Aimee Mann helps delivers mature, emotional soundtrack

GRADE: A-

It’s hard to believe, but many people once considered Aimee Mann a one hit wonder.

During the mid-1980s, she and fellow members of the band ’Til Tuesday achieved worldwide fame with their hit "Voices Carry," but soon disappeared from the charts altogether as the decade came to a close. And if you don’t remember the song, you should at least remember the video, which features a punked-out Mann, complete with spiky blond do and multiple dangling earrings, standing up and singing "Voices Carry" in the middle of an opera house.

Now, though, thanks to the admiration of "Magnolia" director Paul Thomas Anderson, Mann is reemerging into the music industry’s often wandering spotlight, appearing on nine of the soundtrack’s 13 tracks.

And Anderson, who claims Mann’s songs actually helped inspire him to write "Magnolia’s" script in the first place, uses the singer/songwriter’s work brilliantly throughout his slice-of-life, emotionally-draining work, even allowing the actors to sing along to one of her songs at the film’s end.

That song, "Wise Up," thus captures the film’s don’t-take-yourself-too-seriously edge and showcases the various characters’ numbing personas, helping to neatly conclude one of 1999’s more dramatically intense efforts with lyrics like, "No, it’s not going to stop/ ’til you wise up."

But though Anderson uses "Wise Up" with such purpose in the actual film, it is not even the best track on this amazing, Mann-heavy album. Though Mann originally wrote "Build That Wall" 10 years ago, its explorative lyrics help pinpoint the crumbling female identities of several main characters, specifically those played by Julianne Moore and Melora Walters.

Yet the song isn’t as depressing or suicide-prompting as it might sound; actually, Mann purposefully gives "Build That Wall" a definitively upbeat, 70s-sounding twist that makes full use of its wide variety of background instruments, including the piccolo, oboe, organ and drums. The result is a track that, just like Anderson’s film, ends on a smile-inducing, optimistic note.

The same rings true on "Momentum," the faster paced track Anderson used in the movie’s preview that perfectly fits Tom Cruise’s infomercial demi-god persona.

"But I can’t confront the doubts I have/ I can’t admit that maybe the past was bad/ And so, for the sake of momentum/ I’m condemning the future to death so it can match the past," Mann sings in her raspy, Carole King-like voice. Listeners rarely hear such honest, stream of consciousness lyrics in today’s empty-minded, MTV-run pop world, but Mann transcends the genre in a style all her own, almost leaving it behind altogether in the process.

And that’s perhaps just why Anderson’s adores her music so much.
Anderson even admits he didn’t write one of the film’s most memorable lines: "Now that I’ve met you, would you object to never seeing me again." That’s actually the way Mann opens one of her slower tracks, "Deathly." Here Mann drops her voice down a notch, making it sexier to fit the song’s relationship-probing tone.

"You Do," while also examining relationships, steers its focus primarily toward women: "He’s another jerk/ But you’re the one who can succeed." Though it may seem a bit preachy, it comes across as more of a story with a possible happy ending than a lecture from a mom-ish best friend. The sway-worthy rhythm, an asset that constantly plays off its guitar-happy slant, will also keep listeners enthralled with Mann’s message.

It’s unfortunate, though, that this soundtrack isn’t filled completely with Mann’s efforts. Gabrielle’s 1993 hit "Dreams" would blend in better on an "MTV Party to Go" album, and Supertramp’s two 70s contributions ("Goodbye Stranger" and "Logical Song"), although entertaining, seem out of place as well.

Still, though, the "Magnolia" soundtrack is turning out to be one of the best soundtracks to hit stores in a long while. Even after listening to it hundreds of times, you’ll never tired of its diverse offerings or Mann’s solid, alluring vocals. Sorry VH1: It seems you now have one less addition to your "Where Are They Now?" show.