#9 Album of 2009: JG Thirlwell
My dream job is to compose music for TV and film. There is something incredibly appealing about marrying visuals with music and helping to tell a story with sound. I'm sure a job like that comes with much politics and plenty of headaches, but I imagine that working on a show you really like must be a lot of fun. JG Thirlwell writes the music for one of my favorite television shows ever, and I'd be way more jealous if I thought I or anyone else could do better than him.
"Damion" by JG Thirlwell
"Assclamp!" by JG Thirlwell
#9
The Venture Brothers: The Music of JG Thirlwell
I've never been a huge soundtrack fan. I have owned a few in my time, and I rarely listen to them. I think the problem is twofold. One is that the music often loses its intensity or meaning when pulled away from the visuals (something I mentioned yesterday with regard to Flight of the Conchords, I'm realizing). The other thing is that most soundtracks are rather homogeneous. It's rare that you'll encounter a soundtrack of original music that includes country, drum and bass, new orleans jazz, and rock styles for a single project.
Yet this cross genre mixing is what makes a program like The Venture Brothers so great, and it is only appropriate that the music follow suit.
I'm reminded of Yoko Kano's original music for the groundbreaking anime series Cowboy Bebop, where music was not just space-filler but also became, at times, a pivotal character in the show. Thirlwell does the same for The Venture Bros., creating a soundscape that puts more punch behind every action scene, that adds authenticity to the world, and can be just as much a part of the comedy as the dialogue.
And while most of the twenty tracks on this album are too short (I want to hear more!) they definitely do stand alone. I can listen to this music without having to watch the program.
And come on, the album art is ridiculously awesome:
That's right, I own it on vinyl.
This album inspires me as a musician because it is not beholden to a specific genre. Something I have personally battled with over the years is the idea of musical identity, and it's nice to find an album that is just as schizophrenic as I am.
Tomorrow: Crazy, crazy bass.
