Hitler Loves Twilight Hates Team Jacob T-Shirts

The other two videos created for the site were music videos with a mashup of clips from New Moon set to the song Lost and Found by Senses Fail. The concept of the video was developed long before New Moon had even been released, and shortly after the films release I was able to make the concept a reality. I followed the video up a few short days later with an alternate version for Team Jacob fans, but sadly the videos were short lived due to Summit Entertainment stepping in and removing the videos from YouTube.

Because I am extremely proud of the videos and I think they pay some amazing homage to the New Moon film, I have opted to post the videos here on Where Is Edward Cullen again for your viewing pleasure. The imagery in these videos is the intellectual property of Summit Entertainment and myself, nor Where Is Edward Cullen own this footage. This was put together simply to show an appreciation for both the art of music and the art of the Twilight Saga series and how when put together they can be even more amazing.

New Moon Lost & Found Music Video

New Moon Lost & Found Music Video: Team Jacob Ending

Fans of the New Moon have one more reason to get excited this March. Not only will the New Moon DVD and Blu Ray discs hit stores, but according to some sources a New Moon Soundtrack Deluxe edition will hit stores on March 16. While I haven’t seen any official word on the release, various resources are saying the Deluxe Edition will come in the form of a CD and DVD and will include many of the international tracks that were not released in the U.S.

The CD and DVD combo will include the following tracks:

New Moon Soundtrack CD

1. Lupe Fiasco – Solar Midnite
2. The Magic Numbers – All I Believe In
3. APM Orchestra – Die Fledermaus – Duettino: Ach, ich darf nicht hin zu dir
4. Eskimo Joe – Thunderclap
5. BB Brunes – Cavalier Noir
6. No Way Out – Sed
7. Ximena Sarinana – Frente Al Mar
8. Jennifer Rostock – Es tut wieder weh
9. Anya Marina – Satellite Heart [Air Mail Remix]

New Moon Soundtrack DVD

1. Interview with Chris Weitz and Alex Pastavas
2. Interview with Death Cab For Cutie and Alex Patsavas
3. Death Cab For Cutie – Meet Me On The Equinox (music video)
4. Anya Marina – Satellite Heart (music video)
5. Lupe Fiasco – Solar Midnite (music video)
6. Hurricane Bells – Monsters (music video)

Tommy2.net is reporting that the new disc will include all of the international tracks short of the song Destiny by Miliyah Kato which was featured on the Japan version of the soundtrack. It is speculated that this song is not included because it is also available as a current b-side from the artist and is not exclusive to the soundtrack.

I’m excited to see if this new release actually makes it to store shelves and I am hoping it isn’t just a rumor.  I checked a handful of online music stores as well as Chop Shop / Atlantic records and could not for the life of me find any information on it. Only time will tell, but I can guarantee it will join my Twilight music collection if it does!

The 3 day festival, will feature four of the artists from the New Moon Soundtrack:

April 16
Grizzly Bear

April 17
Muse
Band of Skulls

April 18
Thom Yorke

The 11th Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival will feature a mix of artists and is scheduled for Friday, April 16, Saturday, April 17 and Sunday, April 18 at the beautiful Empire Polo Club in Indio, CA. The 2010 line-up will feature more than 130 acts.

One of my biggest ties to the Twilight series has always been how easily music and lyrics can tie into the stories.  I have created extensive soundtracks to each book and with the release of the films new ideas are continually brewing.  One of which was the idea to create a New Moon music video using the song Lost & Found by Senses Fail.  I have always felt that Lost & Found does an amazing job of capturing the essence of Edward’s pain as he is apart from Bella.

When this idea was first conceived there was rumor that there was going to be footage of Edward traveling through some mountains and essentially running from his pain. At the time the visuals that I imagined in my head would have gone beautifully with the instrumental intro to Lost and Found.  Unfortunately those scenes never made it into the film, but I still really wanted to create the music video.

