West Dylan Thordson Provides A Super Sonic Score For M. Night Shyamalan’s GLASS

Samuel L. Jackson as Elijah Price/Mr. Glass and James McAvoy (background, in yellow) as Kevin Wendell Crumb/The Horde

M. Night Shyamalan weaves together the unforgettable narratives of two of his visionary original films—2000’s UNBREAKABLE and 2016’s SPLIT—in one explosive, all-new comic-book thriller: GLASS

From UNBREAKABLE, Bruce Willis returns as David Dunn as does Samuel L. Jackson as Elijah Price, known also by his pseudonym Mr. Glass. Joining from Split are James McAvoy, reprising his role as Kevin Wendell Crumb and the multiple identities who reside within him, and Anya Taylor-Joy as Casey Cooke, the only captive to survive an encounter with The Beast.

Following the conclusion of SPLIT, GLASS finds Dunn pursuing Crumb’s superhuman figure of The Beast in a series of escalating encounters, while the shadowy presence of Price emerges as an orchestrator who holds secrets critical to both men.

James McAvoy as The Beast, one of the 23 personalities that reside inside Kevin Wendell Crumb.

All franchises, from STAR WARS to JURASSIC PARK to DESPICABLE ME have their signature musical themes. The music of the film is immediately recognizable and synonymous with the franchise itself. GLASS may be the third part of a trilogy, but it’s unlike any franchise ever made, and that presented Shyamalan and his composer West Dylan Thordson with an opportunity to create a score unlike any ever made, too.

West Dylan Thordson is a composer and bandleader who got his start in the Twin Cities music scene before moving to New York with a developing career as a composer of film scores. After leading the band A Whisper in the Noise for many years, he caught his first big break when M. Night Shyamalan featured his version of Bob Dylan’s classic “The Times They Are A-Changin’” at the end of his film LADY IN THE WATER.

Though Thordson’s move to New York was meant to be temporary, lasting only until the end of working on the film FOXCATCHER, his rise in the ranks of film composers continued in 2015 when he scored every episode of the HBO hit series The Jinx: The Life and Deaths of Robert Durst. A consummate collaborator who has now worked with some of the biggest names in music, he has also developed a signature style and distinct way of recording instruments. Thordson also composed the score for director David O. Russell’s JOY, starring Jennifer Lawrence.

“The music for Glass was a unique challenge, because we’re making a sequel to two movies from two different generations, and one of the concomitant issues of that is that you’re talking musical styles from two different generations,” Shyamalan says. “Unbreakable was kind of an old-school Hollywood score. It’s very unusual and has a great percussion kind of movement to it. It was cutting-edge at that time, but it’s played by a 100-piece orchestra. The way we approached Split was with almost a Nine Inch Nails-y vibe. We were taking a cello sound and turning it and twisting it and bending it, and that was very cutting edge for now.”

How do you bring these two approaches to one film?

The solution was for Thordson to take the themes from UNBREAKABLE, composed by James Newton Howard, and revise them in his own style and musicality. “It came out more minimalized, very, very, simple and stripped down with kind of the tones of West,” Shyamalan says. They then used the musical themes from SPLIT that Thordson had composed for that film. He also composed new themes specific to GLASS. Finally, for flashback scenes from UNBREAKABLE, they used the original score from that film.

“It was an evolution,” Shyamalan says. “West was on the movie for a good eleven months, I think. This was a really big commitment. He moved to Philadelphia, set up his stuff at our offices and at his home in Philadelphia, and just went for it. And he has a really unusual way of approaching it.”

Through the process of Split and Glass, Thordson and Shyamalan found that they are creative kindred spirits, in a way. “Authenticity is our main objective as filmmakers, and everything you hear in the movie is practically done by West,” Shyamalan says. “It’s created by him, synthesized and moved by him in some way. It’s one man’s tastes helping me tell my story, so you’re getting these very strong, bold moves.”

(from left) Writer-director M. Night Shyamalan, James McAvoy, who plays Kevin Wendell Crumb/The Horde, Bruce Willis, who plays David Dunn/The Overseer, and a crew member, on the set of “Glass,” written and directed by M. Night Shyamalan. © 2019 Universal Pictures. All Rights Reserved.

Prior to the opening of the film, I spoke with West Dylan Thordson more in-depth about the trilogy and a score that’s filled with sonic sounds that will resonate with audiences and make you believe superpeople walk among us.

WAMG: The music cue at the end of SPLIT with the big reveal of Bruce Willis and the tie to UNBREAKABLE – it’s all the audience needed. The title SPLIT fills the screen along with your music. Willis’ character didn’t need to utter a word, the audience lost their minds (including me!) Did you already have a sequel in mind when composing for SPLIT?

