Film and Soundtrack Talk

On Her Majesty's Secret Service - James Bond 007

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On Her Majesty's Secret Service - James Bond 007 〰️

In this week's edition of Film and soundtrack talk we will be taken through a journey of one of the best films in the James Bond catalogue by me, Jacob Price. As a lifelong fan of the series, I have always had my top five Bond films in the back of my mind always knowing that they are subject to change and usually do. However, there's always been that one film that I could not get my head around why everyone in the Bond community held this film to such a high authority. Until one Sunday evening while I was on one of my weekly Bond marathons, I decided to watch On Her Majesty's Secret Service. I thought to myself “Why not give it one more go? This must be the one where I finally fall in love with this film?” And I don’t know whether it was the fatigue of having been watching films all day or the vodka martini I was drinking but I watched the entire film in one sitting and as the credits rolled...the penny finally dropped. I could now see that this was one of the best films in the entire series. I had always respected the film due to its impact and fantastic soundtrack it possessed but there were certain elements I had never fully connected with until now.

I am a strong believer that films should be watched with little to no interruptions. Of course, there are benefits to being able to stop a film halfway through to get a drink or a snack however, there's a reason that films being played in the cinema do not come with a pause button. To fully engage with the story, characters, music and outcomes of a film it must be watched and enjoyed as a 2-and-a-half-hour journey where one allows themselves to become lost in the story. James Bond films do this perfectly as we are transported to different locations often exotic and magical which makes it easier to become lost in the world of a film. However, it is not just the locations, the story or characters journeys that we must lose ourselves in. It is the soundtrack. In many films (especially the Bond films) the main score will be sprinkled throughout the film at various moments often highlighting a significant moment within the story. A film that does this perfectly is On Her Majesty's Secret Service. 

I was always aware of the impact that On Her Majesty's Secret Service had to the franchise as we must only turn to the most recent film in the series ‘No time To Die’ and notice the influence that On Her Majesty's Secret Service has on the film. From the score itself borrowing Louis Armstrong’s ‘We Have All the Time in The World’, the On Her Majesty's Secret Service theme tune and even seeing one of the film’s main characters meet a similar end to one of the characters in On Her Majesty's Secret Service. 

On Her Majesty’s Secret Service

John Barry is one of the most influential and most notable figures in the James Bond franchise. Providing the music to countless Bond movies, he has left his mark on the film's legacy through his legendary soundtracks and scores including On Her Majesty's Secret Service. I have a few favourite bond soundtracks with Casino Royale being No.1 (scored by David Arnold). However, On Her Majesty's Secret Service has always been in my top 3. The film is essentially a love story between James Bond (George Lazenby) and Tracy (Diana Rigg). The score that accompanies it is an absolute triumph. For example, the love scenes between Bond and Tracy are paired with a very soft and melancholic score that follows the two falling in love. From riding horses together through the forest and taking long walks through beautiful gardens while the score (We have all the time in the world) plays over the top of the scene. However, it must be said that the romantic elements to the score are not just what makes this soundtrack great. The skiing scenes in Austria where Bond is being chased by our infamous main villain (Ernst Stavro Blofeld) and his henchmen from the top of Piz Gloria all the way to the bottom of the mountain has intense bellowing baritone horns, trumpets and saxophones which adds a real suspense to the scene. 

At the climax of the film Bond and Tracy are finally wedded. Now, if you’ve seen the film, you will know that Tracy meets a tragic demise by the hands of Blofeld and his henchwoman Irma Bunt an assassination carried out on the happiest days of Bond’s and Tracy’s lives. When it is revealed that Tracy has been shot and killed an instrumental theme of, We Have All the Time in The World plays in the background which makes this gut retching tragedy all the more devastating and without this we (as an audience) wouldn’t feel the pain for these characters as much as we already do.

A good soundtrack can really make a movie. When I watch a film, I often listen out for how good the soundtrack is and I attribute this to watching the James Bond films as a boy and now a young man, teaching me what good cinema soundtracks should sound like. On Her Majesty's Secret Service is one of the best Bond scores in the entire franchise and is still relevant today as it was 50 years ago.