After 3 days of lengthy editing, I was able to piece together a music video that I feel captures the essence of New Moon and the pain and emotion experienced by both Edward and Bella.  The video features the full song Lost and Found by Senses Fail as well as actual footage from the New Moon movie.  I hope you enjoy it as much as I enjoyed making it!

Lost and Found Music Video Team Jacob Ending

After posting the video last night I got a few grumbles about the ending and using the scene of Edward and Bella frolicking through the forest, so I have decided to create an alternate version of the video that continues the pain theme I was originally going for and is probably more please to the Team Jacob crowd.

While you’re at it be sure to check out our Hitler Loves Twilight, Hates Team Jacob Shirts video as well.

Update: Be sure to check out my Breaking Dawn Part 1 Soundtrack What Plays When post as well.

Death Cab For Cutie – Meet Me On The Equinox: Death Cab For Cutie’s Meet Me On The Equinox was the first single from the New Moon Soundtrack, however it is the second song to play during the film’s credits.

Band of Skulls – Friends: Ironically Friends plays during a fairly unfriendly situation.  Friends plays in Port Angeles when Bella and Jessica are hanging out for their shopping trip and Bella approaches the bikers. The song starts immediately after Jessica says “well they seem great…”

Thom Yorke – Hearing Damage: Hearing Damage plays throughout the forest scene where Charlie and his posse are searching for whatever is stirring up trouble in the Forks wilderness. The song continues through the confrontation with the wolves and Victoria.

Lykke Li – Possibility: The song Possibility plays during Bella’s state of depression as the camera circles Bella and the seasons slowly change.

The Killers – White Demon Lovesong: White Demon Lovesong is the first song to play during the New Moon movie credits.

AnyaMarina – Satellite Heart: Satellite Heart can be heard in the background as Edward drives Bella home after the mishap at her birthday party.

Muse – I Belong To You (New Moon Mix): While Muse has become a staple of the Twilight book and movie soundtracks, I Belong To You only gets a brief moment in the film.  The song plays briefly in the background during the conclusion of Charlie and Bella’s discussion about Bella’s depression and over Bella’s call to Jessica asking to hang out.

Bon Iver & St. Vincent – Roslyn: Roslyn’s haunting and ethereal crooning sets the mood of anxiety and imminent heartbreak. It begins as Bella, bandaged up after her disastrous birthday party, prints out the picture of her and Edward and folds it, Edward side up. It continues as we pull in close on her back – feeling the heaviness of his absence at school the next day, and as we see Edward in her room. It closes as Bella pulls up to her house to find Edward waiting for her, setting the scene perfectly because we all know what’s coming next…

Black Rebel Motorcycle Club – Done All Wrong: Done All Wrong plays after the confrontation between Bella and the wolves when Bella meets Emily.

Hurricane Bells – Monsters: Monsters plays in the parking lot as Bella is hanging out with her friends at school on her birthday and Edward shows up.

Sea Wolf – The Violet Hour: Sea Wolf’s The Violet Hour plays in the background during Bella’s birthday party at the Cullen’s.

Ok Go – Shooting The Moon: Shooting the Moon plays during the montage of Jacob and Bella working on the motorcycle together.

Grizzly Bear – Slow Life: This song plays as Bella floats under the water. She’s hit her head and stopped fighting. Finally she sees the delusion of Edward she’s been waiting for – he’s perfect and whole, not the translucent, faded image we’ve gotten used to seeing. The song swells to a strong, sweet note as their eyes meet for a brief moment before Jacob pulls her toward the surface and reality.

Editors – No Sound But The Wind: No Sound But The Wind plays after the Cullens cast their vote on Bella’s fate as a vampire and Edward is driving her home.

Alexandre Desplat – The Meadow: The sole score piece that appears on the New Moon soundtrack plays as Bella seeks out the meadow which her and Edward shared their magical moment from Twilight.

I am using the same abbreviations I used in the Kellan interview, so K&B represents Kevin or Bean from the Kevin & Bean morning show. DC will represent Death Cab for Cutie, and Lisa is of course Kevin & Bean morning show co-host Lisa May.

