Vader: Do Not Use Cell Phones During Movie

Ian Curtis Film Leaks... Ummm, Killers Track?

The long-awaited Ian Curtis biopic, "Control," directed by gargantuan dutchman, U2 confidante Anton Corbijn, has leaked its first alleged soundtrack song (Music Slut). Unfortunately it's a Killers rendering of Joy Division's "Shadowplay" and by that token, it's naturally anemic as hell (Why the Killers? Corbijn shot their Sergio-Leone-like "All These Things That I've Done" video and dour, JD-esque press photos for the not-so-well-recieved Sam's Town and is apparently quite taken with the young Vegas-based Mormons). According to Idolator, the Killers' cover plays over the film's closing credits (though this is not sourced anywhere).

Way to tribute your deceased pal, Anton. Corbijn, who made his name as a rock photographer (bestowing iconic looks and photos for U2 and Depeche Mode thus gaining him VIP status in their inner sanctum's) was one of the first photographers to shoot Joy Division and became pals with the late Curtis (he basically moved to the U.K. from the Netherlands cause he loved JD so much). The film is his "labor of love" and he once told MTV that he won't care if he "never directs another film," after 'Control.' In fact, according to a Danish TV interview with the director (see below), Corbijn paid half of the budget - 4.5 million Euros -- out of his own pocket.

According to the always-helpful and often unreliable Wikipedia, New Order will compose the score to the film (or will they? see below), recording new songs and re-recording classic JD songs (anyone who remembers their Jimmy Kimmel performance of "Love Will Tear Us Apart" has now become physically uncomfortable at the mere thought). Other groups that have purportedly been approached to write music for the film are U2, Depeche Mode, Autolux and the Doves. Rumors have it as: the Cure, Bauhaus, the Creatures, David Bowie, and Iggy Pop. According to SPIN, "Control" is due in September in the U.S.

Six Degrees of Joy Division
The film, which premiere at Cannes next month, is based on the book "Touching From A Distance," by Curtis' widow, Deborah, who will be played by Samatha Morton (who was used in the Corbijn-directed U2 video, "Electrical Storm"; see how it ties together in a bow so nicely?). Ian will be played by relative-newcomer, Sam Riley (who played Mark E. Smith in "24 Hour Party People"; who is producing 'Control'? None other than 'Party People' meta-narrator, recent cancer-sufferer and JD, Factory records impressario Tony Wilson. Don't you love the connections?)

New Order Upset?
According to Gigwise, blue-collary New Order bassist, Peter Hook told Channel 4 (the British only have 4 TV channels, ha ha) that he's upset over how controlling (get it? ;) Corbijn is over the soundtrack.

"I'm pissed about the movie right now because Anton Corbijn seems to be getting too much control. I would have preferred that he showed more respect for us. That's what he should do. Anton is too passionate about the movie but I think he should have a wider view. At the beginning he would say, 'Come everyone to help,' but now he closed the doors and sent everyone to piss off! We're supposed to (do the soundtrack) but the problem is that he's telling us what to do. If we don't tell him how to direct, why is he telling us how to make music? Bernard (Sumner) and Stephen (Morris) seem to be OK about it but it bothers me a lot."^[3]

Download: The Killers' - "Shadowplay"
Watch: Joy Division - "Shadowplay" (YouTube)
Anton Corbijn talks "Control" to Danish TV

Mid-Day Short Cuts: Snoop, Hugh Grants' Baked Beans; More

- Hugh Grant got arrested over an alleged, "baked bean attack." Amazing.
- Sensitive feminist, logic defying rapper Snoop Dogg ("It's a completely different scenario,"Snoop said about Don Imus,"[Rappers] are not talking about no collegiate basketball girls who have made it to the next level in education and sports. We're talking about ho's that's in the 'hood that ain't doing sh--, that's trying to get a n---a for his money. These are two separate things." Gotcha, collegiate bitches good, ho's bad, check.) is working on the soundtrack to "A Woman's Touch." "It's going to speak directly to some of these women who speak negatively of me and who don't understand me," he told MTV. "It's going to be a movie and a record. This is something I was thinking about nine months to a year ago, but it just so happens all this hoopla is happening now. This is the perfect time to shoot it into delivery." (MTV)
- Alec Baldwin is asking to leave "30 Rock" due to all his bad press. (NYTimes)
- The disturbing and fucked-up, I-like-Having-Sex-with-Horses film, ("Zoo") is getting some surprisingly great reviews. (aside from the NYPost bringing its average down, some of these reviews are out-right glowing).
- Will Oldham covering Mariah Carey? Guilty Pleasures are out of control. (NYMag via Pitchfork)
- Ari interviews E. It's Entourage on Entourage action (NY's Vulture)

