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In scouting for loyalty free music across youtube I discovered Audiomachine, a music company based in California who range from releasing their own original scores as well as providing for independent film makers and industry projects alike. Upon listening to a vast amount of their pieces it was clear that a huge majority of the pieces were tailored specifically for trailers. Because of this I contacted the company directly and requested to use their music, receiving the go ahead I begin to critically analyse the soundtracks to identify which soundtrack would be best suited for a horror / thriller trailer such as 'Soul'.
Audiomachine - Ascendance analysis:
The opening of this piece begins slow paced with the faint use of violin, drum and keyboard showing how suited a voice over would be to govern this segment or to build up tension to specific points in order to prepare the audience for the dramatic portion of the trailer. Having this calm opening creates a good pace for the trailer to present the audience with initial characters, location of setting, hints of the plot as well as indication of what genre the film is setting itself up to be.
This steady pace continues until 00:37 as the music intensifies to gradually becoming increasingly fast paced having drums beat every split second until 00:47 when the bass suddenly drops for a moment. This section, after following the easy paced beginning for the voice over, could possibly be building up to where the voice over ends; leaving a cliffhanger or a question to leave the audience on eventually leading them up to the intense section of the trailer and bracing for the action which is to follow.
From 00:42 to 00:54 seconds in, a static effect is introduced above silence with a drum sound every few seconds for 13 seconds having an almost distorted resonance to it however also an intense action and thrill vibe. For this part of the soundtrack to be such an intense segment of having the sound significantly differing from the rest of the piece it could show a major plot point or highlighting the disruption of the equilibrium; having quick one word titles appear, with clean cut transitions, in time with the beats to add more to the quiet but yet anticipating part of the score. After the quickening change of pace to the distorted segment, the pace of the score then becomes increasingly fast and dramatic with the additional speed of the violins and the continuous sound of the drums. The sudden pause at 00:57 breaks up the action slightly however continuous to maintain a decent pace while making the pauses work as the next one comes at 1:00 and followed by another at 1:03. Just as before with the sudden intense noise of the drum climaxing to an intense drop off, this continuous from 1:04 to 1:07 to which the split second silence then gives way for the climax of the trailer, having the majority of the action and thrilling sequences implemented within this segment elaborating the fast paced and story driven action and suspense; showcasing exactly why this film should be watched. Even though the coordination of the drum, violin and orchestra work creates an impactful dramatic trailer and works extremely well in setting up a the hype from the audience to persuade them to witness the film, there is still a vibe from the sound choice which sets up the trailer going with this sound choice to be presented as a block buster, mainstream film which ‘Soul’ is not set up to be.
The opening segment, despite starting at an extreme slow pace for trailer purposes, it still carries an extreme ominous tone, easily fitting the general conventions and setting up to be presented as a horror/ thriller film just as Soul is. While continuing the slow pace for a large quantity of the score this could also be a good use of a teaser for a film instead of a full feature trailer or for exploration purposes in order to fully establish the setting, characters and hints of plot through voice over, panning and establishing shots. As the soundtrack approaches the 1:22 mark the music dives to silence for a few seconds until then revealing a drum build up with a slight distorted pitch, perhaps leading up to a breaking point of the trailer to reveal a specific plot point. However after this mark the same continuous piece carries on, as if attempting to build up to something however is never reaching the climax. Another drop off point appears at 2:18 plummeting to silence for a few seconds to only then retain the the same initial beat as before only on a slight more intense level however nothing too significantly changing in the overall tone. towards the end a slight opera piece can be heard against the already existing beat, finally beginning to build up towards a slight climax. For the third time the soundtrack then falls once again to silence at 3:30, holding the silence for a few seconds until finally revealing the climatic and intense segment of the trailer fitting for shot reverse shot segments the attempting to excite the audience and wanting to repeat the segment in order to grasp what these split second clips may reveal or connote too. The use of fast paced violins and drums against the faint opera in the background can give the sense of the need to discover someone, certain knowledge or perhaps running away for self purposes which is partly fitting for soul however not quite.
My two biggest personal critiques for this piece, while sounding very well composed, has an extreme dulling slow pace to it which is more suited for perhaps a different genre or, as I said before, a teaser instead of full feature trailer. This slow pace in my opinion kills the dramatic tension of a trailer ,believing it is important to follow a balanced and structured routine of presenting a trailer with a slow start to establish characters, setting, themes and hints of plot to then follow through with a breaking point and a small but immensely dramatic segment of shot reverse shot clips at the end to climax the tension and then leaving the viewer longing for more. With this soundtrack however the slow paced beginning lasts for a unnecessary prolonged amount of time ultimately killing any tension and build up the trailer is attempting to create. Although this piece may be better suited for a different genre or perhaps more suited for a game trailer showcasing gameplay instead of a feature film trailer, specifically for ‘Soul’. Audiomachine - Devil's Tower analysis:
As the score begins we are welcomed by a fast paced introduction almost throwing the audience straight into the action without warning or preparation; considerable unusual for many trailers. Although this specific kind of upbeat pace is not like the dramatic climax at the end of a trailer it can still be used for dramatic voiceover purposes however would generally fit more of a dramatic or action type film. My initial thought of the beginning is having stunning establishing shots of vast landscapes, perhaps more fitting for a fantasy or sci - fi genre to implement these and use this score for that purpose. As the track continuous 00:24 second in the sound falls to silence however a small distorted pitch can still be recognised perhaps implemented for dramatic purposes however doesn’t deliver as the same beat as before is carried on when the soundtrack is brought out of silence. This process is then repeated once more at 1:10 however has a slight change to the original track before the silence by having a opera sound choice in the background accompanying the orchestra. After this the soundtrack then returns to how it sounded before the silence, creating a very linear effect just as we witnessed in the analysis of ‘Crossing Destiny’. Only until the end are we presented with a change in the pace of the trailer having the suspenseful segment at the end however not as faced paced as previous analysed soundtracks, overall having the slightly fast paced score maintained throughout the whole 2:14, creating the same dilemma as ‘Crossing destiny’ had with the slow pace being maintained throughout nearly the entire score. despite carrying an easily recognisable heavy tone to the soundtrack rendering it as suitable for specific Thriller / Horror films I still believed it was more suited for a slight dark fantasy or sci- fi film rather than what I was aiming for; this unfortunately wasn't as structured and balanced as I’d been looking for to use for ‘Soul’.
Audimachine - Shadowfall Analysis:
In the end I decided to go with 'Shadowfall' as I felt it embodied the perfect pacing in having a slow start to represent characters, plot and setting to the transition to more dramatic and pulling sequences of the trailer. After, showing a small section in the middle to build up tension then to follow with increasingly intense music to showcase the more thrilling and grabbing parts of the trailer, ending with a perfect climax and settling down to leave the audience wanting more. I felt as though many of the pacing elements and instruments used build up a sinister and chilling atmosphere, especially in the beginning, for a thriller / horror film as well as the dramatic segments in the middle and towards the end made a great foundation to build upon with implementing the most dynamic and pulling segments of the film.