K&B: We just had Kellan Lutz on from Twilight and speaking of Twilight, Kellan is going to be appearing at Hollywood and Highland tomorrow afternoon starting at around 5:30 with a couple of the guys who are in the studio with us right now ladies and gentleman. Ben and Nick from Death Cab For Cutie are here they of course are on the New Moon Soundtrack; how are you boys? Great to see you again.

DC: You too.

Yep good to see you too

K&B: What U2 is here? (Laughs) This Twilight is out of control and these Twilight fans have got to be stopped. What are you getting yourselves into?

DC: Uhhh

K&B: How did you get dragged into the New Moon world?

DC: It kind of was a big surprise actually. They asked us to submit for a soundtrack and we gave them a song and kind of thought we’d end up just being a part of a really fantastic soundtrack, and then we got a call, you’re the first single and get ready to strap on the rocket ride. So, it caught us all by surprise.

Yeah I think I’m outside the demographic for this thing so I’m not really aware of what a big deal it is, but apparently it is. I didn’t find out until like after we were like, we dove in.

K&B: Oh is that right? They said you guys are going to be in it and blah blah blah and then you realized it was a huge deal.

DC: And I don’t say that in the sense that like, guys, it’s kind of a big deal for me. It’s more in the sense like wow no this is actually a really, you know I just, I was aware of the first film and saw it and…

K&B: But it’s legit

DC: Yeah, it’s like a really big franchise, so you know, it’s exciting.

K&B: Forgive me for not having this information at my fingertips, have you contributed songs to soundtracks before?

DC: Yeah, I mean this is the first time we’ve had a song on a soundtrack that was not, was not kind of, somewhere else. Like it wasn’t just a song from an album that ended up getting used on a soundtrack, so.  We didn’t write this song specifically for the movie, but it was a song we had written and submitted and they liked it and you know, became a part of the soundtrack record.

K&B: This Stephenie Meyers (This is how they said it, this isn’t a typo on Stephenie’s name.) whose the author of these Twilight books, apparently she’s a huge rock fan. And I guess, you know, Muse is the one that has gotten the most press because she apparently listened to a lot of Muse while she was writing the books and stuff, but apparently she just is all over the radio listening for songs and they inspire her.  She may have heard Death Cab songs before and said, “Oh my god I love this band I need to figure out a way to include them.”

DC: I wonder, you know, there’s probably some kind of connection to that.  She is a big fan.  You can go to her website and she’s always got some link, or some kind mention of some up and comer.  I know at one point someone, long before I was even aware of the books, someone was like hey there is this author and she linked to you on her site, she really likes you. And I as like, oh that’s interesting. Fantastic. And then, then you know, now I know.

Yeah you’re like big deal.

Yeah. Oh. Her. That Stephenie Meyer.

K&B: The Killers are on the soundtrack, OK Go, a band I love Seawolf, who’s going to be with you tomorrow night, they’re on the soundtrack with a great song. Band of Skulls who’s also very good. There’s also this Thom Yorke song called Hearing Damage. He’s really been going in a super interesting direction lately with this solo stuff and I think this is one of the coolest songs he’s done in a while, that’s on the soundtrack too.

DC: I agree.

Yeah, it’s good company for sure.

K&B: How did they contact you at first? She was interested and then they said just get a hold of them? How did it start?

DC: Alex Patsavas, who’s supervising the project, we had known her for some years and she kind of reached out to us and was like, “Hey would you guys want to contribute a song for this thing” and we’re like, yea sure, totally.

K&B: Doesn’t it come down to the people who are in charge of the music and kind of who they know and like?

DC: You know, I don’t know if I can necessarily comment on that.  I think there’s probably people whose job it is to kind of curate these kind of things and they have some level of influence.  But, I’m sure probably at the end of the day it comes down to the people who created the thing in the first place that get to say yes or no.

K&B: I’d like to do that if that job’s available at any movie, I’d like to be that person.

That’s an awesome job.

DC: I’d like to be that, I’d like to have that job too.

K&B: I’d like to pick the music if you don’t mind. I’d do it for free probably.

