Lack of Electronic Music in contemporary film scores

[carbon]

Does the lack of contemporary sounding electronic soundtracks in movies bother anyone else?

Listen to 70s and 80s soundtracks and one can hear the music is reflective of and a product of the times. 70s had analog synths and funk/disco. Digital synths in the 80s haven't aged as well but soundtracks to Miami Vice and Beverly Hills Cop are still pretty cool.

Fast forward to today and one might think there should be some progressive sounding electronic music soundtracks but that generally doesn't seem to be the case. Just saw "Watchmen" and "Star Trek", two futuristic movies that were practically crying out for an electronic film score and instead ended up with the usual string sweeps, horn blasts, and other orchestral accompaniment.

The new Terminator movie opens this week. The movie takes place in the future with robots, machines, etc. Perfect for an electronic soundtrack but I'd surprised if it's anything other than the usual orchestra. IIRC, the original Terminator soundtrack had synths all over it. This movie should have drum and bass, industrial, and techno all over it. Something that can take advantage of and represent the music of the time.

Think of how powerful "Born Slippy" was in "Trainspotting" and one can see how stepping outside the classical scoring box can be extremely powerful.

[PeteJames]

It bothers me since some of my favourite modern films, by coincidence, have electronic soundtracks. I think it's because some of the more artistic directors often utilise less mainstream music. I've seen it used to great effect in world cinema but still too rarely. Watch 'Lola Rennt' (Run Lola Run) to see how great an impact techno music can have on a film. A masterpiece! The music reflects the layered looping plot and adds greatly to the intensity, suspense and drama.

More mainstream examples:

Fight Club soundtrack is immense and moody - Dust Brothers

Football Factory seems to capture masculinity quite well with Primal Scream and Orbital

Blade - it is diagetic though, at least in the music from the club scene.

Yeah, love 'dark and long' in trainspotting too.

[Arcana]

I love the soundtracks by Harry gregson-williams, John Powell and Trevor Rabin. They manage somehow to combine the orchestral sound with the electronic and make it sound coherent.
I think synths and drum machines are better at textures, beats/percussion and blips n' blops but when it comes to melody they have nothing on the good old strings, brass and woodwind. I can't think of nothing worse than a synth solo with some sort of saw/square wave sound - well apart from an electric guitar solo and a sax solo of course

[Silver Sonya]

Originally Posted by carbon

Does the lack of contemporary sounding electronic soundtracks in movies bother anyone else?

Listen to 70s and 80s soundtracks and one can hear the music is reflective of and a product of the times. 70s had analog synths and funk/disco. Digital synths in the 80s haven't aged as well but soundtracks to Miami Vice and Beverly Hills Cop are still pretty cool.

Fast forward to today and one might think there should be some progressive sounding electronic music soundtracks but that generally doesn't seem to be the case. Just saw "Watchmen" and "Star Trek", two futuristic movies that were practically crying out for an electronic film score and instead ended up with the usual string sweeps, horn blasts, and other orchestral accompaniment.

The new Terminator movie opens this week. The movie takes place in the future with robots, machines, etc. Perfect for an electronic soundtrack but I'd surprised if it's anything other than the usual orchestra. IIRC, the original Terminator soundtrack had synths all over it. This movie should have drum and bass, industrial, and techno all over it. Something that can take advantage of and represent the music of the time.

Think of how powerful "Born Slippy" was in "Trainspotting" and one can see how stepping outside the classical scoring box can be extremely powerful.

Backwards thinking.

Electronic music dates a film and makes it seem corny. These people are investing hundreds of millions of dollars and they want their movies to be classic.

Smartest move George Lucas made with the original Star Wars trilogy: no synthesizers!

If you want to see the tragiic consequence of an electronic score, watch "Logan's Run." It's a joke. All these silly, squirty, analog synthesizers trying to seem "futuristic." Ugh.

There are exceptions ("Blade Runner" score is clearly classic, and I can't imagine "American Beauty" without the clanging of that Gamlean ensemble), but in general an orchestra gives you all the colors you need. The low brass in "Star Trek" is as weighty and thrilling and alive with harmonic excitement as any patch you're ever going to make in any synth.

The new "Terminator" with a so-called "dark, industrial" electronic score = instant cheesy "industrial" video. Forgettable and inconsequential. And, let's be honest, cheap!

I mean, watch the original "Terminator," that's what it has! That score is dorky and insufferable.

- c

[PeteJames]

Originally Posted by Silver Sonya

Backwards thinking.

