Lost In Translation

Performer: Original Soundtrack
Distributor: Ryko Distribution

Notes: A remarkably sequenced soundtrack, the LOST IN TRANSLATION album features inspired and unusual selections that perfectly complement Sofia Coppola's acclaimed second film, which focuses on two lonely Americans (played by Bill Murray and Scarlett Johansson) in Tokyo, Japan. The most notable artist on the collection is My Bloody Valentine mastermind Kevin Shields, who contributes one older tune by his former band ("Sometimes") and four new fuzzed-out, atmospheric songs ("City Girl," "Goodbye," "Ikebana," and "Are You Awake?"), marking the notorious perfectionist's first substantial output since the early 1990s. Air, who composed an excellent score for Coppola's debut, THE VIRGIN SUICIDES, add the somber "Alone in Kyoto" to the mix, while fellow Frenchmen Phoenix offer up the buoyant, poppy "Too Young" to lighten the mood. Other highlights include Squarepusher's gauzy "Tommib" and Happy End's "Kaze Wo Atsumete," an early-1970s, acoustic-guitar-driven track (and the only tune here by a Japanese performer). While many soundtracks are forgotten after their accompanying movies fade from the spotlight, the eclectic, yet oddly cohesive, LOST IN TRANSLATION collection stands on its own as an outstanding mix. (Note: Be sure to let the album play after Jesus & Mary's Chain's "Just Like Honey" for a hidden track featuring Murray crooning Roxy Music's "More Than This.")

Rolling Stone (9/18/03, p.72) - 3 stars out of 5 - "...Shields' new work is low-key, murky but richly atmospheric--guitar feedback rarely sounded this pretty." Entertainment Weekly (10/10/03, pp.124-5) - "...[As the movie ends,] it's almost painful to abandon [Coppola's] magical atmosphere. This soundtrack helps ease the transition..." - Rating: B+ Q (11/03, p.126) - 4 stars out of 5 - "...'Goodbye' and 'Ikebana' see bubbling electronica peppered with delicate licks of guitar..." CMJ (9/22/03, p.4) - "...Soundly encapsulates all the dreamy disassociation and surrealism that one can experience while drowning in a foreign culture....[Kevin Shields' new material] still drips with the Valentine's signature drone and drugged-up melodies..."

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