I have some friends who do that and they say it’s the greatest job in the world until you find out that every song you fell in love with is too expensive to put in the movie.  Because you’ve got a budget and a lot of times it’s a pretty small budget to get the songs, you know?

Where was Death Cab in the spiral of Death Cab-ness?  Were you guys taking a break or were you out there on the road? Or writing for a new record, or what were you in the middle of doing when they contacted you?

DC: Well you know we were just kind of finishing touring our last record that came out in Spring of 2008. So I guess in early Summer, like June, July, we kinda got contacted about it and we were just kind of  getting off the road and went in the studio in the last week or so that we were kind of active on a daily basis and you know. I had written a song and we all kind of worked on it and put it together and submitted it at that point. So you know, this is kind of a nice thing for us to have, kind of floating off into the world.

K&B: Your next CD has to be titled The Spiral of Death Cabness. (Laughs)

DC: Yeah I think so. It’s catchy. It’s got a ring to it. That’s the first suggestion, you know, sometimes that’s the best one. It just gets drilled into your brain and that’s the title.

K&B: Now forever when people here Meet Me On The Equinox they’re going to think of whatever’s happening in the move New Moon. But, what did it mean to you before Twilight was involved? What was the song originally about?

DC: I don’t know. To me it’s just, at its very base it’s really a love song. It’s just something about, you know you have meeting someone on the equinox, it’s just about meeting someone, you know, kind of leaving a large part of your baggage behind and meeting somebody halfway. And that the tag line “everything ends” is just about realizing that we have to kind of be here now and our time here is fleeting and to make the most of it.

K&B: See Lisa he’s sweet and sensitive.

Lisa: I know, he’s the best kind of boy. (Laughs) You should try and be like him.

K&B: Not gonna happen.

DC: Is it possible to be sweet and not sensitive or sensitive and not sweet?  Is that an archetype that I’m not aware of?

Lisa: Yes you can. And that’s just a weenie.

DC: But how can somebody be sweet and not sensitive? Like what would somebody say if they were sweet and not sensitive?

Lisa: I think you can be sensitive and not sweet. I don’t think you can be sweet and not sensitive.

DC: Oh so sensitive and not sweet would be like a James Dean type.

Lisa: Exactly

DC: You’re sensitive, but you’re also kind of like a tough guy.

Lisa: Exactly. Easily injured, but yet.

Kevin: Hey Bean?

Bean: What’s going on? How’d we end up on Oprah radio? Is that what you’re asking?

Kevin: What’s happening right now and how do we get out?

Lisa: We’re having a conversation.

Kevin: How do we get out?

K&B: It’s the spiral of Death Cab, that’s what’s happening. (Laughs)  Alright New Moon Original Soundtrack is in stores now the movie doesn’t come out til the 20th, but the band is going to be at Hollywood and Highland performing the song that they’ll do for us next tomorrow afternoon at 5:30. I’m very excited to here a little acoustic version at this hour of the day with Death Cab for Cutie and that will happen right after this!

There was a bit more to the interview, but it all revolved around a parody song the station did of the Death Cab For Cutie song I Will Follow You Into The Dark. The talk of the parody was followed by the live acoustic performance of Meet Me On The Equinox.

For those of you who went back in time and read our ‘Before There Was Edward…’ post you might recall that I did a rather extensive Twilight Soundtrack Review on my personal blog for the Twilight Soundtrack release. This post is going to be along the same lines, and will explore the songs musically, stylistically, and just tell you overall what is good and bad.

The New Moon Soundtrack opens with the first single from the album, Death Cab For Cutie’s Meet Me on the Equinox. The song has grown on me since my initial mention of it when they announced the New Moon Soundtrack Track list, but it is still one of my least liked Death Cab For Cutie songs.  While Death Cab is not one of the only radio friendly bands on this soundtrack, it is in my opinion that this is the only track that will get very much airplay from the soundtrack unlike Twilight which featured a number of tracks from bands like Paramore, Muse, and Linkin Park that received significant airplay.  While I know Kristina hates me for saying it, I really think that this track is going to be the movie opener that foreshadows the downward spiral that is to come.

