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As reported earlier on Listening Post, and every fanboy site on Earth,
starlet Scarlett Johansson will release a Tom Waits cover album called Anywhere I Lay My Head on May 20. The first video for "Falling Down" surfaced recently on imeem, giving critics and groupies alike the first chance to see and hear the finished product.
As for the video, other than sequences of Scarlett looking tired while blowing bubbles and getting her makeup applied or hair done, there isn't much to work with. And there aren't any shots of Scarlett actually singing or lip-syncing her way through the handheld camerawork, either. The music itself is a dreamy lull, courtesy of TV on the Radio honcho Davie Sitek's production. But Johansson's vocals are mixed low enough and hew closely to a comfortable range, which she never attempts to transgress. In other words, it's a pretty safe experiment. Nothing ventured, nothing gained.
So, why Waits? Originally, Johansson was going to cover a the Tom Waits/Bette Midler duet "I Never Talk to Strangers" but changed her mind. "I thought, 'Maybe I could add more Tom Waits songs,'" she explained in a press release. "Then it became, 'Maybe I should just do all Tom Waits songs.'"
Mission, such as it is, accomplished.
See Also:
- Listening Party: Scarlett Johansson Does Tom Waits
- Tom Waits Announces Tour With Fake Press Conference
- My Bloody Valentine To Bruise North America At Last
- Sub Pop Turns 20, Takes Flight With Conchords
Photo: Atco Records
