Chris Malloy’s 180° South soundtrack to feature original songs by Ugly Casanova (Isaac Brock of Modest Mouse), James Mercer (The Shins) & Mason Jennings. The June 22nd release by Brushfire Records also features songs by Jack Johnson & Love as Laughter.

Brushfire Records will release the original soundtrack to director Chris Malloy’s film 180° South on June 22, 2010. The 180° South soundtrack features new music from James Mercer (The Shins, Broken Bells w/Danger Mouse), Mason Jennings, and Ugly Casanova (Isaac Brock of Modest Mouse with various collaborators) - all of whom participated significantly in the overall film project.

Songs by Jack Johnson and Love as Laughter also appear, as well as James Mercer’s cover of Neil Young’s “Journey Through The Past.” The compilation was assembled by the film’s producer, Emmett Malloy, who recently directed The White Stripes’ Under Great White Northern Lights.

Director Chris Malloy’s film strikes deeply into the heart of Patagonia’s wilderness - it was there, during the making of the film that the soundtrack was conceived. Mason Jennings and James Mercer visited Patagonia during the shooting of the film. Deeply impacted, they spent the following weeks, months and years that followed, writing music and enlisting friends such as Modest Mouse’s Isaac Brock and Jack Johnson to help get the soundtrack made.

“When we had a rough edit of the movie, we headed to Portland to Isaac’s studio to record the soundtrack for 180° South. Pulling up to an old two-story craftsman house, we could hear the peaceful sound of guitars through the windows. Chris and I stopped and stared up at the attic, completely captivated. It was not long before we were watching footage and going over ideas and it wasn’t long after that before we heard banjo, trumpet, squeezebox, drums and harmonies coming from every corner of the house. That did not stop for almost 2 weeks.”

Emmett Malloy - producer

Hey there. So I checked in to facebook and here are my responses to some of the questions you guys posted. Thanks for writing in!!

1. What is the best piece of advice you can give to aspiring musicians, that you had to learn along the way?——Just be yourself and do it because you love it. Or if you do it for some other reason, know what that reason is. And also: the thing that some people don’t like about your music will also be the thing that some people like about it.

2. Do you think your best work comes from your own life’s strife or serenity?——The best stuff comes from longing and hoping I think. Not sure about that…its mysterious.

3. What is your favorite venue and why?——The venue is always less important than the audience. I have had just as much fun in front of 10 people as 30,000.

4. How long are your legs in measurements?——Just long enough to run away. Oh measurements….2 dreams shy of a shipwreck.

5. What is your Mt. Rushmore of books? (four favorites in no particular order)——-This is hard. OK, off the top of my head….The Bible, Anna Karenina, The Road, and Mary Oliver’s New & Selected Poems.

6. I believe that bringing insight into the human condition in a way that attracts people and helps them understand life is a rare gift. In your songwriting, is this a purposeful intent or just the result of expressing your own observations and inner dialogue?—-Thank you. Well, it all just feels really important and interesting to me. I care, ya know? So I work from that place of caring and love. I know it helps me, maybe it helps others…Thank you.

7. Do you spend time understanding the scientific basis for human emotion or is it mostly intuition that guides you?—-Yes. If I find something interesting I like to learn as much as I can about it. I love listening to brain scientists talk. Or astronomers. Or doctors. Psychics. I just follow what is interesting to me, with the feeling that much of the important part about life is very subtle and mysterious. I try to pay attention to what is given to me to pay attention to. Which I suppose is intuition. I am interested. And grateful. Life is awe inspiring.

8. Who is your favorite painter/ artist? In other words, if you were to look at one painting for the rest of your life what would it be? What work of art takes your breath away?——-I really like what my children draw. I like art by children. i like Robert Motherwell. I don’t know…..I like so much…..its hard for me to think of people right now. The photographer Andreas Gursky…...I like when people draw on napkins…..I like the way those danish shipping containers look on barges….I like good simple tattoos….One painting for the rest of my life?? I don’t know….maybe I’d draw a picture of my wife…...

9. I wanted to ask you if you are scared of death. Not necessarily of dying but of death.—-Depends on the day. Some years I have thought of little else….sometimes it just seems as normal as anything or more so. I think it will be familiar.

10. I want to know if, since you’re a married person, you think it is important for humans to experience marriage.——-No. Whatever is interesting for one person may be uninteresting for another. Everyone is different. Thankfully. It is important for me but only because I met the right woman. Its not something that seems to work if it’s entered into lightly or by only one person.

11. Have you considered putting out a childrens album?—-I have thought of it. My wife and I have done kids shows a few times and really enjoyed them…..Maybe someday…when it catches my interest. Otherwise it would be unnatural and on somebody else’s vibration and that’s no fun for anybody. Kids can feel that in an instant.

Mason

Enjoy Mason’s “Happy Record Store Day” Video Blog!
Remember, the Record Store Day release is April 17!

If the above video isn’t working, you can here to watch it!

Sometimes people ask me if I have any favorite songs…...I guess I don’t have any favorites of my own. To me my songs are just a part of the whole, like leaves on the tree or something. I don’t get too attached but I love the process of writing and creating music. As far as other people’s songs I guess it is sorta similar. I love Led Zeppelin so much but would be hard pressed to pick one song to define them, let alone 5. I recently hosted a radio show in St. Paul on a great station called The Current where they asked me to spin whatever I wanted. That was fun. You can listen to the online version of it HERE.

As far as a song that I would go out and say that there is none better than, I would say Johnny Cash’s version of Bird On A Wire by Leonard Cohen. Johnny made some key lyric changes that really move it to a whole new level. Here is a live version of it. As far as I’m concerned, this is as good as it gets, performance and song.

Do You Realize? by The Flaming Lips is up there too…. and In The Still Of The Night by Cole Porter…. and Edelweiss by Rodgers and Hammerstein from the Sound Of Music…. I guess I should stop before I fully open the can of worms…. I suddenly feel like I may have addressed this before because I remember bringing up Silent Night too…. Oh well…. today I looked in the mirror and thought “what is going on with my hair???” Then I thought “my hair is starting to look like one of those composers like Beethoven,” then I thought “That makes sense. That would make sense why people always find me staring off into space too”.... speaking of Beethoven and songs, you can’t beat the Pathetique Sonata’s second movement…...

Hope to see you in Michigan and Illinois this weekend. Looking forward to it!
Mason

Minnesota


Enjoy Mason’s “Happy Spring” Video Blog