WALL*EMEN : The Impact of a Little Music Change

I recently saw this on Firstshowing.net. It's a great little mashup of Wall*E and Watchmen of all things! Of course, what makes it great is that most of us would never think of trying to "mash" those two things together. Still...

With some nice editing of WALL*E footage and music (and voice over) from the WATCHMEN trailer, we have a totally different experience created. Of course the music is The Beginning is the End is the Beginning by Smashing Pumpkins. Most of the insanely dark tone felt in this mashup comes from this song...making the insanely cute Wall*E footage suddenly ooze with the morbid weight found in Watchmen.

What a great example of the power of music in film.

The SoundCast - Episode 3

After a bit of a hiatus, we're back with an all new episode of THE SOUNDCAST. In this cast, I'm joined by Jeron Moore, who joins in the discussion about the recent release of WATCHMEN and it's original score by TYLER BATES.

We also share about what movies we've been watching, games we've been playing, and scores we've been listening to. (as if we had time for anything else.) This is a special extended-play edition at over 1 hour, so enjoy your little hearts out this weekend.

We're also proud to tell you that you can now SUBSCRIBE to THE SOUNDCAST! Don't miss one exciting episode and subscribe today. Also, you can check out our podcast's new home at the Tracksounds site, right here.

As always, your feedback is always welcome and valuable to us, so don't hesitate to post your comment here, by sending me an email (scoreman AT tracksounds DOT com) or by tweeting me at http://twitter.com/tracksounds!

Watchmen (Soundtrack) by Tyler Bates - Review

Not being a fan of the original comic series, I come to the WATCHMEN feast without the unbearable weight of over 20 years of fandom and expectation. It seems the majority of faithful fans have received the film with open arms...actually pleasantly surprised with Snyder's fidelity to Alan Moore's original story, themes, and characters. Taking the film on its own (as I must do), it is a nearly three-hour exercise of superhero depth, rawness, and brutality unlike any other superhero film to date. The story is so dense and the themes so many that one viewing can hardly do it justice. Movies hardly ever capture all of the layers of character of a well-written novel, even a graphic novel, but WATCHMEN, the film, succeeds at giving the unacquainted audience a solid moviegoing-experience while clearly indicating that there is much more to these characters and to this story than is being portrayed on screen - not an easy feat.

When it comes to the music of the film, my feelings are mixed. The music for WATCHMEN was publicized months in advance of the film's theatrical release; touting special edition vinyl, picture discs, and various editions. One could hardly not build up some expectations for the final music experience would be. WATCHMEN's soundtrack features a combination of period pop selections and original score by TYLER BATES. The eclectic mix of the two helps to brand WATCHMEN as another, unique Zack Snyder creation. While there is a completely separate soundtrack release (thankfully) of these songs, their appearance and contribution to film bears a brief mention here. Perhaps it was the audio mix or perhaps the songs themselves, but most of the pop selections are a little too "on the nose." With the exception of the brilliantly juxtaposed "Unforgettable" by Nat King Cole, the other songs pulled me right out of the scene...calling too much attention to themselves rather than enhancing the mood or visuals. With such period-icons such as "I'm Your Boogie Man," "99 Luft Balloons" or "The Sound of Silence" unashamedly making their presence known, it may have been the director's intention, then, for TYLER BATES' score to balance this out.


Read the full review here

Watchmen Soundtrack 7" Vinyl Picture Disc Box Set

Warner Brothers Records has just made the special release available for pre-order. The first 1000 orders will be signed by composer TYLER BATES. If you are a hard-core fan...or think you might become one in a couple weeks...now's your chance to grab some sure-fire collector's material.

You can get the details here.

Watchmen Soundtrack and Score by Tyler Bates Coming

Now that the legalities are settled and we all know that WATCHMEN will most certainly be hitting screens come 030609, we can dive into the musical possibilities the film will afford us. And to that end, we have WARNER-REPRISE's official press release below. You can go to the official music site and sign up for updates and order a 12" picture disc (whatever that is)...that also has "Desolation Row" by Chemical Romance and also one cut from Tyler Bates' "Prison Fight."


BURBANK, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Warner Sunset / Reprise Records will release both the soundtrack and original score to the feature film Watchmen on March 3rd — three days before the March 6th release of the highly anticipated feature film.

