To celebrate the release of her first album, ’Be Sweet to Me’, Violet Grohl shares a list of six films that inspired the album. Lost Highway Lost Highway was a big visual inspiration for the music video for my song “595.” There are lots of bits and pieces throughout the movie that are somewhat humorous in a very David Lynch way that my producer Justin Raisen and I really latched onto when we watched his movies. We wanted to use that ultra American almost satirical comedy throughout the album and in some of the music videos as well just to keep it light hearted and fun through the vulnerability. Singles Singles is one of my favorite movies of all time. It’s the only rom-com I can truly stomach to be honest. I don’t think there’s a movie that’s more ’90s than Singles. I love the musical cameos. I love the performances. The soundtrack is on another level. It’s grunge gold. It’s treasure. It’s just funny and brilliant. Lots of the bands in this movie heavily inspired my writing and the sound I love so much. It’s amazing to see them having fun while still doing the thing they do while just popping their head in in a movie. The Decline of Western Civilization The Decline of Western Civilization is one of my favorite documentaries of all time. It’s definitely my favorite music documentary. I love the Talking Heads bits. It was really inspiring to me when I was writing “Cool Buzz” as well. I just wanted to lean into those roots and pay homage to the sound that I love and the scene that I love so much while also critiquing the way people go about themselves in that scene. I was extremely inspired by X’s opening performance of “Nausea”. When I was younger, I did a cover of that song with my dad when I was fourteen. I have always looked up to the bands in that movie and their stage presence and the sonics it’s just so perfect. I recommend it to anyone who loves music or music history. Urgh! A Music War Another favorite music documentary of mine is Urgh! A Music War. It showcases a lot of my favorite artists and some of my favorite performances by my favorite artists. The Cramps’ performance in this movie is unmatched, it’s so frenetic and just so them. It’s a perfect showcase of what they can do and who they were. I love Gary Numan’s performance and X is always a favorite of mine. It’s just so beautifully ’80s. Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me has been a massive creative influence. The first time I watched it I was in a hotel room in DC. It was really late at night, and I was looking for something to watch. It was at the top of my list. I was completely sucked into the story line and the characters. I hadn’t really watched Twin Peaks, just bits of it, so I kind of watched it out of order. It opened up this whole world for me that I wanted to dive into even deeper. There are lots of pieces from the Twin Peaks world that we paid homage to in my songs, in my lyrics and in my visuals. David was just a brilliant and surreal filmmaker and that’s my favorite kind of stuff. Fast Times at Ridgemont High Fast Times at Ridgemont High inspired the title for my song “Cool Buzz” which is a reference to Jeff Spicoli’s convenience store line. I’ve always had an affinity for this movie growing up in the valley and my mom grew up in the valley as well. It feels very close to home. It’s just a great comfort watch if you want something funny to put on and to enjoy.
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