Celluloid Rock and Rap

Two soundtracks land in this edition of our guide to investing wisely on a pop budget of $50 a month: One’s a set of knucklehead rock oldies that influenced many of today’s most acclaimed bands, the other an overdue summit meeting of rappers and rockers.

September

Dave Alvin, “Museum of Heart,” HighTone. By today’s slick country standards, this album sounds like a raw demo because of its bluesy roots feel and the fact that the former Blaster still lacks vocal command. Ah, but the songs. Alvin’s lyrics convey the heartache and longing you hear in the voices of great country singers like George Jones but rarely find in their material anymore. The title track offers the sad surrender of Jones’ “He Stopped Loving Her Today,” and “Between the Cracks” has enough social realism and range to make it the centerpiece of the next Emmylou Harris or Los Lobos album.

Various artists, “Dazed and Confused” soundtrack, Medicine. This is an odd choice for a contemporary guide, but there’s a lesson involved. While ‘70s critics were championing the challenging music of David Bowie, the Clash and Talking Heads, more people were listening to Black Sabbath’s “Paranoid” and KISS’ “Rock and Roll All Night,” two of the 14 guilty pleasures here. Whether they admit it or not, many of today’s most acclaimed bands, from Metallica to Smashing Pumpkins, were inspired by the irresistible energy of these hits. See if you can trace the influences.

Nirvana, “In Utero,” DGC. This collection snarls and seduces as Kurt Cobain divides his time between erecting protective shields--”Go away!” he screams at one point, seemingly to the world at large--and disarming you with some of the most vulnerable lyrics ever to come from a punk-spawned band. Essential.

October

Various artists, “Judgment Night” soundtrack, Immortal/Epic Soundtrax. How odd that rap and hard rock, rebellious forces with such obvious kinship, were considered mutually exclusive for so long. Not all the pairings of rappers and rockers here are noteworthy, but most--including Mudhoney with Sir Mix-A-Lot and Helmet with House of Pain--underscore the value of breaking down pop barriers.

Moby, “Move,” Elektra. In the spectacular title track of this EP, the New York techno master pays homage to Giorgio Moroder’s classic disco hits with Donna Summer, then moves on in “All That I Need Is to Be Loved” to give us his idea of what Moroder might come up with in the studio with Ministry. Flexing his imagination even more, Moby suggests in “Morning Dove” a collaboration between Ennio Morricone and Kraftwerk. Amazing.

Revolting Cocks, “Linger Ficken’ Good,” Sire. “Hey, kids, you want a soundtrack that is going to make you feel tense . . . let you express your frustrations?” guest Timothy Leary asks in the opening seconds of this lighthearted romp through the musical imagination of Ministry’s Al Jourgensen. Wonderfully wacky.