Jason Williamson (Sleaford Mods) with Andrea Arnold

About this episode

Andrea Arnold and Jason Williamson discuss filmmaking and music, reflecting on their working-class roots.

On this week’s excellent Talkhouse Podcast episode, we’ve got one of my favorite film directors in conversation with the vocalist of one of the last two decades most engaging bands—who also happened to appear in her latest movie. It’s Andrea Arnold and Jason Williamson. Andrea Arnold is a visionary British filmmaker who doesn’t make movies very frequently, but she sure makes them count. Her first to really make a splash was 2009’s Fish Tank, a coming-of-age story—that’s a recurring theme—that was the first place I remember seeing Michael Fassbender. She’s since directed three more features: an adaptation of Wuthering Heights (though not the gaudy new one), the visceral American Honey, and last year’s magical Bird, which stars Barry Keoghan as the deadbeat working-class dad to newcomer Nykia Adams. It’s flown under the radar for sure, but please seek it out and let me know what you think. I loved it, and it’s got one of the greatest soundtracks you’ll hear all year, with Fontaines DC, Blur, and Sleaford Mods, which leads me to the other half of today’s conversation, Jason Williamson. Williamson is the lyricist and vocalist—he doesn’t exactly sing—for Sleaford Mods, which has…

People in this episode

Host: Andrea Arnold

Guest: Jason Williamson

Topics covered

• film
• music
• interview
• post-punk
• working class
• soundtrack

Keywords

• Sleaford Mods
• Andrea Arnold
• Fish Tank
• post-punk
• soundtrack
• American Honey
• Wuthering Heights

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Sleaford Mods, Fontaines DC, Blur

Books & works: Fish Tank, Wuthering Heights, American Honey, Bird

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