Escape From New York: Cover Version

Some love it, some don't - but Escape From New York is one of my favorite films of all time - and probably the first time I was utterly spellbound by a film soundtrack.

As a ten or eleven year old kid, I was blown away, and completely hooked from the very first second - as the main theme began to swell ominously over a black screen, right up to the last repeated sequence as the credits play out.
An eerie, brooding minimalist theme to introduce John Carpenter's bleak dystopian vision of Manhattan Island as a futuristic prison, and foreboding sections of music to perfectly compliment the apocalyptic narrative.

I'd wanted to put together a cover of this for years, but didn't get around to it for some reason. After all - what's the point?

But recently, I thought 'what the hell' - and I'm glad I did, because it was fun figuring out the parts, although I admit that picking out some of the subtler layers was way more complicated than I originally thought it was going to be.

All the same - it's quite a minimalist piece of music, and it would be easy to clutter it with unnecessary bits and pieces.

I have tried very hard to remain as faithful and true as possible to the vibe, sounds and layers used in the John Carpenter/Alan Howarth original version - while also trying to get a bit more clout into the rhythm parts, some extra guitars - and there's an additional little solo run in there too towards the end.
Incidentally, the version used on the film credits has some additional reverb, which was presumably added during the mix. The version on the original soundtrack album is completely dry, and doesn't sound anywhere near as powerful. I've gone the reverb route on this cover version for reasons of authenticity.

Out Of Sight - Out Of Mind

Blimey – have you ever tried to capture a clean recording of something outdoors in Britain?

If you had, - you would probably notice a loud background rumbling after a while – which our ears seem to filter out, so we don’t realize it’s actually there.
I was recording a thunderstorm in the communal gardens, which we share with our neighbors, and I realized that there was a weird rumbling hiss, which was even louder than either the rain – or the infrequent thunderclaps I was trying to capture.

The microphones I were using were extremely good Rode stereo mics, so that wasn’t the problem – and I was recording in 24bit on an Olympus LS 10 – so there shouldn’t have been any quality issue at all.

There wasn’t any wind on the mic heads, so that wasn’t causing the issue – and then it occurred to me that the sound was actually car engines, and the sound of tyres on the surface of a road – I’d just never noticed it previously! It’s just there in the background – compartmentalized by our brains into a folder somewhere, named ‘Pay No Attention’ I had never noticed how loud or intrusive it actually was, - or how consistent.

So – I took my recording equipment, and set it up in the countryside to record some running water (or something like that) miles away from any major roads or motorways, - and of course – somewhere in the distance - a plane engine went by – then another, and then another. Deep, massive, rumbling engines that fill the air with sound for minutes - one after another, throughout the duration of the day.

Now I’ve realized that because I know it’s there, - I can hear it all the time – and it goes on consistently for about 20 hours a day.

A couple of months ago, when the Icelandic ash cloud caused flights to be cancelled for weeks across Britain – I realized that the noise pollution levels had dropped away a little bit, because there were no in or outbound passenger flights.

The skies were spookily silent. It was amazing!

On another occasion – I was standing at the very

end of Bournemouth pier, to capture some water sounds. The perfect place! I couldn’t have been any more out to sea unless I was in a boat. All was going well, until somebody on the beach cranked up a generator, and then another one started up a rickety van to move beach huts around! Unbelievable!

Motors, engines, fans and man made sound is everywhere, and we seem to have evolved in order to accommodate noise pollution, and literally refuse to realize that it’s even there – to the point where you can’t even record nature anymore.
The implications are ridiculous. It’s making me paranoid even writing about it!

Out of sight – out of mind!

Hammer Horror: Blood, Breasts & Giant Moths vs the new flesh!

Way before the days of DVD or even VCR - the TV channels in the UK would often screen lurid double bills of horror pictures.

From the obvious 1930's Universal successes; - like Dracula,

Frankenstein or Bride Of Frankenstein - through to the more obscure 1940's titles - like Frankenstein Meets The Wolf Man, House Of Dracula, Ghost Of Frankenstein etc - there was always something to look forward to throughout the week.

Although the black and white Universal horrors were fantastic and fun, Hammer horror films were always a lot more interesting to me as a child, because there was far more chance of seeing

bloodier, and more visceral carnage, and with any luck - some female nudity.

