The Soundtrack To My Life. 07/06/2012.

Here’s what I’ve been filling my ears with over the past few weeks…

“The Flaming Lips And Heady Fwends”. (2012).
Artist: The Flaming Lips & Their Pals.
Why You Should Get It: Over to you Wayne…

“Locked Down”. (2012).
Artist: Dr. John.
Why You Should Get It: Because although he’s usually off of his head on heroin, Dr. John has released the best album I’ve heard this year so far!
Here’s the teaser…

“Two Sides Of Dave Van Ronk” (2002).
Artist: Dave Van Ronk.
Why You Should Get It…

“The Day The Earth Stood Still” (OST). (1951).
Artist: Bernard Herrmann.
Why You Should Get It: Bernard Herrmann does it yet again! This score is well worth tracking down. It’s very unusual in that it’s scored for electric bass, electric violin and…TWO THERMAINS! Why do you need two theramins? One for treble and one for bass of course! Makes perfect sense and it also sounds GORGEOUS…

“Tadpoles” (1969).
Artist: The Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band.
Why You Should Get It: Because it’s insane. All of it. It’s just insane music made by an insane band for insane ears…

“Kill Bill: Volume 1” (OST). (2003).
Artist: Various Artists.
Why You Should Get It: Quentin Tarantino has outstandingly good taste in music. Every song in every single one of his movies is a stunner. From the “Kill Bill” soundtrack I’d say that this is my favourite:

“Kill Bill: Volume 2” (OST). (2004).
Artist: Various Artists.
Why You Should Get It…

“Preliminaires” (2009).
Artist: Iggy Pop.
Why You Should Get It: The strangest Iggy Pop album to date, “Preliminaires” even includes Iggy singing in French! Definitely worth a listen or two…

“Moondance” (1970).
Artist: Van Morrison.
Why You Should Get It…

“Early Takes: Volume 1” (2012).
Artist: George Harrison.
Why You Should Get It: An outtake and demo collection, it’s mainly just Harrison and an acoustic guitar or two and it mostly sounds like he’s sitting right beside you…

Here are some of the albums I listened to recently which, for one reason or many, just didn’t do anything for me:

* “Stars And Satellites” (2012) – Trampled By Turtles.
* “God Told Me To” (2012) – John5.
* “Celebration Rock” (2012) – The Japandroids.
* “Live In Berkely” (2009) – Bob Dylan.

“Death Proof” OST – Stuntman Mike’s Mix.

Y’know, there’s a lot to be said for bootleg records which never really gets said because…well…they’re bootlegs.

I listen to a lot of soundtracks and one of my favourites is the soundtrack to my favourite Tarantino film “Death Proof”.
I bought it as soon as it came out and it introduced me to some artists that I otherwise maybe wouldn’t have discovered.

Here’s the track lising for the “Death Proof” soundtrack:
1. “The Last Race”— Jack Nitzsche.
2. “Baby, It’s You” — Smith.
3. “Paranoia Prima” — Ennio Morricone.
4. “Planning & Scheming” — Eli Roth & Michael Bacall (Dialogue).
5. “Jeepster” — T. Rex.
6. “Stuntman Mike” — Rose McGowan & Kurt Russell (Dialogue).
7. “Staggolee” — Pacific Gas & Electric.
8. “The Love You Save (May Be Your Own)” — Joe Tex.
9. “Good Love, Bad Love” — Eddie Floyd.
10. “Down In Mexico” — The Coasters.
11. “Hold Tight!” – Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick & Tich.
12. “Sally and Jack” — Pino Donaggio.
13. “It’s So Easy” — Willy DeVille.
14. “Whatever-However” — Tracie Thoms & Zoë Bell (Dialogue).
15. “Riot In Thunder Alley” — Eddie Beram.
16. “Chick Habit” – April March.

