header image: courtesy of rock burwell and @tonyholmanfilms
words: aggy kazlauskas
now that is how you score a horror film
there’s no better way to describe this summer’s reigning cinematic event obsession other than pretty f*cking inescapable. in case you’ve been living under a rock, american youtuber-turned-filmmaker curry barker’s supernatural horror flick, starring overnight sensations inde navarette and michael johnston, is the title on everybody’s lips. so much so that it has already crossed over three hundred million dollars at the global box office – a solid feat for a sub-million-budget project, ain’t it just?
the film’s success could be attributed to a plethora of factors, from its stellar cast of newcomer actors to the chronically online discourse that stemmed from purposefully sporadic moments of riveting absurdity – with a sliver of the curiosity around it piqued by the iconic dinner scene, aka that viral soundbite of navarette’s character nikki repeating the word ‘no’ over and over with a big, cheesy grin on her face.
more than any of that, though, it’s the suspense, equal parts evergrowing and rhythmic, that makes obsession exactly what it is – an uncanny, frighteningly evocative experience. the film’s ambience sways back and forth, promising a deceptive sense of tranquillity before it’s all swiftly pulled away; it subsequently leaves you with a fear of nothingness, which is fuelled by the uncertainty of who, or rather what, lurks within.
for the most part, it’s the soundtrack that aims to induce such a formidable sense of dread, and it succeeds at doing so from the very second the title track kicks off the score. every beat, every synth, every abrupt, hard cut where daunting melodies get interrupted by dialogue, all of them marry the film’s key moments to sounds that ring like tinnitus.
created by american composer, producer, and singer-songwriter rock burwell, the score is a feather in obsession’s cap – as well as an unparalleled debut that has found burwell in the presence of a steep learning curve.
“A big focus while composing Obsession was the idea of exploring the uncanny valley, finding the space where emotions get warped into something disorienting, where you’re no longer sure what’s real,” he noted, reflecting on soundtracking his first-ever feature film. “Curry [barker] and I spent a lot of time together crafting the balance between feelings like warmth and dread, nostalgia and estrangement, even the expansiveness of how love feels versus something like claustrophobia. Part of what made it all so exciting was the willingness to take risks, using hard cuts and loudness in ways that feel almost confrontational. Discomfort was always the goal.”
indeed, discomfort is synonymous with this summer’s breakthrough hit. the feeling, or the idea of it at least, is a recurring topic in our conversation with burwell as we caught up with him to celebrate the soundtrack’s release on streaming platforms.
spoilers ahead, by the way.
obsession is hands down the reigning horror film of this summer. did you have a feeling that it would end up breaking box office records?
rb: we all knew that we were working on something special, but i think i can speak for all of us when i say no one could have expected the scale and reception we’re seeing.
this film has continued to exceed any and all expectations we’ve had at every stage, from getting into festivals all the way until now. it really feels like a dream at times.
so it was a pleasant surprise, then.
rb: it’s been insane, a pleasant surprise is definitely an understatement.
what was your experience scoring its soundtrack like?
rb: it was a wild ride. definitely the most challenging project i’ve ever taken on, hands down. this was my first time scoring a feature film, everything was new to me. there was hardly any point in the process that felt familiar aside from the general creation of music itself.
i learned so many things throughout scoring the film and really fell in love with the process. it lit a new fire in me and i am incredibly grateful for that.
a few of the songs end on an abrupt note. was that intentional?
rb: yeah, the hard cuts were definitely intentional. they served as another technique to drive unease, keeping the viewer on their toes a bit. it was a stylistic choice curry and i discussed from the beginning.
i also wanted the album to reflect the film’s score in that way; it’s why i made sure to keep the track list chronological. i wanted to give people who loved the film another way to experience it again, true to its essence.
synths play a massive part in shaping the film’s atmospheric sound. would you say they’re an inseparable part of the horror genre or something that worked well for obsession specifically?
rb: synthesisers do have a long lineage in horror and have certainly made their mark in the genre, but i don’t necessarily see them as inseparable.
in the case of obsession, the use of synths was definitely a stylistic choice from the beginning, it felt like an obvious approach. it also worked out because of the film’s budget, i primarily used what i already had and did almost everything in the box.
were there times when composing the score felt emotionally heavy?
rb: there were a couple moments in particular – i remember the long hours and late nights down the final stretch starting to get to me. being locked in with headphones, experimenting with some real unnerving stuff, i’d be lying if i said i didn’t turn around to make sure something, or someone, wasn’t behind me.
spooky.
rb: i’d take breaks, go for walks around the neighborhood and whatnot to keep myself a bit more sane. although getting sucked deeper into the project probably led to some of the best results. it’s all a balance!
did you ever find yourself stuck in a creative rut?
