Here’s a damn fine trio of film-music releases you should have in your collection.
Radio Wolf and Parallels – Proximity (Music From The Original Motion Picture)
Vehlinggo has already premiered one song (“Lost Angel”) from this EP and included in the post a Q&A with both Oliver Blair (Radio Wolf) and Holly Dodson (Parallels). Now the full, seven-cut release of celestial synth magic is out in the world digitally via Lakeshore Records.
Eric Demeusy’s Proximity is about a young scientist working for NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory who is abducted by extraterrestrials. People don’t believe him, so he becomes obsessed with finding proof of his experience. This leads him on a wondrous journey of discovery. I also wrote about Jermaine Stegall’s exciting score for the film. You definitely need to check that out.
(Don’t forget to catch both Dodson and Blair on Parallels’ 5 Years contribution, “The Magic Hour.”)
Phoenix — “Identical”
I always celebrate when Phoenix releases any new music, but this is particularly noteworthy in some ways. “Identical” is the delightfully catchy lead single from the soundtrack to Sofia Coppola’s upcoming film, On The Rocks, which finds her teaming up again with Bill Murray. It goes without saying that the last time we got Coppola directing, Murray starring, and Phoenix (led by Coppola husband Thomas Mars) taking a soundtrack slot it went pretty damn well — I’m talking about Lost in Translation, obviously, but I guess we can count Murray’s Christmas special, too. This time, Phoenix also scores the picture (as they did for Coppola’s 2010 film, Somewhere). I have high hopes.
I think this is the band’s first new music since the death of their longtime guru/often-engineer-producer Philippe Zdar (RIP). His absence is missed, but the song is still fantastic and Phoenix still have that same magic they’ve had for more than 20 years.
On The Rocks, which also stars Rashida Jones and Marlon Wayans, is coming October to Apple TV+. Pre-order the 7″ of “Identical” right now. (The b-side includes five cues from the original score of the film.)
Stephen James Taylor — Chemical Hearts (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
Stephen James Taylor offers a beautiful blend of clean, searching electric guitars and deeply moving synthscapes on his thought-provoking and experimental score for Richard Tanne’s film about young love. Readers will know Taylor’s music from the films of Charles Burnett (The Glass Shield and To Sleep with Anger, among others). Taylor’s varied career has also found him working, in various capacities, on memorable animated shows such as Darkwing Duck, Tiny Toons, GI Joe, and a 2010 series based on Marvel’s Black Panther, among others. He’s also worked on documentaries such as Maya Angelou and Still I Rise. Taylor’s Chemical Hearts soundtrack is out now digitally via Lakeshore.
(Editor’s Note: The One-Liners column is a concise but meaningful way to highlight Vehlinggo-recommended releases. It’s not exactly weekly, but it can be. Entries are almost never one line, but they could be. Check out the most recent One-Liners post.)
