December 16, 2004
The Life Aquatic Soundtrack Reviewed.
In my limited criticism experience, the ability to compare records to movies or scenes has become one of the easiest ways to communicate otherwise nebulous ideas. For example, Nick Drake’s Pink Moon sounds like the soundtrack to a midnight drive in a Volkswagon. Oh wait. One of the reasons film has become such a conduit for analysis is the vast repertoire of great musical moments in film which gives us a comparative thesaurus. For the cultured, twenty-something, postmodern, Wes Anderson has contributed more of these moments than any other director. Points in case: the chase scene from Bottlerocket to the Rolling Stones’ “2000 Man”, Max Fischer’s arrest to The Who’s “A Quick One While He’s Away”, and Margot Tenenbaum’s bus exit to Nico’s “These Days”. These are but a scratch of the surface. Other great scene’s owe debt to the likes of Love, Faces, The Kinks, Van Morrison, The Ramones, Velvet Underground and John Lennon. Not a bad list of contributors.
Well, Anderson has been at it again, this time with The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou which opens nation wide on Christmas Day. There are three types of music included on the soundtrack to this movie: David Bowie songs, the instrumental original score, and various other vintage folk/rock songs. While there are actually only two Bowie performances on the record, the rest of his songs are performed by Seu Jorge. Jorge who plays Pele dos Santos in the movie, translated Bowie lyrics into Portugese and then performed many of them on the boat featured in the movie. As waves crash in the background and the crew cheers when songs are finished, Jorge strums on a classical guitar beautiful renditions of Bowie classics from albums Hunky Dory, Diamond Dogs, and Ziggy Stardust.
The original score contains music from Mark Mothersbaugh and Norweigian composer Sven Libaek. Mothersbaugh’s Baroque pieces featuring trumpet and mandolin have been part of Anderson’s film identity since he started directing. Sven Libaek was discovered when actor Noah Taylor found his music on an Austrailian oceanographic documentary. It is jazzy and fluttering, providing the perfect backdrop to underwater scenes. The rest of the album boasts contributions from Devo, Joan Baez, Iggy and the Stooges, Paco de Lucia, Scott Walker and the Zombies.
The Life Aquatic Soundtrack is like the soundtrack to a Wes Anderson film. Intense character studies of bizarre archetypes, who are as dated as they are timeless, are his heroes as well as his musicians. From the sailing troubadour Pelo dos Santos, to the Ziggy Stardust he sings about, all play in an effort to aid Anderson the storyteller. His worlds, from the campus of Rushmore to the deck of the Belefonte, become obviously dear as well as abstract, helped every inch along the way by instruments and voices. With the trickling counterpoint of Mothersbaugh’s pieces and the waves crashing behind Seu Jorge as he croons from the deck, The Life Aquatic Soundtrack is, in essence, a study in the musicality of water and the wateriness of music. It is like the soundtrack to some cartoon, underwater adventure, minus any talking sponges and add a touch of class.
Posted by john at December 16, 2004 08:06 PM | TrackBackjohn, have you been reading entertainment weekly again?
ahhh, the life melodic....
No
Posted by: John at December 20, 2004 02:47 PMhey johnny, good write up, i like it!! cant wait to go on a date with you to the movie... and my momo and my brother and my sister... it'll be hot
Posted by: meg at December 20, 2004 06:55 PMGreat sound track. Great film. I want to join the team.
Posted by: Herman at December 28, 2004 12:06 AMHi there. I just watched the Life Aquatic and I was searching for the soundtrack track list and came across your critique. I'm trying to find out the name and artist of one of the songs from the movie and I don't think it's on the soundtrack. It's the song played when the crew finally sees the Jaguar Shark at the end of the movie. I've heard it before and I'm searching through my music to see if I have it, but I don't think I do. I wish I had stayed to watch the credits to find it out.
Any idea?
