| Godiego - House: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack |
| There
are few things in cinema…Hell, there are few things in life…as
completely, mind saturatingly insane as Nobuhiko Obayashi's 1977 film
House (or Hausu.) I've seen hardened cinephiles rendered literally
speechless after watching it, even without the benefit of English
subtitles. It's impossible to imagine anyone, no matter how jaded, not
being completely hornswoggled by the intense, cartoonish, and
thoroughly original world of this horror/comedy/acid trip of a film. As
gloriously, mind numbingly ridiculous as the film is, Obayashi's choice
of composers for the musical score is nonetheless surprising, bordering
on the surreal: Godiego, a five man pop unit lead by ex-Golden Cup
Mickey Yoshino. Yoshino had composed film music before (and has done
quite a bit since,) but…imagine Sam Raimi looking for someone to score
the second Evil Dead…and deciding on The Beach Boys. Not the first band
you'd think of for what's ostensibly a horror film, even one as
gleefully tongue in cheek as this one. As with pretty much everything else about the film, this seemingly bonkers pairing proved to be absolutely inspired: Godiego were a sweet pop band, but they were also remarkably eclectic, immensely textured, and highly dynamic. They could go from fusion jazz to bubblegum pop to disco to who knows what without breaking a sweat, and their effortless flexibility and sunny disposition proved to be a perfect match/foil for Obayashi's completely unpredictable, new-ideas-every-two-seconds attack. Godiego's bouncy, slick, and oddly bright soundtrack invokes and informs Obayashi's film in ways that few soundtracks do. This music doesn't just accompany the images, it stands up to them, molds them, and becomes every bit as evocative as the freaky cat icon that pops up towards the end of the film (note: don't click that link if there are kids in the room, unless you want to feed them a big helping of nightmare fuel.) Background music this ain't: watch Hausu even once, and you'll have this music planted in your skull for the rest of your life. Like the titular house, Godiego plants itself firmly on that line where the difference between cute and sinister starts to blur. "Main Theme" starts off with a creepy, twinkling piano, then blooms into the sunniest of sunshine pop, complete with handclaps, bright synths, and an instantly memorable instrumental hook. The track quietly ends with gentle but disturbed piano chords, leading into the uber perky swing jazz of "Buggy Boogie," a cartoonishly happy ode to cars, complete with vroom-vroom sound effects. Anyone who's seen the film will instantly recognize every note: the slick jazz funk of "Eat Eat" and the wistful, misty strains of "A Letter In The Past" drip with atmosphere. They sit alongside the more typical Godiego tracks, like the dayglo bubblegum of "Cherries Were Made For Eating," and the grand piano grandeur of "Love Theme." According to Yoshino, he actually recorded the music first, and Obayashi played it on set while shooting the film. This perhaps goes some way in explaining why the visuals and score are so uncannily fused, but whatever the reason, House, the album, is unusually evocative, even for a soundtrack. Godiego went on to become one of Japan's most beloved pop bands, their overwhelmingly positive outlook and deceptively complex musicianship altering the Jpop landscape in ways that are still central to the current music scene, As of this writing, Criterion has struck a new print of House and is touring it across America, with a DVD release forthcoming. While Godiego's companion album is available from Japan by clicking the link below, maybe Western fans will get lucky with a foreign release. Here's hoping. |