My favourites were always “Down In Mexico” by The Coasters and Willy Deville’s “It’s So Easy” which I remember hearing for the first time in the controversial 80’s Al Pacino thriller “Cruising“.
– A pair of classics if you ask me!

I’m a bit of a completest when it comes to things like this and as good as the “Death Proof” soundtrack is, it has LOTS of tracks missing which appear in the film.
A few weeks ago, online, I found…
“Death Proof” – Stuntman Mike’s Mix.

This is it for me.
This is the definitive “Death Proof” soundtrack as far as I’m concerned.
It’s divided into Side A and Side B and set up like the jukebox and the records as they appear in the film.
Hell, it even makes the sound of the jukebox changing records inbetween tracks.
I don’t usually go this overboard with things like this but this sounds miles better than the official release and take a look at the track listing why dont ya! :

(Side A):
1. Keith Mansfield – “Funky Fanfare”.
2. Jack Nitzsche – “The Last Race”.
3. Smith – “Baby It’s You”.
4. Ennio Morricone – “Paranoia Prima”.
5. T. Rex – “Jeepster”.
6. Pino Donaggio – “Sally And Jack”.
7. Eddie Floyd – “Good Love, Bad Love”.
8. Pacific Gas & Electric – “Staggolee”.
9. Eli Roth & Michael Bacall – “Planning & Scheming”.
10. Jerry Reed – “East Bound And Down” (as referenced in the movie by Eli Roth’s character).
11. Rose McGowan & Kurt Russell – “Stuntman Mike”.
12. Joe Tex – “The Love You Save”.
13. The Coasters – “Down In Mexico”.
14. Robert Rodriguez – “Stinper”.
15. Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick & Tich – “Hold Tight!”
16. AMi jukebox sounds.

(Side B):
1. Willy DeVille – “It’s So Easy”.
2. Mary Elizabeth Winstead – “Baby It’s You”.
3. Bernard Herrmann – “Introduction”.
4. Ennio Morricone – “Unexpected Violence”.
5. Tracie Thoms & Zoe Bell – “Whatever-However”.
6. Eddie Beram – “Riot In Thunder Alley”.
7. Guido & Maurizio De Angelis – “Gangster Story”.
8. Franco Micalizzi – “Italia A Mano Armata”.
9. Stelvio Cipriani – “La Polizia Sta A Guardare”.
10. Hsun Chi Chen (as Chen Tsun-Chi) & Fu Liang Chou (as Chow Fook-Leung).
11. April March – “Chick Habit”.
12. April March – “Laisse Tomber Les Filles”.

Apparently, all of these tracks came sraight from Quentin Tarantino’s personal jukebox which incidentally, is the one used in the finished film.
That man has taste!

Tarantinto Minimalist Movie Posters.

Remember those amazing minimalist movie posters?
Well, I’ve found more.

I think these minimal Tarantino movie posters completely outshine the official artwork in every way.

You Just Fucked With The Wrong Mexican.

Remember “Machete”?

Ah Machete.

“Machete” was one of the amazing fake trailers filmed for the Quentin Tarantino/Robert Rodriguez “Grindhouse” movie project.

It was the first of 5 fake trailers to be shot.

We’re talking vintage B-Movies here folks and the “Machete” trailer looked so convincingly good as an actual B-Movie that it even had me fooled for a second.
As you’ll see,
It was all so promising!

Audiences demanded that it be made into a full-on feature film.

Here’s the original fake trailer made by Robert Rodriguez for use in “Grindhouse”:

Here’s the new “official” trailer for the actual movie “Machete”:

Is it me or has it already lost everything that made it good?
I mean,
Isn’t a big dazzling 20th Century Fox logo a bit of a contradiction?
How can it be an over the top, cheap looking, gritty B-Movie now?

The movie has one of the most exciting cast lists I’ve seen in a long time but that logo means it’s now a big shiny Hollywood production.

I don’t care if Robert De Niro’s is in it.
I think this film will be fucking terrible.

And not in the good way.