Electronic music dates a film and makes it seem corny. These people are investing hundreds of millions of dollars and they want their movies to be classic.

Smartest move George Lucas made with the original Star Wars trilogy: no synthesizers!

If you want to see the tragiic consequence of an electronic score, watch "Logan's Run." It's a joke. All these silly, squirty, analog synthesizers trying to seem "futuristic." Ugh.

There are exceptions ("Blade Runner" score is clearly classic, and I can't imagine "American Beauty" without the clanging of that Gamlean ensemble), but in general an orchestra gives you all the colors you need. The low brass in "Star Trek" is as weighty and thrilling and alive with harmonic excitement as any patch you're ever going to make in any synth.

The new "Terminator" with a so-called "dark, industrial" electronic score = instant cheesy "industrial" video. Forgettable and inconsequential. And, let's be honest, cheap!

I mean, watch the original "Terminator," that's what it has! That score is dorky and insufferable.

- c

Totally disagree. The only reason why you (and I) think it is 'corny' when we watch them now is because this is electronic music from 20-30 years ago. It's to do with mental associations with old electronic music from that era, and projecting the present hindsight on the past since they weren't necessarily cheesy back then. Of course elementary early electronic music is going to sound dated and of course classical instruments sound timeless due to the fact they never change. Modern Electronic music can give a fim a certain cutting edge feeling, which can give it definition. If anything is 'backwards thinking' it is certainly classical music by it's very definition.

Suffice it to say, both classical and electronic can be equally powerful in a given context.

[Silver Sonya]

Originally Posted by PeteJames

Totally disagree. The only reason why you (and I) think it is 'corny' when we watch them now is because this is electronic music from 20-30 years ago. It's to do with mental associations of old music with that era, and projecting the present on the past since they weren't necessarily cheesy back then. Of course elementary early electronic music is going to sound dated and of course classical instruments sound timeless due to the fact they never change. Modern Electronic music can give a fim a certain cutting edge feeling, which can give it definition. If anything is 'backwards thinking' it is certainly classical music by it's very definition.

I'm confused. Are you suggesting that current electronic music won't sound dated in 30 years?

- c

[PeteJames]

You have to remember that electronic music has developed a long way in its diversity and complexity since theme tunes like 'bevery hills cop' were made for example. It will get increasingly difficult to judge and date a piece of electronic music. How many styles and sub genre's are there now? Hundereds? Thousands? Association with a particular style and time frame are only going to get increasingly more difficult meaning it will be increasingly difficult to date a soundtrack from a film (unless an obvious popular track is used). The very fact that people are still producing detroit techno for example, means that you couldn't tell whether a track is 20 years old or 20 minutes old unless you know the track. Even if it did sound dated in 30 years, which it may, who makes films for people 30 years in the future? Straight classical is safe, I prefer experimental films.

[d1rtynyc]

Good thread.
My favorite for electronic music from the 70's was this:

[Silver Sonya]

Originally Posted by PeteJames

Even if it did sound dated in 30 years, which it may, who makes films for people 30 years in the future?

Clint Eastwood, George Lucas, Steven Spielberg, Martin Scorsese, Ridley Scott, Darren Aronofsky, Gus Van Sant, Paul Thomas Anderson, ...



I don't think you understand the mindset of the people who make these films.

There is a moment in the Star Wars DVD extras where they talk about this exact subject and everyone agrees that they "dodged a bullet" by not having an electronic score.

Your faith in the plateauing sophistication current electronic music is... well, a faith I don't share. People thought this in the '90s too! "Well, we've arrived now."

It's a very common illusion. People thought that in the '80s too!

Watch this silly video and realize all of the cliches, visual and sonic and musical and even semiotic. Even the way the singer holds the microphone is a stale move. It's almost like an SNL parody. That half-step drop in the melody of the chorus is priceless. "I can't even save myself..." Tee hee hee.

These people were serious. They thought they were being dark and menacing.



- c

p.s. It should be noted that that video is only 10 years old!

[Selidor]

I agree there needs to be more electronic music in films... but as it's been said before it sometimes dates a film. That's not to say that electronic music doesn't work in film, but rather the electronic music that is often chosen for film is often the flavour of the month -- and it's this choice that dates a film.

Take John Carpenter for example. I think his films were great, Escape from New York, They Live, Prince of Darkness, etc... and he did the majority of the soundtrack work with synthesizers for those films (all excellent soundtracks in my opinion). As he had near total creative control over his films it seemed to work, but which of his films is the most well-known and loved? The Thing of course! A film that also featured the orchestration of Ennio Morricone, using traditional instruments, thereby rendering the soundtrack more accessible to the masses.