Jacob Price 

Film & Soundtrack Talk

In the house – in a heartbeat. 28 days later and its seminal score.

28 days later is one of the most well-regarded and well-rounded zombie horror films ever made. With Danny Boyle at the helm as director and a stellar cast to boot with stars such as Cillian Murphy, Naomie Harris, and Christopher Eccleston.

28 days later has gone on to be a cultural hit and most people may find the song to be synonymous with an outbreak of a zombie apocalypse if one was to ever break out with its dreary tones and a tip toe style of piano playing makes you truly wonder what could be lurking around the corner. 

‘In the house – In a heartbeat’ is a song that can only be described as a brooding beast waiting to be unleashed upon the crowd. The song starts with the piano and the bass, with the guitar being brought in at around the thirty second mark while drums being played softly in the background with very slight hits of the ride cymbal and the banging on the floor tom to keep the song moving.

It’s not until the use of crashing cymbals do you realise that what we’re hearing is echoing the action that’s taking place on screen. We see our main protagonist of Jim (Cillian Murphy) fighting desperately to get back to his group as he mows down various enemies including zombies and most notably his group’s captors. The soundtrack bellows through the screen and like all (good) movies have you rooting for the character even more. 

At the climax of the action, the song comes to a surprising conclusion. The song wraps itself up with a very mellow almost dream like end utilising soft guitar playing and the rest of the instruments being put to one side. This dream like end echoes how the film feels towards the conclusion of the story.

The film is shot in a very grainy way that adds to the grit and style that the film portrays. The streets are empty, everything has been shut down and humanity as we know it has gone. Although, at the very end when our group escapes the clutches of evil and appears to have made it to a safe place the film is being shown in a much less grainy and grittier look and style and is much more vibrant, colourful, and inviting which mirrors the end of the song.

 In the house – in a heartbeat truly encapsulates the sense of despair that an apocalypse would make you feel and for a song to do that is a mark of a true classic.

Jacob Price 

Foo fighters and the passing of Taylor Hawkins. How one man inspired me to be a better drummer

“I wanted to be Roger Taylor, I wanted to be in Queen, I wanted to play stadiums when I was ten years old” - Taylor Hawkins

When we think of musicians, we think of certain individuals who master a craft only some people can only dream of. People who in our eyes ‘live the dream’ every night, performing on stage in front of thousands of adoring fans. However, in the back of our minds we know and are aware of so many of these talents fall ill to substance abuse, alcohol addiction and mental health problems, only for these issues to be exacerbated by being in the public eye and constantly being expected to be their best selves every day. I would like to invite you to read about my experiences with the Foo Fighters’ music and how the late Taylor Hawkins inspired me to be a better musician.

Taylor Hawkins was 25 when he joined Foo Fighters in 1997. Before that he played drums for Alanis Morissette (currently residing in the ‘where are they now?’ file). It is now famously stated that the Foo’s went through the same growing pains many successful bands go through in their early years. However, their growing pains was for everyone to see, and Foo Fighters had to search through the rough to find their diamond in Taylor Hawkins. Playing on every album for the band from 1999’s ‘There is nothing left to lose’ to 2022’s ‘Dream Window’ Hawkins provided the enthusiastic and high energy style of drums that we have come to expect from Foo Fighters and is synonymous with the band. 

So, where does this bring me in? In 2005, as a 5-year-old boy my family took me to see the now infamous concert ‘Noise and Confusion’ in the Principality stadium in Cardiff. A mammoth gig that contained bands such as The Coral, Razor light, Oasis and of course, Foo Fighters. They opened with ‘In your honour’. The moment Dave Grohl sang the opening line I was caught hook line and musical sinker. Then the drums came in. I couldn’t believe what I was hearing let alone seeing. It must have been how people felt in the 1960’s watching Muhammed Ali fight, a spectacle that no one had seen before. Such a unique presence. An awe-inspiring talent who defied what anyone had done before them. 

 I come from an extensive line of musicians. My grandfather is a pianist and has been since he was a child, another relative is a freelance accompanist who plays for the Royal Ballet and teaches in London. My father is a drummer and is the sole reason I ever learnt how to play a 4x4 beat and my late cousin was a founding member and original lead guitarist/vocalist of the London based band ‘The Ha’pennies’ and I myself have been drumming since I could pick up a pair of drum sticks. 

