Frank Lenz shifts background in ‘Strictly Background’
Kevin Bronson on
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A couple of weeks ago at the Los Angeles United Film Festival, I caught a screening of “Strictly Background,” director Jason Connell’s poignant documentary that looks into the lives of 10 people who chase The Dream by working as movie extras. [Here’s the trailer.] The film, just released in North America in March, not only interested me for its storylines but for its score, done by Frank Lenz, a longtime session guy from Huntington Beach who’s played with some of my favorite SoCal bands, including Starflyer 59. (He’s currently Richard Swift’s drummer.)
“Strictly Background” originally screened at festivals with a soundtrack featuring the likes of U2, ELO, the Thrills, Badly Drawn Boy, Talking Heads, the Flaming Lips and Eels. No way, however, could the filmmakers afford to obtain the rights to those artists’ songs for their final product. So Lenz rather artfully composed and recorded songs reminiscent of them. The soundtrack was just released on O.C.-based Velvet Blue Music. Here’s Lenz, channeling some 1976 …
||| Download: “You Can’t Help Yourself”
[…] Removing my pre-supposed version of the film from the equation, here’s what I like, love, and feel indifferent about when it comes strictly to the soundtrack. There are a few tracks with vocals, these are simply well-crafted pop songs, despite the shortened length of a few of these. My personal favorite track of this type is probably “Getting Older is Getting Bolder.” The track is very reminiscent of the eccentric pop rock of Ben Kweller. The other pop track that I like most is “You Can’t Help Yourself” which has an Elvis Costello feel (download this song for free at Buzz Bands). […]