I’ve dabbled a bit into the acting realms… Had some fun, and was able to explore another creative, expressive outlet. Brothers Assassin was one such effort, filmed in the Okanagan, in the Spring/Summer of 2002. This was the second feature-length production I worked on with the Wentworth brothers Neil and Nori. Good times.

The additional benefit of working on this type project is that most of us got to wear more than one hat, so to speak. Because I had the tools, interest and inclination, I took on the roles of creating music, as well as a good deal of sound effects, and all-around ambient enhancement. Basically, Neil allowed me a lot of freedom to add what I could to the scenes, and then he’d take it from there as the editing continued.

I had several months lead time, and I was also playing a lead role in the film (Xander, one of the brothers). Using the tendencies of what I thought an assassin would be like, it was a great way to explore all things musical. As you can hear, the songs vary in countless ways, ranging from simple pop/rock grooves, to edgy hard rock, to electronica/dance and so on. I was up for the challenge, and I think the challenge brought out some interesting ideas, thematically, stylistically, and instrumentally.

Locked & Loaded – sets the tone… kind of a mashup of rock and electronic styles.

Did You Miss Me? – had fun creating lyrics out of thin air, just listening to the tunes as recorded and seeing what came up… Having images from the scenes as they were cut really helped, too.

Drifting – more straight ahead indie rock feel.

Assassin – funk/rock tune… Easy ambience.

Bothered – Xander was a bit unstable. This is an attempt to convey that for a dream sequence in the film…

Groovy! – some industrial elements with guitar edge here and there…

Circumstances – some more pop/rock/funk ambience…

How the Brothers Walk – can you feel the strut to it?

InTruSion – some more ambience, blending cinematic styles with guitars, drums, fx, and a key change!

Comic Book Hero – a touch of fromage… Neil wanted something anthemic, or what you might hear if a “hero” were entering the scene. It made for some laughs.

darkness – some more industrial influenced rock with mixed guitars and ambience…

Delivered – quick one for a scene that had us brutalize a poor deliver guy some… He survived.

Just Drive! – pop/funk feel. Touch of cinematic appeal, simple ambience.

Man on a Mission – another fun (heavy, edgy, driving) one with lyrics… I was feeling the Dark Side for this creation.

Reflection – talk about mood swings… This one’s got a mellow bounce to it. Driving music.

Moods – another soft-pop tune, for the most part…

Who Is This Guy? – pop/rock/eletronic blend… Rich, warm guitar samples and such.

Xander’s Theme – some more rock… This one became the Brothers’ theme song. Doesn’t it sound like a TV show theme?

Dangerous – brooding, haunting, pop. Ended the film and rolled the credits with this one. It’s a personal favourite.

All Music © 2002 Nothing So Right Music