At the very least, there were sure to be the odd corset threatening to burst open if ever a Hammer scream queen either ran too fast, or screamed too loudly! Everything from Dracula AD.1972, Vampire Circus, The Blood Beast Terror and Twins Of Evil, to now rarer films like Crescendo and Scream Of Fear were shown fairly regularly.

Back then, there must have been some extremely cool people working for the television networks.

On Mondays, there was usually a Hammer double bill. On Wednesdays there was always a sci-fi duo - where movies like Mighty Joe Young would be paired with The Beast From 20 000 Fathoms, or This Island Earth would be screened alongside Forbidden planet.On Fridays - usually both Universal and Hammer aired on different channels - and midweek late-night screenings of eclectic 70s horror films were quite normal: Burnt Offerings, The Wicker Man, The Omen, Holocaust 2000, The Abominable Dr. Phibes, Death Line - and so on . . .

Much like the British sex comedies that promised nudity, rudeness and titillation, and usually delivered it all in a

respectably naive - but definitely appealing way, - there was always something naughty about a Hammer horror feature. Although they weren't particularly graphic by European standards - there was something completely unique and enticing about the lurid titles, garish artwork and the promise of some lusty macabre mischief which made them absolutely essential viewing.

It's only natural than some purists would regard Curse Of Frankenstein (1957) and Dracula (1958) as the artistic pinnacle of Hammer's output, and seem to blankly disregard the later, more graphic and commercially exploitive films such as Vampire Lovers, Lust For A Vampire, Hands Of The Ripper . . and so on. Films which responded to the increasing demands for more blood, more sex and more excuses for female nudity. However, in my own biased way, I think that these later films perfectly captured the overall Hammer aesthetic - which at the time was all about providing the audience with exactly what they wanted: Glossy sexy horror mayhem in a loud and colourful package.

The days of video were still over a decade away - and the horror cycle had come full circle once again.Cinema audiences wanted to be entertained for 90 minutes, and Hammer were doing just that. Werewolves, dinosaurs, vampires, giant moths, Dr Jekyll becoming a semi-naked sister Hyde, ghouls, witchcraft and any myth or legend was fair game.

Unfortunately for studios like Amicus and Hammer, a film called Night Of The Living Dead (1968) came along soon enough - which fearlessly depicted scenes of graphic onscreen violence and cannibalism, racial and incestuous sub-text and the breakdown of society as a whole.
The Exorcist (1974) was right around the corner, which was to change the genre irrevocably with previously unheard-of use of bad language, and incredible scenes of blasphemy, crucifix masturbation, vomiting and the violent psychological breakdown of a 12 year old girl.

The Texas Chainsaw Massacre was also unleashed in 1974, which dragged the viewer further down into the traumatic horrors of necrophilia, cannibalism, torture, murder and screaming insanity.

Alan Gibson's Dracula AD.1972 was released in the same year as The Last House On The Left, - and the buxom gorgeousness of Stephanie Beacham or Caroline Munro was simply no match for the sexual violence and visceral affront of Wes Craven's assault on the senses.

Dracula AD.1972 and The Satanic Rites Of Dracula (1974) were riding on a fresh new wave of British camp hipness and 70's fashion, which took Dracula away from the fantasy of gothic castle sets, paranoid village taverns and Romanian forests, and into present day swinging London. But it was too late. The public had seen too much - and wanted much more . . .

Perhaps by way of retaliation to the aggression of the new wave of American cinema, - or possibly an attempt to go with the modern flow of the market, Hammer responded in 1976 with To The Devil A Daughter, based on Dennis Wheatley's novel of the same name - in which an American writer falls into conflict with some very organized Satanists headed by Christopher Lee, - and battles to save the soul of a young Nastassja Kinski.

The film features an extremely alarming and protracted scene of violent birthing, in which a pregnant woman - without the use of any anesthetic, has her legs tied shut, so the unborn baby (devil) has to practically rip it's way out of her womb - all accompanied by agonized screams.

A deliberately loud, aggressive and very uncomfortable scene, which goes on and on and on! Additionally, the film features unashamed outright full-frontal nudity courtesy of Ms Kinski - who could have been as young as 15 or 16 at the time. (Kinski has often stated in interviews that she lied about her true age to get additional work, and uncertainty remains as to whether she was actually born in 1959, 1960 or 1961)

Heavy material from the Hammer camp, but ultimately betrayed by a low budget and televisual tone.

