To mark the launch of a new documentary, Oxford bands are making music from the movies. Tim Hughes finds out more

There's a great moment at the opening of classic coming of age movie Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, where our hero turns to camera and utters the immortal line: “Life moves pretty fast. If you don’t stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it”.

Even though it features in a fairly silly film, as a truism, it’s hard to beat.

That world of teenage life, in all its complicated glory and stoner wisdom, forms the centre point of a great night of movie music, in the unlikely setting of Modern Art Oxford on Tuesday.

And, to quote another legendary teen flick, Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure, it promises to be “most triumphant”.

The show sees Oxford artists Salvation Bill, Be Good, We Aeronauts, Julia Meijer, Flights of Helios and Waltz in the Shallow End performing tracks from classic teen movie soundtracks, to celebrate the screening of new documentary Beyond Clueless.

The film, the first by critic Charlie Lyne and produced by Greyfriars, Oxford, alumna Catherine Bray, explores the cultural phenomenon of the teen movie and the portrayal of adolescence in such pictures as Mean Girls, Jeepers Creepers and Ginger Snaps, all to a soundtrack by Summer Camp. It will be shown earlier that evening at the Phoenix Picture House, in Walton Street.

The after-show gig is the brainchild of PinDrop Music promoter Sebastian Reynolds, who also plays keys in Flights of Helios.

“I’m really interested to see these bands putting their own twist on songs from these films,” he says. “Many of the artists are young scamps themselves or are young at heart or have a freshness, and sense of naivety, to their music.”

He admitted to being a fan of the genre, saying: “It’s not like I’m at home watching Clueless every night, but I have seen a few of those movies and they are very evocative. It’s an important part of modern culture and this is an interesting way to explore it. And it’s always nice seeing bands do something a little bit different from their usual set.”

He said his personal favourite was Baz Luhrmann’s adaptation of Romeo and Juliet, with Flights of Helios planning to adapt one of the Radiohead songs from the film for their set on the night.

“Romeo and Juliet is the original teen love story, and Shakespeare’s influence shines through many of these films,” he says. “The movie 10 Things I Hate About You, for example, is a re-adaptation of the Taming of the Shrew.”

He declined to reveal which other tunes he’d be playing, saying: “It’s being hotly debated – and we want to keep the audience guessing!”

Salvation Bill – aka multi-instrumentalist singer-songwriter Ollie Thomas from East Oxford – will be playing tunes from Donnie Darko and Say Anything, in his own inimitable style. He said: “Beyond Clueless analyses the psychology of teen movies, and Seb asked us if we’d do something in response, picking music from some of our favourite high school movies.

Oxford Mail:
Movie magic: Flights of Helios

“It’s such an unusual idea and great to get local musicians to respond to it in this way. It will be a gig in its own right, and interesting to see what the other artists do. It’s not something that’s going to happen again, that’s for sure. It’s unique.”

He added: “I’m a futuristic one-man band, but more electronic, and I’ll be doing these songs my own way. I’ll be playing on my own but making as full a band noise as possible, using loop pedals and samples to build up layers.”

So has he done much research? “Oh yes!” he laughs. “In fact we all got together to watch a load of teen movies in our pajamas – with a big tub of ice cream!”

It promises to be a fun night, with more than a few surprises.

As a fresh-faced Keanu Reeves might have said: “Come down, be excellent to each other – and party on dudes!"

CHECK IT OUT
The Beyond Clueless after-screening party is at Modern Art Oxford on Tuesday, from 8pm. Tickets are £5 (£3 concs) from modernartoxford.org.uk
Beyond Clueless will be screened at 6pm on Tuesday at the Phoenix Picture House

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