Musicians, comic artists compose soundtrack
By Christopher Heine
Staff writer
Kat Bjelland, a punk rock singer since high
school, sat on her bed after a party thrown by
friends on her 32nd birthday.
She was enjoying one of the many gifts given
Soherthal night: a collection of the popular comic
books “Witehblade.”
By the end of the reading that night, the lead
singer of notorious female punk band Babes in
Toyland had an idea.
“I wanted to blow people’s minds with a sound
track to my end-of-the-world dreams,” Bjelland
said in a formal press release.
From that brainchild a new marketing mar
riage was bom: the comic book soundtrack
Two years ago, Bjelland was commissioned by
Dreamworks Records to produce the album. She
quickly^ recruited several notable musicians (Lydia
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The Jerks) and a co-writer,
David Wohl.
The result was the first offi
cial release of its kind - “Songs
of the Witchblade: A
Soundtrack to the Comic Books.’
BjeUand said the creative expe
rience for the album was more than
just another project
“It was scary because I didn’t
have the usual parameters (to work
With),” she said. “I was venturing
iritoiineharted territory.”
Bjelland’s work with _
Minneapolis-based Babes in
Toyland helped her employ the noisy
and spooky familiarities of modern
punk rock to the soundtrack.
On the band’s 1991 release “To Mother,”
Bjelland at times sings with a ghostly voice to
punctuate her lyrical themes.
Her work
on the sound
track shows the
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vocalist has not
lost interest in express
ing her darker side.
“The music is
ethereal and haunt
ing, ” Bjelland said.
“But it’s not confined
to one genre - it’s too
weird for that”
Chris Delay, |
assistant manager at
Cosmic Comics, 200 N.
66th St., said the sound
track works well with the comic book.
“The album has an appropriate gothic feel that
fits well,” he said. “It tells a story and sets a mood
for the city.”
“Witchblade” is set in New York City and its
heroine, Sara Pezzini, is taken from
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the television series, “NYPD
Blue.”
On the recording, Bjelland
I plays the animated version of
I Sara Pezzini, who enjoys charac
| teristics one would expect from a
1 heroine.
| She is a powerful, muscular
I force who deals with evil in an
I illuminated world divided
I between reality and mythology.
Bjelland said it was natural
for her to emulate the
Pezzini character on the
soundtrack because they
are both complex per
sonas.
“My voice lent itself to her character pretty
well,” she said “She goes through so many per
sonality changes, and so do I.
“Besides, we both like screaming our heads
off.”
Bjelland, in a phone
interview from
Minneapolis, said she
enjoys the “realms of
mythology in comics.”
The history of rock
‘n’ roll is sprinkled shar
ing performers with
similar inclinations to
Bjelland.
One only
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embodied in Jackie Estacado.
has to think of
David Bowie’s
“ Z i g g y
Stardust” or
today s Maniyn Manson to
understand the music’s con
nection to mythology, fanta
sy and animation.
Could the comic book
soundtrack become an industry trend for musi
cians?
Delay, who has worked at Cosmic Comics for
more than three years, believes the answer is a
resounding “yes”
because oi a grow
ing market for
comic book
byproducts.
Witchblade (sound
track) is a pretty good sell
er,” he said. “It’s selling
right along with the toys and
the T-shirts.
“People get into a cer
tain character and believe
they have to have every
thing associated with it.”
Delay said musicians
like Bjelland have always
been fans of comics.
Performers such as Gary
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The Wftehbtede.
Newman and Glenn Danzig, he said, have made
unofficial attempts at producing comic book
soundtracks but met little recognition for their
efforts.
Delay agreed that rock ’n’ roll musicians seem
to be both attracted and inspired by the realm
or comic rantasy, due to their similar natures.
I “Both mediums tend to deal with
darker themes,” he said. ’
Bjelland, who worked on the pro
ject for 18 months, said her desire to do
a project like “Witehblade” stems back
to childhood
“When I was young,” she said, “I
remember telling my dad while I was
sitting at the piano that I wanted to do
soundtracks to scary movies.
“This is {Hetty close.”
... “Witehblade” is now available
in stores, and while you shouldn’t
expect another Babes album, it
might be just interesting and cer
tainly as ethereal.
Effects don’t save drowsy
‘What Dreams May Come’
By Jason Hardy
Senior staff writer
It is widely believed that when
people die they go somewhere. It
could be heaven, could be hell, could
be somewhere else. Well, wherever I
go, I sure hope this movie isn’t show
ing there.
Polygram Films’ latest release,
“What Dreams May Come,” offers a
lot of exciting and creative imagery
but little in the way of an interesting
plot line. The story attempts to com
bine elements from a number of dif
ferent religions but ultimately comes
off very vague and confusing, requir
ing the viewer to say, “OK, I guess
that could happen,” quite often.
The film tells the story of Chris
Nielsen (Robin Williams) who dies
unexpectedly and goes to heaven,
which is, for him, existing in one of
his wife’s paintings. However, nice as
it is, he simply can’t get over losing
his wife Annie (Annabella Sciorra),
who is somewhat of a mental case to
begin with, but even more so after
Chris’ death.
When he is told that Annie can
never join him in heaven he decides
he has to find her and embarks on a
journey through heaven, hell and
everything in between to save her
from her own agony, just like he
always did on Earth.
A major problem with this story
is that the leading lady is quite
unlikeable. Basically, she’s just a
mental wreck who is totally depen
dent on Chris for even the slightest of
life’s challenges, and it’s hard to
believe that their love for each other is
strong enough for a connection
between earth and the afterlife.
Annie, a severely depressed painter,
is such a weak person that it’s hard to
understand why Chris, the man with it
all together, would care about her so
much as to ultimately serve only as
her crutch in the marriage.
The Facts
Title: "What Dreams May Come’'
Stars: Robin Williams, Cuba Gooding, Jr.,
Annabella Sciorra
Director: Vincent Ward
Rating: PG-13
Grade: C
Flve Words: Wake up and stay home
The plot is too complicated and
much of the film is spent building up
to the climax, which is ultimately
lacking. The ending is cheesy and
angelically optimistic, and in the end,
the notable special effects just aren’t
enough to make this film worthwhile.
The acting by Williams is impres
sive at times but his character is only
explored superficially and we never
really know what inspired or cultivat
ed this intense love for his wife. Also,
Courtesy Photo
CHRIS (ROBIN WILLIAMS) and Annie Nielsen (Annabella Sciorra) are reunit
ed in the cinematic wet-paint dream “What Dreams May Come.” Chris
struggles throughout the film to regain his wife in the afterlife.
Cuba Gooding Jr. does a fine job in
his portrayal of Albert, Chris’ friend
from Earth who is also in Heaven.
Unfortunately, he isn’t on the screen
for much of the movie.
The plot limitations put on him
and Williams greatly hinder this film
and both heavenly characters could
have been fleshed out much more.
While the images and ideas illus
trated in “What Dreams May Come”
are exciting, the overall effect is a
shallow attempt at representing the
afterlife and a dull portrayal of two
people’s love for one another. Rather
than seeing this movie I recommend
drinking a warm glass of milk and
hitting the sack. Hopefully, you’ll
find something a little more interest
ing in your own dreams.