Like many young musicians I learnt to play the drums by playing along to various songs such as ‘Chop Suey!’ by System of a down, ‘Billie Jean’ by Michael Jackson and ‘Breed’ by Nirvana. Knowing how to play along to a song is something Hawkins described as being imperative to being a drummer on BBC radio 6’s show with Steve Lamacq in 2019. 

Now, Dave Grohl is considered to be one of the all-time greatest drummers. (a statement I wholeheartedly agree with) However, the one drummer I found hardest to emulate, to play like, to match the energy and speed in which he played was Taylor Hawkins. Eventually, the penny dropped, and I would play the songs along with the tracks with Taylor as if he was on a separate drum kit in my bedroom. I would spend whole summers playing along to tracks such as ‘Monkey Wrench’, ‘In your honour’ and ‘The Pretender’. Then once I had exhausted my arms practicing these songs I would sit down and watch interviews with Foo Fighters and especially interviews containing Taylor Hawkins in them. This started a trend that I still follow today. One could argue that watching the interviews with Taylor Hawkins in the early days introduced me to a whole new world of media. Watching how Hawkins would talk about music gave me an insight to what it means to be a professional musician. Where he would talk about his various musical influences ranging from Queen, Abba and the Beatles.

Every now and then I will scroll through YouTube and an interview will be recommended with Taylor Hawkins in it. The Howards Stern show, NME and 60 minutes are some of my favourite interviews to watch with him in it. Watching him talk about his love and passion for certain bands such as Queen and Tears for fears and even describing Black Sabbath as “Zepplin’s ugly cousin”, a sense of humour that shone through the screen and reached a young drummer such as myself in the heart of the South Wales Valleys.

But now whenever an interview gets recommended to me containing anything to do with Foo Fighters it will be marred with melancholy and a throwback to a time when I was just starting out and trying to keep up with the legend that was Taylor Hawkins as a drummer. As I grew up, I went on to play in various bands throughout my teenage years and going on to achieve a musical qualification from college. I credit my fast-paced drumming to a drumming great such as Hawkins. Whenever my school or college teacher would tell me to not play the drums so hard or loud it just never made sense to me! I would think “well, Taylor Hawkins never plays the drums quietly” because quite frankly the drums are not meant to be played softly nor quietly and that is something I first learnt when I was 5 watching Taylor Hawkins live for the first time. 

When I woke up to the news that Taylor Hawkins had passed, I realised that I will never get the opportunity to see him perform live again. However sad this is, and it is devastating to think that Dave Grohl and the rest of the Foo’s will never play again it is important to remember that in any death we must hold on to and remember the good times. Taylor Hawkins inspired a generation of drummers and reached out to multiple people across all ages. There are children today who are just discovering the music of Foo Fighters and the drumming capabilities of Taylor Hawkins and one day one of those children will carry on the mantle and will play just like Taylor did in front of thousands of people. To quote another musical great in Frank Sinatra, people will look back in years to come and say that Taylor Hawkins “Did it his way.”

Jacob Price 

Film & Soundtrack Talk

The use of diegetic and non-diegetic sound in The Exorcist

Exorcist is one of the most influential films of all time.

Someone may watch The Exorcist today and not realise that at the time of its release in 1973 it was the scariest, most horrifying and controversial film ever made. By today's standards, the exorcist is considered not as scary due to images and videos people see every day on their phones which we can attribute to social media, the rise of YouTube, the internet and Images of real-life crime and tabooed and more niche horror movies and genres.

However, the fact still remains that the use of sound and the soundtrack itself is still as haunting and fear-inducing as it was 49 years ago. From my own experience I had heard and was listening to tubular bells from the age of 10. I couldn’t quite put into words the feeling and the emotion that would take hold, but I just knew that from listening to the music on YouTube and the image that accompanies it was something made of nightmares.

The dark shadowy figure of a man in a hat, holding a briefcase, staring up at the room with the possessed Regan. Illuminated by nothing but a streetlamp and the title of the film hanging over the poster, ‘THE EXORCIST’ is shaded in dark purple. 

