I remember reading somewhere that Hans Zimmer, a composer that Seth Schaeffer cites as an influence, was required to tone down the terror factor of the soundtrack to “The Da Vinci Code” as the intensity and sheer scariness of the music was likely to push the film censorship board to assign an age rating of the film of 15 rather than the more family friendly 12A.
I mention this fact because I feel that “I Found A Monster” would, if it were in that same situation, illicit a similar response. It feels like a soundtrack rather than a song, but far from being incidental music that sits in the background, instead crawls menacingly towards the listener, seductive yet shiver-inducing, beguiling yet brutal.
Built from sonics spanning both the popular music spectrum and the orchestral arsenal, from pulsing, swampy bass lines to searing, seething strings, it is music that transcends genre, sound, style, or scene. It just is.
Working alongside a top-tier cast— Emily Hatch, Judah Schaeffer, Marco Pescosolido, Nikos Mavridis, and Vigilance Brandon —through the ever-expanding Musiversal network, Seth has carved out a sound that feels both fresh yet familiar, timely, and timeless. The sound of old Birthday Party records or new Tulipomania tracks turned orchestral.
A track that is less something to listen to, more a thing to be experienced via a sort of osmosis, absorbed and internalised. Haunting, disembodied, and disenchanted vocals whisper over shimmering strings and mournful trumpet flourishes, a brooding beat, and explosive dynamics; each element serves the track with precision and purpose.
The result is a piece of music that doesn’t just showcase Seth’s creative reach, but proves he’s got the instinct to pull together complex textures into something deliciously dark and genuinely spellbinding. On a footnote, if anyone ever decides to make a screen adaptation of Mark Z. Danielewski’s truly unique and challenging “House of Leaves,” Seth Schaeffer is surely someone they need to have on speed dial.
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