The latter half of the 1970's brought with it a new cinematic age of bigger budget graphic mayhem, where previous social taboos were ripped to shreds, and shotgun blasted heads, scalpings, razor slashings, torture, satanism and violent murder were mainstream, and on the indie / drive-in circuit, things were really getting down and very very dirty.
Low budget film makers were looking for new ways to violate and revolt audiences.

In 1977, The Last House On Dead End Street set a new precedent in cinematic sleaze, with a snuff-film premise, and

extensive scenes of torture, disembowelment, razor-attacks and humiliation which left nothing to the imagination.
I Spit On Your Grave (1978) features a rape sequence that lasts for almost 30 minutes, and a now-legendary (offscreen) castration, axing, hanging exploitation finale.

The gothic fantasy world of Hammer horror films seemed to be over. Usurped by the public hunger for more extreme, more realistic, more outrageous and violent cinematic fare.

However in 1980, a whole new chapter was about to unfold, and television would never be quite the same again.

For the time being though, one thing is for sure, - nostalgic evenings of early childhood remain precious, and recent tides of forgettable cinematic flotsam and jetsam will never wash away memories of Christopher Lee, Peter Cushing, Ralph Bates Jenny Hanley or Linda Hayden.

So while 'torture porn' sub-genres burn themselves out in the most graphic depictions of brutality and human cruelty, - and while the modern horror film seems to be more like a test of endurance than an actual story . . . Hammer will always be king of the castle.

Oblivion - 2007

Oblivion was the direct follow up to Oscuro, and was composed & arranged from May to August, - completed for the FILM4 FrightFest at the end of August 2007.

With a further thirteen thematic compositions to tie in with the festival, - the pieces were initially more ambitious than the CD from the previous year, although things didn't necessarily work out in quite the way I had expected.

Oscuro was my first attempt at putting this kind of material together, - and it went down pretty well, so I thought I'd go all out on the weirder aspects of the material for the second CD.

I had been making notes and scribbling down ideas about possible pieces for the CD for about a month before writing and production took place, - and at the time, I was reading Vincent Bugliosi's book, Helter Skelter - which is about the events surrounding Charles Manson.

The first piece on the album was a very dark and paranoid tune. Harpsichords, pianos and bizarre strangeness, all of which was supposed to suggest somebody's descent into madness, - or possibly the protagonist's twisted enjoyment of the journey into psychosis, - which was the overall subject for the whole CD.

At some stage during the proceedings, the whole thing needed a bit of a charge to cut through the weirdness, so (probably because of the period and story of Helter Skelter) a piece came together called Bad Acid, which was basically an all-out 60's / 70's groove, with a big, fat, dirty bass-line, and some insane Goblin-esque keyboard solos to fire things up.

The concluding piece on the CD is called 'Pale Broken Cables', which features an operatic vocal performance by a friend of mine, Emma Brown - who has a beautifully emotive & rich cadence to her voice, and also a tangible vulnerability.

Emma features throughout the CD in various guises, as a miaowing cat, giggles, moans and groans etc, however her vocal on this piece was genuinely fantastic.

Typically, the tracks that took the shortest time to write were the ones that seemed to work best.

'Pale Broken Cables' netted a feature film, - and another piece - 'Fire In Zero Gravity' featured on two documentaries, which wasn't so bad after all.

As well as that, it did well on the internet, which was a surprise to me, considering the overall tone of the CD.

Recording and sequencing.

E-Magic Logic version 6 had since changed into Apple Logic Pro 7, and there were plenty of new features to confuse, annoy and bewilder - but also some pretty cool ones too.

Most of the earlier pieces had been written using pianos and keyboards, and then additional layers of samples and external sounds were included later on.

The later pieces were a lot more experimental, and were my first experiences using loops. Before that - I'd been completely against the idea of using a loop to create a track, which is ridiculous, because there's so much amazing and incredible stuff you can do with them.

All of the sample and loop libraries used on Oblivion were created by the amazing sound synthesist, Ian Boddy. I'd be totally lost without his libraries.

Oscuro - 2006

Story!

Oscuro was composed & arranged from May to July, - completed in August 2006.

