Soundtrack Your Life | A Film and TV Podcast

Nicole Barlow and Ryan Pak host Soundtrack Your Life, a podcast about the film and TV soundtracks that shape pop culture. Each episode features a guest who shares personal stories about a soundtrack that's meaningful to them. Ranging from the iconic best selling soundtracks of all time to cult favorites, they cover them all. Discover hidden gems, behind-the-scenes stories, hot debates, and deep dives into the most iconic songs in movies. 🎧 Perfect for fans of: • Movie and TV soundtracks • Original songs! Fake bands! Real good needle drops! • Music and pop culture connections • 80s, 90s and Y2K nostalgia • New soundtrack releases • Exclusive interviews with bands, artists and pop culture experts New episodes are released on the 2nd and 4th Mondays of every month. Support us on Patreon for bonus episodes and more: https://www.patreon.com/soundtrackyourlife Subscribe to our pop culture writing site at: https://blog.soundtrackyourlife.net Connect with Soundtrack Your Life on the Web: https://www.soundtrackyourlife.net https://bsky.app/profile/soundtrackyourlife.net https://twitter.com/soundtrackcast https://instagram.com/soundtrackcast Music: Phil Bertulfo of Rubber Spaniel This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis: Podscribe - https://podscribe.com/privacy Spotify Ad Analytics - https://www.spotify.com/us/legal/ad-analytics-privacy-policy/

Episodes

The Ritualists' Christian Dryden on the Queen Soundtracked Space Opera, Flash Gordon (1980)

July 14, 2025 • 51 mins

Christian Dryden, bassist and lead singer of The Ritualists, joins Nicole Barlow and Ryan Pak to talk about the Queen soundtracked 1980 Mike Hodges film, Flash Gordon. Queen took the assignment so seriously that they spent a year dedicated to creating the soundtrack for this out of this world, space opera. The iconic "Flash's Theme" and "The Hero" even made regular appearances in Queen's setlists.

Chrstian is both a huge Queen and c...

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Film Rage's Jim on How The Legend of Ochi Soundtrack (2025) Helps Isaiah Saxon Blur Fantasy and Reality

June 23, 2025 • 60 mins

(00:00:00) Introducing Jim and The Legend of Ochi
(00:09:24) The Soundtrack and Composer Dave Longstreth
(00:16:57) The Tension Building Throughout The Legend of Ochi
(00:22:22) What is an Ochi?
(00:24:17) Metal Bands in the Film
(00:26:16) The World Building of the Film
(00:29:21) Isaiah Saxon's Background
(00:30:28) Is this Film Kid Friendly?
(00:34:12) The Family Drama at the Heart of the Film
(00:36:42) Why a More Tradition Sco...

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Ryan and Nicole Try to Explain Pavements (2025), the Pavements Soundtrack, & Their Pavement Fandom

June 9, 2025 • 64 mins

(00:00:00) Intro
(00:06:24) Who is Alex Ross Perry? What is Pavements?
(00:12:46) Slanted! Enchanted!
(00:18:24) Catchy Songs, Distant Lyrics
(00:21:24) Range life
(00:27:03) Wants For the Pavements DVD/BluRay Bonus Features
(00:30:52) The Pavements Soundtrack
(00:32:51) What We Wanted to See More Of
(00:37:43) Pavement Needle Drops Not Covered in Pavements
(00:42:57) The Harness Your Hopes Phenomenon
(00:47:44) Blurring the Lines ...

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Russ Burlingame on The Needle Drops that Make The Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 1 Soundtrack a Hit

May 26, 2025 • 56 mins

Pop Culture Writer Russ Burlingame joins Nicole Barlow and Ryan Pak to talk about the soundtrack to James Gunn's 2014 film, Guardians of the Galaxy Volume 1. It's the 1st soundtrack to ever hit #1 on the Billboard Top 200 charts with all previously released songs. It's sold over 3 million copies and was the 2nd best selling soundtrack in 2014 behind only the Frozen soundtrack. Beyond sales, the soundtrack is also partly responsible...