Thanks,
jed
Posted by: Jed at December 29, 2004 01:59 AMNevermind, I found it. Someone at the Amazon.com site wrote about it not being on the soundtrack in the first review of the soundtrack listed. Quite ironic. This person was annoyed as well that the song was not on the soundtrack. The song is Staralfur by Sigor Ros. I knew I had it somewhere. I think this Sigor Ros album deserves a few more listens.
jed
Posted by: Jed at December 29, 2004 02:16 AMHey, "JED" thanks for the post. I was searching also. Thanks!
Posted by: Katrina at January 18, 2005 01:53 AMNice one Jed. My bro told me it was Sigor Ros, but then he ran away to Sweden.
Posted by: Blip at March 9, 2005 07:57 AMI was wondering could you help me out,in the scene when they finally find the Jaguar Shark,what music is playing. Think its called city lights but can't find the song anywhere,its not on the sound track either. Let me know,thanks alot.
Andy
Posted by: andy at March 19, 2005 07:42 AMoh my lord, thankyou Jed, that was killing me that i didn't know the song! I mean, like you I knew I had it somewhere, but why oh why can't we think of these things when we need to?? just gotta go dig out my Sigur Ros somehow...
Posted by: georgia at March 28, 2005 04:57 AMthank u jed!!! i loved that song when i saw the film and then i heard it somewhere else and i realy wanted to know who made it...its great!!!
people, watch this moovie, its pure funn!!!!
oh my gosh. Thank you jed. I was really in a frazzle there. Thanks jed.
Thanks jed,
pb
hey jed,
are you, by any chance, from providence RI? just a hunch.
wow! I guess that song touched a lot more people than I had imagined. I'd also like to thank you, jed. It had been bugging me since the first time I saw the movie in the theater oh-so-many months ago. I could never catch the name (or what I thought was the name) of that song until I got the DVD the other day. Even then I was misled, like so many others here, to believe the name of the song was "City Lights". Thank you so very freakin much. I'll be off to find the Santos album shortly :)
Posted by: nick at May 17, 2005 05:29 PMSigor! whoops... not Santos -my bad :P
Posted by: nick at May 17, 2005 05:34 PMI just want to, again, thank jed. Thank you, jed. I was in a pickle with that. THanks jed.
thanks, jed,
pb
Posted by: porridgeboy at May 20, 2005 09:46 AMHey John, avoid pretense, it isn't the least bit flattering on you. Are you suggesting that there are metaphysical constructs which find form only at the point where sound and cellulose meet? Perhaps what you meant to say is that the significance of these types of intersections are all the more salient as a result of the juxtaposition. Also, there were a few sentences in your review that I found to be particularly troubling. The least of which is "The Life Aquatic Soundtrack is like the soundtrack to a Wes Anderson film"? It is the soundtrack to a Wes Anderson film! Other than the logical vacuum created by this and a number of other pseudo-points, the element of your review that bothered me most was your somewhat tenuous grasp of our common tongue. John, I'd like to introduce you to my dear friends Diction and Syntax.
Posted by: adam krug at June 10, 2005 12:43 AMAdam,
I'm happy to find that you are making use of the S.A.T. vocabulary study sessions. I'd like to introduce you to MY friends my dear friends "get a life besides making fun of alt-weekly record reviewers" and "sense of humor". When I say "The Life Aquatic Soundtrack is like the soundtrack to a Wes Anderson film" consider that's my attempt at saying something through being humorous. Yes, I did actually realize that it was a Wes Anderson film when I opened the CD case.
Posted by: John at June 10, 2005 12:50 AMJohn,
Testy testy. I was only giving you a hard time mate, nothing to get your knickers in a bunch over. I honestly didn't think that even you were dense enough to overlook the connection between the soundtrack and the movie it's inherently affiliated with, but I'm still at a loss as to what you were trying to convey "through being humorous". And by the by, I took the SAT's years ago. Cheers.
hey what is the name of the song during Ned's funeral? i cant find it anywhere, maybe one of yall know? - Jonny
Posted by: jonny at June 14, 2005 11:42 PMI can't remember exactly but I know right after he dies they play a Zombies song.
