Music to my Eyes
Music truly is the spice of life. People's preferences open a window for us to see what kind of person they are. I've always been a fan of music--I started listening to the radio while getting ready for school at the age of 7. Actually, looking back it started much earlier. My mom used to listen to Oldies, in other words, her generation's music, when I was little. I remember her singing along with the music and liking a lot of it myself. A few years later I discovered my parents had a record player and about 1,000 records. Considering I was about nine or ten, I didn't know a lot of the artists. I did know Aretha Franklin, The Beatles and Sonny and Cher. Sometimes I would play the Sergeant Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band album and just listen to the crackles and scratches in the record--I loved it. There is nothing better than an old-school record sound on a really great song.
It's not a huge leap that I found a musician and fell madly in love. He was in a great band that was pretty popular, and so in turn musicians became my friends. It's a whole different kind of camping trip when someone can pull out the guitar and play anything you want to hear. The future Mrs. Grider and I clicked instantly, which was ideal since her boyfriend was in the band as well. I've never heard a falsetto quite like his. He's also singlehandedly the hardest working guy I've ever met.
Check him out on Facebook: Josh Grider, buy his music on iTunes and the next time he's playing in town, come along.
Mrs. Grider is very dear to me and still a close friend. She's always gotten a huge kick out of my appreciation and knowledge of music, despite not being musically gifted. She's a true diva; she majored in Opera, and hearing her sing to her son is moving. From all these people and experiences I discovered the best feeling in the world is when you can show a musician a song or album they haven't heard. You kind of become a rock star in a rock star's world.
Anyway, the point I am trying to make is that tunes make a gigantic difference to even the most mundane things. Taking a shower is so much more fun when LMFAO is playing. Getting ready to go out, putting on makeup is 10 times better with my gal Katy Perry.
The other day I saw yet another preview for "The Lucky One," but this time the song for the clip was "Shake it Out" by Florence + the Machine. I realized that the music had such an impact on the trailer. In itself it's a great song, but flanked with two hot people getting it on is almost a religious experience. I got to thinking and realized that with the right shots and a great song any movie can look amazing in the preview, "What Happens in Vegas,*" anyone?…better yet, any Kate Hudson, Cameron Diaz or Ashton Kutcher movie.
Here's the perfect example of a great trailer: "Dark Shadows," a movie based around a resurrected vampire in the 70s has the most intriguing and seductive sell. While I already love all the actors in it, I have replayed and replayed the trailer. The use of "Superfly," "Bang a Gong" and "My Everything" add just the right touches. The songs are generally appropriate to the time period and portray humor for a movie with potential to be dark and even scary. Who knows if the movie is any good, but the preview definitely makes me want to check it out.
When "The Social Network" trailer hit theaters in 2010 the song used was "Creep" by Radiohead. Yet the version in the preview sounded beautiful and a bit like a children's choir. It was the perfect juxtaposition for the film--innocent and harmonized vocals singing about an actual creep. Plus, the whole story of Facebook is based around a guy who was a jerk and screwed his friends. While this isn't a trailer, anyone who has seen "The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo" can find the awesomeness in the use of an Enya song during a pivotal scene. The suspense and violence pitted against new age music is perfection. The story behind the use of "Orinoco Flow" was that while filming the scene, the director couldn't figure out what music to use, and when Daniel Craig shuffled his iPod that was the song that played, he suggested it and the director loved it.
Don't even get me started on "Across the Universe." The movie is based around Beatles songs and their true life experiences, and I have been such a fan of theirs for so long that I can explain the back story of each scene. It might be sick if it wasn't so good, and the soundtrack is amazing.
*See also: "Pearl Harbor," "Change Up" and "How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days"
Even at a young age I knew how good this album was.
It's not a huge leap that I found a musician and fell madly in love. He was in a great band that was pretty popular, and so in turn musicians became my friends. It's a whole different kind of camping trip when someone can pull out the guitar and play anything you want to hear. The future Mrs. Grider and I clicked instantly, which was ideal since her boyfriend was in the band as well. I've never heard a falsetto quite like his. He's also singlehandedly the hardest working guy I've ever met.
Check him out on Facebook: Josh Grider, buy his music on iTunes and the next time he's playing in town, come along.
Mrs. Grider is very dear to me and still a close friend. She's always gotten a huge kick out of my appreciation and knowledge of music, despite not being musically gifted. She's a true diva; she majored in Opera, and hearing her sing to her son is moving. From all these people and experiences I discovered the best feeling in the world is when you can show a musician a song or album they haven't heard. You kind of become a rock star in a rock star's world.
Anyway, the point I am trying to make is that tunes make a gigantic difference to even the most mundane things. Taking a shower is so much more fun when LMFAO is playing. Getting ready to go out, putting on makeup is 10 times better with my gal Katy Perry.
It's as if she's saying, "I got your back, girl. You get out there and show 'em how great you are!"
The other day I saw yet another preview for "The Lucky One," but this time the song for the clip was "Shake it Out" by Florence + the Machine. I realized that the music had such an impact on the trailer. In itself it's a great song, but flanked with two hot people getting it on is almost a religious experience. I got to thinking and realized that with the right shots and a great song any movie can look amazing in the preview, "What Happens in Vegas,*" anyone?…better yet, any Kate Hudson, Cameron Diaz or Ashton Kutcher movie.
Here's the perfect example of a great trailer: "Dark Shadows," a movie based around a resurrected vampire in the 70s has the most intriguing and seductive sell. While I already love all the actors in it, I have replayed and replayed the trailer. The use of "Superfly," "Bang a Gong" and "My Everything" add just the right touches. The songs are generally appropriate to the time period and portray humor for a movie with potential to be dark and even scary. Who knows if the movie is any good, but the preview definitely makes me want to check it out.
Dark Shadows Preview. Click to see why I'm so drawn to it!
When "The Social Network" trailer hit theaters in 2010 the song used was "Creep" by Radiohead. Yet the version in the preview sounded beautiful and a bit like a children's choir. It was the perfect juxtaposition for the film--innocent and harmonized vocals singing about an actual creep. Plus, the whole story of Facebook is based around a guy who was a jerk and screwed his friends. While this isn't a trailer, anyone who has seen "The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo" can find the awesomeness in the use of an Enya song during a pivotal scene. The suspense and violence pitted against new age music is perfection. The story behind the use of "Orinoco Flow" was that while filming the scene, the director couldn't figure out what music to use, and when Daniel Craig shuffled his iPod that was the song that played, he suggested it and the director loved it.
Don't even get me started on "Across the Universe." The movie is based around Beatles songs and their true life experiences, and I have been such a fan of theirs for so long that I can explain the back story of each scene. It might be sick if it wasn't so good, and the soundtrack is amazing.
*See also: "Pearl Harbor," "Change Up" and "How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days"
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