Music From The Motion Picture Watchmen , the film's official soundtrack, includes My Chemical Romance's powerful reinterpretation of Bob Dylan's "Desolation Row," recorded exclusively for the film. The soundtrack also features a collection of classic songs by such artists as Nat King Cole, Simon & Garfunkel, and Janis Joplin, which, once heard in the context of the film, will never be thought of the same way again.

Watchmen Original Motion Picture Score features music by recording artist, composer, and music producer Tyler Bates, who was asked to score the film by Watchmen director Zack Snyder. Tyler, who also scored the Snyder-directed films 300 and Dawn of the Dead, has also scored the soundtracks to The Day the Earth Stood Still, Showtime's Californication, Slither, Rob Zombie's Halloween, and The Devil's Rejects. He is known for his surprising juxtapositions of music styles and flair for delicate, atmospheric touches, as well as stressing emotional vibrancy over traditional formulas of music compositions. Bates has also been chosen to score the Watchmen's DVD added story, "Tales From The Black Freighter."

Music From The Motion Picture Watchmen and Watchmen Original Motion Picture Score will be released in multiple fan-friendly configurations: The physical CD, and a digital album will be available on March 3rd, and a vinyl edition of the soundtrack will be released on March 17th.

Watchmen Music Collectors Edition 7" Box Set will be released on March 24th. The box set contains 7 double-sided 7" picture discs of each Watchmen character on one side, and images in the likeness of the graphic novel on the other. The Watchmen Music Collectors Edition 7" Box Set will include My Chemical Romance's "Desolation Row," along with 13 tracks by Tyler Bates.

A complex, multi-layered mystery adventure, Watchmen is set in an alternate 1985 America in which costumed superheroes are part of the fabric of everyday society, and the "Doomsday Clock" — which charts the USA's tension with the Soviet Union — is moving closer to midnight. When one of his former colleagues is murdered, the washed-up but no less determined masked vigilante Rorschach sets out to uncover a plot to kill and discredit all past and present superheroes. As he reconnects with his former crime-fighting legion — a ragtag group of retired superheroes, only one of whom has true powers — Rorschach glimpses a wide-ranging and disturbing conspiracy with links to their shared past and catastrophic consequences for the future. Their mission is to watch over humanity...but who is watching the Watchmen?

Watchmen is directed by Zack Snyder from a screenplay by David Hayter and Alex Tse, based on the graphic novel co-created by Dave Gibbons, published by DC Comics. The film is produced by Lawrence Gordon, Lloyd Levin, and Deborah Snyder. Herbert W. Gains and Thomas Tull are the executive producers, with Wes Coller serving as co-producer. The film stars Malin Akerman, Billy Crudup, Matthew Goode, Carla Gugino, Jackie Earle Haley, Jeffrey Dean Morgan and Patrick Wilson.

Warner Bros. Pictures and Paramount Pictures present, in Association with Legendary Pictures, a Lawrence Gordon/Lloyd Levin Production, a Zack Snyder Film, Watchmen. Watchmen will be released nationwide on March 6, 2009. It will be distributed domestically by Warner Bros. Pictures and internationally by Paramount Pictures.

Music From The Motion Picture Watchmen track-listing is as follows:

1. Desolation Row – My Chemical Romance
2. Unforgettable – Nat King Cole
3. The Times They Are A-Changin' – Bob Dylan
4. The Sound Of Silence – Simon & Garfunkel
5. Me & Bobby McGee – Janis Joplin
6. I'm Your Boogie Man – KC & The Sunshine Band
7. You're My Thrill – Billie Holiday
8. Pruit Igoe & Prophecies – The Philip Glass Ensemble
9. Hallelujah – Leonard Cohen
10. All Along The Watchtower – Jimi Hendrix
11. Ride of the Valkyries – Budapest Symphony Orchestra
12. Pirate Jenny – Nina Simone*

* - used in the end credits of the "Tales From The Black Freighter" DVD.

