The Film Scorer

Raising Hell with Ben Lovett

On this Devil's Night, who better to raise a little hell with than my latest guest: Ben Lovett (The Night House, The Ritual). Ben and I primarily talk about his latest score, Hellraiser, which is a reimagining/remake of Clive Barker's original novella The Hellbound Heart. As part of that discussion, we cover (among other things), Ben's utilization of Chris Young's themes for the original film, making the score something uniquely his own, and dealing with the pressure (and external criticism) that comes with working on such a big, beloved (sometimes) franchise.

Hellraiser is currently streaming on Hulu, while Ben's score (and much of the rest of his music) is widely available physically and digitally, including on Ben's bandcamp. In addition, Mondo is releasing a limited edition (2,000 copies) vinyl in connection with Lakeshore Records and Death Waltz Recording.

An Interview with Michael Price

 

Michael Price joins The Film Scorer for episode 2 of season 3! You might be most familiar with Michael Price (at least I was) from his work with David Arnold on the acclaimed and excellent Sherlock and Dracula series, both created by Mark Gatiss and Steven Moffat. But Michael also spent five years working with Michael Kamen, beginning on Event Horizon and X-Men, and music edited a number of films including the entire Lord of the Rings trilogy. During our interview we talk about all of those. We also talk about, and cover most in-depth, Michael's latest solo album Whitsun, which becomes an intimate look at Michael's childhood in Yorkshire, a connection of sound and memory. It's a lovely, nostalgic album that's both sweet and melancholic, with a universality that conjures a sense of recollection no matter one's past.

 

As we wrapped up our chat, we began discussing the importance of music in one's life and Michael said: "If just one person made a little moment to play something or sing for themselves or with someone else in their family or with a friend, just that tiny one act I think is joyful and worthwhile…To anyone: if you do find yourself playing or singing, send me a note on Twitter, cheer us both up." So, if after listening you've found yourself playing or singing, but sure to let Michael know (and include me while you're at it).

 

Whitsun is available digitally and physically (via CD and cassette) on Michael's bandcamp, and digitally on all major platforms. Michael's scores are broadly available digitally and physically.

 

For those interested in Scored to Death: The Dark Art of Scary Movie Music, you can find out more information here: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/scoredtodeathmovie/scored-to-death-the-dark-art-of-scary-movie-music

 

Cosey Fanni Tutti

Season three of The Film Scorer Podcast is finally here! Joining me is legendary musician and composer Cosey Fanni Tutti. Film music fans may not be quite as familiar with Cosey, who's best known for being a founding member of the band Throbbing Gristle, arguably the pioneers of industrial music. However, Cosey has also been busy with solo work, collaborations, and even film scoring. As such, we primarily discuss her score for the film Delia Derbyshire: The Myths & The Legendary Tapes, about the influential electronic musician and composer Delia Derbyshire. We also talk about her new book, Re-Sisters: The Lives and Recordings of Delia Derbyshire, Margery Kempe and Cosey Fanni Tutti, which serves as a "meditation on womanhood, creativity and self-expression, and a revelatory exploration into the lives of three visionary artists" (description courtesy of Amazon).

 

Cosey's score is fascinating, weird, and, at times, completely haunting; I really enjoyed it. It released on September 16 and is available on all major platforms and on vinyl from Cargo Records. Cosey's other music, both as a solo artist and in her various collaborations and bands, is also widely available.

 

Season Three Trailer - The Film Scorer Podcast

Season Three of The Film Scorer Podcast is almost here! The new season launches on Sunday, October 2nd, with new episodes continuing every other Sunday. Given the breadth of guests in Season Two, you never who will show up this time around - but I can promise, there's already some great names signed up!

So subscribe on your favorite podcast platform, follow The Film Scorer on Instagram and Twitter, and keep those ears open.

Dominic Lewis Rides the ’Bullet Train’

 

With the season 3 premiere right around the corner, we've decided to drop an interview to tease your appetite. Dominic Lewis (Violent Night, The King's Man) joins The Film Scorer to talk about his new score to the hit action film Bullet Train. Dom's score is a self-described concept album featuring numerous, far-reaching influences and a number of faux needle drops that completely fooled me when I watched the film. Dom also briefly talks about his two upcoming Christmas films (including Spirited, a musical starring Will Ferrell and Ryan Reynolds) and how to make Christmas music that doesn't sound like every other Christmas score. Finally, Dom ends the interview by talking about his time working at (and giving a rare peak behind the scenes into) Remote Control Productions, Hans Zimmer's film scoring production company.

