Mourning the "Daria" OG Soundtrack at Beach Cat Manor

"Maybe someone could turn down the sun."

Initially, I glowed as guardian of Beach Cat Manor, minding my to-dos lovingly. In the mornings I’d feed two precious Persian Longhairs and pick fresh figs. Mountains of hydrangeas would greet me as I watered the surrounding flora. And there were explicit instructions to enjoy a glass of wine from the balcony and watch the waves crash below. Who am I to ignore that? 

It was Local’s Summer, *technically* my first. The cats’ Summer home is in Ocean County, and though I grew up in New Jersey (Monmouth County, closer to where they shot Clerks) Ocean County is Jersey Shore proper. Ocean encompasses iconic beach towns like Asbury Park, Point Pleasant, Seaside Heights and…the…other ones. There’s MANY, to say the least. So once my tasks were done, I’d experience the rare quiet of September at the shore: still warm, but decidedly un-sweaty and void of tourists. 

Not void of people. I remember Rook coffee runs with Shelby, then watching her do cannonballs. Enjoying 15 flavors of Hoffman’s with family. Talking shop with the tall and sweet King of the Beach. I made loose plans to see L7 at Wonder Bar (a fail) and my friends at Sea Hear Now Festival (neither were playing, but the Breeders were).

But sometimes storms would roll in, leaving me moody and begging for the release of true Autumn. You know how the transitional periods between seasons spike my angst. And when it poured, my only rational company was Daria. I’d watch the sardonic teen navigate Lawndale High’s idiocracy alongside best friend Jane, and mourned the loss of the show’s original soundtrack.

Is it Fall Yet? (Or, “Let’s Talk About the Long Lost Daria Music”)

Daria debuted in 1997, a transitional time in MTV music history. Beavis and Butthead had left the building, grunge was all but curdled. Yes, there was still space for alt music, but we were giving way to boy bands and bubblegum pop princesses. So while Daria is a low-key satire of culture at large, two major focuses included the trend-following TRL crowd and the Gen X Alt World that dominated the earlier part of the ‘90s.

Incidentally, this resulted in a well-implemented, diverse, and flat-out enjoyable soundtrack.

When dealing with Daria’s popular sister Quinn and the Fashion Club, sugary songs would enter the musical bloodstream—early episode see her getting ready to The Cardigans’ “Lovefool.” Veruca Salt and Sonic Youth would show up with regularity repping the “angry girl music of the indie rock persuasion” category. The closing credits song was always a surprise treat, although Cake was usually on the menu. And that barely covers it; basically, because MTV had easy access to music and very willing artists, they could grab a just-right-for-the-moment song like THAT.

We also can’t talk about Daria without talking about Splendora, the band commissioned to write the theme song. Delivered mostly in voice as monotone as the protagonist, the lyrics end on the jaded note of “You’re standing on my neck.” Perfect. They also penned songs for the two movies, Is It Fall Yet? and Is It College Yet?, each acting as an extension of Daria’s jaded inner monolgue.

So the overall soundscape created a very lived-in world, and grounded that world in a very specific time and place. Because if you watch the series today, or if you’re watching it last year at Beach Cat Manor, you quickly realize that almost all the music is scraped. 🙃 All that remains is Splendora and [sigh] Mystik Spiral.