The second track from Band of Skulls titled Friends has the band doing exactly what I thought they would and had them experiment a bit outside of the traditional sound I had heard on some of their previously released work.  The upbeat track starts off with a buzzing distorted guitar riff that carries through the bulk of the song.  The interesting thing about this song is that it reminds me a lot of something you would hear in a campy teen movie.  My guess is that its upbeat tempo is going to slot it somewhere during a school scene or maybe the infamous double date with Mike and Jacob.

Thom Yorke provides the third track on the album titled Hearing Damage.  Trip-hop beats, deep synthesized melodies, and Yorke’s haunting reverberated vocals bring a sudden ambient sound to the soundtrack that over time really defines this album.  While Hearing Damage is clearly less stripped down than much of the other solemn tracks on the soundtrack it definitely sets the mood for the tracks to come.

Possibility by Lykke Li is probably one of my favorite tracks on the entire soundtrack.  Distant vocals remnant of tracks off of Mazzy Stars 1993 breakthrough album So Tonight That I Might See, accompanied by a repetitive piano accompaniment give this song a very dreamy, ethereal feel.  What made this track even more fascinating was how it opens in a way that feels much like a modern day Negro spiritual.  Opening with the words, “It’s a possibility all that I had was all I’m gonn’ get” followed by a choir of solemn humming. Possibility is perhaps one of the most dynamic songs on the album and I would say if you were to listen to just one song off of the New Moon Soundtrack listen to this one.

While the Killers didn’t disappoint me as much as I though they would, A White Demon Love Song is still subpar to the tracks I came to love off of Hot Fuss.  The interesting thing about this track is how much of a Beatles feel it has.  The song essentially builds upon itself by slowly adding more and more instruments as the song progresses, beginning with noting more than distant reverberated guitar and piano and ending with an full ensemble of electric guitar, drums, a heavy hitting bass line, tambourine, and even strings.  Again not one of my favorite works from The Killers, but its Beatles-like feel earned it some extra points in my book.

Satellite Heart by Anya Marina is the first track to really introduce listeners to the folky stripped down sound much of the album possesses. Soulful vocals, acoustic guitar, and harmonica blend in this song to bring to life a story of a distant lover holding true to the one she loves regardless of what he does and where he is. Lyrically the song is quite fitting for Bella coping with the loss of Edward.  This is another one of my favorites and definitely worth a listen.

With an added guitar riff and a slightly more up tempo drum track, Muse’s I Belong To You (New Moon Remix) doesn’t stray too far from the original track that was featured on their latest album, The Resistance.  The songs biggest change comes with its removal of the opera-like interlude sung in French that is heard in the original version of the track; this change also cuts the song length nearly in half. Again I am baffled as to how this one is going to work itself into the film, but my assumption is that it will appear somewhere in the credits.

Bon Iver and St. Vincent bring us back to the folky feel that I said dominates much of this album with Roslyn.  Acoustic guitar and ghostly vocals give this track an other worldly, almost dreamy feel. Another great track and another great addition to this collection of songs.

BRMC’s Done All Wrong mixes folky guitar and distant percussion with more modern rock sounding vocals which follow the formula used in much of this album. While nothing stands out about this particular track it is a decent song and fair addition to this collection of music.

I originally slotted Hurricane Bells as a Death Cab For Cutie or Shins-like artist, but hearing their track Monsters for the New Moon Soundtrack I am no longer sure what to classify these guys as.  The song Monsters reminds me a lot of some of the early 90’s work by Beck. This song is just OK in my opinion and really feels out of place overall in this collection of songs.

Sea Wolf’s The Violet Hour continues a string of lackluster more upbeat tracks on the album. Early on I mentioned that the band reminded me a lot of the Bravery and The Violet Hour plays right in to that assertion.  If you’ve heard stuff by the Bravery, you’ve essentially heard this song.

