Published on Feb 16, 1999
I know, I know, I can hear the peanut gallery screaming at me:
“You idiot, how can you review the soundtracks to movies you
haven’t seen?”
Good question, actually – though often, I can gauge what is
happening in the course of a film by the direction the music takes
on the soundtrack. Plus, where is it written that one can’t
appreciate the special qualities of a soundtrack for the music it
contains? (All this, plus I haven’t breached the subject of adding
movie reviews to “The Daily Vault”… yet.)
This all aside, the soundtrack to
Blast From The Past, the new Brendan Fraser – Alicia
Silverstone film, tries to keep in line with the premise of the
film by mixing the style of music that Fraser’s parents might have
been listening to in the early ’60s with the music of today. (Just
an aside – but am I the only one who can’t see Fraser as a
35-year-old? It just doesn’t seem plausible.)
The album’s opener (and first single), “I See The Sun” by Tommy
Henriksen, sets the mood right off the bat. A song that is supposed
to capture the discovery of the outside world by Adam (Fraser’s
character), the song itself is powerful enough to have a lot of
different meanings to different people. Henriksen has something
special in this short blast of power-pop, but it’s already one of
the best songs I’ve heard all year.
If you didn’t find yourself getting into the swing craze last
year, then you’d best stay away from
Blast From The Past; it contains no less than three songs in
that vein, as well as a Perry Como track that could easily be
classified in that genre as well. Of the tracks, Flying Neutrinos’s
“Mr. Zoot Suit” is the best, followed closely by Squirrel Nut
Zippers’s “Trou Macacq”. As much as I tried, I just couldn’t get
into “So Long Toots” by Cherry Poppin’ Daddies.
This album, however, is more of a showcase for newer artists to
let their materials shine. Block reminds me just how quirky and
happy his music is with the inclusion of “Rhinoceros”, while
Sonichrome (“Honey Please”) and Celeste Prince (“A Little Belief”)
all do more than just impress the listener. Even the brief excerpt
from the score (Steve Dorff’s “Adam & Eve Love Theme”) is
interesting.
Surprisingly, some of the better-known artists strike out on
this one. Dishwalla fails to impress with “Pretty Babies,” while
Randy Newman – quickly becoming to film soundtracks what lettuce is
to salad – hits a flat note with “Political Science”. In his
defense, I can’t say I’m a big fan of Newman’s work overall, so
there could be some bias in this.
Blast From The Past is a solid enough effort that serves to
introduce the listener to some artists that I think we’ll be
hearing a lot from in the very near future – that is, unless
certain program directors aren’t holed up in underground bomb
shelters with their Bay City Rollers albums.