"The SpongeBob Squarepants Movie," being releasing today, may be of absorbent appeal to a young audience, but the soundtrack for the movie conjures a college appeal.

With such artists as the Shins, the Flaming Lips and Wilco writing bubbly subaqueous tunes for the movie and Avril Lavigne singing the "SpongeBob" theme song, the soundtrack has an unexpected jumble of musicians at the forefront of today's music scene.

The soundtrack as a whole sounds like the various musicians all linked up underwater and started writing a collaboration of merry carbonated tunes portraying the goofy and appealing world of SpongeBob.

"SpongeBob is the mutant offspring of the Beatles' Yellow Submarine without the acid-hippie damage. Having spent most of my youth working at a fast-food fish joint I can totally relate, without any irony, to the nobility of SpongeBob's dream to someday be the restaurant manager," said the Flaming Lips' Wayne Coyne in a press release.

Coyne and the rest of the Flaming Lips wrote the song "SpongeBob & Patrick Confront the Psychic Wall of Energy" for the SpongeBob soundtrack.

Dennis Coyne, nephew of Wayne Coyne, said the whole way the producers went about getting the band to do a song for the movie was interesting.

The Flaming Lips, claiming Oklahoma City as their hometown, received the call one day to write a song for the "SpongeBob" movie soundtrack, Dennis Coyne said. Instead of just asking the band to write a song and send it, the creators of the movie flew to Oklahoma City and took a limo to the Flaming Lips' manager's house. From there, the creators had the group sign a confidentiality agreement to preview the movie.

Dennis said everything happened pretty quickly from that point-the Lips joined the project willingly.

Wilco, having just released its newest album, "A Ghost is Born," contributed a signature Wilco-style song with a squeeze of carefree sponginess for the album as well.

"I fell in love with SpongeBob when I heard him describe the darkness at the bottom of the sea as 'advanced darkness.' Besides, how could I not write a song for the movie? It automatically makes me the coolest dad on the block," said Wilco's Jeff Tweedy.

James Mercer of the Shins said he had been asked to write a title song for another cartoon before he had been asked to do a song for the SpongeBob soundtrack. He said when Stephen Hillenberg, the director and producer of the movie, asked him to do a song, he said yes.

"I loved the show, and he liked the Shins," Mercer said.

Mercer said the song he wrote for the soundtrack, titled "They'll Soon Discover," reminded him of a song by the Cure.

"I think it sounded a little too bubble-gummy and cartoony, which worked out well for the 'SpongeBob' thing. I love the way it came out," Mercer said.

Having songs on a soundtrack for such a comedic movie that attracts a wide age-range of viewers gives the musician an open door to a variety of new fans. Some people think the fans of a musician define the type of music that musician makes, but Mercer said it wouldn't bother him in the least bit if he saw a 6-year-old on the street singing his song from the movie.

"One of the reasons we are a part of this SpongeBob thing is ... I have really adorable nieces that love 'SpongeBob,'" Mercer said.

Along with music from the Shins, Wilco and the Flaming Lips, other artists performing on the album include Avril Lavigne, Electrocute, Ween, Tom Rothrock, Mike Simpson, the Waikikis, Motorhead and the Pirates. Also included is a song by a Japanese pop band named Plus Tech Squeezebox.

Altogether, the album is an eclectic underwater weaving of various renowned artists, reflecting the very nature of "SpongeBob." The television show grabs audiences beyond the elementary school level, and the movie and soundtrack are bound for the same.
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