TODAY’S FILM

Broken, dir. Peter Christopherson (1992)

Metalheads and gore fans, unite! Broken is a short film that doubles as a music video compilation by the band Nine Inch Nails. Originally conceived as a video accompaniment of their EP of the same name, it was shelved and existed exclusively in bootleg form for decades. Seeing the material, the band’s decision to withhold its release is a no-brainer: the production plays out like a snuff film, depicting coprophilia, murder, mutilation, rape, sadomasochism and torture in graphic and gruesome detail. The intensity of the footage matches the industrial music it was meant to complement (the EP stands as Nine Inch Nails’s heaviest release), but this means Broken is ultimately not meant for the faint of heart. Watch at your own risk over at the Internet Archive.

TODAY’S RECORD

Run into the Light by Ellie Goulding (2010)

As the second month in quarantine nears its end, I have to face the fact that I’m getting fatter and I need to get back to exercising. The running-themed EP released by Ellie Goulding could very well soundtrack my return to jogging. It assembles six remixes of tracks from her debut album in a flawless 30-minute mix designed to get you moving. All of the tracks are propulsive and catchy enough to do the trick and you might find yourself singing along while you run. While they all work, the Fear of Tigers remix of “Lights” and the Alex Metric remix of “Salt Skin” which appear halfway through the record are absolutely smashing! Get your running gear and play it on YouTube.

TODAY’S FILM

High Heels, dir. Pedro Almodóvar (1991)

As the first Almodóvar film I ever saw, this one will always have a spot in my heart. A mother-daughter drama dressed up as murder mystery, this melodrama is one of the director’s finest offerings, yet not so widely seen as some of his later work. In it, a newsreader longs for the affection of her mother, a torch singer who’s back in Spain after a 15-year stay in Mexico. The newsreader’s husband, who used to be an old flame of her mother, sees the singer’s return as a chance to rekindle their previous relationship. When he shows up dead, the mother and daughter relationship is put to the ultimate test. Like most of Almodóvar’s work, this seems to be entirely off the streaming platforms, but if you’re into soapy drama, you just must see it! Get it on physical media and thank me later.

TODAY’S RECORD

Falsework by Young Galaxy (2015)

Young Galaxy are a criminally underrated Canadian duo who made some of the best synthpop of the last two decades. After a couple of spotty albums, they really hit their stride when they hooked up with Swedish producer Dan Lissvik for a trilogy of records that opened up their music to new and incredible vistas. The last one of these, Falsework, is the best of the bunch and stands as their biggest musical achievement. Opener “Wear Out the Ground” glows with joie de vivre, after which embraces a sparkling bass-heavy sound that is just delicious. “The Night Wants Us to Be Free”, “Body”, “Must Be Love” and “Little Wave” bounce around freely and are highlights in an album full of them. Listen to it on Spotify.

TODAY’S FILM

Shortbus, dir. John Cameron Mitchell (2006)

14 years on, this gem of a film still feels like a revelation. Many filmmakers tried to revolutionise the way sex can be used in film, but none of them had the borderline cloying charm of John Cameron Mitchell’s second feature. It follows several characters as they deal with their own personal frustrations in New York and how sex factors into their psyche and development. Much of the scenes were improvised and they feature a lot of unsimulated sex, but they never feel pornographic: instead, they are constantly used to forward the plot and make complete sense in their contexts. It’s a bittersweet affair, for sure, but a highly advisable look into a seldom seen part of ourselves. Unfortunately, I can’t find it streaming anywhere, but I’d advise getting a copy in physical media. It’s an unforgettable experience.

TODAY’S RECORD

Random Album Title by deadmau5 (2008)

deadmau5’s discography may be massive and scattershot, but he’s got a crowning jewel in Random Album Title. When he put it out, his biggest singles and his time as an EDM staple were still ahead of him (the scene didn’t exist yet), so this music doesn’t feel concert-ready, but deeply clubby. As is common practice with dance albums, it was released in both mixed and unmixed form. The unmixed version has everything the DJs need, but the mixed version is simply one of the best progressive house records ever made. “Sometimes Things Get Whatever” and “Complicated” are impeccable stompers, “Brazil [2nd Edit]” is so breezy that pop producers sampled it right away and closer “So There I Was” flies with its bouncing melody. The real takeaway here is “Arguru”: a heavy and heartfelt track in its original form, which is given a powerful piano intro here. It sounds like heaven and, for one minute and a half, absolutely nothing is or could be wrong with the world. Catch it on YouTube.

TODAY’S FILM

The Twentieth Century, dir. Matthew Rankin (2019)

This one goes to those who like their cinema colourful, daring and WEIRD. The Twentieth Century is a Technicolor dreamscape that’s both sexual and political. Matthew Rankin’s debut feature reimagines the rise of Mackenzie King, the longest-serving Prime Minister in Canadian history. This Canada, however, is an otherworldly fantasia that bears little resemblance to our reality, rendered in a style that connects it to both German Expressionism and Soviet agitprop. The whole thing plays out like a offbeat comedy with decidedly queer undertones and is a must-see. I can’t find it streaming anywhere and to be fair, I’m not really sure if it has received a wide release yet (it was still doing the festival circuit when the pandemic hit). When it does, be sure to check it out!

