Music
Michael Jackson’s ‘Thriller’ Being Added To The National Film Registry
It was recently announced that for the first time in history, a music video is being named to the U.S. National Film Registry. In all fairness, it may as well be considered a film. Michael Jackson’s Thriller was not only played on tv, but was released theatrically on 35mm film. The video debuted on December 2nd, 1983 while “Thriller” wasn’t released to radio as a single until January 23rd, 1984. The album itself has sold over 100 million worldwide in the 26 years since its release. The video was helmed by An American Werewolf In London director John Landis, who also co-wrote the script for the video with Jackson. The effects in the video were created by Academy Award winning make up effects artist Rick Baker (who won for An American Werewolf In London). It also features a cameo by horror legend, Vincent Price.
“Thriller” was given this distinguished honor (being stored in a vault so when a Zombie apocalypse strikes, at least the next wave of inhabitants will know we had taste), for the fact that since its release it has been a pop cultural mainstay. The Library of Congress described the video as a lavish production that “revolutionized the music industry”. It also gave horror more mainstream appeal. There are other horror films entered in the registry; Frankenstein, Psycho and Freaks to name a few. The last time a horror film was chosen was John Carpenter’s Halloween in 2006.
It’s a new day, and you’ve got new John Carpenter to listen to. John Carpenter, Daniel Davies and Cody Carpenter have released the new track He Walks By Night this morning, the second single off their upcoming album Lost Themes IV: Noir, out May 3 on Sacred Bones Records.
Lost Themes IV: Noir is the latest installment in a series that sees Carpenter releasing new music for John Carpenter movies that don’t actually exist. The first Lost Themes was released in 2015, followed by Lost Themes II in 2016 and Lost Themes III: Alive After Death in 2021.
Sacred Bones previews, “It’s been a decade since John Carpenter recorded the material that would become Lost Themes, his debut album of non-film music and the opening salvo in one of Hollywood’s great second acts. Those vibrant, synth-driven songs, made in collaboration with his son Cody Carpenter and godson Daniel Davies, kickstarted a musical renaissance for the pioneering composer and director. With Lost Themes IV: Noir, they’ve struck gold again, this time mining the rich history of the film noir genre for inspiration.
“Since the first Lost Themes, John has referred to these compositions as “soundtracks for the movies in your mind.” On the fourth installment in the series, those movies are noirs. Like the film genre they were influenced by, what makes these songs “noirish” is sometimes slippery and hard to define, and not merely reducible to a collection of tropes. The scores for the great American noir pictures were largely orchestral, while the Carpenters and Davies work off a sturdy synth-and-guitar backbone.
“The trio’s free-flowing chemistry means Lost Themes IV: Noir runs like a well-oiled machine—the 1951 Jaguar XK120 Roadster from Kiss Me Deadly, perhaps, or the 1958 Plymouth Fury from John’s own Christine. It’s a chemistry that’s helped power one of the most productive stretches of John’s creative life, and Noir proves that it’s nowhere near done yielding brilliant results.”
You can pre-save Lost Themes IV: Noir right now! And listen to the new track below…
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