Are you scared? No? You will be. Today Vehlinggo premieres “A New Day,” a delicate acoustic-synth hybrid cue from legendary composing duo tomandandy’s score for Wish Upon, a new horror film from Annabelle director John R. Leonetti that comes out on Friday, July 14. (The film stars some great actors, including one from Twin Peaks. Read on to learn more.)
New York-based tomandandy recently scored 47 Meters Down and The Monster, starring Zoe Kazan, but have been at it since the 1990s. You’ve heard their handiwork in such films as 1993’s Killing Zoe, 2002’s The Rules of Attraction and The Mothman Prophecies, the absolutely terrifying 2008 film The Strangers, 2009’s The Good Guy and many others.
“A New Day” is a sweet, almost comforting mix of piano, strings, and minimal, tempered synths of the crystalline, pulsating, and angelic variety. Or is it? Find out below.
Counter Melodies
In addition to crafting music for filmmakers like Oliver Stone and Roger Avary, tomandandy (AKA Thomas Hadju and Andy Milburn) have also worked with some massive names in art, letters, and music: Lou Reed and David Byrne; author William Burroughs; performance artist Laurie Anderson; and visual artist Jenny. Their latest turn, Wish Upon, is quite the performance in and of itself.
When composing for Wish Upon, Milburn said in a statement, the duo found it helpful that “the melody has a least a couple of tiny ‘mini-melodies’ within it that can be broken out and used separately.”
Among the mini-melodies required was a piece for a special music box that plays a central role in the film’s study of the negative effects of wish fulfillment.
“In Wish Upon, this took the form of a counter melody that’s really just a little accompanying figure, able to stand on its own and evoke the box—without requiring a complete re-statement of the theme,” Milburn says.
The Lakeshore Records release is available via digital stores on Friday, July 14. The label is also releasing a pop-oriented soundtrack the same day featuring artists like Wayfarers, Grace Mitchell, and Hey Violet.
Be Careful What You Wish For
Wish Upon stars Joey King and Ryan Phillippe, and even features Twin Peaks‘ very own Sherilyn Fenn. Fans of Law & Order might be pleased to learn that Elisabeth Röhm, who played assistant district attorney Serena Southerlyn for 85 episodes, is also in the film.
The basic premise of the film, which is written by Barbara Marshall, is this: 17-year-old Clare Shannon (King) is barely surviving the hell that is high school, along with her friends, Meredith (Sydney Park) and June (Shannon Purser).
So, when her dad (Phillippe) gives her an old music box with an inscription that promises to grant the owner’s wishes, she thinks there is nothing to lose. Clare makes her first wish and, to her surprise, it comes true. Before long, she finally has it all: money, popularity and her dream boy. Everything seems perfect—until the people closest to her begin dying in gruesome and twisted ways. Now, with blood on her hands, Clare has to get rid of the box, before it costs her and everyone she loves the ultimate price.
The film opens in theatres on July 14.