Posted by: John at June 15, 2005 01:51 PMHi, I am just posting to thank Jed becuase I had a tough time trying to figure out that the song when the jaguar shark is dicovered is by Sigor Ros.
Thanks mate!
Posted by: Owen at June 16, 2005 03:30 PMhey does anyone know how to get music codes for either of the following?:
queen bitch_david bowie
or..
starful_sigor ross
thx
Posted by: Parker at June 17, 2005 02:27 AMHah. I knew it was a Sigur Ros track, but thanks Jed for doing the dirty work. I didn't feel like digging out the CDs and searching through them :)
By the way, for the what it's worth department: Sigur Ros is a million times better and more emotional live, if you get the chance, go.
-Kate
Posted by: kate at June 22, 2005 11:02 PMStange. I logged on to find the Sigor song as well. I dont think its surprising people look for it though. Its gorgeous. And made that scene. I have the DVD and couldn't make it out exactly. Now I know.
Posted by: Jim Stiene at June 27, 2005 01:11 AMHey, I just hadda post 'cause I finally rented Life Aquatic (kicking myself for missing it in the theater) and my journey to find the name of the illusive Sigor Ros track lead me here! =) I'm making it the song of the week on my website dobieville.com when I update it later on tonight. C'mon over and check it out. Thanks!
Posted by: Dobie at July 20, 2005 06:26 PMHehehe, was searching for that track aswell. I feel kinda guilty for the music review getting more posts about the Sigur Ros track than the actual review.
You guys are crazy the best song in that movie is the life on mars song and the acoustical before the credits. Im aware of Sigur Ros and am not taking away from them but that David Bowie song just grabs you!
Posted by: jerome at January 10, 2006 02:11 AMjed seriously, i do not think i would know what to do if you had not told me that it was Sigur Ros, i probably would have thought that it was radiohead, but that would have been stupid, so thank you so much
Posted by: postmodernism-himself at January 10, 2006 06:34 PMjonny, the song during Ned's funeral is The Way I Feel Inside (The Zombies).
Great movie, great soundtrack
Posted by: malelu at January 20, 2006 12:15 PMi agree that movie rocked. but does anyone know what the song was that played when they finally saw the shark? its not on the soundtrack and its driving me CrAzY! get back to me.
Posted by: princess at January 22, 2006 12:30 AMoh yeah! nevermind everybody. it turns out someone already answered this querry in this very same post. thanks JED!
Posted by: princess at January 22, 2006 12:33 AMman whoever Jed is, he sure is great. He is fast becoming my hero.
Posted by: postmodernism-himself at January 23, 2006 02:04 PMWhat's with you people and this movie? Oh wait, I'm one of you. Too bad Staralfur is not on the Cd soundtrack. Too bad. Adam Krug-diggly-ug sure is a negative nelly. Anyway, I love the out-take when Klaus says, "Don't ask me, I'm not ze one wiss ze eztranged faza." Defoe rules. Jed takes second.
Posted by: Ned at February 7, 2006 10:51 AMno jed is number one and defue maybe is number three
Posted by: postmodernism-himself at February 7, 2006 12:06 PMmy god u guys are obsesses with this jed guy. If he's so great can he answer me this? I NEED to know what the tune is that zizzou plays through the headphones of their scuba gear (when murray starts dancing), its also the dvd menu music. I knew most of the other tracks including the sigur ros cos i have all their albums but does anybody know what this track is? please?
Posted by: Robbiealdo at February 9, 2006 12:09 PMI could be wrong, but I think it's a little ditty written by Mark Mothersbaugh (Devo).
Posted by: Illman at February 9, 2006 02:09 PMjust download it here.
http://www.sigur-ros.co.uk/media/
is seu jorge playing a 3/4 sized guitar thruout the film "life aquatic" or does it look that small in his hands?
Posted by: paddyjc at March 14, 2006 12:19 AM