The idea of using a single band or singer-songwriter to score a film has fallen somewhat out of favor since the heyday of the 1960s/1970s, when films like "The Graduate" and "Harold & Maude" used the music of Simon & Garfunkel and Cat Stevens to echo and underline the on-screen action. But a few filmmakers, in conscious homage to those pictures, have given it a stab in recent years, with Badly Drawn Boy's work on "About A Boy" and the upcoming "Being Flynn," and Alex Turner's tunes for "Submarine" being among the more memorable examples.
And now one more acclaimed musician is getting in on the act, in the shape of British star Emma-Lee Moss, better known as Emmy The Great. Born out of the same nu-folk scene as Noah And The Whale, Mumford & Sons and Laura Marling, Emmy has released two excellent albums to date, including last year's Virtue, in addition to cropping up in several side projects and guest appearances. And now, according to her Twitter account, she's stretching her wings further by penning some new tracks for the film "Austenland."
The project, in case you've forgotten, marks the directorial debut of "Napoleon Dynamite" co-writer Jerusha Hess, who's adapted the novel by Shannon Hale, while the film is financed by Fickle Fish Films, the production company of "Twilight" author Stephenie Meyer. Keri Russell stars as a single woman obsessed with the works of "Pride & Prejudice" author Jane Austen, and by her creation Mr. Darcy, who buys herself a trip to the Austenland theme park in the U.K., where she falls for an actor, and the rest of the cast includes J.J Feild ("Captain America"), freshly minted Oscar-winner Bret McKenzie, Jennifer Coolidge ("Best In Show"), Jane Seymour ("Wedding Crashers") and James Callis ("Battlestar Galactica").
According to Moss' Twitter, she's been recording the tracks with composer Ilan Eshkeri ("Stardust," "The Young Victoria," "Coriolanus"), who's scoring the film, while her beau, Ash frontman Tim Wheeler will play on the tracks, along with ex-Razorlight drummer Andy Burrows. There's no word on exactly how many she's contributing, but it sounds look there could be an EP's worth in there, and it's certain an added reason to check out the film, which is currently in post, and expected to hit theaters before the end of the year.