TODAY’S RECORD

Flesh Tone by Kelis (2010)

Kelis has had many lives. At different points of her biography, she could be described as a R&B juggernaut, neo-soul chanteuse and sauce chef. She collaborated with everyone from Björk to Calvin Harris and from Danger Mouse to David Guetta. Even in this variety, Flesh Tone feels like an outlier: an album that casts Kelis as an animatronic disco diva. It turns out the role suited her impeccably: from the moment “22nd Century” kicks in, the album is a relentless party. With perfect segues connecting the tracks, it was the rare mainstream pop album that asked to be taken as a sonic and conceptual unity. At 37 minutes, every track works (really) and not a single beat is missed: perfect for a Friday night. Dance to it via Spotify.

TODAY’S FILM

The Room, dir. Tommy Wiseau (2003)

I don’t know what I can say about The Room that hasn’t been said already, but I still think that seeing it is an experience people shouldn’t miss, so I’ll recommend it today. It has a cult following now, which kind of became its own thing. Director Tommy Wiseau tours this film around in independent cinemas across the world where hyper-engaged audiences throw plastic spoons at the screen and recite lines in true midnight movie fashion. Why do people care so much? Because it’s goddamn awful. Wiseau stars a good-for-nothing banker who’s caught up in a love triangle when his fiancée starts sleeping with his best friend. His script is preposterous – and so is his acting – to the point that you won’t be able to look away. There’s a reason this film gets called the Citizen Kane of bad films, but I’ll argue saying that worse than a film that sucks is a film that leaves no impression at all and you can’t say the latter about The Room. Check it out on YouTube.

TODAY’S RECORD

Overpowered by Róisín Murphy (2007)

Now that she’s revelling in a full indie renaissance that is arguably the most prolific stretch of her long career, it might be baffling to think how criminally underrated Róisín Murphy was at the end of the 2000s. Otherwise Overpowered, probably one of the most inventive pop records in recent memory, would have had the commercial success it deserved. The marriage of killer synthetic beats, deft songwriting and impeccable style seemed poised for the charts, but this is far from your cookie-cutter Top 40 fare: in 50 minutes, Murphy muses about biological components of attraction (the opening title track), sings an ode to casual sex (“Let Me Know”), compares love to voyeurism (“Movie Star”), warns about global warming (“Dear Miami”), shows no sympathy for a druggie lover (“Cry Baby”) and, in my favourite song of hers, suggests to a friend that they become lovers (“You Know Me Better”). The breath of these stories is striking and she made it so that you feel like dancing to almost all of them. Experience it on YouTube.

TODAY’S FILM

Alice by Jan Švankmajer (1988)

Following yesterday’s one, here’s another Czechoslovak recommendation: a brutal and utterly compelling version of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland handled by stop-motion virtuoso Jan Švankmajer. The Lewis Carroll novel seems to be a neverending source of inspiration for artists because of its powerful imagery and the depth of its themes. Its oblique nature, based on the subconscious, renders itself perfect for multiple interpretations, but out of all of the adaptations I have seen, none managed to embrace the anarchy, amorality and sheer violence of the material like this one. Švankmajer’s Alice foregoes the fairy tale aspect of the story, rendering it as a fever dream definitely intended for adult audiences. Watch it on Amazon Prime.

TODAY’S RECORD

Mexico by GusGus (2014)

GusGus is an Iceland group who has made a career out of an humorous, off-kilter approach to pop and later transitioned to more techno-based compositions. This album finds them bridging the gap between those two styles, creating some of their most sensual material as a result. “Obnoxiously Sexual” opens the proceedings with a clear statement of intent, and songs like “Sustain”, “Crossfade” and “Airwaves” ooze with libido – seemingly tailor-made for the most debauched dancefloors. On the opposite end, closer “This Is What You Get When You Mess with Love” and album highlight “Another Life” show GusGus’s vulnerable side without forgetting that the party must go on. Listen to it on YouTube.

TODAY’S FILM

The Cremator, dir. Juraj Herz (1969)

I was shamefully oblivious to this Czechoslovak New Wave classic for too long, until stumbling upon a restoration of it at the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival last year. What a ride I was missing! The title character is a death-obsessed businessman from pre-WWII Prague, who starts to see Nazi ideology as a means to enact his darkest tendencies. This drama boasts an impeccable editing and borrows elements from thrillers and dark comedies to drive a poignant point home. There are a lot of films that tackle the birth of totalitarianism, but few do so with as much panache as this one. Check it out on YouTube.

TODAY’S RECORD

Chiptek by she (2008)

The fact that we’re largely living digitally these days brought to my mind this virtual musical project. she is a project by Polish artist Lain Trzaska, which he alternatively explores variations on ambient and chiptune aesthetics. As the title suggests, the Chiptek EP falls under the latter category: sounds zip in and out of existence like a malfunctioning software, vocals are auto-tunes within an inch of their life and the whole affair basks in an artificial neon glow. Trzaska renders this sonic tapestry into a version of J-pop that is irresistible. “Music” is the major takeaway here: the vocal effects are pure pop perfection, like a sugar rush. Elsewhere, “Supersonic” feels like a soundtrack for a forgotten 80s game and “1997” is she trying his hand at a piano ballad and absolutely killing it. Listen to it on YouTube.