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Writer James Deon Williams Breaks Down Boomerang's (1992) Stacked Soundtrack and Stacked Cast

May 12, 2025 • 47 mins

Pop culture writer, James Down Williams, joins Ryan to talk about the 1992 Reginald Hudlin film, Boomerang and it's 3x Platinum soundtrack. The soundtrack boasted 6 singles including Toni Braxton's "Give U My Heart" and Boyz II Men's "End of the Road", which would top the Billboard Top 100 for 13 weeks, which was a record at the time. Equally impressive is the film's cast, which included Eddie Murphy, Hallie Berry, Martin Lawrence,...

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LIMAHL (Kajagoogoo) on Why His Hits "Too Shy" and "The NeverEnding Story" Are Popular Needle Drops Now

April 21, 2025 • 48 mins

Solo artist, and lead singer of Kajagoogoo, Limahl is our guest this week and it was an honor to talk to the singer of the chart topping soundtrack song, The NeverEnding Story. It was a top 10 hit in over 15 countries, including hitting #1 in Norway, Spain and Sweden. Limahl has recently released a new single, a great cover of America's "A Horse with No Name". It's available on all digital streaming services. The video can be found...

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It's a Fandom Thing's Erin on Trent Reznor's Curation of The Natural Born Killers Soundtrack (1994)

April 14, 2025 • 75 mins

Erin Marlow of It's a Fandom Thing joins Nicole and Ryan to talk about the 1994 Oliver Stone film, Natural Born Killers. It began as a Quentin Tarantino script before Oliver Stone turned it into an entirely different thing, which is just one of many controversies that surround this film. What's not controversial is the greatness of the Natural Born Killers Soundtrack. Trent Reznor currated the soundtrack and contributed two Nine In...

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Frank Meyer (Streetwalkin' Cheetahs/Fear) on the Repo Man (1984) Soundtrack and The Film's Influence on Punk Rock

March 24, 2025 • 85 mins

Rocker Frank Meyer (The Street Walkin' Cheetahs / Trading Aces / Fear) has a new album out on 3/25 called Living Between the Lines (Kitten Robot Records) and he joins Nicole and Ryan to discuss his career and the soundtrack to the 1984 film, Repo Man. It's a soundtrack full of LA punk rock legends like Black Flag, Fear, The Plugz and the Circle Jerks. Iggy Pop contributed the theme for Repo Man being backed by a super group featuri...

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Pop Culture Yearbook’s Brad on the Hilarious and Catchy Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping (2016) Soundtrack

March 10, 2025 • 67 mins

Doink da doink! Brad from the Pop Culture Yearbook Podcast returns to Soundtrack Your Life to talk to Nicole and Ryan about the Lonely Island 2016 film, Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping. It flamed out when it was released back in 2016 but it's reached cult status with it's joke-dense comedy, super talented cast, and songs that are equally brilliant and catchy. It's a film that was funny back in 2016 and actually holds up today in...

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The Controversy with the 2025 Best Original Song Category and And a Unique Diane Warren Soundtrack fact

February 24, 2025 • 56 mins

It's time to talk the 2025 Oscars! Nicole and Ryan break down the 2025 Oscars Best Original Song category. There are some past winners (Elton John), a 16 time nominee (Diane Warren), 2 songs from Emilia Perez, and a nomination for Sing Sing. There's also a controversy regarding the category: none of the songs will be performed at the ceremony! Here our hot takes and see if you agree with our predictions!

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Space Castle's DT on The Scene from 500 Days of Summer (2009) That He Thought Was Copied From HIs Life

February 10, 2025 • 75 mins

DT, host of the Space Castle YouTube Channel, returns to Soundtrack Your Life to talk to Nicole and Ryan about Marc Webb's 2009 film, 500 Days of Summer. Lots of stories or heartbreak in our 20s follows since this film is a perfect backdrop for our Valentines Day episode. Tales of heartbreak, dumping someone over their bad music taste, making mixtapes, and more are shared as we dive into the time capsule that is 2009.

Chapters:
00:00...