rb: you know, fortunately i can’t say i was met with any real creative blocks during the time working on obsession. i think a lot of that had to do with the timeline i was working with down the stretch. around the time we got the news of getting into tiff it became a mad dash to the finish line in all departments. after reshoots, i had a little less than three weeks with the picture locked cut and that’s when the majority of the score really took shape.
i did meditate to start the day every morning though and i really believe that helped a ton. there wasn’t much time to make mistakes or try a bunch of different ideas at that point, and i just had to trust whatever was being created was meant to be.
which track is your personal fave?
rb: it’s hard to pick! some notable standouts are ‘into darkness’, ‘bear’, ‘r u ok’, ‘hansel’, the ‘one wish willow’ theme – i really think of them all dearly.
i’d say my personal favorite if i had to pick one would be ‘love is in the air pt. 2’ because that’s really where this all started. i had the strongest connection with that track out of any while creating it.
bonus points for the first half of ‘i can’t be nikki’ for being the only cue to make me shed a tear while scoring it.
‘love is in the air’ is the crown jewel of the soundtrack. so much so that its eerily euphoric first part received a lot of attention on social media.
rb: for sure. it was honestly a bit surprising to see that track catch fire almost immediately.
was it weird seeing it take off like this?
rb: i actually had doubts in general about that cue at times because it’s different from a lot of the rest of the score. it’s the only track that i actually recorded live instruments for, i thought something like that could possibly take people out of the moment.
it’s cool to see it [‘love is in the air, pt. 1’] become essentially the main theme of the movie, i somehow had never really considered that when making it. it’s been so surreal to see all of the covers of people playing it online, easily one of the coolest things that’s ever happened to me.
the second part builds to a haunting finale that feels open-ended yet strictly defined all the while. almost like nikki’s fate. what was the inspiration behind reimagining the track to conclude the film?
rb: funny story, ‘love is in the air, pt. 2’ was actually created first. believe it or not, it was one of the very first things i made to send to curry. i had just read the script for the first time and didn’t even officially have the job yet. in fact, creating the track basically served as my official audition since i didn’t really have any sort of film composing portfolio or reel.
i knew i had made something special though, it was one of those moments where flow state took over and almost felt sort of magical. i had no idea it would make it into the film, never mind as the finale.
part one came about when considering other options for what we were calling the “love montage.” towards the end of the editing process, curry had actually experimented by putting part two in that scene and it started to click. that’s when i set out to make a new version to fit the montage specifically, which ultimately became ‘love is in the air, pt.1’.
not sure if you have seen this, but one number in particular – ‘i can’t be nikki’ – kicked off some heated discourse online.
rb: i have been made aware of the debate!
social media users can’t seem to agree on whether inde Navarrette’s character is saying ‘i can’ or ‘i can’t’ when trying to prove herself to bear. some have even pointed to the track’s title as the ultimate proof. are you able to confirm which is actually right?
rb: another funny story… i honestly always interpreted that moment as inde’s character [nikki] saying “i can’t be nikki.” it wasn’t until i went back into the script to confirm that, on paper at least, it is the other way around.
however, regardless of what was said, i was approaching that scene with the idea that there was an understanding between both bear [played by Michael Johnston] and the viewer. it’s clear at this stage of the film that the wish version of nikki isn’t, and can’t ever be, the real her – as long as bear lives, of course. to me, ‘i can’t be nikki’ is the more fitting title on the soundtrack, but perhaps it’s a bit of a happy accident.
which tracks would you choose to represent each of the film’s main four characters?
rb: nikki – it’s the obvious choice but i don’t think there’s another option, at least if we’re talking about the true nikki – her personal theme, ‘nikki’, would be my choice. it’s one where you sort of get a glimpse of what the real version of her might be like, since we don’t get to see much of her. it’s still very sweet, and hasn’t begun to twist into anything dark yet.
bear – i’m going to double down here and choose ‘bear’ for him, lol. i just think this song encapsulates so much of who he is. there is a sense of longing mixed with sadness and loneliness; it feels passive to me, like a wave washing over him instead of something perhaps direct and proactive.
ian – well, ‘billionaire’ was essentially made for ian, especially the back half of the track after he makes his wish. he’s one of the only other subjects aside from the main two characters that got their own moment on the soundtrack.
sarah – this is the toughest one for me, i think ‘the letter’ is the obvious choice because it’s pertaining to her college acceptance letter, but part of me wants to say ‘into darkness’ could weirdly represent her. maybe it’s just because i feel like her character would like that track, given the more alternative-dark feeling it has. it’s also pretty ‘chill’.
obsession is currently out in cinemas. visit your local theatre for screening information.
you can pre-order the film’s soundtrack on cd/vinyl/casette via wax records.
