Juicebox with a Kick: Punch-Drunk Love (Soundtrack)

For the second time in the history of the podcast, we've got a bit of a juicebox on our hands. Your hosts are falling rapidly in love with the work of Jon Brion, the composer of the Punch-Drunk Love soundtrack.  NHR, who was already an afficianado of the film itself, explains how the soundtrack brilliantly mirrors and reinforces the action. Tristan, encouraged by the one song Brion sings on the soundtrack (Here We Go), together with the fact that Brion was the producer of Robyn Hitchcock's Jewels For Sophia, is now getting into Brion's only released solo album, Meaningless (2001, reissued 2022). This rich work (Meaningless, not the Punch-Drunk Love soundtrack), with its chequered history, is a prime example of a certain kind of highly produced piece of work by a perfectionist artist who serves liberally as a tonic to others but struggles with their own stuff (cf. Van Dyke Parks). We got rid of our one segment, where we guess about the topic. It's probably best if you don't think about whether you ever enjoyed it. Punch-Drunk Love is the 2002 soundtrack album featuring music composed by Jon Brion for the film of the same name. The album includes the song "He Needs Me" by Shelley Duvall from Robert Altman's 1980 film Popeye. The soundtrack received an enthusiastic review from classical music critic Greg Sandow.\[1] Brion provides main vocals (in addition to playing most of the instruments) in the song "Here We Go". Theme music by Edward Lonsdale. Tristan on Instagram. NHR on Instagram. We Can Pedia on Instagram