The score for Devil's Rejects [JMJ mention]
a little tidbit on JMJ at the end.
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Tracks
Session Log
868 Words
01 May 2005
Bass Player
78
1605
English
Copyright 2005 United Entertainment Media, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Composer Tyler Bates called me in to work on his latest project: the score for Devil's Rejects, a new horror/thriller from the wonderfully
twisted mind of Rob Zombie. I was particularly excited going in, because Tyler typically uses me in a very interesting role. First, to set up the
music's low-end theme and tie into the other melodic and harmonic elements, he often has me lay down a bass foundation, either something
that's written out or improvised. Then second-and in his mind, more important-he has me create atmosphere and mood, using unconventional playing
techniques and effect manipulation. This part may also be written out or improvised. It also tends to be quite a challenge, since I've been
called upon to make the bass function as an entirely different animal, with requests such as "we need a subsonic rattle combined with a distant,
abrasive squeal" or some such thing. The resultant sounds range from ethereal pads to violent scraping, clanging, feedback, and
pseudo-explosions.
In fact, on this score, Tyler dismissed the need to record much foundation stuff, favoring pure atmosphere for the most part. I learned at a
pre-production meeting that the goal seemed to be to get away from obvious tonal themes entirely, as Tyler, Rob Zombie, and other principals involved
wanted to create a very different effect with the music: very little reference to keys, melodies, or anything too "comfortable." In other
words: What a refreshing, exciting gig!
This particular day started out with a couple of hours of setup beginning at 8 am, since the stereo rig I had for my bass (Ampeg on one side,
Boogie/Aguilar on the other) took some clever wiring and mic placement. But that was only 20 minutes. The rest of the time was spent organizing the
two truckloads of "percussion" that was to be played by the three percussionists I was accompanying, one of whom is my ol' buddy Butch
Norton, the Eels' drummer/percussionist. It was awesome: huge Japanese taiko drums, pipes, washing machines, bowed gongs, gigantic broken drum
sets, mysterious pieces of metal and glass. Basically, all sorts of things that we bass players don't fully comprehend yet are always curious
about.
Once sounds and setup were done at mid-day, charts were handed out and the session began moving quickly. Being the only harmonic/melodic element
seemed daunting at first, but it forced me to be more musically assertive than if I were in a typical bass player role. Sometimes the cues were only
seconds long and had several meter changes, and required uncanny precision on the part of all the musicians. This was especially challenging for me,
because I usually had to contrive some bizarre, yet very specific tonal hue (with my feet making a lot of moves on the pedals), while playing a figure
with my hands. Tyler was in the center of the live room for most of the day, conducting and guiding us through his compositions.
By the end of the day, I recall doing a lot more "non-playing" stuff, with my bass lying next to me as I sat on the floor. Each string was
detuned to some odd interval, and most of my attention was on the pedals, but this time with my hands controlling the parameters. Typically on film
dates, there are a few movie execs looking expectantly through the control room glass, adding a little extra pressure, because the producers are
usually a little over budget and, most likely, behind schedule. But all the people involved with the film were super cool, and Rob Zombie was there,
making astute comments and having a great time as the music went down.
In total, around 15 different cues with alternate versions of each were recorded that day, and the results were intriguing and sometimes scary.
Playing with three sensitive and dynamic percussionists for a full day was great; I felt like a student in a "command of rhythm" master
class. I can't wait for more stuff like this ...variety truly is the spice of life.
---
Player Justin Meldal-Johnsen
Date of session January 6, 2005, Conway Studios,
Hollywood, California
Project/composer Devil's Rejects movie score; Tyler Bates, composer
Hours worked 11 am-11 pm
Wages earned $1,000
Equipment '64 Fender Jazz Bass, '66 Fender Precision Bass, Fender American Deluxe Jazz Bass 5-string, Wal Mach I 4-string, Guild Starfire
hollowbody, '68 Vox Cougar hollowbody, '74 Gibson Ripper, Rickenbacker 4003, Ampeg
B-15R, Mesa Walkabout head, Aguilar GS 112 cabinet, Radial JDI DI box, Two 36" x 16"
pedalboards full of goodies from Moogerfooger, Guyatone, Electro-Harmonix, Boss, Line 6, Tech 21, Z.Vex, early Ibanez, and some secret junk
Justin Meldal-Johnsen divides his time between Los Angeles studio session dates and his band Ima Robot. He also recorded and toured extensively with
Beck, including Guero[Geffen/Interscope], Sea Change [Geffen/Interscope], Midnite Vultures [DGC], and Mutations [Geffen], as well as on albums by Macy
Gray, Marianne Faithfull, Tori Amos, Air, Michelle Branch, Medicine, and many others, including a number of film soundtracks.
http://www.bassplayer.com
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