If anyone reading this has seen the exorcist, you will be able to recall a particular scene in which the possessed girls head spins around 360 degrees. The sound of her bones cracking, the ease in what should be the impossible way her head spins right around as if it’s about to pop off, the head you are met with once the head finally spins round is a maniacal, evil being that has taken hold of this once sweet and innocent girl.

This sound was made with an old leather wallet being scrunched up while being held up to a microphone. You see, what fascinates me about foley and the use of sound in films is the way that the simplest of everyday items and objects can be used in such a way that it invokes fear and pulls out an emotion in you that you didn’t even know existed. An old leather wallet (if used correctly) can invoke fear into you.

I often wonder if foley artists are ever able to watch a film in the same way that the general public can. Do foley artists ever sit down to watch a film and lose themselves in a great horror movie or is it the case that they can’t because they know how certain sounds are produced?

If there’s is a noise say, for example, a faint whisper or a screech coming from a dark corridor that invokes fear into the audience and on-screen protagonists we know that something is about to jump out at us, is a foley artist able to separate themselves from the impending doom that’s about to take place or is it the fact that they know that the sound is coming from someone breathing down a microphone in a back studio at Warner Brothers and not a defenceless character too much to escape from?

The exorcist is one of my favourite films. Not just horror films but one of my favourite films in general. Whenever I watch it the soundtrack and the use of non-diegetic sound are some of my favourite in all of cinema. I would implore anyone who hasn’t seen it to watch it for the soundtrack and sound effects alone.

Jacob Price 

My First Music Memory

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I’ve had many musical experiences. The first gig I ever went to was with my family and uncle's family to go and watch the ‘noise and confusion’ tour in Cardiff in 2006.

The headliners were Razor light, oasis, and foo fighters. This influenced me massively as seeing the kind of influence these bands had on a crowd was huge for my creative development 

However, the memory that sticks out in my mind is being in the car with my dad and brother and listening to the Stereophonics album ‘pull the pin’. We would listen to the whole album in its entirety, and I would ask my dad what certain songs would mean.

There is a song on that album called ‘daisy lane’ which is a very slow and melancholic tune which taught me that if you’re going to make an album you need a slower song to allow the listener to sit back and critically think about the tone and meaning of a song and the album itself.

The second song which sticks out in my mind is ‘bank holiday Monday’, which is an upbeat, loud rock song that I could really see people dancing to at gigs.

I feel as though these experiences really influenced my taste for good melodies, dance songs but also slower songs that make you feel something.

Listening to this music and going to that gig allowed me to appreciate festivals and gigs more when I went to live music events throughout my teenage years.

Immersed Festival Reviews

All Images Copyright KCL

Immersed! Festival Sunday - Sofa Sessions - Review

From Friday the 29th to Sunday the 31st of January, Immersed! festival took place through live-streams online. Curated by students from the University of South Wales, the festival saw a variety of artists, all who create different genres of music, and are from in and around Cardiff.

The festival took place to celebrate the live music scene in Cardiff, along with raising money for Teenage Cancer Trust. I tuned in to the beginning of Sunday’s live-stream, titled ‘Sofa Sessions’, and really enjoyed it. 

The format of the festival was really professional, and throughout, as the name suggests, I felt immersed in the set, as if I was physically in the same room watching the artists perform.

On the stream there was also a chat section, where people could make comments and cheer on the artists, as well as reminding everyone watching about donation links for Teenage Cancer Trust, and linking merchandise for the festival, with proceeds going towards the charity.

As with the name of Sunday’s stream ‘Sofa Sessions’, I expected chill, acoustic sets, which is exactly what was shown. Emma Mae’s acoustic set was amazing, using only an acoustic guitar and her incredible vocals, it was completely stripped back and was really lovely to listen to.

The stage setup for her performance was also really nice, with visuals of nature behind her on a screen and blue and green interchanging lighting, there was a really relaxed vibe.

Emma spoke a bit in between each song, about when she wrote it, or what it was about, and every song she performed had beautiful, emotive lyrics. She also performed a cover of Alessia Cara’s ‘Here’, which was a really nice acoustic interpretation of the original version.