TODAY’S FILM

Mortal Kombat, dir. Paul W. S. Anderson (1995)

Yesterday’s recommendation wasn’t Paul W. S. Anderson’s first foray into video game adaptations! Almost a decade earlier, he directed this joyously kitsch version of Mortal Kombat for the big screen and man, where to begin?? Despite borrowing from the then-nascent mythology of its source material, the production roams semi-plotless from set piece to set piece. The result is unintentional comedy, for sure – but resistance is futile. It’s cheesy, the effects don’t hold up that well and the dialogue could have used some work, but it’s fun all the way through. Watch out for Christopher Lambert playing a thunder god wise-guy style! You can buy or rent it on YouTube.

TODAY’S RECORD

The Beat Is… by Alphabeat (2010)

Alphabeat came onto the scene with an album which took the best elements of 60s pop and infused them with a spotless sugar-high production. For its follow-up, they shifted gears and instead looked at dance acts like Ace of Base and Snap! for inspiration. The result – The Beat Is… – is an all-killer-no-filler pop treatise, in which almost no notes are out of place. All the highlights – “DJ”, “Hole in My Heart”, “Chess”, “Heat Wave”, “Always Up with You” and “The Right Thing” – are made to stick to your brain and never let go. It’s an impeccably written, recorded and mixed affair: an album of hits made with a deep knowledge of pop. Check it out on Spotify.

TODAY’S FILM

Resident Evil, dir. Paul W. S. Anderson (2001)

Depending on who you ask, Resident Evil is either a horror film, a comedy or a mess. I believe it’s all three, but that doesn’t mean it sucks. I honestly think that the story (and the universe) of the Resident Evil games are super cinematic and could be rendered amazingly in film. It’s a shame the producers here instead opted for a completely different plot, with new characters, and keeping only the zombies. Of course, this pissed off a lot of people, but this action-packed B-movie has a lot going for it. The set pieces work, Milla Jovovich and Michelle Rodriguez KICK ASS big time and you get your occasional jump scare. It never takes itself seriously and is all the better for it. I can’t find it streaming anywhere, and while you certainly can get it on physical media, I personally would hope to stumble upon it on late-night TV and have a blast, really. That’s how I first watched and it was amazing.

TODAY’S RECORD

Dying to Say This to You by The Sounds (2006)

Bursting onto the scene in the early 2000s, The Sounds seemed to have only one goal: get you dancing your pants off. After a solid debut, they hooked up with Jeff Saltzman (who co-produced The Killers’s new wave effort Hot Fuss) for a follow-up – the result is a bloody revelation. Amping up everything that they got right the first time around (killer hooks, larger-than-life beats, sexy lyrics), they made a party record for the ages. “Song with a Mission” states their case loud and plain and it’s one hell of an opener, but the best moments here come right after: “Queen of Apology” sounds like Sleater-Kinney gone synthpop, “Tony the Beat” is an electronic fest of sexual come-ons and “Ego” is an infectious send-up to an attention-seeking lover. Endlessly replayable, you and your Friday night deserve this record. Play it on Spotify.

TODAY’S FILM

American Mary, dir. Jen and Slyvia Soska (2012)

Every once in a while, a horror will come along with so much freshness and panache that you feel it’s your mission to spread the word about it. I definitely felt like when I finished “American Mary” – there’s just so much about this film that is off the beaten track and enjoyable that I feel it should get more love. The title character is a med student who desperately needs to make ends meet and finds herself getting more and more involved with her town’s demimonde characters. Since she excels in surgery, she starts doing illegal operations and getting herself a clientele with the body modification community… until her past comes knocking on her door. Everything about this film is about subverting female tropes in horror and the result is incredible! You can buy or rent it on YouTube.

TODAY’S RECORD

Love CPR by September (2011)

Compared to yesterday’s recommendation, September’s music rings very traditional: the singer (née Petra Marklund) is part of the storied school of Eurodance divas, singing about heartbreak and freedom atop familiar-sounding 4/4 beats. If you’re into that like I am, this album is a dream come true. Despite scoring club hits with “Can’t Get Over” and a killer remix of her own track “Cry for You”, she kept trying to break into the UK and US pop markets to no avail. Her answer was to come back with the danciest, most European-sounding material she ever recorded. Do you want highlights? Pick one: “Party in My Head”, ” Resuscitate Me”, “Ricochet”, “My Emergency”, “White Flag”, “Nobody Knows”… the list goes on. Besides, some tracks in her native Swedish near the album rank among some of her all-time best (“Bäksmalla” and “Kärlekens Tunga”), foreshadowing her decision to invest in Swedish-language songs and abandon her moniker in favour of her given name. This only highlights Love CPR’s nature as a career pinnacle – and few are as much fun as this one. Embrace its clubby glory on Spotify.