There aren’t a lot of movies directed at serious music geeks. It’s an esoteric community, and if you’re reading this blog, congratulations! You’re a part of that small, combative, but tight-knit world.

Much as sports fans might argue Jordan versus Kobe, so too would music geeks argue about which version of “Little Latin Lupe Lu” is superior. The difference, of course, is that even non-sports fans will have heard of Jordan and Kobe, whereas your average Joe or Jill will never have heard of “Little Latin Lupe Lu” … or Mitch Ryder and The Detroit Wheels … or possibly even The Righteous Brothers.

There are hundreds of sports movies. But they made High Fidelity for us.

Author Nick Hornby published the novel in 1995 and five years later it was adapted into a movie starring John Cusack as a record store owner named Rob going through a rough break up, subsequently dissecting the history of his love life in forensic detail. In between the emotional stuff, Rob hangs out in the store with his assistants — played by Jack Black and Todd Louiso — talking music (naturally), engaging in musical snobbery (unfortunately, not uncommon), and making up lists (very on the nose) such as Top 5 Track 1 Side 1 songs (the Old Faithful of music geek lists) and Top 5 songs about death.

During one scene, when the store is uncharacteristically filled with customers, Rob turns to his co-workers and knowingly states, “I will now sell five copies of The Three E.P.s by The Beta Band,” and proceeds to play the song “Dry The Rain” over the store speakers.

The Beta Band formed in Scotland in 1996. Tired of the Britpop sound and wanting to make something a little more experimental, the band featured a DJ/sampler/keyboardist and often shunned standard song structures and lyrics. The group released three E.P.s over the course of their first two years together and these were compiled into the full-length, and aptly titled, The Three E.P.s in late 1998. The Beta Band made some inroads in the UK with these releases, but were virtually unknown in the US.

And then, in the spring of 2000, the character of Rob the record store owner spoke the words, “I will now sell five copies of The Three E.P.s by The Beta Band.”

It seems like an amusing statement in the context of the film as all the customers in the store begin bobbing their heads to the music, but the statement — probably only a semi-serious line to the writers of the film — actually turned into reality. The band’s record company reported that after the movie came out, sales of The Three E.P.s quadrupled (I was one of the people who quadrupled them). And although, “Dry The Rain” was never released as a single, it stands as the group’s most well-known song.

All because of a movie written by music geeks for music geeks, and it inadvertently made a small band a worldwide band while it was at it.

So if there’s something inside that you wanna say, say it out loud, it’ll be okay … with The Beta Band.

These musical lists are very fluid. They change with mood, weather, who you’re talking to. Having said that … Track 1 Side 1: “Everything In Its Right Place” by Radiohead, “Sympathy For The Devil” by The Rolling Stones, “Running Up That Hill” by Kate Bush, “Don’t Stop Til You Get Enough” by Michael Jackson, and “Immigrant Song” by Led Zeppelin.