It was 1997 and I was listening to only the most critically acclaimed underground or burgeoning band or it wasn't exposed to my ears. I had been enjoying Now I Got Worry by Jon Spencer Blues Explosion for the past year and had seen them play live in Vancouver at the Vogue Theatre. Soul Coughing, Cake, Flin Flon, Queens of the Stone Age, Magnetic Fields, Ween, Weezer, Built to Spill, and Radiohead pushed my appreciate of clever modern music. Whilst perusing the Georgia Straight in 1997. I noticed that there was now a film in limited release called First Love, Last Rites with what sounded like a soundtrack that me might enjoy. The entire soundtrack was created by one band: Shudder to Think. They once opened for Smashing Pumpkins in 1993 or 1994 with some other forgettable nutjob band dressed as clowns. I recalled enjoying Shudder to Think with the lead singer's dramatic vocal delivery and the lead guitarist, Nathan Larson, prowling and growling across the stage. And the Smashing Pumpkins, whom one assumed I would have continue to have adored, were dreadful. I'm not sure if it was the fact that I overlooked wearing earplugs that night, but I began the night with the uncanny ability to air guitar and quote each lyric verbatim and concluded the evening knowing that I could barely distinguish between any song that was played in the processed guitar mush. It was troubling to even give them the opportunity to objectively listen to them again.
And that was the connection, the thing that drew me to the First Love, Last Rites soundtrack, the hip vocalists chosen by Shudder to Think, and perhaps the director, to guest on the movie and the disks. Billy Corgan was there, Liz Phair, Robin Zander, Matt Johnson, Nina Perrson, and, sadly, one of the few Jeff Buckley tracks we'll ever get to hear again. In 1998, I disliked this album enough to not even bother with it. In that year, I needed my music to be fast, heavy, quirky, or poppy in just the right mix. The First Love, Last Rites album was too slow without enough punch. Ms. Perrson's voice was still gorgeous, as was Madame Phair's, but this would not suffice, as the only track that rocked was the Corgan track. I passed on the disc.
And then in 2003 I saw the album in a used record shop called Fascinating Rhythm in the troubled young city of Nanaimo. I thought that I'd give it another try, as my musical taste had significantly matured. The Queens of the Stone Age were boring me with their big budget recordings and post-production tweaking. Great music was becoming a little more tricky to find due to the increasing amounts available to listeners. I now felt that Stephen Merritt and his I didn't even listen to it this time. I brought it up to the counter and used my store credit to buy it. Me and the family haven't stopped listening it to it since. Once a week, it sits in the disc tray in the kitchen. I was unable to find a single copy of the film on Vancouver Island, though I was able to find one copy on VHS in Vancouver whilst staying in that city with some very good friends. The film is quiet and introspective, and the soundtrack works well as 45s the main characters place on their humble turntable and radio songs from what seems to be a 1970s period piece. The soundtrack marked the end of Shudder to Think, but it launched Nathan Larson's career as one of the premiere musical craftsman and tastemanship of the well-considered film.
And that was the connection, the thing that drew me to the First Love, Last Rites soundtrack, the hip vocalists chosen by Shudder to Think, and perhaps the director, to guest on the movie and the disks. Billy Corgan was there, Liz Phair, Robin Zander, Matt Johnson, Nina Perrson, and, sadly, one of the few Jeff Buckley tracks we'll ever get to hear again. In 1998, I disliked this album enough to not even bother with it. In that year, I needed my music to be fast, heavy, quirky, or poppy in just the right mix. The First Love, Last Rites album was too slow without enough punch. Ms. Perrson's voice was still gorgeous, as was Madame Phair's, but this would not suffice, as the only track that rocked was the Corgan track. I passed on the disc.
And then in 2003 I saw the album in a used record shop called Fascinating Rhythm in the troubled young city of Nanaimo. I thought that I'd give it another try, as my musical taste had significantly matured. The Queens of the Stone Age were boring me with their big budget recordings and post-production tweaking. Great music was becoming a little more tricky to find due to the increasing amounts available to listeners. I now felt that Stephen Merritt and his I didn't even listen to it this time. I brought it up to the counter and used my store credit to buy it. Me and the family haven't stopped listening it to it since. Once a week, it sits in the disc tray in the kitchen. I was unable to find a single copy of the film on Vancouver Island, though I was able to find one copy on VHS in Vancouver whilst staying in that city with some very good friends. The film is quiet and introspective, and the soundtrack works well as 45s the main characters place on their humble turntable and radio songs from what seems to be a 1970s period piece. The soundtrack marked the end of Shudder to Think, but it launched Nathan Larson's career as one of the premiere musical craftsman and tastemanship of the well-considered film.