 

As I mention during the interview, hearing Dom's score is what sold me on the interview. It's such a wild genre mix that somehow works, ending up even more weird and gonzo than the underlying film. It's always exciting when composers try to push the boundaries a bit, and even more so when they can do it in an otherwise mainstream release.

 

Bullet Train is available to watch in theaters. Dom's score, and all of his other music, is available digitally.

 

Film Score Recap: April through June 2022

As the inter-season hiatus winds down, The Film Scorer covers some of the best, most notable, and favorite film scores from April through June, 2022. These run the gamut, from "multiverse" scores like Everything Everywhere All at Once by Son Lux and Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, to grimy, experimental works like We're All Going to the World's Fair by Alex G or Phil Tippett's Mad God by Dan Wool and more, this period is loaded with impressive pieces. 

Keep your eye on The Film Scorer website for reviews and articles covering some of these scores and see below for articles covering some of my favorite scores for the following months, including detailed writeups and lists:

April: https://thefilmscorer.com/the-best-film-scores-of-april-2022/

May: https://thefilmscorer.com/the-best-film-scores-of-may-2022/

June: https://thefilmscorer.com/the-best-film-scores-of-june-2022/

Film Score Review I: ’Phil Tippett’s Mad God’ by Dan Wool

While the main branch of The Film Scorer Podcast is on its post-season 2 hiatus, I've decided to do something a little different to fill the absence. I'll be doing some shorter-form audio reviews of film scores. The first of these is Dan Wool's score to the brilliant stop-motion monstrosity, Phil Tippett's Mad God. It's a bleak, apocalyptic piece that blurs the edges of sound design. I highly recommend the score and the film!

 

You can also read my review of Wool's score here: https://thefilmscorer.com/dan-wools-mad-score-for-phil-tippetts-mad-god-2022-film-score-review/

Hannah Peel

 

In the season two finale of The Film Scorer Podcast, acclaimed Northern Irish composer Hannah Peel joins the show! We primarily talk about her score for the new series adaptation of John Wyndham's novel The Midwich Cuckoos (which you may know as The Village of the Damned). It's a supremely cool score, mixing dark, oppressive and gentle soundscape electronics with voice. The most notable aspect of the latter - and the part that sold me on the score immediately - is Hannah's manipulation of her own voice to mimic the sound of cuckoos. In the midst of this, Hannah actually talks about why she thinks experimentations with voice have become more common in recent scores, and we talk a bit about her journey into composing media music as well as the thought that goes into curating a soundtrack release.

 

The Midwich Cuckoos is available to watch on Sky in the UK and may be forthcoming elsewhere. Hannah's score, and all of her other music, is available digitally, particularly on BandCamp (with The Midwich Cuckoos being released in conjunction with Invada). You can find out more about Hannah by visiting her website.

 

Lucrecia Dalt

Experimental musician turned film and TV composer Lucrecia Dalt joins me on The Film Scorer Podcast! Despite a lifelong interest in film and film music, as well as a decade-long career in composing and sound design, Dalt has just broken into the film and TV sphere in the last several months. We primarily cover her two new scores - for the horror feature The Seed and the horror-comedy show The Baby - but also dive into our thoughts on the film and film music landscapes and touch on her broader love of film.

 

I'm a huge fan of both of these scores, which provide an exciting, fresh experimental take on media music, utilizing strange voices (especially real and pseudo throat-singing), monolithic fear, and hints of comedy. All it took was for me to hear the single from The Seed, "Venutian Offspring", to know I wanted to dig into these more.

 

The Seed is available to watch digitally on Shudder while The Baby is available via HBO in the US and Sky in the UK. Both of her scores, and all of her other music, is available digitally, particularly on BandCamp. The vinyl version of The Seed is available via Invada.

 

Film Score Recap: January through March 2022

In between composer interviews, The Film Scorer covers some of the best, most notable, and favorite film scores from January through March, 2022. These include a handful of films released in 2021 whose scores for some reason had delayed releases, like The Harder They Fall by Jeymes Samuel and Benedetta by Anne Dudley, as well as experimental scores like The Seed by Lucrecia Dalt, Texas Chainsaw Massacre by Colin Stetson, and Ted K by Blanck Mass (the latter of whom I recently interviewed), and a whole load more! 

Keep your eye on The Film Scorer website for reviews and articles covering some of these scores and see below for articles covering some of my favorite scores for the following months, including detailed writeups and lists:

January: https://thefilmscorer.com/the-best-film-scores-of-january-2022/

February: https://thefilmscorer.com/the-best-film-scores-of-february-2022/

March: https://thefilmscorer.com/the-best-film-scores-of-march-2022/