Ok Go’s Shooting the Moon is probably a step above the last two tracks I mentioned yet nowhere near as good as some of the other tracks which I’ve given praise. Acoustic guitar, a bass drum, and a unique synthesized accompaniment give the more stripped down sound much of the soundtrack has a unique twist, but it wasn’t enough to really make it stand out among some of the other tracks on the album.  The song ends with hard hitting drum beats and crunchy guitars that create a unique contrast to the follow track by Grizzly Bear.

The thing that drive’s me mad about Grizzly Bear’s Slow Life is that it’s verses remind me so much of a song I have heard in another film that I honestly thought it may have been a cover even though I knew going in that Summit had announced early on that the soundtrack would be made up of all original songs.  Slow Life seems to incorporate bits and pieces of the musical puzzle found on this album and bring it all together for this single track.  Mixing some of the common elements like acoustic guitars, simplistic drum beats and ghostly and distant backing vocals, Slow Life helps to really wrap up the overall sound of this album.

I initially labeled the Editors as an Interpol clone, but with No Sound But The Wind they are anything but.  No Sound But The Wind has a dark cabaret feel to it that mixes repetitive piano and strong concert vocals.  No Sound But The Wind is an amazingly unique track that works very well to help wrap up this ensemble of songs.  If I had to guess where this appears, I am going to guess that perhaps we will hear this song in Volterra at some point, perhaps even while Bella is running to Edward simply because of how grand, yet dark the song is.

Like with Twilight, the New Moon Soundtrack is rounded out by a lovely piece from the film’s score.  Alexandre Desplat’s New Moon (The Meadow) is incredible.  A piece performed solely on piano, The Meadow is what I feel Bella’s Lullaby should have been in Twilight.  I loved Burwell’s lullaby, but Desplat’s The Meadow is beautifully written and in a style that reminds me of how I imagined Edward playing the piano when I read the Twilight books.

Overall I really like the New Moon Soundtrack, even with its bad eggs thrown in the mix.  I have been playing the album repeatedly on my way to and from work each day and will probably do so for quite some time.  Overall the soundtrack to New Moon trumps anything that was put together for the first Twilight film.  While I enjoyed the soundtrack to the first film it didn’t have the dynamic that I feel in the New Moon Soundtrack. However, just as with Twilight I am really uncertain as to how these songs are going to play in to the overall film. While they all have a strong moody vibe that work well for the New Moon plot, they really aren’t what I had envisioned the New Moon Soundtrack sounding like.

Perhaps the most interesting thing about the New Moon Soundtrack in my opinion is the fact that the artists chosen and the music stylistically doesn’t feel like something that would be widely accepted by the film’s largely teen audience.  While the soundtrack includes radio friendly acts like Death Cab For Cutie, The Killers, Muse, and Ok Go the songs do not follow the normal style patterns for these artists.  I still think the album is going to do incredible because it ties into the film, but I am curious to see how many teens actually enjoy the album.

Satellite Heart

Anya Marina

So pretty, so smart
Such a waste of a young heart!
What a pity, what a sham
What’s the matter with you, man?

Don’t you see it’s wrong, can’t you get it right?
Out of mind and outta sight
Call on all your girls, don’t forget the boys
Put a lid on all that noise!

I’m a satellite heart, lost in the dark
I’m spun out so far. You stop, I start
But I’ll be true to you

I hear you’re living out of state, running in a whole new scene
They say i haven’t slept in weeks, you’re the only thing i see

I’m a satellite heart, lost in the dark
I’m spun out so far. You stop, I start
But I’ll be true to you
I’m a satellite heart, lost in the dark
I’m spun out so far. You stop I start
But I’ll be true to you no matter what you do, yeah I’ll be true to you

Last year I was quick to bash the Twilight Soundtrack on its initial release due to what I felt was a lackluster track list.  Full of previously released songs I didn’t feel that the Twilight soundtrack brought anything special to the table, but in the end the soundtrack wound up on a regular loop in my CD player through the end of 2008 and into the beginning of 2009.  This year I was left with a similar taste in my mouth; not because of reused songs, but because of the choice to use relatively unknown artists on much of the soundtrack.

