Seeing as it came out in December, I suspect that most of you reading this in America have already seen ‘Juno’. Well, after months (probably about 6) months of anticipation, it finally hit the cinemas here in February. Considering the length of time it’s been floating around in your parts, I intend not to write a film review, but more of a music-in-the-film review. Firstly, it’s fair to say that I am a HUGE Kimya Dawson fan. In the 4 or so years that I’ve listened to her music, it’s affected my life in more ways than I can count. Saying that, it was a very odd experience to hear her songs (notably Tireswing, So Nice, So Smart, My Rollercoaster *WITHOUT THE LYRICS*, Loose Lips *ditto, I believe*, and Sleep) booming out of the big screen speakers into the massive audience. Although there’s always the fear something could happen to my precious music, I found that it was played at exactly the right points to fit the film, and really added a lot to it in terms of continuity and all round cuteness. Of course these were not Kimya’s only contributions to the film.
As well as a couple of Antsy Pants song (a band Kimya is in with some friends, they sing very cute kid songs and generally rock the fuck out), including the fabulous Vampire closing the credits, the moldy peaches’ contribution was super important. The use of Anyone Else But You (what I believe to be one of the greatest love songs I have ever owned) really took the film, and relationship of Juno and the delectable Bleeker, up about a million levels. As one of my favourite things about the Moldy Peaches was their ability to split the vocals 50/50, dish them out, and bring them back together to make a song so tight and so romantic that I want to cry when I sing it. I rarely do though, because I smile so much. Anyway…. it really worked. 
As well as pumping in my favourite duo and my favourite singer (apart from Jeffrey Lewis) to an insane degree, the soundtrack also features some of my other favourite bands, Belle and Sebastian and the Velvet Underground. The thing about the Velvet Underground is that they can have songs with 18 minutes of feedback solo (see Sister Ray) or they can flip right round to perfect little pop songs that almost out-twee Belle and Sebastian. Obviously here, they plumped for the latter with I’m Sticking With You. Belle and Sebastian offered two songs to the film, Expectations (ironic as it is, not actually about pregnancy, despite the misleading name) and Piazza, New York Catcher slotted in rather nicely and made me incredibly happy. If you haven’t seen this film, I don’t want to give too much away, but at the distressing climax of this film a song is played that literally broke my heart in two. It was a song that I am slightly ashamed to say I hadn’t heard before. That song is Cat Power’s Sea of Love. Taken from her covers album, it’s literally in the top 10 most depressing/beautiful songs I have ever heard. The thing about it is (similarly to her amazing cover of the Velvet Underground’s I Found A Reason), the lyrics profess love, and can definitely be read as a song of love, rather than heartbreak. Somehow she has the ability to completely mutate this. I don’t know how she does it, but it’s wonderful. All in all, great film (getting amazing reviews from everyone here, sort of freaking me out), even better music, and Michael Cera. What more do you need? (PS- Paragraphs stopped working for me half way through this post, sorry)
