They Might Be Giants tried something unusual with their 1992 album Apollo 18. The penultimate song, “Fingertips,” consisted of 21 brief musical fragments, some lasting only a few seconds and each given its own separate track number. As explained in the liner notes (remember liner notes?), the idea was that fans could use the “shuffle” feature on their CD players (remember CD players?) to create endless permutations of Apollo 18. Most fans seemed to ignore that advice and listened to the 21 mini-songs in the order they were presented on the album. Some even cooked up the theory that “Fingertips” told the story of a person’s birth, life, death, and afterlife. Now, 24 years later, “Fingertips” seems to have finally found its true purpose, serving as an alternate soundtrack for Star Wars: The Force Awakens. A YouTuber called wyomingnot, a self-described “random nerd who likes putting music and TV/movies together in possibly unexpected ways,” has created a mashup entitled “Fingertips – A Star Wars The Force Awakens Fanvid.” Here are all 21 song fragments, paired beautifully with moments from the 2015 Star Wars sequel as if by an expert sommelier.
The one who hears the wind blow? Why, it’s reformed ex-Stormtrooper Finn, alone and disoriented in the desert. Bug-eyed, goggle-wearing Maz Kanata is the one who asks, “Aren’t you the guy who hit me in the eye?” Newly minted franchise heroine Rey is the one who follows that “mysterious whisper” and finds “a new friend underneath my pillow.” That “new friend” is popular droid BB-8, who cutely declares, “I heard a sound. I turned around. I turned around to find the thing that made the sound.” For those who have still not seen The Force Awakens, this video may not be the best place to start, as it contains some major spoilers. The “I’m Having A Heart Attack” segment in particular dispatches a central character. But there are many moments of lighthearted comedy here, as when “Please Pass The Milk” accompanies a moment of miscommunication between Finn and Rey.
For those charmed by this video, more examples of wymingnot’s pop-culture alchemy can be seen here.
[via Laughing Squid]