What makes this different from any other mashup?

Primarily, it’s the length. While you’ve seen some viral mashups make their rounds, they’re usually only 3-4 minutes long. Here, we’re looking at anything ranging from forty minutes to four hours, all while continuing to apply different layers of meaning with each song.

Are there some basic concepts that I should be familiar with?

If you can remember your high school literature classes (for better or worse), there were some common literary devices. With any given sync, you’ll find multiple dichotomies: literal and figurative language, proof and contradiction, congruence and dissonance, and more. It’s also helpful to notice motifs in the artists’ work and the films that accompany them. You don’t have to know the specific names of these concepts to enjoy any sync but they provide a nice foundation.

What about literature?

While there aren’t full books on this particular subject, that doesn’t mean it’s totally ignored. Pink Floyd and Philosophy: Careful with That Axiom, Eugene! has two whole chapters based on this phenomena (and the band as a whole). Roger Waters borrowed concepts and the title from Neil Postman’s Amusing Ourselves to Death for his 1992 solo album “Amused to Death”. Primus’ “The Desaturating Seven” is an entire concept album based on Ul De Rico’s The Rainbow Goblins with music videos to match. None of this is necessary for watching syncs but a little knowledge never hurt.

what’s the best method for listening to the album required for a sync?

Ideally, you should use the album on its original CD format and upload them to a digital media player. While albums have been uploaded to streaming platforms, they may not be in its original form. Issues include shorter edits of songs that were not on the CD (unless it’s specific to a sync involving a compilation album), pitch-shifting or slight speed variations to avoid copyright (prominent on YouTube), or commercials if you don’t have ad-block.

But what about the CD itself? It turns out that using a standard CD player for a sync can cause a difference of up to two seconds when going from the final track back to the first. If the CD is used in a computer’s CD-ROM drive, there’s less of a gap but it’s still noticeable enough that it can disrupt the rest of the film. On top of that, you would need to pause the film in order to compensate for each gap.

These small differences will disrupt the overall experience. Plus, by having the physical album, you can examine the artwork provided in the liner notes as well as having the lyrics ready (in most albums).

Which format should I use for the films? Physical? Streaming?

For starters, every sync here uses NTSC and not PAL due to the frame rate difference so if you’re using a DVD or VHS from outside the USA, that’s going to be an issue.

Second, you can use either a physical release or streaming but there are a few things to keep in mind whichever method you use. With a physical copy, you own your own copy (or borrowed it from a friend or local library) and don’t have to worry about waiting for it to reappear on your streaming service of choice. It’s best that, if it’s a disc, that there are no scratches or fingerprints on it that can cause playback issues.

With a streaming service (Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime, Disney+, Tubi, etc.), there’s the convenience of having the film with a few clicks. Unfortunately, some services are ad-supported so you’ll have to constantly keep your finger on your music player whenever it starts. For Tubi, there are ad breaks that are entirely unskippable and the film will resume playback within one second of where it last left off. The good news is that there is a ten-second time before each ad break and they are all placed in transitional scenes. Peacock is split between having an ad-free experience once you watch two minutes of ads at the beginning and having ad breaks in their movies (that is, if you don’t upgrade to premium). The timer is present on the ads themselves but not before the ad break begins. YouTube’s “Free with ads” movies will have ad breaks every ten minutes. With Disney+, while not ad-supported, there are still some playback issues where the film will stutter or inexplicably fast-forward. Granted, no one service is entirely perfect but the frequency of those issues is enough to not recommend the service for this activity.

Third, regardless of format, it’s best to be aware of which logos appear at the start of the film. As films have been released ad nauseam for home viewing, some studios will update the start of the movie with their current logo as opposed to one from the original release. Much like everything else stated, the length of the logo will affect the start time. Updates will be provided for the optimal viewing experience. For a thorough and nearly comprehensive history of these logos, I recommend the Audio Visual Identity Database.

I have all of the songs featured in a compilation album. Can’t I just reassemble it myself without buying that album?

Not necessarily. Some compilations have tracks that are trimmed for the sake of storage space (see Pink Floyd’s “A Foot in the Door” where the intro for “Time” was excised so that the disc wouldn’t run over the 80 minute limit but was restored for the eventual vinyl release) or radio edits (see Radiohead’s “The Best Of” for the radio edit of “Optimistic”). Some have alternate mixes that are exclusive to the compilation (see Pink Floyd’s “Works”, “A Collection of Great Dance Songs” or “Echoes”).

How long does it take to put a sync together that works?

Usually months or years from when an album is first announced to its release date (especially if it’s a newer artist or someone who’s continuing to produce work). The only way to know for sure is try it yourself and even then, success isn’t always apparent on the first try. It always helps to have a few films in mind that share an affinity with the album’s themes and motifs. This is, after all, experimental in nature and you won’t know until you try.

How come X film or X album isn’t on the site yet?

A sync for it hasn’t been discovered yet. If you think you’ve found something any sync site hasn’t covered yet, don’t be afraid to send an email at the bottom of our home page.

What’s…Uh the Deal?

It’s a celebration of the arts in a different way. While yes, you can watch the film on its own or listen to the album separately, it’s something else to see how the two complement each other. Plus, by learning about each artists’ styles, the craftsmanship involved with each piece of media, the thematic elements present in the film and music, and looking up some the references made elsewhere, it’s all a net gain.

Art begets art in all forms.