Well, if you’ve been to any of Film Independent’s Bring the Noise events this year, then you know that that’s exactly what were doing, inviting a fascinating roster of rotating guest musicians to select a classic film to play along with, performing a new, live, reimagined score onstage at LACMA’s Bing Theater. See what you may have missed below. First, Bleachers’ Jack Antonoff performs a new live score to John Hughes’ The Breakfast Club on April 1.
On March 9, retro-futurist neo-new-wavers YACHT sailed into outer space to lend their blips and boops to Ridley Scott’s Alien.
In our first ever Bring the Noise back in January, Seth Bogart of garage rockers Hunx and His Punx donned his painted-on hair for Welcome to the Dollhouse.
And just to see how the sausage is made, you can watch art-soul brother’s Inc. No World work behind-the-scenes for May’s family-friendly reimagining of Gulliver’s Travels.
Bring the Noise returns to Film Independent at LACMA two weeks from today on July 20 featuring yet another John Hughes classic: 1985’s high-haired, hijinks-filled teen wish-fulfillment fantasy-gone-wrong Weird Science, starring Anthony Michael Hall, Ilan Mitchell-Smith, Kelly Le Brock and the late, great Bill Paxton. The new, reimagined score will be performed (live!) by members of the Monterrey, Mexico-based band Kinky: Ulises Lozano, Carlos Chairez and Gil Cerezo. So come wrap your eyes around the follicular, double-helix cascade of Matt Owen’s pleasantly minimalist, lavender-hued poster art (available for purchase on-site on July 20):
WEIRD SCIENCE
It makes sense that Weird Science would follow The Breakfast Club in our Bring the Noise screening order. Science, after all, was writer/director John Hughes’ immediate follow-up to that enduring detention-day classic, released hot on his previous film’s heels in August 1985 (Breakfast was released in February). The film marked Hughes’ third effort behind the camera and represented a zanier and more fantastical side of the iconic auteur, telling the EC comics-inspired tale of two teenage dweebs (Mitchell-Smith and Hall) who use, well, weird science to conjure up, Frankenstein-style, a magically omnipotent dream babe named “Lisa” (Le Brock). It may sound improbable, but hijinks do, in fact, ensue. Antagonists Bill Paxton and Robert Downey, Jr. round out the cast as, respectively, older-brother-from-hell “Chet” and class bully “Ian”—each practically begging for fantastical comeuppance with one haughty wave of Lisa’s improbably well-manicured hand. Shortly after production, Hall and Downey would become cast members on Saturday Night Live, while Paxton cemented his status as one of the premiere “Hey, it’s that guy” character actors of the 1980s.
KINKY
If you have any sort of passing familiarity with Latin music, then chances are you’re already familiar with Kinky’s expansive, up-tempo blend of indie rock, funk, dance music and techno infused with traditional Mexican song structures and instrumentation. Lozano, Chairez and Cerezo formed the band together in 2000, soon joined by drummer Omar Gongora and bassist Cesar Pliego. The band has since released five studio albums, as well as the live MTV Unplugged. Lozano, Chairez and Cerezo will have their work cut out for them, reimaging (via their own unique international aesthetic) an original soundtrack packed with iconic ‘80s artists including Oingo Boingo (performing the film’s original title song), Wall of Voodoo, Ratt, Los Lobos, OMD and Van Halen; a undeniably huge amount of ground to cover in terms of style and subgenre. But hey—if anyone’s up to the task, it’s the members of Kinky. Kinky and comedy, babes and big hair. What more do you need? See you on July 20. And what the hell, bring your sadistic older brother Chet, too.
Tickets for the July 20 edition of Bring the Noise are on sale now—$20 for Film Independent and LACMA Film Club Members and $25 for LACMA Members, students with valid ID and seniors 65+. Tickets are $30 for the general public. Become a Member of Film Independent today by clicking here. Learn more about by following us on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. And for more, subscribe to our YouTube channel.
