If you ever are tempted to think that instrumental music is unimportant you should know that Gwenâs music in the beginning of Across the Spider-Verse has made me feel understood in my depression like no other music ever has
Part of the reason the Spider-Verse 2 score means so much to me I think is because itâs an absolute banger but it also starts out with a character who is not remotely ok, and the music reflects that while still being catchy and upbeat and fantastic. Itâs like I can come to this score to enjoy good music and feel understood by the character all at the same time. And I also love how the catchy bit in the second track is Gwen being a superhero and doing her amazing thing while you also know sheâs struggling deeply inside. She can be incredible and do amazing things and help people while struggling deeply on the inside⊠which is inspiring. I just love that I can feel understood by this music and itâs also really really fantastic and upbeat musicâmusic that I relate to in my pain is not usually upbeat and catchy.
Randomly remembered this today and how I always wanted it to be a part of a Narnia movie somewhere. Preferably MN lol
I played the band version of this, called âOctober,â in high school. Opening soloist is played by an oboe and we had one of the stateâs best oboe students playing it. When she couldnât be at a concert, we had a kid play it on soprano sax, which was also heavenly.
For movie score buffs, this guy, Eric Whitacre, often works on choral parts in movies. I know heâs worked with John Powell for HTTYD (at least the third) and with Hans Zimmer for Pirates (I believe the vocals in the third movie in âAt Witâs Endâ are his influence plus maybe the mermaid tracks in the fourth movie)
There's this super common 3-note motif in the Spider-Verse scores where it's one note, it goes down a whole step and then back up to the original note. This is the "Spider-Man" theme according to Daniel Pemberton because you can sing it: "Spi-der-man."
A few times in the scores, he plays with this though. My favorite is when the motif plays and it goes UP a half step instead of down a whole step. (Move spoilers below)
The moment this happens is during the scene when Miguel is teaching Miles about canon events and is telling his backstory. He says, "And that version of myself was killed."
So in that moment, Spider-Man dies--and thus the "Spider-Man" theme is inverted and made wrong.
Part of me wonders if the motif is inverted too to show that this is the beginning of Miguel himself going wrong since it starts his tragic backstory.
I wanted to tell the story of the first time I listened to the soundtrack for the How To Train Your Dragon movie.
I fell in love with John Powell's music through the first soundtrack, and then also the second. I also adored the Ferdinand score. The Ferdinand score is actually the first one that's ever made me cry, I think, and to this day I still haven't even seen the movie. The music was just that good. I haven't listened to everything John Powell has written, but he has a very distinct style to me, to the point that I once pegged him as the composer of a movie my sister was watching and I was right (for any curious, it was Happy Feet, lol. I didn't know beforehand that he'd composed the score).
So I was in college, coming home for a weekend where I think I was doing some traveling. Living in Seattle, I would take the ferry when I went home for the weekend. I had purchased and downloaded the album but was waiting for the weekend, when I could sit down and focus on it fully without interruption. I think I was planning to start it on my road trip later that evening, but I decided to start it on the ferry since the ride is an hour long.
So I start the first track. It's "Raiders Return to Busy, Busy Berk."
I was so. Lost. It sounded nothing like a HTTYD score. There were no familiar themes (and the first two are HEAVY on repeated themes/motifs/etc., both recycling old ones for narrative impact and introducing new ones that get repeated throughout the movie). This third one sounded like John Powell somewhat of course, but it didn't have the HTTYD feeling. When you listen to a HTTYD score, you're used to being hit with familiar themes first thing. So I was really disappointed. I was worried this was going to be nothing like the previous ones.
Until the 4:00 mark. Specifically when the theme hits at 4:18.
That's when the theme from the first movie's first track, "This Is Berk" comes in. Which also appears in the second movie's first track, "Dragon Racing."
It was one of the coolest musical moments of my life because suddenly, it was a HTTYD score again. (And for music people, it was in 4/4 instead of 6/8, so it was already different in a super cool way from the first two movies.) Honestly it still gives me chills to listen to that part because of this experience.
I just think I'll remember that the rest of my life because of where I was and how it hit me so hard. I was looking out the window at water and trees, giving this new music my undivided attention, feeling so confused, and then everything came crashing in and it was like "Oh my gosh it's really happening."
And then the rest of it proceeded to crush my soul, you know, as it does. (Looking at you, "Once There Were Dragons.")
The struggle of wanting to listen to "Forbidden Friendship" at a high volume on repeat but not wanting your ears blown out every few minutes by that first note
Hello, popping in after several months to let you know that in the track "Third Date" from the third How to Train Your Dragon movie, there's a funny-sounding trumpet blast at about 1:57-1:58.
John Powell said in a behind-the-scenes clip or interview somewhere that that sound was originally the trumpet player getting John's attention to let him know he'd screwed up the run leading up to that part and that they would need to re-record.
And then John, of course, decided to leave it in (or maybe add it in... after they re-recorded, lol)
Sometimes I think about how the composer Eric Whitacre worked with John Powell on the HTTYD 3 score and got to direct for the "Once There Were Dragons" scene/track and how only he could see the screen he was conducting to because they didn't want the orchestra to leak spoilers and how he couldn't tell anyone why he was crying
The score for âAcross the Spider-Verseâ is one for the books. Truly in awe of this masterpiece, and I love it just as much (if not more) as the first one. I canât believe how well it meshes together all the themes of the characters and brings back motifs from the first movie. My only critique is that I wish Spider-Womanâs theme had been in the first movie too!!
