The Wyrmy Awards: Best Music in Film 2023
ISSUE #269
Welcome back to Earwyrms; thanks for sticking with me through the long and much-needed break at the top of every year. We're back in time for the Oscar's this weekend, and I am once again highlighting the best use of music in film over the year—because the Best Original Song award just doesn't cut it anymore. We're talking best needle drops here, the best collective soundtracks, a celebration of the lost art of curating a vibe.
This year, of course, we had a blockbuster Barbie album, a full-scale comeback for the old-fashioned 90s soundtrack—quite the feat, as it's wall-to-wall originals. But even with the talent on that CD, nobody outdid the one and only Gosling—one of Earwryms' longtime favorite musicians as one-half of Dead Man's Bones—delivering some of the best comedic songs and covers of all time as Ken.
We were blessed with another Sofia Coppola joint, Queen of the Indie Soundtrack, and she lived up to the hype by finding a way to include Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith and Porches on a soundtrack about Priscilla Presley. Meanwhile, reigning King of the Indie Soundtrack (no relation) curated one of the great Wes(tern) collections of his career with the soundtrack to Asteroid City—never have I heard "Freight Train" used so well.
The secret success came from Beau is Afraid, which pushed through the heavies in a crowded year and landed haymaker after haymaker of absolute-best needle drops. They ranged from hilarious—Parker Posey restarting "Always Be My Baby—to poignant—Nina Simone's cover of George Harrison's "Isn't It a Pity," played in twilight at an empty funeral.
Other highlights? We got a new song from Sharon Van Etten for the brilliant Past Lives; we got to hear the genius of the Super Mario Brothers themes cranked from 8-bit speakers to full symphony orchestra; and, perhaps best of all in the eyes of Wyrms, a David Fincher movie chock full of The Smiths to soundtrack the mishaps of a heartless killer—what better way to celebrate the 40th anniversary of a band fronted by Morrissey?
So enjoy, everybody—a great year for movies, a great year for music, a great weekend for nerds like me. We're back, baby.
I’ve been watching through the films of Danny Boyle. Some examples: Trainspotting, Sunshine, 28 Days Later, Slumdog Millionaire. From early on, Boyle was rightfully recognized for his edgy and sophisticated musical taste—the Trainspotting soundtrack alone, from Iggy’s “Lust for Life” through Underworld’s “Born Slippy (Nuxx)”, helped define the tastes of a whole generation.