Run Lola Run was mentioned previously. I enjoyed the movie Run Lola Run quite a fair bit, and there are a few songs from the soundtrack I listen to still from time to time. However, the movie itself is a sort of a "one trick pony", in that as much as it presents an interesting and new concept (at least at the time), it lacks expression of the human condition and subtlety, meaning you aren't likely to get much out of it on repeated watching. In fact, whenever I watch that movie now it's strictly to show it to friends -- and that's all I get out of it, knowing that I've been the one to introduce it to a friend. Unfortunately I would say this applies to the soundtrack to an extent as well, in that like the film it's not likely to provide much to the listener on repeated listens.

On the other hand take a movie like Pi. The soundtrack is electronic, but it features music from a variety of electronic musicians, thus giving it variety in styles. Additionally, like the movie itself, the soundtrack offers enough creativity and expression to make it worthwhile of your attention on repeated listening. I should hope that future composers of electronic soundtracks take note: a little variety and mixing of genres would make a lasting impact in a film. There is something else that makes the soundtrack for Pi work as well as it does though, and it's the fact that the music isn't used to the effect of creating a "futuristic atmosphere" or something "not of this world", but rather that each piece was chosen for it's scene carefully, as a piece that expresses all the intricacies of the scene it was chosen for.

Ultimately this is the problem with electronic music in film, in that it's often chosen to be a gimmick, and nothing more. When a film uses a little more creative direction in it's choice of soundtrack mind you, it doesn't matter if it's electronic, rock or orchestral, it works.

Honourable mention: a number of horror films have excellent, timeless electronic soundtracks (take nearly any of the electronic work by the band Goblin, for example, but then they brought variety to their film soundtracks too).

Having said that I'd like to leave a comment about Star Wars, as someone mentioned it before, although it has nothing to do with music or soundtracks. Star Wars sucks, and it ruined the movie industry forever. Here's why:
01) The original Star Wars films were professionally created, but the actors clearly are just having fun with the roles and screwing around. In the newer films the actors take themselves way too damn seriously, because it's Star Wars, and that detracts from what made the original films enjoyable.
02) When Star Wars was originally created George Lucas didn't have any rights to it, instead 20th Century Fox wanted the rights because that was where the real value was. 20th Century Fox let George Lucas have merchandise rights, as it was concerned a minor concern at the time. George Lucas however slapped Star Wars logos and the like and so much merchandise that he was able to raise enough money to buy the rights to his films from 20th Century Fox. As George Lucas created Star Wars I can see why he'd want to have the rights to his own films, but ever since this incident movies have been created more and more with merchandising rights in mind before the quality of the film itself. In other words, with Star Wars George Lucas ushered in a new era of commercialism in film, and the creative and artistic quality of film has been declining ever since. If you ever doubt how commercialism can ruin something, why don't you take a good look at the differences between Calvin and Hobbes and Garfield, for example.

*ahem*

[wax808]

Judicious and mature sound selection is key for an electronic score. There is no reason a fully electronic score can't sound timeless.

There is also no reason an electronic instrument can't augment a real orchestra.



Ever listened to Jeff Wayne's War of the Worlds musical score? IMHO it's epic, timeless, and will never sound dated to me. And it was made in 1978.

Jeff Wayne's Musical Version of The War of the Worlds - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia








The same thing applies to popular music. Ever heard Rosanne Cash's "Seven Year Ache? " To an electronic musician it sounds dated and weird. But to a fan of music from that era it's classic country music. Put it on in a country bar and you'll have a floor full of wanna-be hillbillies dancing to something they claim to hate: i.e. electronic music.

[rhizomeman]

I think what's important is not so much acoustic/electronic/orchestral but HOW it is used. What about A Clockwork Orange? Brilliant use of a variety of music - orchestral, electronic, and even a cappella singing in that highly disturbing rape scene. The music in that film seems timeless to me - timeless because it is fused (and opposed) so well with the imagery and actions of the scenes.

As far as electronic music goes, I like Last Life in the Universe and Invisible Waves by the Thai director Pen Ek. Very subtle ambient drones that really help create mood and atmosphere in the films.

[Silver Sonya]

Well, Clockwork Orange and Blade Runner are examples where it has worked and not seemed dated or corny.

And, as you say, part of the technique that works is contrast.