My favourite song she performed was a song called ‘Seventeen’, I really enjoyed her entire set, as her music style is exactly what I like listening to. 

Overall, from what I saw of Immersed!, I was really impressed, and thoroughly enjoyed it. I really liked how engaging the festival was, as, being an online event, it can be difficult to keep an audience involved, but the Twitter account was being constantly updated, along with the chat on the stream, so everyone watching could interact.

Having an event like this is amazing for local artists to gain more exposure, and is something that I think should be done in many other areas across the UK in order to showcase homegrown talent.

Also, the fact it was raising money for such an incredible cause like Teenage Cancer Trust makes it even more important. Hopefully the festival continues for years to come, and continues to showcase the amazing talent Cardiff has.

Chloe Mullis

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Immersed festival 

Immersed festival supplies you with the anthems for your weekend, turn your kitchen into a nightclub and get the whole house moving.

When it comes to immersed festival you will seldom find a lack of great artists to listen to. On the Friday we had dance music, Saturday we had rock and indie music and on Sunday we had the pleasure of slowing things down with smooth tones, lullaby anthems and easy on the ear (and head) acoustic sets.

However, I chose to tune in to DJ Clu & wiz mc on the Friday when ‘let us dance’ was on and I was blown away by the level of talent and production these artists had in their arsenal.

What I liked about the music they played was that it wasn’t the traditional dance music you would typically find in a nightclub. I expected to hear poppy, upbeat melodic and catchy house songs when I first tuned in, but what I was met with was an ‘in your face’, almost grunge esque style of dance music which put me on the back seat. A beautiful mixture of grime, mcing, dream like Saxaphone style instrumentals in-between bars and through listening to this I had an epiphany.

What came to me was that club music that has a high production value, already established artists and DJ’s names attached to a particular dance track, can sometimes overshadow lesser-known creative musicians who have a passion for mcing and rap just as much as a big-name artist. 

Immersed festival gives acts such as DJ Clu and Wiz MC the exposure that they need, with a time as trying as COVID-19 and ongoing struggles with musicians not being able to tour due to travel restrictions and Brexit restrictions, Immersed festival allows these acts to flourish and gain experience by showcasing talented artists to a wider audience.

What we also see here is organic music making and to see these guys throwing everything at the audience while going full speed at 180bpm while pairing different styles of music together was very refreshing and extremely satisfying. 

The rapper (Wiz MC) spent no time in pausing for a breath. It was a constant stream of conscience flow which to an outsider might not seem like much, however being able to rap consistently from one bar to the next is not as easy as you may think when you’re rapping to an instrumental as fast as the one playing.

I felt as though the experience was a breath of fresh air and I can guarantee that if immersed festival had been in a club or the students union, DJ Clu and Wiz MC would blow the roof of the place. I can’t wait to see where they go from here. 

To anyone thinking of tuning in to immersed festival next year, do it. You will not be disappointed, in the meantime, watch this year's festival in its entirety on their YouTube channel @immersed! 2021 on YouTube. They showcase lots of different acts so there's something for all music tastes and styles.

This isn’t just a festival, this is immersed.

Jacob Price

Image Copyright KCL

Emma Mae



An Up and Coming Star

This weekend I attended the ‘Immersed’ festival held online by ‘KCL’ (Keep Cardiff Live). I listened to a wide range of different, talented artists during that event, but one act really grabbed my eyes – and ears – attention.

That act was Emma-Mae, a young musician from Leicester, dazzled me with her extraordinary talent. Her songs included ‘Welcome to my Hometown’ and ‘Easy Tiger’ among many others sung in a similar style to ‘Florence + The Machine’ and ‘Alanis Morrissette’.

The performance took place at ‘The Tram-shed’, a venue that is sadly up for sale, filmed in Covid-19 community guidelines, and lasted for less than thirty minutes.

Even though Emma-Mae performed for half an hour it went by so fast due to her beautiful voice, laid-back bandmates as well as the tranquil colour-scheme of her set piece.

