OST - Forbidden Planet (@256)

This latest upload is dedicated to Bebe Barron who passed away two months ago. Bebe, with her husband Louis, created the score to MGM's 'Forbidden Planet'. The movie was released in 1956 and it was one of the first science fiction films and extremely influential to 'Star Trek' and 'Lost In Space'. It combined exceptional special effects, a superb plot based on Shakespeare's 'The Tempest' and a soundtrack for which no physical instruments were used. Actually, it was the first time that a Hollywood soundtrack was purely electronic! Oddly and matchingly enough, due to problems that the Barrons had with the US musicians' union, they were 'forced' to use the term 'electronic tonalities' for the soundtrack since they were not allowed to credit it as music. They note: "We design and construct electronic circuits which function electronically in a manner remarkably similar to the way that lower life-forms function psychologically. There is a comprehensive mathematical science explaining it, called "Cybernetics", which is concerned with the Control and Communication in the Animal and Machine. It was first propounded by Prof. Norbert Wiener of M.I.T. who found that there are certain natural laws of behavior applicable alike to animals including humans) and electronic machines.
In scoring FORBIDDEN PLANET-as in all of our work- we created individual cybernetic circuits for particular themes and leit motifs, rather than using standard sound generators. Actually, each circuit has a characteristic activity pattern as well as a "voice". Most remarkable is that the sounds which emanate from these electronic nervous systems seem to convey strong emotional meaning to listeners. We were delighted to hear people tell us that the Tonalities in FORBIDDEN PLANET remind them of what their dreams sound like. There were no synthesizers or traditions of electronic music when we scored this film, and therefore we were free to explore "terra incognito" with all its surprises and adventures."












movie and soundtrack info: here
movie review link: here
album review link: here

picture and sound gallery: here

download link: here

Όλοι σήμερα στο Σύνταγμα στις 19.30

Για όσους επισκέπτονται συχνά αυτή τη σελίδα, θα έχουν παρατηρήσει ότι έχω περιορίσει δραματικά τα όποια σχόλια έκανα σχετικά με την περιρρέουσα ελληνική (και όχι μόνο) πραγματικότητα. Αν και αρχικά τα θεωρούσα ως αναπόσπαστο μέρος αυτού του blog, αποφάσισα τελικά κάτι τέτοιο λόγω πολύ χαμηλής ανταπόκρισης (βλ. σχολίων) αλλά και λόγω έλλειψης χρόνου.
Παρ' όλα αυτά, δεν μπορώ να αγνοήσω το σημερινό κάλεσμα σε συγκέντρωση ενάντια στην ακρίβεια. Αν επιθυμούμε να ακουστεί η φωνή μας, να μας υπολογίζουν και να μην θεωρούν ότι έχουν να κάνουν με παθητικούς καταναλωτές, ως πρώτο βήμα θα πρέπει σήμερα να βρεθούμε εκεί.
Όσο για τη συνέχεια... γιατί όχι να μην προχωρήσουμε (παρά τις όποιες δυσκολίες) σε αυτό που πρότεινε ο πιτσιρίκος;

Dropkick Murphys - Live On St. Patrick's Day From Boston, MA (2002) (@256)

So, after a long wait that took 22 years, the Boston Celtics are again the NBA champions. In a classic final, they overpowered LA Lakers by the impressive 131-92.
For a team with strong bonds with the large local Irish community (see their logo with the leprechaun's outfit full of three-leaf clovers), I think that the best-matching upload is a recording of the Dropkick Murphys, a group that was formed in the predominantly Irish South Boston (in Quincy) and holds strong bonds with their Irish heritage both in its logo, and its music being a fiery fuse of hardcore punk with Celtic folk. Of course, their logo also implies, their fondness for hockey, but I presume that they also feel proud for their hometown's basketball team. The concert took place in Boston, on St. Patrick's day, which is celebrated by the Irish worldwide. Covers of Irish traditional songs (Rocky Road To Dublin, Finnegan's Wake, Wild Rover), excellent covers on songs that show up their social activity (MTA renamed and adapted as Bloody Pig Pile, Which Side Are You On) but most importantly, a set where you can feel the frenzy of the group and of their fans, sum to offer an enjoyable set. I totally agree with Robert L. Doerschuk's review for allmusic:
"Great live albums accomplish two things: They show how an artist sounds in real life (or something close to it) and they make you wish that you were there the night they recorded this gig. By this measure, Live on St. Patrick's Day From Boston, MA is one of the best of the breed. You may have to go back to Live at Leeds to catch this kind of stage energy. Dropkick Murphys, working-class heroes in blue-collar Boston, crash through their set with hair-raising exuberance. Their sound, a muscular collision of punk and traditional Irish elements, connects directly with the crowd, whose presence is never lost in the mix; throughout the set the band welcomes relatives in the balcony, runs footage of old Boston Bruins hockey games as a video backdrop, opens the stage to a bunch of step-dancers, brings a guy up from the audience to propose to his girl as the crowd roars its approval (the girl, no fool, says yes), and invites any woman in the crowd to join them as their massive, beer-swilling piper, Spicy McHaggis, plays a jig. ("His pipes are gigantic, and so is his schlong," Al Barr yells as the band thunders merrily.) From the opening moments, a stirring skirl provided by the Boston Police Gaelic Column Pipes & Drums, to a final chant of "Let's go, Murphys!" performed in the wreckage that follows the finale, Live on St. Patrick's Day From Boston, MA is ultimately a raucous, brawling, and sentimental testament of love between a band and their perfectly matched audience."

download link (with booklet): here

Tom Waits - A compilation based on Scarlett Johansson's first lp release (@256)

I have to confess my utter lust for this rare jewel under the name of Scarlett Johansson. Apart from being one of the best actresses of her generation, with excellent choices throughout her career, her idea to release an album with all songs (but one) being Tom Waits's compositions was great. I have not heard the result yet but as a die hard fan of Tom Waits I'll upload here the originals in the exact order of her album.

Tracklisting:
01-Fawn (from 'Alice' lp)
02-Town With No Cheer (from 'Swordfishtrombones' lp)
03-Falling Down (from 'Big Time' lp)
04-Anywhere I Lay My Head (from 'Raindogs' lp)
05-Fannin Street (from 'Orphans' lp)
06-Green Grass (from 'Real Gone' lp)
07-I Wish I Was In New Orleans (from 'Small Change' lp)
08-I Don't Wanna Grow Up (from 'Bone Machine' lp)
09-No One Know I'm Gone (from 'Alice' lp)
10-Who Are You (from 'Bone Machine' lp)

download link: here