I mean, who wants to hear a clanging, industrial-sounding, electronic score to a movie like "Terminator: Salvation"? I mean, how boring would that be?

It'd be much cooler if it had detuned banjos or something more surprising.

I'm not anti-electronic music in film scores, it's just that the history has largely shown that it's usually a mistake.

Especially if the movie is "futuristic."

- c

[Silver Sonya]

The biggest question of this thread should be:

Did we really need another Terminator movie?



- c

[golden beers]

well i for one thought the music for the new star trek film was a bunch of shit. not because it was 'orchestral' but because it sucked arse! i think the reason why we have orchestral scores in major hollywood films is all about the moneymen in control of the purse-strings and their motivation.

movie producers know most people expect an orchestral score so that’s what they get. it's the same reason why we get the evil super villain in all mainstream action films. including star trek.

what i’m saying here is producers have allot of money to take care of and keep safe. mostly they make safe bets. they do what’s been done before because they see that as safe. so action movie format= melodrama with evil super villain and orchestral score. they're not interested in originality or music, they're interested in $$$

perhaps if starwars was scored with synths, somewhere on ochestslutz there would now be a thread asking why everything is electronic and nothing orchestral.

[LNerell]

Actually a lot of movies these days do have electronic scores, its just not as obvious as it use to be. Synths are just another part of the pallet of sound and are blended in with the orchestra. I recently heard James Newton Howard talk about composing music for film, he said he uses synths in just about all his soundtracks, even films where the director specifically asks that synths not be used.

[Brian!]

i'm sure you guys would be completely open to the advice a film director gives when you're working on your own non-movie tracks, right? because that's essentially the same thing you're suggesting. just because you make music does not qualify you as a competant scorer (is that even a word?)

[Selidor]

You don't have to be competent in scoring to know which soundtracks have stood the test of time in the last 35 years, which were little more than a gimmick, and which fit well with the movie. That's like saying you have to be a skilled writer in order to appreciate or understand literature.

Of course, if anybody with experience in scoring films wish to chime in please do!

Having said that, it's interesting how in order to be allowed the privilege of listening to music during the 16th and 17th centuries you were also expected to have taken music theory. That's neither here nor there though.

Two interesting soundtracks:

The soundtrack for Forbidden Planet is "electronic", and really quite dated sounding... but it's worked to the advantage of that film, because it's the quirky dated feeling of the film that allows it to be remembered even today, otherwise it would easily have been forgotten with a ton of other films from that era.

The soundtrack for Insomnia (the original Norwegian version) is much better than the film itself, if you ask me. If anything, the soundtrack carries that film.

[rhizomeman]

Hmm...Well, Brain! I must disagree. If the music has no visual component (ie not a film), there is no need for a Directors input. I have worked with video artists and although every collaboration is different, making films is definitely a collaboration. With hollywood films it's a really really big and expensive collaboration. Directors often give a fair amount of freedom to composers, but yes it is ultimately the director (hopefully, not the producer) who says yes or no.

Most of my experiences working with video and also dance have been positive in the sense that the mood and/or effect was discussed and I was allowed to come up with what I thought would work.

David lynch is a good example of a director who is very sensitive to sound and music in his films and actually does some of his own sound design.

[Brian!]

Originally Posted by rhizomeman

Hmm...Well, Brain! I must disagree. If the music has no visual component (ie not a film), there is no need for a Directors input.

Uh, that kinda was my point which works in reverse for this thread's very pupose. So far, I've heard "THEY SHOULD USE SYNTHS BECAUSE I LIKE THEM" and nothing else which isn't exactly great reasoning.

[Brian!]

Originally Posted by Selidor

You don't have to be competent in scoring to know which soundtracks have stood the test of time in the last 35 years, which were little more than a gimmick, and which fit well with the movie. That's like saying you have to be a skilled writer in order to appreciate or understand literature.

Being able to analyze existing work is not the same as producing new original work. I'm not saying that no one should critique anything but there is a world of difference between "oh i think this song would have been better for this scene" and doing the initial scoring.

[Selidor]

Originally Posted by Brian!

So far, I've heard "THEY SHOULD USE SYNTHS BECAUSE I LIKE THEM" and nothing else which isn't exactly great reasoning.

On the contrary, I think both of my previous posts in this thread have offered a great deal of reasoning in regards to specific films and their electronic soundtracks -- and electronic music in film in general. I didn't really elaborate on Insomnia, but I'd be more than happy to if you'd like. In case you haven't noticed, I like typing and can do so for hours.