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Movies and Us' Jen and Sarah on How Kogonada's Directing & Hammock's Score Transform Columbus (2017)

January 27, 2025 • 66 mins

Jen and Sarah from Movies and Us join Nicole Barlow and Ryan Pak to talk about Kogonada's 2017 directorial debut, Columbus. The film is intimate and captures smaller moments. Hammock's gorgeous ambient score is the perfect compliment to the visuals. Kogonada would follow up Columbus with 2021's After Yang and he would direct episodes of Disney Plus' Star Wars: Acoylte series.

Chapters:

00:00:00 Introducing Jen and Sarah and Colu...

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Slinky Vagabond's Keanan Duffty Explains Why the Labyrinth (1986) Soundtrack Still Resonates Today

January 13, 2025 • 76 mins

A man of many talents, Keanan Duffty is our guest for this episode. His band, Slinky Vagabond, has a new album coming out on January 14th. You can pre-order that here. He is also a fashion designer, one who has collaborated with the iconic David Bowie on his 2008 fashion line for Target. Since Keanan is a Bowie fan and collaborator, Ryan and Nicole thought it would be only fitting to talk to him about Jim Henson's 1986 film, Labyri...

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Scott Interrante and Tara Giancaspro On The Muppet Christmas Carol (1992) & Where It Ranks Among The Muppet Films

December 18, 2024 • 81 mins

Happy Holidays!
Scott Interrante of This is the Greatest Song I've Ever Heard in My Entire Life and Tara Giancaspro of xoxo Gossip Giancaspro join Nicole and Ryan to talk about The Muppet Christmas Carol, which begs the question, "Do we even like the general story of A Christmas Carol?" Our answers to that question will shock you as well our answers to "who is in your muppet big 3?" We also discuss which human should accompany the M...

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What 70s/80s band is Jim from Film Rage Reminded of When He Hears the Score for We Live in Time (2024)?

December 9, 2024 • 65 mins

Jim from Film Rage joins Nicole and Ryan to talk about John Crowley's 2024 film, We Live in Time. The score is handled by Bryce Dessner (The National, Big Red Machine), and this is Dessner's 2nd score for 2024, the other being for Sing Sing, which was released earlier this year. Dessner's non-traditional score is very front and center in this non-linear romance film.

(Pre)Order the soundtrack here:

Chapters
0:00:000 - 04:22/259 Show /...

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Music Rewind's Stephen Epley on Discovering Soul Music via the Soundtrack to The Commitments (1991)

December 2, 2024 • 65 mins

Stephen Epley, host of Music Rewind, joins Nicole and Ryan to talk about the soundtrack to Alan Parker's 1991 film, The Commitments. The film deserverdly racked up nominations at the BAFTAS, Golden Globes and the Oscars, but it's soundtrack is what really took off in the US and around the world. It went 2x Platinum in the US, 3x Platinum in the UK, and it was a huge hit in Canada, Australia, New Zealand and Sweden. It was so succes...

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DrumTalk TV's Dan Shinder Explains Why He's One of the Drummers of This is Spinal Tap (1984)

November 11, 2024 • 77 mins

Dan Shinder, founder of DrumTalkTV joins Nicole and Ryan to talk about the soundtrack to the 1984 Rob Reiner Mockumentary, This is Spinal Tap, and how it might be more realistic than a lot of rock biopics out there. We break down the big hair, on-stage disasters, dressing room shenanigans, and of course, THE MUSIC. From "Hell Hole" to "Stonehenge" and everything in between, Dan connects the dots between the absurd events in the fil...

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Middle Class Film Class' Pete Abeyta on the Punch Drunk Love Soundtrack (2002) and Jon Brion's Gorgeous Score

October 28, 2024 • 73 mins

Pete Abeyta from the Middle Class Film Class Podcast/YouTube Channel, joins Nicole and Ryan to talk about the soundtrack to Paul Thomas Anderson's 2002 film, Punch Drunk Love. This soundtrack consists of a wonderful score by producer/composer/mad scientist, Jon Brion, who also composed the scores to films that we've covered in previous episodes like, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, and Magnolia. Brion also reworks the iconic...