That being said, I personally have come to love a number of soundtracks that use less mainstream acts to enhance the mood of a film; one of my personal favorites being the Underworld Soundtrack.   So with that in mind I took to the net to find out more about some of the artists I was less familiar with to try and give my insight as a music enthusiast and a lover of Twilight on the New Moon Soundtrack.

Death Cab For Cutie – Meet Me On The Equinox

I am a huge Death Cab For Cutie fan and have been for some time, but Meet Me On The Equinox is probably one of my least liked Death Cab songs to date.  The song lacks a certain dynamic that I have come to love from the band.  Listening to the track my prediction is this song will be heard early on in the film because the mood is too upbeat to come after Edward leaves.

Band of Skulls

As I mentioned early on when it was announced that Band of Skulls would be on the soundtrack, I’m uncertain as to how these guys are going to fit into the mix.  The band possesses a strong classic rock style sound that I find hard picturing in the film.  My thoughts are that the band is doing something completely out of their niche or the instrumental portions of their track will be used for nothing more than ambience in a scene as we heard repeatedly with songs during Twilight.

Thom York

Though Radiohead wasn’t used on the Twilight soundtrack, their song 15 Step made it into the credits of the film and Radiohead frontman Thom York is returning to do a track for New Moon.  While I was skeptical at first of the return of Radiohead I am curious to see what Thom York can do on the soundtrack from a solo perspective.  His strong falsetto and interest in using more ambient music tracks could prove to be a hit with the darker more depressing themes of New Moon.

Lykke Li

An artist that was unknown to me, but I am excited to hear more from, is Swedish electro/alt artist Lykke Li.  Li offers a sound that is already popular throughout Europe top 40 charts that includes a mix of synth, heavy bass, and angelic vocals.  If done right Li could easily provide an ambient shoegaze-like track that could harness the darkness and pain of New Moon. Another interesting fact about Li is that she recently provided a song for the soundtrack to Summit’s summer thriller Sorority Row.

The Killers

The Killers breakthrough album Hot Fuss is one of my favorite alt rock albums of the last five years, sadly after Hot Fuss they have failed to impress me.  If the track provided for New Moon is anything like the bands last two albums it’s sure to be a disappointment.  “Are we humans?  Or are we wolf boys?”

Anya Marina

An interesting choice based on what I listened to this evening.  The tracks I sampled felt like a crossbreed between Lilly Allen and Regina Spektor leaving me to wonder how this sound will play into the New Moon universe.  Mixing poppy rhythms and acoustic guitars on a number of her tracks Marina almost felt to bubbly for the film.

Muse

I love the band, I love their music, and I think they are easily going to become the staple of Twilight soundtracks because of their tie to Stephenie Meyer so regardless of the quality we will have to grin and bear it.  I will say however that Muse’s Supermassive Black Hole was one of the songs that I least expected to work in the Twilight Soundtrack, and it of course wound up making the baseball scene what it was.  Without it I don’t believe that scene would have been as impressive.

Bon Iver and St. Vincent

If after buying the Twilight Soundtrack you explored bands like Iron & Wine a bit further you probably stumbled across the name Bon Iver.  Iver carries the folky acoustic sound heard in much or Iron & Wine’s less poppy work.  The stripped down organic sound of his work is sure to contribute to the melancholy tone of New Moon.

Black Rebel Motorcycle Club

The name fits the sound, as Black Rebel Motorcycle Club bring the harder edge to this list of artists.  I predict we will either see Black Rebel Motorcycle Club amping Bella up when she is trying to be an adrenaline junkie or they will show their softer side to compliment the solemn mood of the film that Summit was looking for on this soundtrack.

