A Banquet is the main title and single version from Ruth Paxton's first feature film of the same name which will be released on March 11th, 2022 on First Artists Recordings (FAR) and Burning Witches Records.
The film is a visually strong, artful psychological horror work which employs subtle supernatural aspects to generate suspense among a family in the middle of a breakdown.
Composer CJ Mirra reunites with the Scottish director after the BBC short Be Still My Beating Heart. Ruth Paxton comments on their collaboration: “CJs score for A Banquet is an expression of luxurious tragedy. The work is evocative, menacing and beautifully haunting all at once. A lingering body of powerful compositions: the work is not only exquisitely atmospheric, but definitive of the film itself. I treasure my director-composer partnership with CJ and his fundamental contribution to our film’s unique identity.”
Mirra used the rare synthesizer Swarmatron and the seventies synth Synthi over guitar amps for percussive and rhythmic components. The composer also explored the capabilities of woodwind in an unusual way, and both these aspects contribute to the film's tense mood. The score also includes production by Dan Carey and vocals by London-based singer and electronic musician Tusks.
“A Banquet’ is not a straight up horror film,” Mirra comments. “There's elements of the genre, but we wanted the music to really keep a sense of constant anxiety, of never feeling settled, even if the main focus is on beauty or tenderness. The film is visually laced with so much texture and we wanted to reflect that in the instrumentation.”
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ZR