In fact, I don't think anyone here has indicated there should be more electronic music in film simply because they like that form of music -- there's just been a lot of focus on Vangelis and The Terminator.

Originally Posted by Brian!

Being able to analyze existing work is not the same as producing new original work. I'm not saying that no one should critique anything but there is a world of difference between "oh i think this song would have been better for this scene" and doing the initial scoring.

I agree with you, but this thread hasn't really been about producing "new original work". It's been a critique if anything at all. Besides, many of the points risen in this thread would be important notes for those wishing to score a "new original work".

[sleepwalker]

A techno score usually kills a movie for me. Run Lola Run is an example where I think it's great to go the electronic route. Otherwise, I think the typical film instrumentation is a safe bet to let the story tell itself without the music drawing unnecessary attention.

I do love the P5 Terminator theme, so I suppose I'm a bit of a hypocrite here.

Originally Posted by PeteJames

It bothers me since some of my favourite modern films, by coincidence, have electronic soundtracks. I think it's because some of the more artistic directors often utilise less mainstream music. I've seen it used to great effect in world cinema but still too rarely. Watch 'Lola Rennt' (Run Lola Run) to see how great an impact techno music can have on a film. A masterpiece! The music reflects the layered looping plot and adds greatly to the intensity, suspense and drama.

More mainstream examples:

Fight Club soundtrack is immense and moody - Dust Brothers

Football Factory seems to capture masculinity quite well with Primal Scream and Orbital

Blade - it is diagetic though, at least in the music from the club scene.

Yeah, love 'dark and long' in trainspotting too.

[carbon]

Electronic music can get dated quickly, particularly dance music, but I'd rather have music that starts out fresh and gets dated than music that never gets dated, but never sounds fresh.

One might think the original Terminator soundtrack is dated, one wouldn't score a film that way today, but at the time, as PeteJames said, it wasn't perceived as cheesy. The Terminator soundtrack makes one aware that it was an 80s movie but there's nothing wrong with that. I think when artists stop reflecting their times and start recreating the past without incorporating the present and thinking of the future is when things start to stagnate.

I love 80s Italo but if a band came out today with tunes that sounded exactly like 80s Italo, I would question why they bothered. 80s Italo was a product of that time. To try and recreate it exactly now would seem artificial, although a modern spin on 80s Italo could be pretty cool. It's cool when one hears a song on the radio and thinks "Yeah! That's what music should sound like in 2009!"

Similarly watching 70s or 80s movie, the music is 70s and 80s music. When people 30 years from now are watching movies from this decade are they going to think of anything particular recognizeable in the music?

Not saying that composers should use synths because I like them. Rather that composers should incorporate the sounds of their time into their work. That the sounds of the time is music like Drum and Bass and other electronic genres may mean including synths.
---------------
Interesting links. "The War of the Worlds" is cool and I'll have to add the original "Assault on Precinct 13" to Netflix. Run Lola Run is great. I'll have to watch Fight Club again and pay attention to the music.

[chrisrnps]

Originally Posted by Silver Sonya

Clint Eastwood, George Lucas, Steven Spielberg, Martin Scorsese, Ridley Scott, Darren Aronofsky, Gus Van Sant, Paul Thomas Anderson, ...



I don't think you understand the mindset of the people who make these films.

There is a moment in the Star Wars DVD extras where they talk about this exact subject and everyone agrees that they "dodged a bullet" by not having an electronic score.

Your faith in the plateauing sophistication current electronic music is... well, a faith I don't share. People thought this in the '90s too! "Well, we've arrived now."

It's a very common illusion. People thought that in the '80s too!

Watch this silly video and realize all of the cliches, visual and sonic and musical and even semiotic. Even the way the singer holds the microphone is a stale move. It's almost like an SNL parody. That half-step drop in the melody of the chorus is priceless. "I can't even save myself..." Tee hee hee.

These people were serious. They thought they were being dark and menacing.



- c

p.s. It should be noted that that video is only 10 years old!

That's not fair. Stabbing Westward were ridiculous, pantywaist NIN bandwagon-jumpers along with Gravity Kills and many others when they were new. They were just as ridiculous, one-dimensional, and dated-before-they-came-out then, too.

And really? Darren Aronofsky? Perfect example of innovative use of electronic music(ians) in film scoring.

Requiem for a Dream? Scored by Clint Mansell - the dude from Pop Will Eat Itself - in collaboration with Kronos Quartet.

