Magnetude, An Anglo-Russian hybrid was brought together through their mutual love of music and this is evident through each one of their sonic imaginings. Their incredible production standard and attention to detail didn’t go unnoticed by drum & bass figurehead Ram, as their cross-pollination of influences filtered through their meticulously fashioned compositions.
After spending the last year solidly working on their unique blend of dance music, they had their defining moment on the drum & bass behemoth, which is now being followed in quick succession by their brand new release ‘Arcade’.
You can download the single, here.
‘Arcade’ has already been doing the rounds, becoming a signature within the duo’s sets throughout the world. The 8-bit breakdown and synth-layered crescendos take you through each track switch, as you’re pulled deeper and deeper into a pin-ball machine of evilly-laughing samples amongst fast-paced beat patterns.
To celebrate this release, the duo has shared their favourite movie scores which they feel tell the story of the movie which is something Magnetude always try to implement in their productions.
Magnetude say, “There are so many scores that we turn to when sourcing inspiration for our music, and we picked 5 notable mentions of scores that we feel tell the story of the movie the original soundtrack was written for without the visuals, which is something that we always try to implement into all of our tracks.”
Movie scores #1: 28 Days Later (John Murphy)
Music plays such a crucial role in highlighting the emphasis or mood in any film, especially horror, and can also tell a story on its own, which is why one of my favourite scores is John Murphy’s score for “28 Days Later”. The thing we absolutely love so much about this score is how it projects all of the emotions that are explored throughout the film. Songs serve a purpose of reflecting feelings of fear and intensity while also soundtracking a bustling capital city that has been reduced to nothingness. The film’s signature piece, “In The House – In A Heartbeat” is one of our all-time favourite pieces of music and is the perfect piece for the movies climax and still gives me chills everytime we hear this composition. We work on a lot of non Drum & Bass tracks be it for television commercials, or just for when we are wanting to do something different, and this is a great reference for us to visit if and when we look to source out inspiration when approaching non Drum & Bass compositions.
Movie scores #2: Gladiator (Hans Zimmer & Lisa Gerrard)
Gladiator is one of Hans Zimmer’s greatest masterpieces. Zimmers dramatic music incorporates traditional orchestral elements, ancient and indigenous instruments, and Lisa Gerrard’s haunting vocals to create a timeless and evocative package of an amazing score. There are common themes running through the music, and yet each piece represents an entirely different slice of his interpretation of the world that was the Roman Empire. Though there can be similarities heard in some tracks, we believe that Zimmer created entirely new works which pay homage to classics such as “Excalibur” and “Conan the Barbarian” but bring them to a new level, tailoring them to fit within the pathway of the movie. Actually, we have recently just finished a track for our next release in which an outro was inspired by this soundtrack.
Movie scores #3: Once upon a time in America (Ennio Morricone)
Ennio Morricone for us is one of the greatest composers that ever lived. His work with Sergio Leone who to us is the definition of the Di Vinci of cinema, not only are all of the movies an overwhelming visual experience but accompanied with Ennio Morricone’s music completely transcends Leone’s movies into an overall glorious art form that only Ennio Morricone can do. The score for “Once Upon A Time in America”, not only does this score hit you with the emotional impact of a juggernaut, but Leone and Morricone combine together and tell a tale that is so powerful and overwhelming it pulls you in to a point that you do not vision the characters in the sense of who they are. When applying orchestral elements into our music we turn to a lot of Ennio Morricone scores when sourcing inspiration to implement into our ideas and his theme for “Once Upon A Time in The West” was the inspiration behind our track “Broken”, which we tried to write to pay homage to Morricone and also Danny Elfman in one composition.
Movie scores #4: Schindler’s List (John Williams)
The are two types of good soundtracks, one in which the movies could not exist without the accompanying soundtrack, but the best of them are those which do not necessarily need visuals to exist. They can exist on their own. The late John Williams’ score for Steven Speilberg’s “Schindler’s List” without doubt falls on the second category. This score is mainly guided by violin and piano and some breathtaking choral tracks which are moving at times, touching at other and strong and impressive when it needs to be. It is very rare to find a classic music score that is so emotionally intense and filled with passion, that evokes sadness throughout with its leitmotif of man’s inhumanity to man. An absolute go-to for us when trying to source inspiration for violin solos in our tracks and very inspirational for some of the new material we are currently working on.
Movie scores #5: Edward Scissorhands (Danny Elfman)
Danny Elfman can bring bold, dark and bouncy musical journeys that are both strange, and creepy, and you always feel a sense that something strange will hit you around every corner. This method of approaching music that has a dreamy sense when necessary with scary undertones, but also grabs you was a method which we wanted to implement into “Arcade”. His score for “Edward Scissorhands” is a prime example of that and also compliments all the actions in the movie so well regardless of whether the scene is funny, suspenseful, romantic, or mystical and will forever be noted as a grand highlight of both his career and film music of the 1990’s. One of the most remarkable aspects of this score is its ability to tell Burton’s story without the visuals. Underneath it all, the whole score still hold that small hint of zaniness to match the overall theme, but then also maintains a sort of fairytale-like and takes you on the journey of this fable with masterful precision, embodying the heart-wrenching emotions of Edward’s discovery and downfall with thematic and choral elements never restrained.
Are there any movie scores that you feel inspired by? Don’t forget to let us know in the comments’ section below!