Connecting The Dots of "All My Friends"

OK, I cannot tie this to movies in any meaningful way (Though Cale has composed numerous film scores - "Basquiat," "I Shot Andy Warhol" and "American Psycho" being three notable ones; LCD was used on the now-defunct, "The O.C.," and Franz played in "9 Songs").

LCD Soundsytem's "All My Friends" is one of the songs of the year, goddammit, it's so friggin' good. I don't think I've heard a song that particularly identifies being a 33-42 year-old living in New York, ever. The song is catching on and everyone is loving it. Franz Ferdinand just did a cover and then former Velvet Underground violist/renaissance man John Cale just trumped them with his amazing version of the song.

The lineage, however starts with Galaxie 500's "Snowstorm," the third track from their 1989 sophomore disc On Fire. LCD's 'Friends' verses melody subtly tips its cap to the verses melody in Mr. Wareham's song. Check it.

Update: The LCD video is online.

Gregg Arraki Gets Smiley In July

Trangressive, gender-bending filmmaker, Gregg Araki's ("Mysterious Skin," "The Doom Generation") new film is a pot-smoking comedy, "Smiley Face," that's on the head and shoulders of lead actress, Anna Faris (the first stoner movie to star a girl?). It was originally scheduled to come out 4.20 (duuuude), but that obviously passed. The film is now set for July 27 according to EW's summer film preview (which isn't really online, but this Faris interview is).

Let's face it, his films aren't great and polarizing at best (loathsome to many), but he's always had some choice noisy and shoe-gaze-y soundtracks, which we've always loved him for (and we're likely going to do a Soundtrack Series volume on him one of these days, but not likely anytime soon. *note we will re-upload them all soon).

The trailer for "Smiley Face," features Green Day's "American Idiot," Weezer's "Hash Pipe," and highlights an interesting cast, "The Office's" John Krasinski and Christoper Guest troupe-member Jane Lynch (plus the not-so-interesting Danny Masterson and Adam Brody). And oh yeah, it looks terribly unfunny. Update: 11.28.07. This movie went straight to DVD. Not a total shocker.

Here's a bunch of songs from his "Nowhere" soundtrack.
Download: Radiohead - "How Can You Be Sure" (also a Bends-era B-side) [mp3]
Download: London Suede - "Trash" (mp3)
Download: Lush - "I Have The Moon" (mp3)

Social Scene Movie Fans Broken? Nah, Kevin's Just Solo

Broken Social Scene's ringleader Kevin Drew has been talking solo albums for the band as far back as February 2006. "I'm gonna do a solo record, [Brendan and Ohad] are gonna do solo records," Drew told MTV. "Creatively, people want a little bit of freedom, so maybe we'll do a [solo] Social Scene series. Then afterwards I think it would be good to be a band again."

Keeping with that plan, Drew wrote recorded a solo record that is basically in the can and just awaiting the right release date in the busy Arts & Crafts schedule (BSS' record label). "It's pretty much done," he told Chart in November. "I'm just gonna decide when I feel like talking about myself again, which I don't right now. So I might wait a long time before I put it out. But that's gonna happen."

Broken Social has a rich history with soundtracks and it seems like they've quietly gone and composed the score for yet another Bruce MacDonald film (another Canuck), this one called, "The Tracey Fragments," which premiered at the Berlin International Film Festival in February, but hasn't been shown in North America yet (Toronto Film Festival in September maybe?). ['Tracey Fragments' trailer anyone know the song? Think it's Goldfrapp, but not entirely sure.]

BSS did the score for McDonald's not-well-seen, "The Love Crimes of Gillian Guess," which was supposed to be a movie, but according to the (often-unreliable) IMDB, it was only ever aired on TV. Drew and co. apparently scored the film, but the only concrete info out there is that the pre-existing songs, Broken songs, "Lover's Spit" and "Her Disappearing Theme" were used in the movie/show (plus "Essence" by Lucinda Williams). Whatever happened with this film, is any one's guess. It appears that even in Canada it barely came out (U.S. screenings were pretty much non-existent) and in that same MTV interview, Drew was pretty reluctant to talk about it.