 As well as that even though there was no audience, due to the restrictions held in place due to Covid-19, the tranquil, soulful sounds came through and created a totally unique and thought-provoking atmosphere. Emma-Mae’s songs of alcoholism and depression also struck a chord and I found myself relating to a lot of her material as she sang.

I was delighted to find Emma-Mae has her own website where I, and others, can listen to her many singles and find out where she performs, but as of late has been unable to do so do to the on-going Covid-19 pandemic. 

However, pandemic or not, Emma-Mae is a true star in the making and I will continue to listen to her wonderful voice and songs of sadness and hope for many years to come.

Phoebe Vaughan

Image Copyright KCL

Review of Immersed Festival 2020

Immersed festival is a vibrant, genre hopping music festival hosted in a well loved venue Tramshed in the live music oriented city of Cardiff.

The Immersed Festival is hosted by the University of South Wales; entry to the festival is free but it is encouraged to donate to the charity Teenage Cancer Trust. Due to the coronavirus pandemic, all acts were under strict covid friendly restrictions with the festival being streamed entirely online. Some of the acts that performed include; Yasmine & the Euphoria, Telgate and Mace the Great.

The contrast in genre goes to show how the festival has something for everyone and is worth the listen; the festival was streamed on a multitude of different platforms including Youtube and Facebook.I decided to tune into the Sunday evening stream of the festival, in which there were two stages, 'Libertino Records Stage’ and ‘Sofa Sessions’; I decided to specifically speak on alternative band Bandicoot’s set on the Libertino stage.

Hailing from Swansea, South Wales, Bandicoot bring a fresh new aspect to the Indie Rock scene performing many of their songs in Welsh. Bandicoot’s strong connection to their Welsh national identity and heritage is made very clear throughout their discography creating a strong sense of community within their fanbase. During the Immersed Festival stream, Bandicoot played two separate sets; a full band performance and an acoustic set. Bandicoot played an upbeat, vibrant and overall very enjoying set.

They have a strong stage presence maintaining the audience's interest. I would recommend Bandicoot to fans of the more raw, technical side of indie music.

The atmosphere was very endearing; the way the camera angles worked and the lighting all worked to create the feeling of being at a in person festival.

As I enjoyed the act I would be interested in discovering more of their music and seeing them perform live at some point.Some of the other talented acts who performed on the Libertino stage include Keys and Adwaith. Overall the festival is well run, enjoyable and 100% worth checking out next year!

Bethan Stewart

Immersed! 2021 - Sunday Session Review - 

Over the past year due to the Coronavirus pandemic, we have had to adapt in many ways. The events industry being one of the industries that have suffered greatly due to in-person events, such as gigs or festivals, being unable to take place.

Immersed Festival, hosted by the University of South Wales in aid of ‘Save Our Venues’ and ‘teenage Cancer Trust’, was a weekend-long virtual event focusing on a different genre each day, the event itself being streamed live on YouTube for free however the university encouraged donations to Teenage Cancer Trust as well as offering their own t-shirts.  

I decided to attend Sunday's event, on the Sofa Sessions stage, where artists such as Hollie Singer, Yasmine & The Euphoria, Emma Mae, and more performed. The act I was excited the most for was Cardiff-based singer, Emma Mae, having previously listened to her 2020 EP ‘What It’s Come To’, an upbeat EP with the juxtaposing lyrics surrounding love and heartbreak. Personally, my favourites of the four songs being ‘Hangover City’ and ‘Easy Tiger’.  

Mae jokingly says how her set “is going to be very sad”. I personally love the atmosphere of Mae’s set, reminding me of the more peaceful gigs I’ve been to, like dodie for instance, who was performed at Tramshed. Her set reminded me a lot of dodies and how I felt at ease and relaxed during the gig. Having this association to a gig I had been to, made it feel as if I was back at the Tramshed listening to Mae perform live. Performing a mix of covers and original songs, Mae’s acoustic set felt raw and full of emotion. The graphics and lighting surrounding Mae didn’t distract you from her performance but rather added to the feeling of rawness to her set. 

I thoroughly enjoyed the festival on Sunday evening, I look forward to the festival next year. 

Katherine Witts