Every day is Halloween: Article on John Carpenter's Film Scores
When I stepped to grab lunch at my local hotspot downtown, I was suprised to see John Carpenter's mug on the cover of the Chicago Reader:
Now this is not the deepest article on JC's music by any stretch - it really is geared towards those who are not so "invested" in synth culture as the Slutz are - but it is a) nice to see him acknowledged on the cover and b) have the bulk article devoted to his synth work. I figured some would get a kick out of it. There is even a little John Carpenter music player so you can synth-out whilst reading the article. Enjoy.
Read this last week when Truise linked it on his FB page. I like Carpenter's attitude towards the whole thing. Comes across as fairly open and genuine.
^I agree. I have seen Carpenter interviewed on camera a few times over the years (man - that guy is an awesome chain-smoker!) and he always reminds me of a very thoughtful college professor. If he gave a lecture on music I would attend in a heartbeat.
^I agree. I have seen Carpenter interviewed on camera a few times over the years (man - that guy is an awesome chain-smoker!) and he always reminds me of a very thoughtful college professor. If he gave a lecture on music I would attend in a heartbeat.
Yeah him and David Lynch chain smoke in the most awesome manner (I'm serious)
Carpenter's soundtracks were a major inspiration in getting into music (playing and production) for me back in the day, in particular The Fog and Prince of Darkness.
Location: Somewhere between France and Absurdistan
Posts: 1,455
Quote:
Originally Posted by LimpyLoo
Carpenter is a poor man's Goblin.
To me, Carpenter always sounded more influenced by Tangerine Dream than by Goblin or others.
__________________ "Most people are fools, most authority is malignant, God does not exist, and everything is wrong." Ted Nelson " Imagination is a quality given a man to compensate him for what he is not, and a sense of humour was provided to console him for what he is." Oscar Wilde "99% of musicians are not business people, which is why everyone makes money off of them - except them." Sqye
It's good to see Carpenter getting some mainstream recognition, especially for his contribution to those films in terms of his music. he really does have a signature sound and style. I was extremely influenced by the early stuf such as "Assault on Precinct 13". He was using the electronic medium of the day, and those sounds really were a huge factor in the scores. The scores were seemingly sparse, but the sounds were revealed, and sparse doesn't have to mean un sophisticated. His arrangements and his choice of harmonic content resulted in really quite perfect and appropriate sound and music for those productions. he developed themes and music that tied it all together beautifully. I remeber that stuff. A lot of newer stuff I don't becasue a lot of it is simply pseudo electronic orchestral , and we have heard a lot of that. It;s great stuff, but difficult to distinguish from the rest. Caprenters stuff kind of owns it's own territory.
Carpenter and Howarth used lots of synths on Big Trouble... (their first MIDI score btw),
and although you can see a DX-7 in the video they didn't use one on this score.
Back on topic, though, I was happy to see that article. Carpenter is rarely considered in the pantheon of 70s directors, but he's definitely an auteur with a unique signature both in his music and film. I also love how stoked he is about modern gear, and share his enthusiasm.
Back on topic, though, I was happy to see that article. Carpenter is rarely considered in the pantheon of 70s directors
Yes,, but that doesn't mean he shouldn't be there....and like all good things...sometimes that kind of recognition and appreciation happens years later when everything shakes down. I'd even call the guy an inventor. Those films were all about synergy of elements...amny of which he designed and brought together. many of us appreciate his talent..but I think he's very underrated.
Discovered a new Carpenter interview (well, new to me... it was written a year ago) that covers his scores. Figured I would throw it in the "Carpenter" thread for anyone who cares:
New Reply 
Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
