[...music...]

2011-08-21

inception

i saw the movie "inception" when it was released in the cinemas, about a year ago. i really enjoyed it. the plot was novel and the special effect were well done; i was so focused on the visuals of the movie that i didn't pay much attention to the music.

until a couple of weeks ago, when i came across this time-lapse video, and i realized how beautiful this piece of music is. [aside: the video is wonderfully shot and edited. i liked spotting out scenes from my hometown.]

hmv megastore are having a back-to-school sale. i found the "inception" soundtrack for $10.

my favourite track is the closer.

hans zimmer - time

~~~

Labels: cd purchase, soundtrack

2010-12-28

tron: legacy

a while ago, there seemed to be a lot of hype about daft punk's soundtrack for "tron: legacy". to be honest, the hype put me off a bit. a week ago, i had some time to kill before meeting with friends, so i checked out hmv megastore. i saw that the soundtrack was available at the listening station, so i sampled a few tracks. it seemed pretty cool to me. stanley seems excited about this movie, so i got the cd for him, as a christmas gift.

in fact, it's a selfish gift: the kind i give, but in the end, i will keep for myself.

we saw the movie this weekend. the music fits so well. so cool and futuristic. daft punk + tron makes the perfect pairing. stanley likes the music a lot too. so i've digitized it for him. i am keeping the cd. hah.

~~~

Labels: cd purchase, daft punk, soundtrack

2010-12-08

amphetamine

a while ago, i saw a hong kong movie, 安非他命 (amphetamine).

trailer:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BNcRx2ScIPY

it was a somewhat pretentious artsy-fartsy kind of movie. beautifully shot. but the storyline and dialogue were not great. on the other hand, i loved the music. it fit the scenes well; subtle, without being manipulative.

on its own, the music is great too. i ended up ordering the soundtrack online. it turned out not too expensive, even including the shipping from hong kong.

the cd booklet is big and glossy, which is nice. except that it's too thick to fit into the case, which annoys me a bit.

the soundtrack is composed of 29 short pieces. there is a melody that repeats itself throughout, with variations. those are my favourite parts. examples below.

天堂的初吻 (kiss from heaven)

歸途 (way home)

重聚 (reunion)

曲終 (end)

~~~

Labels: cd purchase, soundtrack

2010-10-25

random stuff

i wandered into hmv megastore on thursday, not looking for anything in particular. i ended up making a few unplanned purchases.

i saw that yann tiersen released a new album, "dust lane". when i listened to a few tracks at the listening station, i found that this new stuff is nothing like the "amélie" material i associate most with him. i couldn't decide if i like this new style, but i don't dislike it, so i got the album anyway.

i also saw the new trent reznor release, the soundtrack for "the social network", at the listening station. i tried a few tracks; sounds like mostly ambient stuff. not sure if this will make my top 10 of the year, but i'm a fan who will buy any music he produces.

since i was in the "soundtrack" section of the store, i checked out hans zimmer's soundtrack for "sherlock holmes". when i saw that movie, the first thing i noticed was how much i loved the music. i had immediately wanted to get the soundtrack, but the $20 pricetag made me hesitate. now, i saw that it was on special, 2 for $30. i just needed to find another cd to pair it with.

i searched in the adjacent "francophone" section. i randomly looked up mickey 3d. i first heard his music on the compilation "le pop en duo", with his collaboration with jane birkin, the track "je m'appelle jane". [in fact, i discovered many wonderful artists with that compilation. such as vincent delerm with "veruca salt et frank black".] in the summer, when i saw that mickey 3d were playing at francofolies, i listened to their most recent album "la grande évasion", and loved it. at the time, the $20 pricetag also made me hesitate to get the cd. but now, what a coincidence, it was also on special at 2 for $30. it was so meant to be.

~~~

Labels: cd purchase, hans zimmer, mickey 3d, soundtrack, trent reznor, yann tiersen

2008-08-28

jaguar love + more

since i am a fan of the blood brothers and of pretty girls make graves (both disbanded), i had to check out jaguar love. their 3-song self-titled ep was quite good. today, i got the album "take me to the sea".

this is pretty much what i expected: johnny whitney's distinctive (high) vocals, with catchy almost dance-able songs.

highlight tracks: highway of gold / bats over the pacific ocean

(by the way, i am still disappointed that i never got to see the blood brothers live, even with all those times they played in montreal...)

i had gone to hmv just for the jaguar love album. i ended up getting other stuff too...