Hurricane Bells

The WTF? act of the whole soundtrack is Hurricane Bells.  Search em’ in Google and you’ll find a ton of stuff about their inclusion on the New Moon Soundtrack, but aside from that their presence is pretty lacking.  Their Myspace page labels them as unsigned, so the lack of a backing label could have a lot to do with the lack of web presence.  The inclusion of Hurricane Bells based off of the five tracks I listened to on their Myspace page brings to the surface my initial fear about the New Moon Soundtrack sounding too similar just to keep with the theme of the film.  Hurricane Bells sounds very similar to that of Death Cab For Cutie or The Shins.  An interesting note about the song ‘Monster’ that will be featured on the soundtrack is that it was recorded in the artist’s bedroom according to a blog post on Myspace.

Sea Wolf

What sounds to me like The Bravery meets Muse, meets Coldplay, Sea Wolf reinforces my fears of a lack of variety in musical theme in the film.

Ok Go

Best known for playing on treadmills in the viral video for ‘Here It Goes Again’, Ok Go is another interesting choice for a soundtrack that the studios wanted to tie in heavily to the mood of the film.  Ok Go is a very upbeat band that loads their albums with upbeat alt rock and again I’m at a loss as to where this will tie in well with the film.

Grizzly Bear

Until the tracklist broke for the New Moon Soundtrack, this was nothing more than an animal in the forest.  I know now that Grizzly Bear is in fact an experimental indie band out of Brooklyn, New York.  Listening to the bands songs on both Myspace and iTunes I’ll say this much…It’s fuckin weird.  When they describe themselves as experimental they weren’t kidding. However some of their less experimental tracks remind me a lot of Radiohead.  Because of the amount of other-worldly sounding tracks this band has written I would imagine this is going to be a track that is easily tied in for scene ambience if for nothing more, similar to Blue Foundation’s Eyes on Fire in Twilight.

Editors

Interpol clone, ‘nuff said.  If you’re familiar with Interpol you know how diverse their music can be and with these guys sounding like Interpol I would imagine they are just as diverse.  Whatever Summit needed them to do they probably filled the mold.

Alexandre Desplat

Much like the Bella’s Lullaby on the Twilight Soundtrack, it appears that French composer Alexandre Desplat’s New Moon (The Meadow) will be the lone score piece to make it on to the film soundtrack.  Most recently Desplat composed the score to the film Julie and Julia, but his previous work with director Chris Weitz in The Golden Compass is most likely what brought him on board.

Desplat’s style is much different than Twilight composer Carter Burwell, which has me wondering what sort of feel New Moon will have musically.  My only hope is that Desplat was kind enough to tie in themes from Bella’s Lullaby into the New Moon score.  The theme carried over so often in Twilight that I feel New Moon would be lacking without it.

Again, like with Twilight, I am left both deathly curious and also slightly skeptical of the quality of the soundtrack to New Moon.  Overall I think Summit took a huge risk with this soundtrack by not only making all of the songs exclusive, but also by building a soundtrack of a large number of lesser known and indie artists.  I just don’t feel that even headliners like Death Cab For Cutie, Thom York, and The Killers will be enough to please the teen audience that these films have been aimed at.  However, it could just be that Summit feels that at this point teens will buy it regardless simply because it is branded with the name New Moon.

Meet Me on the Equinox

Death Cab for Cutie

Meet me on the equinox
Meet me half way
When the sun is perched at its highest peak in the middle of the day
Let me give my love to you
Let me take your hand
and as we walk in the dimming light
Well, darling understand

That everything, everything ends
That everything, everything ends

Meet me on your best behavior
And meet me at your worst
There will be no stolen time
Or bubble left to burst
Let me lay beside you darling
Let me be your man
When our bodies intertwine but always understand

That everything, everything ends
That everything, everything ends

That everything, everything, everything ends

The wind blows an open tune
The sun crawls across your bedroom
The halo, the waning moon
Your last breaths moving through you as

everything, everything ends
cuz everything, everything ends
as everything, everything, everything, everything, everything ends

Meet me on the equinox
Meet me half way
When the sun is perched at its highest peak
In the middle of the day
Let me give my love to you
Let me take your hand
But as we walk in the dimming light
Well, darling understand

That everything, everything ends

If you haven’t heard the new single you can catch the song as well as the latest New Moon trailer on Stephenie Meyer’s New Moon movie page