“Think girls with Alice bands and boys with stripey tops and you’re there. ”
“Think girls with Alice bands and boys with stripey tops and you’re there. “
Songs from the Big Top – (A film by Devon Reed)
Sometimes you get a brilliant soundtrack which makes you wonder just why people in creative departments can’t do it well all the time. Morvern Callar was one, this is another. I suppose if you are compiling a film soundtrack it does help to have a bit of an overriding theme or brief. Luckily this collection leaves nothing to chance, in that the film’s creator, Devon Reed, has written all the songs and pulled together all his favourite underground stars to sing them. If the film (which I believe has yet to be released) is as good as this set of winsome pop songs then we’re in for a treat.
Lisa Germano’s take on Magic sets the mood for the entire proceedings. Songs from the Big Top is a slightly frail but always accessible record bent on creating a warm glow. And with that in mind, it doesn’t half remind me of a C86 compilation or something… Michael Leviton’s version of I Only Want the Sky is a prime example. Think girls with Alice bands and boys with stripey tops and you’re there. Highlights for me are Damien Jurado’s understated work out, Ashes, and Matthew Sweet’s brilliant Wild (Matthew Sweet! Who’d have thunk it?). Elsewhere, Marbles’ Something, Nothing, Everything is dippy enough to raise a happy smile.
Heart-warming and one for summer.
Words: Richard Foster