Indiepop is perhaps the last bastion of the underground. Too nerdy to be really cool, too odd to be mainstream, to gosh-darn happy to be ‘alternative’, it falls down the cracks of accepted ‘indie’ music. Occasionally, one of the dozens of DIY bands springing up from Stockholm to Brooklyn will break through and give indiepop a good name. The next band to hit the big time are New York’s The Pains of Being Pure at Heart. Emerging from a vibrant indie scene huddling in Lower East Side clubs like Cake Shop (cupcakes and records anyone? Yes please!), with perfect pop tunes, boy/girl vocals, luscious harmonies and inspiration drawn from the likes of The Pastels, My Bloody Valentine and Black Tambourine, they bring us another step nearer to twirling, swirling pop perfection. Their debut album is due out in February 2009 on Fortuna Pop! and they are touring the UK from December 2 to 18 with The Wedding Present. For more details, visit their website. LUCY HURST
PEGGY
1- Clueless (1995)
Timeless. I’ve probably seen it more times than any other. When I went to see No Country for Old Men in the theatre I thought it was stupid. Later on that night Clueless came on TV and I was like: ‘Now THIS is a true cinematic masterpiece!’
2- The Sixth Sense (1999)
One of the only movies that has ever struck a chord with me and made me cry. Being that I am an emotionless robot, that is quite a feat.
3- Fat Girl (À Ma Soeur) (2001)
It’s about two sisters. One is sad and fat while the other is charming and beautiful. I’m an only child but I always had fucked up female friendships growing up, so I really related to this movie. It captures the complex dichotomy of love and envy that is so prevalent in female relationships.
KIP
4- Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure (1989)
I saw this when I was about nine and it had a really huge impact on me. It’s about these best friends who end up saving the world by starting the most amazing band ever, aligning the planets and causing world peace. They also travel through history (I had a really big crush on Joan of Arc). At the end they get the medieval princesses they rescued to be in their band, which is why I like co-ed bands the best.
5- All Jane Austen Movies
I used to watch these with my mom all the time growing up. The four-hour BBC version of Pride and Prejudice starring Colin Firth is probably my favourite but Emma is not to be underestimated (its contemporary remake, Clueless, would have been my other favourite movie if Peggy had not already chosen it!).
6- Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (1971)
The modern remake with Johnny Depp was a bit Michael Jackson-y because only Gene Wilder could play an eccentric old candy tycoon that wanted a little boy to leave his family and live with him NOT SEEM CREEPY AT ALL.
ALEX
7- Wild at Heart (1990)
Probably my favourite David Lynch movie. It is not as obscure as a lot of beloved Lynch stuff, although it does have its share of weirdness (Willem Dafoe!). The characters are great, especially Sailor and Lula. It’s very hard to steer a love story away from cliché but they really nail it here.
8- The Sandlot (1993)
I’ve seen this probably a hundred times. It’s a kids’ movie but it’s so goofy and full of fun moments it somehow transcends that. Again, great characters such as Benny ‘The Jet’ Rodriguez, ‘The Great Hambino’ and ‘Yeah-Yeah’.
9- Wild Zero (2000)
A Japanese alien zombie movie featuring the (awesome) garage rock band Guitar Wolf playing themselves. But with superpowers! Especially fun to watch with the drinking game feature on the DVD (you have to drink a shot every time a listed thing happens on screen, including ‘hair combing’ which happens more than you’d think!).
10- The Seventh Seal (1957)
This is a clichéd ‘film nerd’ pick, but it’s undeniably good. I saw this recently and was amazed how accessible it is. I was expecting an almost cripplingly high-minded art film – full of ‘visual clues’ and ‘tropes’, which it does have, but it is also weirdly funny. Although there are some dreary moments, it’s not slow or overly moralising. It’s mostly just absolutely gorgeous and deeply moving.