Fifteen years ago or so, I was going out to the cinemas semi-regularly with a group of guys from work. All four of us were happily married but the films we often went to were ones that our wives would likely not have been interested in seeing so they gladly allowed us these nights out with the guys. The movies were all big budget action pieces that exploded off the screen, many were part of this MCU group of films that were just starting to get off the ground. To be honest, I wasn’t super familiar with all of the comic books that these films were based off of, but for me the actual content of the films were secondary, I enjoyed the nights out, the laughs, the goofiness, the popcorn and junk food, and the joy of being in the cinema.
One such night, we went out to see the film “Sucker punch”. I’m not sure which of the other three suggested it, perhaps all of them, but I had no idea what I was getting into, having no idea that it was based off of a graphic novel, nor had I read anything about or seen any teaser trailers. Without the weight of any expectations, I had a blast watching the film and was surprised afterwards to find I was the only one of us that enjoyed it* and in truth, might’ve been the only one in the world that didn’t hate it based on all the critical panning it received.
As poorly reviewed as the film was, it did receive some kudos for its visual effects and of course, its soundtrack was also universally loved, which is why we are here today. The nine tracks are a mix of covers and mash ups and remixes (oh my). The songs were used at key points in the film to add another layer to the fantasies of the film’s characters, blasts of technicolor musical numbers akin to the music video for Björk’s “Oh so quiet”. Indeed, many of the songs included vocal performances by the film’s stars. It’s probably one of my favourite ever soundtracks for how creates a specific feeling and atmosphere, reinventing the songs used specifically for this purpose.
The seventh of the nine is our song for today’s list and it features the film’s star Emily Browning dueting with Israeli-Romanian singer/songwriter Yoav on the Pixies classic, “Where is my mind?”
I first came across Yoav with his own cover of the track and liked the sound of it so much I checked out the rest of his debut album, “Charmed and strange”, which is similarly charming with his Cat Stevens vocals and use of acoustic guitar in inventive ways to create a sort of dance pop sound. I don’t know how he became involved with the “Sucker punch” soundtrack but it sounds as if his original cover became the springboard from which he and Emily Browning leapt, trading vocals over a miasma of industrial beats, feedback, and sonic screams. It builds from a place of quiet, an almost forgotten corner of the mind, each singer adding distinct voices from distinct experiences, and then the guitars kick in and the beat picks up, everything continuing to build until the machine guns fire, the full orchestra finale, and fireworks galore.
The Pixies original was featured on their debut album, 1988’s “Surfer rosa”, penned by frontman Frank Black (or Black Francis), a typically Pixie weirdo number that saw a resurgence went it was used at the end of the 1999 film, “Fight club”. It has become an anthem for the disaffected ever since and is a favourite at their live shows, which they perform in an unconventional way, kind of like a mix of “do I have to?” and “since I have to, I’m going to rock the hell out of it”.
The Pixies original exemplifies the eccentric punk edge of their early days and foreshadows where music will head in the 90s, slightly off-kilter guitar rock that was antithetical to the glam metal of the 80s. The cover is one and a half times longer and the mashup explosions exemplify what was popular at the beginning of the 2000s. Two very different sounds and each with very different moods and meanings, despite there being no change in the lyrics.
Both are fantastic and though the cover ‘gives’ just a little bit more** than the original and does everything a good cover should, I can’t in good conscience pick it over the Pixies’ original. Original being the operative word.
Cover:
Original:
*Interesting then, that this was the last film we would go out to see as a group, and often when we would see each other at work over the years, the film would be mentioned as a sort of inside joke.
**I always feel lyrics Pixies tracks could easily be longer but they always end just before they overstay their welcome.
For the rest of the 100 best covers list, click here.
My (life in) music lists 