Read at your own risk of spoilers. Let me know what I missed in the comments!
-contrast in themes between âOnly One Spider-Manâ and Milesâs take on it, âSpider-Man Loves Youâ
-whistling in âVisions Brooklyn 1, 2, 3.â For me, it always feels like the beat drops on an off-beat to show the awkwardness of what heâs feeling
-the Prowlerâs âroarâ sound, which first appears in âThe Amazing Spider-Manâ
-the 3-note âDestinyâ motif in âDestiny,â âMi Amor,â âSpider Trainingâ
-also in âDestiny,â the 3-note Spider-Man motif. Used for multiple Spider-Mans, throughout the Alchemax excursion, especially in âAre You Ready to Swing?â and throughout the rest of the score
-âMy Name is ⊠Peter B. Parkerâ resembles the Peter (A) theme from âThe Amazing Spider-Manâ just like Peter B resembles Peter A
-âPeter enters the Spider-verseâ resembles the opening title creditsâthe sound of the dimensions glitching; see also âGwen Enters the Spider-Verseâ
-keyboard clicks in âAlchemax Arrivalâ and âSpider-Man science.â A Daniel-Pemberton-ism is to use odd sounds
-You can clearly hear Gwenâs entrance because of the heavy drum presence that starts halfway or so through âSwing?â
-deep, heavy brass in âKingpin Clicksâ for Kingpin just like when he smashes Peter A
-âSpider-Manâ theme in âAunt MayâŠâ when going into the spider hideout, plus âDestinyâ theme
-entrance of the Spider Team theme!!!! My favorite, literally almost 2 bars of 16th notes and a little triplet thing at the end of it
-techno for Penny, goofy old-school cartoon with slide whistle for Porker, part of Porkerâs section includes something that sounds similar to âEntrance of the Gladiatorsâ from the circus
-âOn Your Wayâ = repetition of âMi Amor,â with the âdestinyâ motif
-âThe Team Leavesâ has sad version of the 3-note spider man motif
-âSpider-Team Missionâ EPIC SPIDER TEAM THEME, plus I love the beat drop with the line âItâs that easyâ
-the irony of the name âSuicide Squadâ as a track title
-âMiles Morales Returnsâ spider-man motif, plus his signature record scratches; Porkerâs corny cartoon music section; repetition of the ârisingâ motif from âComic Book,â also very representative of Miles
-repetition of the Peter Aâs theme from âthe amazing spider manâ as theyâre in the collider room again
-âSaying Goodbyeâ sad/nostalgic 3-note spider man theme
-âShut It Downâ repetition of the solo trumpet from âthis spark in youâ
-âKingpin fightâ 3-note âdestinyâ motif for Miles begins it except it sounds much more hard-core, like Miles has things under control now
-âShoulder Touchâ 3-note Miles âdestinyâ motif, record scratches, spider-man 3-note motif
-âSpider-Man Loves Youâ record scratches start it out, spider-man 3-note motif, rising theme from âComic Bookâ that signifies Miles
I want to do a Big Post on the latest Spider-Verse score but right now Iâll just say a few things. Read at your own risk of spoilers.
1. Spider-Womanâs theme is epic and I love it
2. Gwenâs theme is basically âand drums.â Like they literally told the drummer to just go ham. You know the Barbie meme with the mugshots? Barbie = Spider Gwenâs theme and âAnd Kenâ = âAnd drumsâ for Gwenâs theme
3. Miguelâs theme!!!!!!!!!!!
4. The opera for Vulture combined with the techno background is officially the craziest thing Iâve heard in a score and I adore it, itâs perfect for an interdimensional movie
5. During the âsketchbookâ scene, it has the whistling theme from when Miles is running down the school hallways in the first movie after heâs just transformed, that themeâoverlayed on top of a sort of techno-sounding track. Except. The two arenât in time. The whistling one isnât in time with the techno track, making it soundâpurposefullyâoff. Because itâs an awkward scene. SO COOL
6. It does that AGAIN in a track near the end (sorry I canât remember which at the moment) to show how WRONG everything is in 42, and that is also SO COOL
I want to do a Big Post on the latest Spider-Verse score but right now Iâll just say a few things. Read at your own risk of spoilers.
1. Spider-Womanâs theme is epic and I love it
2. Gwenâs theme is basically âand drums.â Like they literally told the drummer to just go ham. You know the Barbie meme with the mugshots? Barbie = Spider Gwenâs theme and âAnd Kenâ = âAnd drumsâ for Gwenâs theme
3. Miguelâs theme!!!!!!!!!!!
4. The opera for Vulture combined with the techno background is officially the craziest thing Iâve heard in a score and I adore it, itâs perfect for an interdimensional movie
5. During the âsketchbookâ scene, it has the whistling theme from when Miles is running down the school hallways in the first movie after heâs just transformed, that themeâoverlayed on top of a sort of techno-sounding track. Except. The two arenât in time. The whistling one isnât in time with the techno track, making it soundâpurposefullyâoff. Because itâs an awkward scene. SO COOL
6. It does that AGAIN in a track near the end (sorry I canât remember which at the moment) to show how WRONG everything is in 42, and that is also SO COOL
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