It's been quite the week, so unfortunately I've neglected The Musically Inclined a bit. The upside is that it's Friday and I've cleared my schedule to do precious nothing tonight...or that's the plan at least. Lord knows I'll wind up getting roped into something and probably go very willingly. In any case, I was trying to think of something to post about. The most obvious thing music-related is that the other day I watched Garden State for the second time. It's really a terrific movie, the kind of that's got a perfect balance of heart, soul, brain, and weirdness. Unless you've seen it before, you've got no idea where you're going until you get there. That's fairly representative of life, I think.
Garden State has been out a few years and I distinctly remember being more interested in it for the soundtrack than for the actual movie, because that's most of what anyone talked about. A friend gave me a copy of the soundtrack last year and that's ultimately what spurred me to rent it. Some soundtracks are weak, only having a couple songs worthy of purchase, but what makes this one different is that it plays like that perfect mix tape that someone gave you. I guess these days it's more about the playlist, but the idea is the same. From Nick Drake, Frou Frou, Colin Hay, Coldplay, and of course the Shins, there's not a track there that doesn't perfectly encapsulate the feel of the movie. Most strikingly, I knew exactly what kind of tone to expect before ever watching it.
That's some serious mix tape skill. At the same time the soundtrack is so solid and rich, I listen to it sparingly. These last couple days though, it's been on loop in my head and I don't mind hearing that wistful, calm, yet cathartic backdrop to my day-to-day life.
If for some reason you haven't seen Garden State, good freaking grief, get your butt into gear and watch it. Now.
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