Watchmen Original Motion Picture Score track-listing is as follows

1. Rescue Mission
2. Don't Get Too Misty Eyed
3. Tonight The Comedian Died
4. Silk Spectre
5. We'll Live Longer
6. You Quit!
7. Only Two Names Remain
8. The American Dream
9. Edward Blake – The Comedian
10. The Last Laugh
11. Prison Fight
12. Just Look Around You
13. Dan's Apocalyptic Dream
14. Who Murdered Hollis Mason?
15. What About Janie Slater?
16. I'll Tell You About Rorschach
17. Countdown
18. It Was Me
19. All That Is Good
20. Requiem (Excerpted from Mozart's Requiem)
21. I Love You Mom

www.watchmenmovie.com
www.watchmenmusic.com

Tyler Bates and the Genre of Doom! Interview

Tyler Bates and the Genre of Doom!

In our latest interview - Composer Tyler Bates talks about his recent project DOOMSDAY, paying homage to classic genre films from the 80s, his upcoming video game score, RISE OF THE ARGONAUTS, and two more film projects: THE DAY THE EARTH STOOD STILL and WATCHMEN. - plus 3 sound clips from DOOMSDAY.


Here's an excerpt:


CC: With DOOMSDAY paying an homage to MAD MAX and ESCAPE FROM NEW YORK, did it any pressure on you.


TYLER BATES: That, in and of itself, didn't add any pressure, but there is something interesting here. Because I tend to do films that span a broad scope of stylistic components or cultural components, I tend to approach them not always knowing exactly what I'm going to do. The pressure is really for me to find what is going to work this particular movie. I can't really look at other movies that might be considered classics. I can't compare what I'm doing or about to do with those films. There's no way I can compete with that. There are just so many great, historical scores that have come before my work. I don't expect to "best" any of those. I try though! [laughs]



Read the full interview here

Tyler Bates' Two New Projects Announced!

And the press release parade continues...

As was anticipated TYLER BATES will hook up again with director ZACK SNYDER and write the score for the upcoming WATCHMEN. I think we can anticipate another edgy score for this one.

Now, the remake of the classic THE DAY THE EARTH STOOD STILL is somewhat more of a surprise. From Bernard Herrmann to Tyler Bates?...that's quite a jump for us oldies who remember the original with great fondness. Depending on how they choose to do this iteration of the story, the score could go in many directions. (I've still got Cloverfield on the brain, so my first reaction is...why do you need a score at all? Hey...who said that?)

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE


Tuesday, January 22, 2008

COMPOSER TYLER BATES SIGNS ON FOR WATCHMEN AND
THE DAY THE EARTH STOOD STILL

(Los Angeles, CA) – Tyler Bates’ latest movie Doomsday (Neil Marshall’s upcoming Rogue Pictures release) may be March 14th, but the future is looking bright with the signing of two major films for 2008: Warner Bros WATCHMEN and Fox’s THE DAY THE EARTH STOOD STILL.

Bates, score composer for movies and television including director Zack Snyder’s blockbuster hits 300 and Dawn of the Dead, has signed on with Snyder again for WATCHMEN. Snyder, who praised the score to 300 saying, “It moves the film into mythology cauterizing the images as you view them, making them something they could never be alone” has once again asked Bates to join his creative team. The film based on the graphic novel stars Malin Akerman, Billy Crudup, Matthew Goode, Jackie Earle Haley, Jeffrey Dean Morgan and Patrick Wilson.

20th Century Fox’s THE DAY THE EARTH STOOD STILL directed by Scott Derrickson (The Exorcism of Emily Rose), a remake of the 1951 classic sci-fi film, stars Keanu Reeves, Jennifer Connelly and Kathy Bates.

With more than forty film and television scores to his credit, Bates’ inventive style has become the visceral cornerstone of projects including Rob Zombie’s box-office number one hit Halloween, The Devil’s Rejects, and the 2008 release of Zombie’s animated feature The Haunted World of El Superbeasto. Following the 1997 Atlantic Records album release of his band Pet, Tyler began focusing primarily on scoring movies, and now with a list of impressive credits and a very distinctive approach to scoring films, he is one of the most sought after composers in Hollywood. In addition to films, Bates composes the score for Showtime’s dark comedy, Californication, which stars David Duchovny. He is also putting the finishing touches to the music for Liquid Entertainment’s 2008 release of Rise of the Argonauts for major video-gaming systems.