with the aid of original engineer Alan Parsons. All four band members--Roger Waters, David Gilmour, Nick Mason, and Richard Wright--are interviewed at length, giving valuable insights into the recording process. The themes of the album are discussed at length, and the band take you back to the original multi track tapes to illustrate how they pieced together the songs. With individual performances of certain tracks from Roger, David, and Richard included, this is an essential purchase for any Pink Floyd fans, and a fascinating artefact for rock historians everywhere.

7.3

MagicScore

#11

Janis: Little Girl Blue

2015

Janis Joplin is one of the most respected and iconic rock & roll singers of all time, a tragic and misunderstood figure who captivated millions of listeners and blazed new creative trails before her death in 1970 at age 27. Director Amy Berg explored Joplin's story in depth. A portrait of a complicated, driven and often beleaguered artist. Joplin's own words recount a series of letters she wrote to her family over the years. Janis was a vessel of energy when she sang. Her rapid rise and untimely death changed music forever.

7.3

MagicScore

#12

Girl From Nowhere

2017

A Cape Town couple, Katherine and Hugh, are headed to their private mountain getaway, when they pick up a hitchhiker, Liza, who carries a gun. Liza is invited for lunch, but soon the couple can't get rid of her.

4.3

MagicScore

#13

Shut Up Little Man! An Audio Misadventure

2011

In 1987, Eddie Lee Sausage and Mitch Deprey recorded the nightly squabbles of their over-the-top neighbors, homophobic Raymond Huffman and proudly gay Peter Haskett, and the chronicle of the pair's bizarre existence soon took on a life of its own. This darkly funny documentary checks in with former punks Eddie and Mitch, who detail their late-'80s Lower Haight surroundings, and surveys the tapes' influence on an array of underground artists.

5.2

MagicScore

#14

Begin Again

2014

Gretta, a budding songwriter, finds herself alone after her boyfriend Dave ditches her. Her life gains purpose when Dan, a record label executive, notices her talent.

7.2

MagicScore

#15

Muscle Shoals

2013

In a tiny Alabama town with the curious name of Muscle Shoals, something miraculous sprang from the mud of the Tennessee River. A group of unassuming, yet incredibly talented, locals came together and spawned some of the greatest music of all time: “Mustang Sally,” “I Never Loved a Man,” “Wild Horses,” and many more. During the most incendiary periods of racial hostility, white folks and black folks came together to create music that would last for generations and gave birth to the incomparable “Muscle Shoals sound.”

7.2

MagicScore

#16

Metallica: Some Kind of Monster

2004

After bassist Jason Newsted quits the band in 2001, heavy metal superstars Metallica realize that they need an intervention. In this revealing documentary, filmmakers follow the three rock stars as they hire a group therapist and grapple with 20 years of repressed anger and aggression. Between searching for a replacement bass player, creating a new album and confronting their personal demons, the band learns to open up in ways they never thought possible.

7.1

MagicScore

#17

My Thoughts Are Silent

2020

Twenty-five-year-old Vadym earns a living recording and selling all kinds of different sounds; nevertheless, he’d rather exchange his life in Kyiv for a better future in far-flung Canada. Thus, when he gets a generous job offer which might help him realise his dream, he jumps at the chance; he soon sets off to record the sounds of animals indigenous to Ukraine and also a rare bird native to the Carpathians. The situation proves somewhat more complicated when Vadym’s companion on the trip turns out to be his mother… To the sounds of a synthesized music score, debuting Ukrainian director Antonio Lukich unfolds a visually creative road movie, in which he demonstrates a highly unusual talent for constructing tragicomic situations.

7.5

MagicScore

#18

Blow Out

1981

While recording sound effects for a slasher flick, Jack Terry stumbles upon a real-life horror: a car careening off a bridge and into a river. Jack jumps into the water and fishes out Sally from the car, but the other passenger is already dead — a governor intending to run for president. As Jack does some investigating of his tapes, and starts a perilous romance with Sally, he enters a tangled web of conspiracy that might leave him dead.

7.4

MagicScore

#19

Decision to Leave

2022

From a mountain peak in South Korea, a man plummets to his death. Did he jump, or was he pushed? When detective Hae-joon arrives on the scene, he begins to suspect the dead man’s wife Seo-rae. But as he digs deeper into the investigation, he finds himself trapped in a web of deception and desire.

7.3

MagicScore

#20

Sudden Fear

1952

Actor Lester Blaine has all but landed the lead in Myra Hudson's new play when Myra vetoes him because, to her, he doesn't look like a romantic leading man. On a train from New York to San Francisco, Blaine sets out to prove Myra wrong...by romancing her. Is he sincere, or does he have a dark ulterior motive?

7.3

MagicScore

Frequently asked

What are the best movies like Sound City?

The top films similar to Sound City by MovieMagicScore are Once (7.4), Folklore: The Long Pond Studio Sessions (8.5), Artifact (7.4). Each shares documentary/music themes and is ranked by real viewer ratings, not critics or studios.

Is Sound City worth watching?

Sound City holds a MovieMagicScore of 7.3/10 from 240 viewer ratings, putting it among the better-reviewed titles in its genre.

What kind of movie is Sound City?

Sound City (2013) is a documentary, music film directed by Dave Grohl, starring Dave Grohl, Trent Reznor, Tom Petty.

Where can I find more recommendations like Sound City?

Browse the full ranked list above, or explore more documentary recommendations on MovieMagicScore, where every list is ordered by genuine viewer ratings.

Keep exploring

Movies like Once Movies like Folklore: The Long Pond Studio Sessions Movies like Artifact Movies like Radiohead: In Rainbows - From the Basement Movies like Love & Mercy Movies like The Go-Go's

About movies like Sound City

This ranked list pairs Sound City (2013), a documentary and music film from Dave Grohl, with similar titles by genre, theme and cast overlap (fans of Dave Grohl take note). Unlike critic-driven sites, every position here is ordered by MovieMagicScore — a rating built only from real viewers, with no studio marketing or paid placement. Scores update as more people rate, so the list stays current.

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