Natural Selection
iZLER and Curt Schneider
" A score for a laid back and sunny afternoon. "Written by Alan Rogers - Review of the download only release
Linda White (Rachel Harris), a devoted Christian housewife for 25 years, has been living a life of deprivation with her husband. Linda can't have children and her husband refuses to have sex with her as he believes sex is only a means to procreation. Linda's life is turned upside down when her husband suffers a stroke and she finds out that he has been making frequent donations to sperm-donor clinics. The bulk of the film is a road movie, as Linda sets out to find her husband's son, Raymond, and bring him back to see his dying father. Along the way, Linda's relationship with Raymond teaches her something about herself and forces her to re-appraise her past life. Independent film Natural Selection features a score from Czech-born composer and musician iZLER (aka Fil Eisler) and Curt Schneider, iZLER's regular mixer and composer. Brought together by a combination of limited composing time on this project and the juggling of multiple projects, the composers' short score uses a limited number of instruments (the majority played by the composers themselves), jazzy rhythms and Latin influences to produce a variety of interesting and understated cues that are beautiful, melodic and sometimes tender.
The religious values backdrop that is at the centre of Linda and her husband's marriage is highlighted in the first track, “Rebirth”, where what sounds like a harmonium (doubling as a church organ?) creates a church service feel and swelling strings suggests the rebirth referred to in the track's title. The track has an almost religious Ascension quality to it. What then follows is a series of short, imaginatively orchestrated cues based around guitars, drums, piano and Hammond organ (plus the occasional use of female vocals). The highlight of the score is undoubtedly a recurring main theme based around a melodic descending line (that reminds me slightly of Elton John's “Song For Guy”). It's simply stated on piano in tracks such as “Domestic Bliss” and “Diner” and the composers adeptly vary it with concertina and breathy vocals (“Bathtime”) and is given a fuller feel by using drums and a string quartet (“On The Way (Main Theme)”). In this latter track the main theme becomes the ideal road movie track. iZLER and Schneider's adeptness at using uncomplicated devices and motifs to convey emotion is further highlighted by the use of a sad, isolated descending chord motif on acoustic guitar in “That Empty Spot” and “Tell It To Your Mama”. Other tracks of note include “Posh Wank”, with it's onomatopoeic use of rhythmic brushed snare drums and squelchy Hammond organ (finishing with a seductive Latin-styled tango) and “Coffee Pot Dick”, a percussion-heavy cue with scurrying Hammond organ that begins with the same Hammond organ creating a 1950s Forbidden Planet-type eerie tone alongside occasional floorboard creaks. And how the composers manage to capture the track title-hinted smugness of "Damn Right Three Cheers For Me" with Elvis Costello-inspired rhythms, bass guitar and Hammond organ is a talent indeed!
The score for Natural Selection took the Best Score award at the SXSW Film Festival in 2011 with iZLER receiving a nomination as “Discovery of The Year” at the WSA the same year. The score is a good example of what can be written for independent films: an imaginatively orchestrated score where composers are inspired to write understated and interesting music that's not cluttered by any more instrumentation than is necessary. Natural Selection, though short in length, lingers in the memory as a result of the beautifully melodic main theme as well as the strong use of the limited palette of instruments. A worthwhile score for a laid back, sunny afternoon.
Track Listing
1. Rebirth (1.07)
2. Domestic Bliss (0.59)
3. Posh Wank (1.39)
4. That Empty Spot (1.20)
5. Nature Duty (1.53)
6. On The Way (Main Theme) (1.15)
7. Coffee Pot Dick (2.03)
8. Bathtime (1.00)
9. Damn Right Three Cheers For Me (3.18)
10. Tell It To Your Mama (1.36)
11. Genius (2.37)
12. Diner (0.40)
Total Length: 19.43
The religious values backdrop that is at the centre of Linda and her husband's marriage is highlighted in the first track, “Rebirth”, where what sounds like a harmonium (doubling as a church organ?) creates a church service feel and swelling strings suggests the rebirth referred to in the track's title. The track has an almost religious Ascension quality to it. What then follows is a series of short, imaginatively orchestrated cues based around guitars, drums, piano and Hammond organ (plus the occasional use of female vocals). The highlight of the score is undoubtedly a recurring main theme based around a melodic descending line (that reminds me slightly of Elton John's “Song For Guy”). It's simply stated on piano in tracks such as “Domestic Bliss” and “Diner” and the composers adeptly vary it with concertina and breathy vocals (“Bathtime”) and is given a fuller feel by using drums and a string quartet (“On The Way (Main Theme)”). In this latter track the main theme becomes the ideal road movie track. iZLER and Schneider's adeptness at using uncomplicated devices and motifs to convey emotion is further highlighted by the use of a sad, isolated descending chord motif on acoustic guitar in “That Empty Spot” and “Tell It To Your Mama”. Other tracks of note include “Posh Wank”, with it's onomatopoeic use of rhythmic brushed snare drums and squelchy Hammond organ (finishing with a seductive Latin-styled tango) and “Coffee Pot Dick”, a percussion-heavy cue with scurrying Hammond organ that begins with the same Hammond organ creating a 1950s Forbidden Planet-type eerie tone alongside occasional floorboard creaks. And how the composers manage to capture the track title-hinted smugness of "Damn Right Three Cheers For Me" with Elvis Costello-inspired rhythms, bass guitar and Hammond organ is a talent indeed!
The score for Natural Selection took the Best Score award at the SXSW Film Festival in 2011 with iZLER receiving a nomination as “Discovery of The Year” at the WSA the same year. The score is a good example of what can be written for independent films: an imaginatively orchestrated score where composers are inspired to write understated and interesting music that's not cluttered by any more instrumentation than is necessary. Natural Selection, though short in length, lingers in the memory as a result of the beautifully melodic main theme as well as the strong use of the limited palette of instruments. A worthwhile score for a laid back, sunny afternoon.
Track Listing
1. Rebirth (1.07)
2. Domestic Bliss (0.59)
3. Posh Wank (1.39)
4. That Empty Spot (1.20)
5. Nature Duty (1.53)
6. On The Way (Main Theme) (1.15)
7. Coffee Pot Dick (2.03)
8. Bathtime (1.00)
9. Damn Right Three Cheers For Me (3.18)
10. Tell It To Your Mama (1.36)
11. Genius (2.37)
12. Diner (0.40)
Total Length: 19.43