Then there was "Snow Cake" which again, despite having a very decent cast (Carrie-Ann Moss, Sigourney Weaver, Alan Rickman), didn't seem to ever get a real U.S. release. Hold the phone: it starts Friday in New York (and it's at Cinema Village, so for the rest of the country, this means small distribution in major cities only).

The U.K. trailer has some very beautiful, and Broken-sounding ethereal music in it (I bet a million dollars the piece of music used before Stereophonics' "Just Looking" is a Social song), but so far there's no soundtrack album to speak of. [the U.S. trailer is a bit different]

"[Movie scores are] the direction we're heading in. When you have kids and homes, you don't want to make your living touring. Plus, I came into all this trying to do music for films." - Kevin Drew from MTV

The Social Scene's most notable score is the indie-hit "Half Nelson" which won a bunch of Spirit Awards and earned Ryan Gosling an Oscar nomination. Directed and written by Ryan Fleck and Anna Boden (who are already doing "Sugar," about sports in the Dominican Republic; the studios heads are already sniffing around their tails'). 16 songs were used in 'Nelson' (the band balked at first until they saw the film). Mostly instrumental tracks from Broken's more-ambient first record, Feel Good Lost though a few key songs (the piano-version of "Lover's Spit," "Stars and Suns") were also utilized. BSS songs were also used in Clément Virgo's movie "Lie with Me" ('05) and "Wicker Park" ('04).

So what movies are next? None so far, but a finished Drew solo record sounds like something we anticipate. It's also interesting to note that the "Experimental Parachute Moment" is the name under which Drew and friend George Vale direct all their music videos (and many BSS ones at that, including the quasi-political "Cause=Time").

Download: Broken Social Scene "Da Da Dada" (from Feel Good Lost and the "Half Nelson" soundtrack)
Download: Broken Social Scene "Lover's Spit" (original version)

Even More Tribeca: Gainsbourg and Yes, Walker

We could probably go on all day about some of these interesting sounding films, but there's only so much time.

TONY has a great preview round-up, as does the Village Voice.
However, some other films of note include, "Golden Door," which stars Charlotte Gainsbourg, the graffiti doc, "Bomb It," and the TCM doc, "Brando."

The Voice has interviews with the directors of "The Killing of John Lennon," the Warhol-related doc, "A Walk Into The Sea," Entourage-star Kevin Connolley's "Gardener Of Eden," and music-nerd hero, " Scott Walker: 30 Century Man."
We're Walker nerds. So it's interesting to note: Walker was a Vietnam draft-dodger (it's the reason the Walker Brothers never toured the U.S.), and the film was pretty much complete and then all of a sudden the reluctant and hermetic Walker himself agreed to talk (and it sounds like the clock was ticking and they didn't have that much time. Shame).

"[Walker would say]. 'Well, my life and my work are the same thing.' That opens up a lot of questions and contradictions between that nice gentleman on the sofa and the earsplitting, audacious, and terrifying music coming out of his brain. I think the enigma remains intact, in a lot of ways." - "30 Century Man" director Stephen Kijak

Jesus, yet another excuse to post Walker-related video.
The Walker Brothers - "The Sun Ain't Gonna Shine Anymore"

Download: Scott Walker - "The Time Is Out of Joint" (from the film "Pola X") [mp3]

DJ Spooky: Doin' The Cinematic Meta Mash-Up With "Rebirth"; More Tribeca

Critical nerd theorist, Paul Miller (aka DJ Spooky) is getting his remix on at the Tribeca Film Festival (which starts today) however, it's more than the average retooling of a song. This time, the essayist/heavy thinker knobtwiddler is upping the geek quota by taking the remix to another level, yo (REMIX!). Now he's tweaking and deconstructing D.W. Griffith's seminal "Birth of A Nation" (part of our Tribeca highlights list). We like to make fun, but he talked to Time Out New York and had some interesting thoughts and analogies.

"I liked the fact that Griffith was crosscutting and playing with image fragments,” Miller says. “That’s what DJ culture does with sampling; it’s all about juxtaposition."

