Podcast - Soundtracking with Bruce Springsteen

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“We’re always trying to find someone whose broken pieces fit with our broken pieces.”

Last Autumn I spent a quiet afternoon hiding out at the cinema watching Bruce Springsteen’s film Western Stars. I have to confess I don’t know his music too well but the movie, well, the movie is just beautiful. It’s a sweeping meditation. A performance film intercut with stories about the songs and stunning footage of the American landscape. It makes you feel like you’re out on the open road, under an endless starry sky and in a bar with your best friends at the same time. The songs are accompanied by a 30 piece orchestra and Springsteen’s unmistakable vocal.

This gorgeous interview digs deeper into why he made the movie. Springsteen talks about how he wanted to immerse himself in thoughts about “love and difficulty of love” and asks “how do you move from being an individual into a life that’s filled with… communal experience.” The discussion is dotted with clips of music from the film and it’s just lovely. A perfect listen for a walk out in the fresh air.

Episode 177: Bruce Springsteen & Thom Zimny On The Music Of Western Stars

It's been a very good week for Soundtracking, with our little film music podcast nominated for two gongs at the UK's premier audio industry awards, the ARIAs. And who better to celebrate with than one of the biggest names in the music business, Bruce Springsteen.

Santa Lucia Day In Copenhagen

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In December I returned to Copenhagen for a few days escape. I explored some new areas including Christianshavn where I wandered down a picture perfect street called Wildersgade. I also visited the Glyptotek gallery for a second time and spent a while looking around the magnificent sculptures including the two huge lions in one of the lobbies. It’s wonderful that the word for lion in Danish is løve.

One of the main reasons I visited was to experience the Santa Lucia Day celebrations that take place each year on December 13th. In Scandinavia this date coincided with Winter Solstice and the day celebrates light coming back into the darkness. You can read more about the tradition here. I heard about a lovely, quirky custom that the kayak clubs of Copenhagen embrace. As the light fades, they cover their kayaks in fairylights and take to the canal. Hundreds of them drifting along the water. Crowds gathered and there was a lovely sense of calm as we all watched spellbound.