Head Space Daily Words...

When the freelance work has gone from steady to barely existing and you are spending so much time on your own that you start talking to yourself in the mirror for some company and human interaction, what you need is a good night at the cinema. 

After settling down in my seat within a packed and expectant audience, the last thing I wanted to see was a film whose chief protagonist starts talking to himself in the mirror for some company and human interaction. That is what happened though. The moody strains of the opening titles to Taxi Driver began to play and we were into THE WRONG FILM.  There was some verbal indignation expressed by a 50 something, well groomed guy with dominant side burns, before a dead pan heckler at the back told him it was just the start of a long trailer.

As the murmurs of discontent grew, a flustered young employee of the Prince Charles Cinema in Leicester Square entered Screen 3, to assure everyone that the correct film would be brought to us in two minutes and lo and behold, two minutes later, current British independent movie Northern Soul was there in front of us, with the gritty Northern glory of its opening shots.

As regular readers of this blog will know, I am very much into my Northern Soul, with my vinyl collection of 7" singles steadily growing. As many of the records are, or were, lost and forgotten gems from generally small and relatively obscure independent American labels of black R&B and soul artists, the music is rooted in nostalgia and exclusivity.

Thoughts turn to talc on dance floors, with incredible dancers lost in music, swallow diving, spinning and turning their way through to early morning. What we don't think about is that these people had lives and relationships and all the emotional baggage that goes with being young and living in a dead end town. Discovering incredible music, like minded people and a new way of life, is a complete release, a total escape. I hadn't read any reviews or articles about the film and was expecting a feast of nostalgia and great music.

Instead, as well as the good tunes, we also got a fantastic story with likeable and believable characters. It was a question of sit back, suspend your disbelief and enjoy the ride.

The story of a young guy discovering music and a club scene to enjoy with his mates, made me think back to my own clubbing days in the early 1990s, with the all nighters, the people, the endless stories and comic tragic mishaps, the white labels (reminiscent of the Northern cover up,)the dodgy deals, flicking through endless racks of records and everything else that went with it - but above all, the music.

I already own many of the tracks featured in the film on reissued 7" singles but the nice little 7" box set of all the featured tracks is definitely going to be added to my wish list.

Northern Soul the movie is a bitter sweet excursion through the emotions of growing up, getting an identity and finding yourself through music. Support British cinema, go see it - or add it to your own wish list.