Ah, theme songs: a chance for talented musicians to get together and work on a befuddling project from which their names might ultimately be removed. For years, TV networks have tapped a mixture of ultra-talented artists and soul-patched studio players to write snappy, memorable songs about existing in Duckburg or how no one told you life was gonna be this way. But more and more, the artists we’ve always loved are getting a chance to leave their impressions on big-name television. Which leaves us to wonder: what’s it like being a typical metal dude writing a theme song for some massive TV studio?
On the latest episode of MoshTalks Cover Stories, Terry “Beez” Bezer chats with Scott Ian, guitarist for Anthrax and Mr. Bungle, and Dave Lombardo, former Slayer drummer and Ian’s Bungle bandmate, about their recent work on the theme song for Netflix’s new show Thunder Force. When asked about the challenges of working on the music for the show, Scott takes it all in stride.
“I didn’t really see or feel any challenges!” says Scott matter-of-factly. “The scoring part of it was pretty cut-and-dry — Fil [Eisler, composer] wrote the whole score, and he made it really easy for Dave and I to come in and be able to play these parts in the studio. It was like learning 33 really short songs. But writing the end-credits theme, that was something that kind of came along during the project. He said, ‘What do you think about trying to write a song — like a theme song?’ And I was like, ‘That sounds like it could be fun!’ And he was like, ‘I can’t promise that they’re going to use it, but we can try. We can write one and submit it in…and see if they’re into it!’
“For me, it’s never a challenge,” says Scott. “It’s always an opportunity.”
Check out Scott’s interview below:
And watch Dave’s here:
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Words by Chris Krovatin
