I am not working today meaning I have no excuses for not dragging my sorry ass to the gym this morning for a treadmill session and then some weights afterwards.
Guess how excited I am?
So to encourage me to "pump" myself up on the treadmill I'm listening to something I am reminded of something from my university dance hall days, namely a young Angelina Joilie's lips ...
... err, I mean this Hackers soundtrack from 1996.
This is very clearly out of my normal comfort zone, so much so I have created the new UnskUnskUnsk category of which, I sure this will be among the very few to be tagged there.
But what else can I say? I do remember digging those lips, eerr that movie as a young adult and, ergo, this flashy soundtrack, and with the benefit of instant technology at your fingertips I can listen to it today so, shit, why not?
Anyway, that was the mindset behind this morning's listen anyway.
Reflecting back on Hackers a generation later, it's fascinating to look back at the film – and its electronica-infused soundtrack – as an audio-visual time capsule. While the 1995 cyber cult-classic reflected the public's curiosities and fears that revolved around the emerging technology of the internet, it also showcased a burgeoning genre. Director Iain Softley's purposeful music choices spotlighted a variety of the scene's emerging stars – including The Prodigy, Orbital, and Underworld – and introduced many viewers to a bold, new sound.
It's impossible to revisit Hackers properly, though, without context. When Hackers was released to movie theaters in the fall of 1995, the worldwide web, as it was known then, was still a thing of mystery to much of the global population. Those of us in the U.S. who were lucky enough to have internet access generally knew it through the safe confines of AOL, or, America Online. The portal, entered using "dial-up" via the phone lines, hosted three million customers in 1995, and offered a user-friendly way to send emails, connect with others through chat rooms, and, of course, "surf the web."
Operating on the other end of the spectrum is the film's hero, Dade "Zero Cool/Crash Override" Murphy, played by Jonny Lee Miller. While the digital prodigy is a master hacker, his actions are closer to those of a merry prankster than of a villain. When the high schooler relocates to New York City, he soon meets a group of like-minded cyber-punk friends, who unwittingly uncover – and are framed for – the work of an evil hacker ("The Plague," played by Fisher Stevens). Together, the friends (include's Angelina's lips) work to clear their names, and right the wrongs of The Plague's pilfering code.
That's some cool shit back in the 90's, dig?
While the film has an otherworldly look about it, it still echoes many of the trends of the 90s. The inspired fashions of the cast fall somewhere between rave-wear, steampunk, and kink – a tangle of buckles, multipurpose sunglasses, and platform boots. Though the film was released at a time when computer nerds were overwhelmingly portrayed as, well, nerds, the cyber-wiz-kids in Hackers are edgy, digital ravers who attend underground parties and skate their way around futuristic arcades. It also doesn't hurt that they are played by a cast of up-and-coming Hollywood stars, including Miller, Matthew Lillard, and Angelina Jolie – in her first, major leading role.
Driving the Jolt cola-fuelled actions of the characters is a highly effective, pulsating soundtrack of electronica, which bolsters the trippy, fast-paced visuals of every scene.
For the film's kinetic score, Softley recruited Simon Boswell – known for combining electronic elements with orchestral arrangements – and longtime Pink Floyd collaborator, Guy Pratt. Additionally, Softley culled music from some of the most exciting artists coming out of the scene, utilizing a broad range of styles – from the hardcore techno of The Prodigy's Voodoo People and the ambient house of Orbital's Halcyon, to the electropunk of Leftfield and John Lydon's Open Up.
At the onset, the director felt that the use of electronic styles made the most sense for a film about the budding digital age. While electronic music was still widely underground in America at the time, the scene was much more robust in Softley's native London.
"The music that was emerging [was] really in parallel with Britpop at that time. It was just as representative of what was happening in London and the UK," Softley told uDiscover. "What I particularly liked was the ambient – almost trip-hop – that really was appropriate to what I was trying to do in terms of the world that [the hackers] inhabited themselves."
Was it entertaining?
Yes!
Absolutely. (Shockingly so as a matter of fact.)
However, can I ever go back to listening to electronica music again?
Likely not.
It's fun for a quick reminisce through a 45 minute sweat on the treadmill, sure but it otherwise makes me anxious now listening to it as an adult.
C'est la vie, I guess.
No comments:
Post a Comment