although i have not seen the film, i have been wanting the soundtrack for "the fountain" for some time. the music is by clint mansell, performed by the kronos quartet and mogwai. is that not the perfect combination for beautiful sounds? this is what i listen to when i am trying to concentrate on my studies, or when i simply want to relax.

and finally, an impulse buy: i grabbed a copy of tokyo police club's "elephant shell", from the display next to the cash registers. i had heard some songs, nothing too impressive. but this was a limited edition including a disc of remixes, and i've always been a sucker for things like that. besides, it was cheap, just a few dollars.

~~~

Labels: cd purchase, jaguar love, soundtrack, tokyo police club

2008-08-03

lezzies on x + mogwai

i was at cheap thrills today. since i hadn't been since last year, i found a lot of stuff i wanted. i managed to restrain myself to just two cd's.

first, i got lesbians on ecstasy's self-titled debut album. i first heard their track "the pleasure principal" several years ago, on some college radio station; i thought it was catchy, with a bit of an edge. i saw this cd at the store today, so i picked it up. it's a fun album, good for parties.

lesbians on ecstasy - parachute clubbing

the second cd i got is mogwai's soundtrack for "zidane: a 21st century portrait". it's to add to my mogwai collection, even though i do not care much about a film on zidane.

~~~

i've taken the time to browse cheap thrills' online catalog, and i am finding even more stuffs that i want... damn, i wish i had the $$$ to get it all.

~~~

Labels: cd purchase, lesbians on ecstasy, soundtrack

2008-02-25

l'échange / mont-royal

this week is my midterm break. so i shopped for some second-hand cd's today. it is a always a surprise to see what i will find. my first stop was at l'échange on mont-royal.

amon tobin - supermodified
i first found out about amon tobin after seeing the somewhat creepy video of "four ton mantis". i got this album for that song alone.

blutengel - child of glass
german electro with a gothic feel.

depeche mode - remixes 81-04 (limited 3-disc edition)
i have been drooling over this for a long while, but the $40 price tag at hmv kept me from buying it. i am so happy i waited, because i found it today at $18. so happy!

dan in real life - soundtrack
(new?) music from sondre lerche. i love his cover of "let my love open the door".

good bye, lenin! - soundtrack
i saw this movie years ago, and loved it. yann tiersen did the soundtrack, so it should be quite good.

~~~

Labels: amon tobin, blutengel, cd purchase, depeche mode, soundtrack

2008-01-16

juno + blondie

juno - music from the motion picture
i saw the movie with roxanne last week, and i really enjoyed it. it's a feel-good movie, without any cheesiness. what i noticed most is how much i loved the music. so i got the soundtrack today. "anyone else but you" by the moldy peaches is my favourite track from the movie. the two leads also play a cover of the song, which i like as well.

blondie - greatest hits
since the juno soundtrack was part of a 2/$20 deal, i paired it up with blondie's "greatest hits". probably not what i wanted most, but the other selections were worst. still, i do enjoy some old school music from time to time. listening to this, i was surprised to discover how many of these songs i recognize, without knowing they were from blondie. good retro music.

~~~

Labels: blondie, cd purchase, soundtrack

2006-01-07

back to school

during the short winter vacation, i worked extra hours, earning some extra spending money.

now, the dilemma: should i save this money for textbooks? or should i spend it all on getting those cd's that have been on my wishlist forever?

yesterday after school, i had two hours to kill. so i went to hmv megastore. and i left with:

cd's:

daft punk - homework
i first heard about this duo back in high school, when i saw their video "da funk" and thought, wtf?! a dog walking around downtown new york at night? anyway, the other singles from this album are quite catchy. and i don't own an actual dance/electro album, so this will be my first.

damien rice - o
i think i heard this album once, but i don't remember any of the songs. i only rememeber liking "the blower's daughter".

dj shadow - endtroducing
again, i think i've heard this album once, but only remember liking one track, "stem/long stem".

feist - let it die
she has a nice voice, and nice songs.

imogen heap - speak for yourself
the song "hide and seek" alone is worth buying the entire album.

tegan and sara - so jealous
some harmless canadian pop-rock. i liked their previous album, so i got this one too.

requiem for a dream - original soundtrack
i discovered the movie and the soundtrack through my brother. the movie is one of the most disturbing i've ever seen. and the soundtrack is so beautiful, yet creepy at the same time.

dvd's:

- boondock saints
- monty python and the holy grail

~~~

Labels: cd purchase, daft punk, damien rice, dj shadow, feist, imogen heap, soundtrack, tegan and sara