Pi? Clint Mansell, Orbital, Autechre, Aphex Twin, Massive Attack, Banco de Gaia, Spacetime Continuum...

The Fountain? Clint Mansell, Kronos Quartet, and freakin' Mogwai. Plenty of synths and 'treated' instruments mixed with strings, piano, and acoustic drums.

And, uh...Ridley Scott?

Blade Runner is quite possibly the most famous and/or influential 'electronic' movie score of all time.

Legend is, or should be, as infamous for its ridiculous and dated Tangerine Dream / Jon Anderson / Brian Ferry soundtrack.

George Lucas? Star Wars?

Oh, he ruined and dated those with electronic effects and digital synthesis, alright. Just not the kind you can hear. And dialog a 12-year-old should be embarrased by. And Jar Jar Binks. And horrible CGI. And terrible acting, editing, and directing. And more predictable John Williams scores. And, and, and...

[dotl]

L’Idee
Animation -1932.
- first use of electronic instruments in film

Forbidden Planet
SF -1956.
- the first all-electronic score for a motion picture

[chrisrnps]

Originally Posted by Silver Sonya

The biggest question of this thread should be:

Did we really need another Terminator movie?



- c

If it turns out to actually be as cool as the preview makes it out to be, quite possibly.

Andromeda Strain!
Best. Electronic. Score. Ever!

[Silver Sonya]

Originally Posted by chrisrnps

That's not fair. Stabbing Westward were ridiculous, pantywaist NIN bandwagon-jumpers along with Gravity Kills and many others when they were new. They were just as ridiculous, one-dimensional, and dated-before-they-came-out then, too.

And really? Darren Aronofsky? Perfect example of innovative use of electronic music(ians) in film scoring.

Requiem for a Dream? Scored by Clint Mansell - the dude from Pop Will Eat Itself - in collaboration with Kronos Quartet.

Pi? Clint Mansell, Orbital, Autechre, Aphex Twin, Massive Attack, Banco de Gaia, Spacetime Continuum...

The Fountain? Clint Mansell, Kronos Quartet, and freakin' Mogwai. Plenty of synths and 'treated' instruments mixed with strings, piano, and acoustic drums.

And, uh...Ridley Scott?

Blade Runner is quite possibly the most famous and/or influential 'electronic' movie score of all time.

Legend is, or should be, as infamous for its ridiculous and dated Tangerine Dream / Jon Anderson / Brian Ferry soundtrack.

George Lucas? Star Wars?

Oh, he ruined and dated those with electronic effects and digital synthesis, alright. Just not the kind you can hear. And dialog a 12-year-old should be embarrased by. And Jar Jar Binks. And horrible CGI. And terrible acting, editing, and directing. And more predictable John Williams scores. And, and, and...

Dude, lighten up, my point was that all directors want their movies to be classic. That is always the hope.

My stating this was a response to your "Who cares about 30 years from now?" rhetorical question. I gave you a list of the people who do. I think you underestimate the beret-wearing "My work is a bid for immortality!!!!" hubris of your average top-tier film maker. I mean, I don't know how much time you've spent in Los Angeles, but these people are not like you and me.

That's all I was trying to say.

Anyway, without descending into nerdy minutiae, I think I've made my point.

Myself, I'm a fan of many different types of scores including the ones you mentioned.

My only point is that electronic music is VERY DANGEROUS to tangle with if you want your movie to have a shelf-life beyond the current era. Working with pure orchestral or acoustic colors --- and finding the challenges within that, as in the "There Will Be Blood" score --- is generally regarded as a safer bet. Whether or not you or I have contempt for the word "safer" in that sentence is beside the point.

It's not that it can't be done, but there is a reason that great film-makers are nervous to venture into synthesized textures. Nobody wants to make another "Liquid Sky," y'know?

My feeling is that the only reason to use synthesizers would be if your movie takes place in, say, the 19th century or something. The kind of jarring, (arguably, ill-advised) "wrong" choice Sofia Coppola made in electing for a score that included The Cure for "Marie Antoinette."

If it's sci-fi, using cool synth sounds is just a corny, un-provocative default choice.

- c

p.s. For better and for worse, electronic musicians, historically, have some notion of themselves as "futuristic." I mean, ever notice that ads for synthesizers to emphasize the "futuristic" characteristics of the gear and ads for guitar gear emphasize the nostalgic/"classic" characteristics?

[Silver Sonya]

But you're right, pulling out a Stabbing Westward song was a low blow.



- c