So I went over to Dave’s place not that long ago, and he was watching the classic documentary American Movie. 

It was about half way through the film, but my timing seemed impeccable. “We got to get these scarecrows on a killer slant” came out of Mark Borchardt’s mouth at that very moment. I immediately told Dave that there was a song by the noise rock band Liars titled Scarecrows On A Killer Slant.

Now see, this is the third instance of this happening for me. I have come across other forms of media that seemed to be the inspiration for song titles belonging to various artists many times prior!

When reading Flow My Tears The Policeman Said by Philip K. Dick, the protagonist mentions seeing a song of his on a jukebox. Built To Spill named one of their songs on the album Ultimate Alternative Wavers after it. That song is Nowhere Nothing Fuckup!

Those Idaho weirdos are sci-fi buffs. Huh.

If you own OK Computer, take a look at the track listing.

The second track is Paranoid Android. Now before The Hitchhiker’s Guide To The Galaxy was adapted to a movie, only a few nerdy Americans outside of the majority populous of England have read that series of books. Who the hell is Marvin? He’s the paranoid android in the book, that’s who!

That constitutes my third reference, but a fourth one that may be a bit of a stretch is on that same Radiohead album. Track eight is called Electioneering. Now I never heard the term referenced in the many hours of Fox News that I have viewed. But when I was watching Ikiru by Akira Kurosawa, a couple of bureaucrats having a laugh shout out “Electioneering.”

There is was in it’s subtitled glory. One single, solitary word slapped up on the screen. Is that where Radiohead got the title for that song? Who has Thom Yorke on their speed dial? 

My memory does serve me right. I’m not forgetting.