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DT of Space Castle Finds The Score and Soundtrack for Scott Pilgrim vs The World (2010) Perfect

October 14, 2024 • 65 mins

DT, host of Space Castle on YouTube (formerly the podcast), joins Nicole and Ryan to talk about the soundtrack to the 2010 Edgar Wright film, Scott Pilgrim vs the World. That means discussing Sex B-Bomb, Crash and the Boys, Clash at Demonhead, and the real life musicians behind them like Beck, Broken Social Scene, Metric, and more!We talk about this stacked soundtrack plus:

Edgar Wright's real life interaction that he used in th...

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Director Dr. Augusta Palmer Talks About Exploring Her Father's Legacy in The Blues Society (2023)

September 23, 2024 • 46 mins

Director of The Blues Society, Dr. Augusta Palmer, and Memphis radio DJ legend, Henry Nelson join Ryan to talk about the 2023 documentary, The Blues Society. The film has recently become available for rental and purchase on digital platforms. We Discuss:

The origin of the film and when Dr. Palmer learned that her father was involved with organizing the Memphis Country Blues Festival
Henry Nelson's memories about the festival and ...

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Soundtrack Your Life | A Film and TV Podcast

Episodes

.css-14f5ked{margin:0;word-break:break-word;display:-webkit-box;-webkit-box-orient:vertical;box-orient:vertical;-webkit-line-clamp:2;overflow:hidden;}The Ritualists' Christian Dryden on the Queen Soundtracked Space Opera, Flash Gordon (1980)

.css-r6mb8g{margin:0;word-break:break-word;display:-webkit-box;-webkit-box-orient:vertical;box-orient:vertical;-webkit-line-clamp:1;overflow:hidden;}Film Rage's Jim on How The Legend of Ochi Soundtrack (2025) Helps Isaiah Saxon Blur Fantasy and Reality

Ryan and Nicole Try to Explain Pavements (2025), the Pavements Soundtrack, & Their Pavement Fandom

Russ Burlingame on The Needle Drops that Make The Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 1 Soundtrack a Hit

Writer James Deon Williams Breaks Down Boomerang's (1992) Stacked Soundtrack and Stacked Cast

LIMAHL (Kajagoogoo) on Why His Hits "Too Shy" and "The NeverEnding Story" Are Popular Needle Drops Now

It's a Fandom Thing's Erin on Trent Reznor's Curation of The Natural Born Killers Soundtrack (1994)

Frank Meyer (Streetwalkin' Cheetahs/Fear) on the Repo Man (1984) Soundtrack and The Film's Influence on Punk Rock

Pop Culture Yearbook’s Brad on the Hilarious and Catchy Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping (2016) Soundtrack

The Controversy with the 2025 Best Original Song Category and And a Unique Diane Warren Soundtrack fact

Space Castle's DT on The Scene from 500 Days of Summer (2009) That He Thought Was Copied From HIs Life

Movies and Us' Jen and Sarah on How Kogonada's Directing & Hammock's Score Transform Columbus (2017)

Slinky Vagabond's Keanan Duffty Explains Why the Labyrinth (1986) Soundtrack Still Resonates Today

Scott Interrante and Tara Giancaspro On The Muppet Christmas Carol (1992) & Where It Ranks Among The Muppet Films

What 70s/80s band is Jim from Film Rage Reminded of When He Hears the Score for We Live in Time (2024)?

Music Rewind's Stephen Epley on Discovering Soul Music via the Soundtrack to The Commitments (1991)

DrumTalk TV's Dan Shinder Explains Why He's One of the Drummers of This is Spinal Tap (1984)

Middle Class Film Class' Pete Abeyta on the Punch Drunk Love Soundtrack (2002) and Jon Brion's Gorgeous Score

DT of Space Castle Finds The Score and Soundtrack for Scott Pilgrim vs The World (2010) Perfect

Director Dr. Augusta Palmer Talks About Exploring Her Father's Legacy in The Blues Society (2023)

Popular Podcasts

The Ritualists' Christian Dryden on the Queen Soundtracked Space Opera, Flash Gordon (1980)

Film Rage's Jim on How The Legend of Ochi Soundtrack (2025) Helps Isaiah Saxon Blur Fantasy and Reality