Right-o.The pioneering "Nation" is full of technical innovations that elevated the language of film, but at the same time it's as racist as "What Up, Mammy?" Al Jolson; a bit of a moral conundrum when being analyzed. But never one to shy away from subversive, question-raising topics, Spooky decided to make "Rebirth of a Nation" -- a recontextualized multi-media art project, cum quasi-homage. Mutating the original intent, Miller flips the script by rewriting the film with tweaked sounds, imagery and performing the whole thing live during the festival with a score he wrote with the equally geeky chin-stroking players in the Kronos Quartet.

While he hasn't faced any legal problems yet, his point is the cinematic mash-up could be right around the corner. "Intellectual property is the new surveillance culture. There's an entire generation growing up with a hack mentality, where kids bend technology to fit their creative urges."

Uh yeah, it's called You-Tube. The "fan of open-source cinema" really might be on to something. This is something to look out for. An extremely interesting, possibly groundbreaking piece of work (at least on a semi-mainstream sort of level). I'm sure the Illegal Art folks will be all over this.

Download: DJ Spooky Vs. The Freight Elevator Quartet - "File Under Futurism" (mp3)
Download: Kronos Quartet - "Digital (Elliott Sharp cover)" (mp3)

Short Cuts: More Coen Films, Bowie and Deniro Quibble

- Brad Pitt and George Clooney have joined the new Coen Brothers black comedy, "Burn After Reading." Joel's wife (or is it Ethan?), Frances McDormand is also part of the cast. It’s about a CIA who writing a book and loses the disc. That’s all that’s out there, apparently, as the title suggests, the story is a big mystery. No word on whether Clooney or Pitt is the CIA agent.
- And apparently the Coens don't sleep. After 'Burn' comes "A Serious Man" which is apparently in a darker vein, more akin to "Fargo." How busy are these guys? They just friggin' finished "No Country for Old Men" (which premieres at Cannes in May).
- Turf Wars: David Bowie and Rober Deniro are apparently warring over competing film festivals (Highline and Tribeca, respecfully). Wait, Bowie's is a music festival, what's all the fuss?
- Anthony Mackie (the black Ryan Gosling, as in fucking excellent, hot young actor) and first time director Dan Pritzker are in search of the man who may have created jazz. The film "Bolden," centers around seminal, but mostly unknown jazz “cornet king," Charles (Buddy) Bolden and his place in the jazz cannon (Bolden’s more celebrated successor was Louie Armstrong). Another film, a silent one called “The Great Observer,” about the same sounds more allegorical. Wynton Marsalis, an executive producer of both films, will possibly play live to the second film at New York's Lincoln Center. Both Ellis Marsalis, the family patriarch, and Delfeayo, Wynton’s brother, have also contributed to Priztker's film.

Directors Label Series Kaput?

Remember the very excellent Directors Label series founded by Michel Gondry, Chris Cunnigham and Spike Jonze that highlighted the music videos of some amazing filmmakers? The series, which last round featured the work of Mark Romanek, Jonathan Glazer, Anton Corbijn and Stephane Sednaoui, was to feature Mike Mills ("Thumbsucker," videos by Air, Moby and Jon Spencer) and Hammer & Tongs ("Hitchikers Guide To The Galaxy," vids by Blur, Supergrass, Badly Drawn Boy) next. The series also hoped to present the work of Roman Coppola, Shynola and Jean-Baptiste Mondino, plus a separate hip-hop series with Paul Hunter, Little X, and Chris Robinson.

In fact, the series really helped inspire my If I Were (Insert Director's Name) Soundtracks series.

It's been almost two years since volumes 4-7 and people, myself included, have wondered, "what's coming next?" Speculation had it that the series was done, so we talked to series creator Richard Brown, who didn't sound very optimistic, and at best the series sounds like its on indefinite hiatus. Brown didn't say much and only kind of confirmed rumors that Roman Coppola was doing a DVD of his own work (he essentially had heard the same). "I don't think Palm are doing any more titles," he said in an email. "I would like to continue the series at some point but for now I'm tied up with film projects."

Doesn't sound bright. It's too bad, we just wanted to make campaigns for Sophie Mueller, Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris ("Little Miss Sunshine" directors) and Floria Sigismondi (who is directing the upcoming Runaways biopic).

