BBC: “Collins had already voiced interest in a reunion before he announced his spilt from Orianne, his wife of six years, in March.”
Category / Music
On Kurosawa’s Composer
Slate’s Jan Swafford has decided that Toru Takemitsu is the greatest film composer of all time.
Why She Gave Up On Hip-Hop
Option 1: Rambling 2,200 word article.
Option 2: Four-word summary by Edward Champion: “Because she got old.”*
* — And before I am characterized by politically correct readers as an ageist punkass, I should note that one can remain both young at heart and reasonably mature. One such act of maturity involves not embarassing yourself in a major newspaper by lambasting something in an uninformed manner that you can never and will never understand, permitting those who enjoy their cultural fixations to keep tapping their toes. Accordingly, I recuse myself from any further commentary on Napoleon Dynamite.
Musical Moments in Cinema
The top 40 musical moments in film history. (via Black Market Kidneys)
Discounting musicals, I would add The Who’s “A Quick One” during the vengeance montage in Rushmore, Schubert’s Piano Trio in E-Flat Major in that absolutely beautiful long shot of Lady Lyndon falling in love with Barry in Barry Lyndon, Khachaturian’s Sabre Dance during the hula hoop montage in The Hudsucker Proxy, that horrible version of the Eagles’ “Hotel California” during the Jesus montage in The Big Lebowski, the ironic use of Rossini in A Clockwork Orange, Night Ranger’s “Sister Christian” in Boogie Nights, Slaughterhouse’s “Power Mad” in Wild at Heart (beautifully twisted), Alan Price’s songs in O Lucky Man!, the use of Wagner in L’Age d’Or, and “Drum Boogie” in Ball of Fire (if you’re talking film history, which would include movies made before 1980, how the hell could you leave that out?).
(In fact, while I’m on the subject, I think it’s safe to say that the opening to Sexy Beast could not have worked without The Stranglers’ “Peaches” playing in the background. And the only reason why Sofia Coppola’s soulless films dupe their audiences is because of the music. I’d ramble further about how certain movies are absolutely hollow without their music (the mute button really reveals wonders), but there’s only so much time in the day.)
The Hold Steady
I haven’t listened to the new album, but my colleague Tito Perez has, finding it “disappointing listening on the first pass.” Now I’m even more curious and will give it a few listens over the weekend.
Also of note: The Hold Steady Guide to the Twin Cities.