Tag: Siouxsie and the Banshees

100 Years or Goodbye Yellow Brick Road

Does Music Make a Difference When Shooting and Editing Photos?

By Mitchell Slepian

Hello, readers. As my regulars are aware, ninety-nine percent of the time, the images in my stories have been shot and edited with my Nikon camera. As Paul Simon sings, I like to take photographs. My Kodachrome sits on a table next to an old Nikon that was a workhorse and is now out of commission.

Sheepshead Bay by Emmons Avenue – Edited to Sir Elton

When shooting and editing, I always have songs in my head. One of my all-time favorite songs is “100 Years,” the opening track on The Cure’s “Pornography” album. It might be the darkest, most goth album of all time. I listen to it nonstop. Here’s a taste of Robert Smith’s (The Cure’s founder, lead singer, and possibly the best songwriter ever) lyrics. “It doesn’t matter if we all die. Ambition in the back of a black car.” I listen to lots of other great artists. Some are happier than The Cure. Of course, some are just as dark. Here’s a partial mix: Bauhaus, David Bowie, Billy Joel, Depeche Mode, Erasure, Sir Elton John, Joy Division, John Lennon (probably the best musician of all time), Led Zeppelin, Bob Marley, The Psychedelic Furs, The Smiths, Siouxsie and the Banshees, U2 and The Who. And the list goes on.

Red Flower – Edited to Sir Elton

It’s not unusual for me to have some of these lyrics floating through my brain when I’m shooting. “Confusion in her eyes that says it all. She’s lost control. And she’s clinging to the nearest passerby.” – “She’s out of Control,” Joy Division “Girl of sixteen, whole life ahead of her. Slashed her wrists, bored with life. Didn’t succeed, thank the Lord.” – “Blasphemous Rumors” – Depeche Mode “Back to the howling old owls. Hunting the horny back toad” – “Goodbye Yellow Brick Road” – Sir Elton and “Before you cross the street. Take my hand. Life is what happens to you. While you’re busy making other plans” – “Beautiful Boy” – John Lennon. He always nailed it. They all do.

One can be sure the songs in my head while I am shooting affect how they are taken. I might adjust the ISO and F-stop based on how I am feeling. In case you were wondering, I do not listen to music on my iPhone. I hate headphones. I used to wear my Walkman’s headphones slightly above or below my ears. Sometimes I still do that with headphones when I am Zooming or watching things on YouTube. Songs always go through my head. It gets me through the days. Or as Robert Smith says, “In Between Days.” That’s on the “Head on the Door” album.

Bees Fetching Honey – Edited to the Cure

The other day, I was editing some images from Emmons Avenue, Sheepshead Bay and the New York Botanical Garden while listening to Sir Elton. Then I switched to a mix of The Cure, Echo and the Bunnymen, Erasure, and Psychedelic Furs, Siouxie and the Banshees. Erasure brings back memories of camp. The Cure, Erasure, and the Furs bring back old memories of dating and driving around in my old Caddy with the girls I liked. We usually listened to those bands. My first date was to see The Cure with Love & Rockets and the Pixies as the openers. We were too young to buy beer. We shared M&M’s.  I still think about all of this when certain songs play. 

The Hanging Flower – Edited to The Cure

Look at the images and see if you can tell the difference. This was written and edited to Led Zep’s “How the West Was Won.” With final touches while listening The latest from The Cure: “Songs of a Lost World.”

Pomengranate – 18

Marc was sitting on his chair with his Talmud. He took a break from seeing his “girlfriends”. He kept working, going to the gym, watching baseball, and praying. Years ago, an older rabbi, who happens to be kohanim told him to spend more time learning. He told him stories about how it helped other folks.

He decided to give it a shot. He read quite a bit about the blessings, Shabbos, and fruits of the Holy Land. He found himself getting stronger. He still questioned things. But he read about his weapons — barley, honey and pomegranates, and their importance. He found himself eating these items more often.

He hadn’t had to fight anyone in a few weeks. But he trained and found when he shot out his weapons (he practiced in his apartment) they were hitting their targets with more finesse. He did find strength in the spirituality of things. That’s why as a scout he loved the Order of the Arrow’s rituals so much.

He put his Talmud down and hopped into his car. On his ride up to his old college campus, he planned his next trip to Jerusalem.

He drove down Main Street and saw the same bars he went to as a college kid. He saw some new ones in the place of the old haunts. And of course, “Gourmet Pizza” was still there. “Wings and Things” was gone.

He exited his vehicle and walked across campus. He was in awe of the new buildings, both residence halls, and academic centers. He went to the bridges that sat above the famous “gunk”. Thoughts drifted back into his head when he was a pledge and had to say a poem and bow before crossing each bridge.

He remembered when some of his friends puked their guts up into the gunk, watching some of the tougher frats and sororities make their pledges jump in. And some special moments he had with his girlfriend on one of the bridges. Those were the days. He spent a few hours walking across campus.

Meanwhile, Jen was sitting at her piano. She hadn’t played in a long time. But decided she would practice and maybe play one night in a bar. Alana was strolling Soho. Siouxsie and the Banshees were playing on her phone. She had flashbacks to when she dressed like Siouxsie Sioux. She went to a yoga spa. She’d been going there for a few days. She found it unwinding. And she felt her powers growing as she was deep in her posture.

She had her night with Tzipora deeply embedded in her mind. She wasn’t sure if she wanted to try again. She considered herself very fortunate that she had the chance. She wondered if she should meet some new guy, settle down and have a kid. Her clock is ticking. So is Jen’s.