Smother me with words
I tend to appraoch deciding what I'm going to write about in a fairly roundabout manner. So today, when I heard the comment, when discussing Haruki Marukami (whose Kafka On The Shore I've just completed), that Marukami does what David Lynch does just not quite so well, my mind went reeling. I'm not sure I agree with that statement: I can't really call myself an expert on either, but from my experience Marukami's work - while retaining the looping, bizarre themes of Lynch's work - is much gentler, much less demanding, much less specifically art - not to say that Marukami doesn't write works of art of course, Kafka... was quite beautiful, but I think they're not so selfconsciously so.
I digress. I got to thinking of David Lynch, wondering if maybe I could post a soundtrack piece. Then having a look I came across the name Angelo Badalamenti, and aha! My inspiration was found. Angelo Badalamenti's an interesting character - I never knew, until Wikipedia generously helped me out - that he'd done quite so many interesting collaborations, and quite so diverse. One tends to associate the man with David Lynch alone, but this would be to fall short of the full breadth of Badalamenti's work.
He started working with Lynch right back on Blue Velvet in 1986, and has collaborated on a number of others, including Wild At Heart, Twin Peaks, Lost Highway and Mulholland Drive. He's also worked with a fairly dizzying spectrum of other musicians, including:
Pet Shop Boys
Anthrax
Marianne Faithfull
Dolores O'Riordan (of Cranberries fame)
And Tim Booth, which, to be honest, is how I know him best. Namely for one single, I Believe - yet another Evening Session classic - I must be going through a nostalgic period... I remember being asked at school once if I liked James. I responded, he's alright, he's a bit weird. And he was, James had many rumours following him around, and used to come into school having scratched his face up. He made home-produced horror movies. I wonder what's become of him... Of course, this wasn't the right answer, I was being asked if I liked James the band, of Laid, and more notably Sit Down fame. I probably also answered, s'alright.
Sit Down is a great song obviously, but is a bit ubiquitous - it's an overplayed number without a doubt. James were a decent, although for me not life-changing band, but Tim Booth was an excellent singer, you had to admit that. So it's kind of cool that he'd collaborate with Angelo Badalamenti - I wouldn't neccessarily equate James' style of indie/guitar-based pop with the dramatic and dark scores of a David Lynch film, but nonetheless: Booth & The Bad Angel were formed to at least a little bit of acclaim.
I Believe - now this is a classic song. This carried me through many mixtapes on long, silent country nights, and has been redownloaded and lost several times over, when I get a hankering for some slightly grand indie-pop. It's got Booth's soaring voice, like a less whiny Brett Anderson taking things seriously. Somewhere on the album it's even got Bernard Butler, although I don't think so on this track. It's got AB's big old scores and arrangements, and all in all, it's as good a mid-nineties indie song as you'll hear.
I digress. I got to thinking of David Lynch, wondering if maybe I could post a soundtrack piece. Then having a look I came across the name Angelo Badalamenti, and aha! My inspiration was found. Angelo Badalamenti's an interesting character - I never knew, until Wikipedia generously helped me out - that he'd done quite so many interesting collaborations, and quite so diverse. One tends to associate the man with David Lynch alone, but this would be to fall short of the full breadth of Badalamenti's work.
He started working with Lynch right back on Blue Velvet in 1986, and has collaborated on a number of others, including Wild At Heart, Twin Peaks, Lost Highway and Mulholland Drive. He's also worked with a fairly dizzying spectrum of other musicians, including:
Pet Shop Boys
Anthrax
Marianne Faithfull
Dolores O'Riordan (of Cranberries fame)
And Tim Booth, which, to be honest, is how I know him best. Namely for one single, I Believe - yet another Evening Session classic - I must be going through a nostalgic period... I remember being asked at school once if I liked James. I responded, he's alright, he's a bit weird. And he was, James had many rumours following him around, and used to come into school having scratched his face up. He made home-produced horror movies. I wonder what's become of him... Of course, this wasn't the right answer, I was being asked if I liked James the band, of Laid, and more notably Sit Down fame. I probably also answered, s'alright.
Sit Down is a great song obviously, but is a bit ubiquitous - it's an overplayed number without a doubt. James were a decent, although for me not life-changing band, but Tim Booth was an excellent singer, you had to admit that. So it's kind of cool that he'd collaborate with Angelo Badalamenti - I wouldn't neccessarily equate James' style of indie/guitar-based pop with the dramatic and dark scores of a David Lynch film, but nonetheless: Booth & The Bad Angel were formed to at least a little bit of acclaim.
I Believe - now this is a classic song. This carried me through many mixtapes on long, silent country nights, and has been redownloaded and lost several times over, when I get a hankering for some slightly grand indie-pop. It's got Booth's soaring voice, like a less whiny Brett Anderson taking things seriously. Somewhere on the album it's even got Bernard Butler, although I don't think so on this track. It's got AB's big old scores and arrangements, and all in all, it's as good a mid-nineties indie song as you'll hear.
Which makes it all the more frustrating that I can't find it anywhere. If anyone can point me to a copy, I'd be the happiest man alive. Even Soulseek has failed me. But if you ever see it in a charity shop or a bargain bin, snap it up, you shan't regret it.
EDIT 22/11/06: I have it! This is starting to sound like the journal of a mad scientist bent on life, but this evening, by golly, I've got it! I'll post it.
The Music
The 'fo
Artist: Booth & The Bad Angel
Website: bio
Recommended: s/t
Label: Fontana
Buy: Amazon
More: Hype Machine; elbo.ws
If you like this you might like: James - The Collection
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