On Monday, a trailer for the upcoming ‘Suspiria’
remake hit the internet. The trailer, while also our first taste of the horror
film, is also our first chance to hear the film’s soundtrack by Radiohead
frontman Thom Yorke. Dark and jagged, Yorke’s soundtrack creates an
intensifying level of suspense as the trailer comes to a head.
‘Suspiria’ is not Yorke’s first film soundtrack. He has
previously provided music for indie films ‘When the Dragon Swallowd the Sun,’ ‘The
UK Gold’ and ‘Why Can’t We Get Along.’
Over the years, there has been many a rock musician who has
tried their hand at composing scores for motion pictures. Sometimes, it’s the whole
band that works on the soundtrack, other times it’s a solo endeavor by a
frontman or guitarist. Some musicians have even made second careers of
composing after their bands disband.
Inspired by Yorke’s work on ‘Suspiria,’ Vinyl Bay 777, Long
Island’s music outlet, is bringing you a list of rock artists who have composed
film soundtracks. Here are eight artists whose scores have proved their musical
flexibility.
1.
Mark Mothersbaugh: Originally a member of
new-wave pioneers Devo,
Mark Mothersbaugh has become a prolific composer after the band broke up in
1991. Starting Mutato Muzika two years before with other members of the band,
he began writing music for television shows, commercials and movies. Some of Mothersbaugh’s
most prominent film contributions were written for director Wes Anderson,
including scores for the films ‘Bottle Rocket,’ ‘Rushmore,’ ‘The Royal
Tenenbaums’ and ‘The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou.’ This is only a fraction
of his composing work, as he has also written scores for more than 80 films,
including ‘Happy Gilmore,’ ‘Thirteen’ and ‘Nick & Norah’s Infinite Playlist,’
as well as music for video games and television.
2.
Trent
Reznor: The Nine
Inch Nails frontman made his mark on the film industry in 2010 when he was
approached by David Fincher to score his film ‘The Social Network,’ a score
which earned him both an Oscar and a Golden Globe. Since then, Reznor has
written music for more films, including ‘The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo,’ ‘Gone
Girl’ and ‘Sound City.’
3.
Johnny Greenwood: Thom Yorke isn’t the only
Radiohead member to try his hand at film music. Guitarist Jonny Greenwood has
written several film scores in his career, most notably for Paul Thomas
Anderson’s ‘There Will Be Blood.’ Greenwood is also an established classical
composer, having written several pieces for orchestra on top of his rock and
film careers.
4.
Danny
Elfman: Frontman for the band Oingo
Boingo for more than two decades, Danny Elfman is probably best known today
for his work composing music for television and movies. Some of his most
notable works have been with Tim Burton, soundtracking films like ‘Pee Wee’s
Big Adventure,’ ‘Beetlejuice,’ ‘Batman,’ ‘Edward Scissorhands,’ ‘The Nightmare
Before Christmas,’ though his work can be found in more than 90 films.
5.
Badly Drawn Boy: British singer/songwriter Damon
Michael Gough, who performs under the name Badly Drawn Boy, is known for his
lo-fi, indie-rock sound. That sound came in handy when he was asked by
directors Chris and Paul Weitz to write a soundtrack for their film adaptation
of ‘About a Boy’ in 2002. Gough ended up writing two more soundtracks in his
career, one for 2009 made for TV movie ‘The Fattest Man in Britain’ (titled ‘Is
There Nothing We Could Do?’) and 2012’s ‘Being Flynn,’ also directed by Paul
Weitz.
6.
Mark
Knopfler: Making a name for himself as frontman and lead guitarist for Dire
Straits, recent Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Mark Knopfler has written
soundtracks for several films over the course of his career. Some of his compositions
include scores for ‘The Princess Bride,’ ‘Wag The Dog,’ ‘Last Exit to Brooklyn’
and ‘Metroland.’
7.
Neil
Young: It’s hard to dispute that Neil Young is one of the most prolific
artists of the 20th and 21st centuries. With more than 40
studio albums to his name, he‘s had numerous hits and has derived a reputation
for doing whatever he wants with them. So it’s really no shock that Neil Young
has dabbled in scoring films. His first came in 1972 when he compiled a
soundtrack for the film ‘Journey Through the Past.’ Other films he has
soundtracked include 1980’s ‘Where the Buffalo Roam’ and 1996’s ‘Dead Man.’
Earlier this year, he added a fourth film to his list, the Daryl
Hannah-directed ‘Paradox.’
8.
Karen O: In 2009, Yeah Yeah Yeahs frontwoman Karen
O took a detour from the indie-punk she and her band are known for in order to
write the soundtrack for the ‘Where the Wild Things Are.’ Calling herself Karen
O and the Kids, she recruited members of the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, as well as
members of Deerhunter, Liars, The Dead Weather and The Raconteurs to help.
Writing movie soundtracks is not only for composers anymore.
There have been many rock artists and bands that have composed music for films
over the years. A handful of them have even found great success doing it. Thom
Yorke’s work on ‘Suspiria’ will cement his place on this list, hopefully
leading to more successes on the movie front for the Radiohead frontman.
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Find music from these multitalented musicians and more at
Vinyl Bay 777. Long Island’s favorite new independent record shop has thousands
of titles to choose from in an array of genres that will satisfy most music
fans. Browse their wide selection of new and used vinyl records, CDs,
cassettes, music DVDs, memorabilia and more in store at their Plainview
location or online at vinylbay777.com. With more titles being added all the
time, you never know what you might find at Vinyl Bay 777.
