Alien Alien (1979) is a groundbreaking film that follows the crew of the commercial spaceship Nostromo, as they investigate a mysterious signal on a desolate planet, and encounter a deadly extraterrestrial creature. The film’s claustrophobic suspense, and iconic (H.R. Giger) creature design have made it […]
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West Coast Lana Del Rey’s “West Coast” is a dreamy, melancholic ode to California. Released in 2014, it quickly became a summer anthem — with its laid-back vibe and nostalgic lyrics. The song captures the essence of longing, love, and the allure of the West […]
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La Muerte De La Poderosa I revisit The Motorcycle Diaries soundtrack often. The whole thing is a masterpiece. I love everything Gustavo Santaolalla does, but for me, the big two are: The Motorcycle Diaries and Brokeback Mountain. Gustavo Santaolalla’s work on The Motorcycle Diaries (2004) embodies […]
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Skyfall As the highest-grossing Bond film of all time, Skyfall raked in a stunning $1.1 billion upon its release in 2012. Adjusted for inflation, that would be $1.5 billion today. The other Daniel Craig era Bond films have massive box office numbers, but none of […]
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Bathroom Dance Todd Phillips’ 2019 film, Joker, is a gritty exploration of mental health and societal alienation. The film follows Arthur Fleck, a struggling comedian who descends into madness, culminating in a city-wide uprising. The film’s haunting atmosphere is greatly enhanced by the dread-filled soundtrack […]
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I Remember Everything Zach Bryan is one of the biggest artists in America blending anthemic roots music, poetic lyrics, and a raw, bare bones delivery. His sold out live performances are literal revivals — with concert goers singing so loud, that they drown out the […]
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Clocks To this day, Clocks is still mesmerizing. A truly compelling 4 bar progression: Eb Major, Bb Minor, Bb Minor, F Minor. That’s 3 minor shapes in a row — yet the riff sounds overwhelmingly positive — which is normally the domain of major chords. […]
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The Prince That Was Promised House of the Dragon, begins nearly 200 years before the events of Game of Thrones. The show portrays the reign of House Targaryen, and their children battling for control of the Iron Throne. The glorious music is from Game of […]
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Invited “Invited” is of course, by multi-instrumentalist composer, Gustavo Santaolalla. Having won 2 Academy Awards, he’s widely considered one of the greatest film-composers of all time. This piece is originally played on Santaolalla’s signature instrument, the Ronroco (a small Andean guitar). The Last of Us […]
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Across the Stars This song is a beautiful motif by the greatest film composer of all time, John Williams. Across the Stars was recommended to me by one of my long time Intellimusica members, and it’s one of the all-time classic Star Wars themes. In […]
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“Gabriel’s Oboe” is the title theme for the 1986 film The Mission. The piece was written by Italian composer Ennio Morricone, and is widely considered to be one of his greatest musical achievements. The Mission is a period drama about the experience of a Jesuit […]
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Yellow Recently, early Coldplay songs have made a comeback with my teenage guitar students. I had forgotten how extraordinary these songs were, specifically from the first two albums, Parachutes and Rush of Blood to the Head. With “Yellow” I wanted to do a fingerstyle arrangement […]
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