Short Cuts: Hot Fuzz, Drew Barrymore Sings

- Idolator keeps beating us at our own game and posting interesting soundtrack songs and the semi-obscure bands that made them, blergh. Ah, the full-time job dilemma. Anyhow, the 'dolator notes that the pretty great "Hot Fuzz" soundtrack features obscure British glam rockers, Stavely Makepiece (more on them here and here). We finally saw the mostly amusing (if somewhat silly) Brit-cop flick and we can sorta one-up by making note of the songs not on the soundtrack. Namely, the Kinks' "Village Green" (the sister-song to "The Village Green Preservation Society"), the Cardigans' "Lovefool," T-Rex's "Solid Gold Easy Action," (though the Fratelli's cover is on the disc) Sweet's "Blockbuster" and bits of score borrowed from the "Lethal Weapon 3," trailer. Take that!

- The "Lucky You" soundtrack (Who? A romantic gambling comedy featuring Drew Barrymore and Eric Bana, or at least... it looks funny) features songs by Bruce Springsteen, Kris Kristofferson, Ryan Adams, a new Bob Dylan track and also includes a song sung by Barrymore herself ("The Cold Hard Truth"). The film is directed by "Eight Mile," "L.A. Confidential" director, Curtis Hanson (actually it's probably one of those, life-affirming dramedies). Drew can even kinda hold a tune (and Woody Allen's "Everyone Says I Love You" doesn't count, she says she was dubbed). As Idolator notes, the film has been done for two years and is finally getting a release now; this is studio code for: "we have no idea how to market and sell this film, because it's essentially not very good." Be forewarned.

Download: Drew Barrymore - "Cold Hard Truth" (mp3)
Download: The Kinks - Village Green (mp3)
Sweet - "Blockbuster"

My Blueberry Nights: Cat Power, Jude Law: Coming To A Theater Near You

Indie starlet, Cat Power, (aka Chan Marshall) may have once vowed to never act onscreen, but in the new, clean and sober Cat Power world, the indie-rocker gone Nashville will give anything a try. In Wong-Kar Wai's first-English language film,"My Blueberry Nights" (which debuts at Cannes next month), Marshall will play Jude Law's Russian-born ex-girlfriend. According to Paper magazine's cover story (not yet online), Marshall got to make out with Law in an unscripted on-set moment (CP's not the only other musician in the movie, the film actually stars Nora Jones). The film is supposedly due stateside in October.

Director Wai (who also did the amazing, "In the Mood For Love"), who was known to play Cat Power's The Greatest on repeat during filming to get the crew and camera people into the right mood, had high praise for her.

"If Charles Bukowski and Jane Birkin had a child it would be Cat Power. She's unpredictable and mysterious, but always intoxicating" - Won-Kar Wai

The article was full of other very interesting tid-bits as well. Turns out the song she recorded for Todd Haynes' upcoming Bob Dylan artsy-biopic, "I'm Not There," will be the song, "Stuck Inside of Mobile With the Memphis Blues Again," from Blonde on Blonde. She's "unabashedly fanatic," about Dylan and has a shrine dedicated to Zimmy on her living room bookcase ("It's tacky, let's face it," she told the magazine.)

Remember when "I Found A Reason" (from The Covers Record) was used in the Natalie Portman flick, "V for Vendetta"? Apparently, she was around Karl Lagerfeld when she scored a nice, $7,400 check for the song residuals (we can imagine that's probably only the beginning of that nice cash surplus; that same song was also used in "The Secret Lives Of Dentists").

For her next album (another covers record), she's considering re-tweaking songs by Dylan again, Otis Redding, Duke Ellington, Hank Williams, Aretha Franklin, '50s country star Kitty Wells and '60s proto-freak folks Fairport Convention (she also recorded covers of Sandy Denny and the Animals for an ITunes-only EP, not to mention there's a Peel cover of a Mary J. Blige's "Deep Inside" floating around online; look for possible inclusion of any of those songs.) She's also trying to get Keith Richards to play on some of the tracks with her, nutty.

The record after that, apparently already titled Sun, will comprise new material and sounds like it's already written and ready to go.

That's not all. Aside from being a Chanel girl, she's gonna have her own art show for her paintings at Max Fish in June and you'll remember she already filmed an experimental short for Doug Aitken ("Sleepwalkers") for MOMA a few months back. Being sober apparently means being incredibly productive, who knew?