It comprises of thirteen original instrumental pieces, soundscapes and dark ambient scenarios, tied together by a conceptual story of a little girl stranded in a weird dimensional netherworld of frightening magic, and bizarre situations.

This was the first album I had arranged and recorded by myself, because up until that point, I'd only ever worked in a band environment, or as a third party on other artists' work - although I had been writing similar material for a while.

The first completed piece on the album was Pays Des Miseres, - a 45 second piano intro which was actually written as the original demo tune, and I think sets the tone for the rest of the album, - as dark forces conspire and collude to manipulate our unwitting little protagonist into treacherous circumstances, and an uncertain future.

This album is really only half of the whole story, because there were stacks of things I had planned - but didn't get to do with some of the characters and settings, essentially because I ran out of time, and the pieces had to be finished by late August of 2006.

Recording!

Oscuro is quite a mixed bag, - weird sounds, watery guitars, electric pianos, field recordings etc, - all put together on Logic (version 6 at that time)

There is a lot of sequencing in there too, - which was mainly done in (Emagic) Logic Pro 6, however some of the parts were originally put together on a little handheld Yamaha QY 70.

I think one piece might also have Propellerhead Reason (version 3) rewired through Logic for some of the sounds.

Sequencing!

The first time I ever heard about sequencing was during some guitar sessions I did for a Sony PlayStation game, called Formula One.

In fact it probably put me off the subject for years, because at some point during the recording sessions, the engineer / producer Mike, suddenly declared 'we don't record anymore . . . we sequence!' - which I found very difficult to accept.

Years later - I began to understand the massive potential of sequencers, and bought the little QY 70, which was the perfect thing to learn about some of the basic applications.

These days, I can't get enough of it.

A full version of Oscuro with the missing pieces completed and restored is coming in 2010.

The Doha Tribeca Film Festival: Part 2

So the Doha Tribeca Festival 2009 is now finished.

By all accounts, it was an incredible weekend - and if the thousands upon thousands of beautiful photographs, and hundreds of pages of awesome reviews, news & information are anything to go by - something very special happened in Qatar this year.

In the last blog, I mentioned a collaboration with Jamie Riordan on the Zoetrope trailer for the festival.

This piece was broadcast across the globe, in just about every possible media, - and I must admit I would love to be able to find out how many different parts of the world it has played, and to whom - but unfortunately, that's something I'll really never know.

The audio design went through various incarnations before the final sounds were laid in, and originally the ideas for the music score were vastly different. However I think the finished trailer is absolutely appropriate in terms of getting across the energy and vibe of the festival.

I also think Jamie did a great job of directing, and the piece really speaks for itself.

Working on this really reminded me that the powerful chemistry and energy created by image and sound really can represent the language of the world.

So here's the longer version of the Zoetrope trailer for the Doha Tribeca Film Festival.

Until next time - over and out!

The Doha Tribeca Film Festival

For the past few weeks, I’ve been doing some work for the people over at the Doha Tribeca Film Festival, which takes place from October 29^th – November 1^st in Qatar

New York's Tribeca Film Festival (TFF) co-founded by Robert De Niro - joined forces with the the Qatar Museums Authority to announce the worlds first Doha Tribeca Film Festival which will take place this month in Doha, Qatar.

My friend Ben Robinson is currently in Qatar working with the organizers, and putting together various incredible media for the festival - and every now and then he gets in touch with a new piece of work.

This is fantastic for me, because I get the chance to work with him even if we are on different sides of the planet, and also because it’s a real honor to make a contribution to all the hard work Ben and company are doing for such an immense festival.

The first piece makes a little bit of history as the first short horror film ever from that particular region, and lasts just 60 seconds – but it’s a blast.

Directed by Noora Al Meadadi, It’s called Lunchtime, and you can see it here:

My contributions to Lunchtime are the beast / monster sound effects, some additional foley, and the overall music, but as you can see – the team out in Qatar have done a fantastic job.

Last week, I was working closely with Jamie Riordan on two official Doha Tribeca festival trailers, which will be screened on the TCM channel for the next couple of weeks, and on 35m across major cinemas throughout the Gulf.

This time around, my role was to put together an intense sound design and music score for the pieces, which combine live action, complex animation and intense photography, to produce some super-charged results.

More details about those next time, because official screenings take place some time over the coming week.

Have a great weekend!

Over and out.