West Dylan Thordson: Definitely in regard to Split as it’s own entity, but not so much as a film that would lead to a third movie. Early on, Night and I discussed that Split was tied to Unbreakable. There were many conversations about what this meant for our approach to the score. When Unbreakable first came out, I watched it twice in a row. On the first watch, I remember not knowing quite what to think but felt compelled to watch it again. So i did and loved it. This stuck with me. For Split, I wrote a number of cue sketches that had clear and intentional influence from James’ score. Specifically a piece titled ‘Meeting the Others.’ It sort of became my Split-style reply to Unbreakable. Other Unbreakable-influenced ideas were set aside because Night felt strongly that we should primarily strive for something entirely unique to Split. So we ended up focusing the score on not referencing Unbreakable too heavily.

Bruce Willis as David Dunn/The Overseer.

WAMG: How early were you brought onto GLASS?

West Dylan Thordson: I started sketching ideas soon after Night completed the screenplay. Not long after this, he began shooting the film. When they set up shop at the Allentown State Hospital, I spent a lot of time on set. The hospital complex had lots of huge, empty buildings with a tunnel system connecting them. I found numerous vast spaces with fantastic acoustics. So soon after getting there, I brought in an assortment of drums and percussion. On several nights, after the crew fully wrapped, I’d go in and record ideas using a Nagra-style mobile rig with a VR mic and some Coles 4038s. Usually starting from 9pm and going until 4am. The only people around would be a couple roaming security guards. The property was so large, it was almost like no one else was around. Felt very Kubrickian, creepy, and uncomfortable. I must admit though, I relish in that sort of thing. My friend, the violinist Tim Fain, even came there. At the hospital, we recorded much of the violin work used in the score. Mostly in the underground tunnel system, but also in the enormous upstairs auditorium and the actual “Pink Room.” I often turned all the lights off when recording to avoid capturing the fluorescent light buzzing. Tim was admittedly terrified much of the time, but he never once hesitated on continuing. So I have to give Tim huge props on being a true artist and professional!

WAMG: Did you collaborate with James Newton Howard on GLASS, the composer for SPLIT?

West Dylan Thordson: This was discussed a lot early on, but for whatever reason, it was decided not to bring him in. I felt privileged to have the chance to collaborate with James but only had the opportunity to meet him once in person. Really enjoyed our conversation, brief as it was. He’s a fantastic composer and influence.

WAMG: What was it like to work again with M. Night Shyamalan?

West Dylan Thordson: Night is an extremely collaborative filmmaker, and it was an honor to be asked back. Having developed communication with each other helped us immensely. Trust was established. It made it much easier to get on the right path when discussing something into existence like music.

(from left) Writer-director M. Night Shyamalan and Bruce Willis, who plays David Dunn/The Overseer.

WAMG: Can the audience expect a “superhero” type score?

West Dylan Thordson: Not really. Yet I wouldn’t say we completely avoided “superhero” music either. We generally aimed away from a tradition “superhero” score in an attempt for something a bit askew and nonderivative. I feel Night chooses a very difficult approach to filmmaking. He’s after things that are complex and difficult to achieve cinematically, yet not in an esoteric way. He genuinely wants to make films that many people connect to, though veering on the fringe of what many people might accept. 

WAMG: Shyamalan’s previous films have a theme. SIGNS was about “faith”. Will the music for GLASS have a theme, like “belief” and believing people have “powers”, whether they are villains or superheroes?

West Dylan Thordson: Thematically, belief and doubt are definitely focal. I’d say acceptance of light and dark, along with a grounded sense of humanity are in there too.

WAMG: Talk to me about your previous work on JOY with David O’Russell?

West Dylan Thordson: David’s an intensely creative person to be around. I’m proud to have worked with him. He definitely wasn’t easy to work with, but I certainly didn’t get into film music because it’s easy. There was never anything predictable with David. His approach was rapidly evolving and re-inventive. It often wasn’t possible to keep up, so it generally seemed best for me to wing it and roll with everything as fast as possible. The moment music was written, it was time to let go. There was no room to get attached to anything I did. In the end, David focused in on music with me that he felt was earnest and sincere. Honestly, this all was a great thing for a film composer to experience, accept, and evolve through. 

WAMG: How did you begin composing for film and why you like composing for the medium?

West Dylan Thordson: When I was a child, my grandparent’s farmhouse had an old, somewhat-in-tune, spinet piano next to this huge, wood-enclosed TV set. I loved music with films, TV, and video games, so I would sit at the piano a lot trying to plunk out my versions of things. No one in my family was a studied musician, so I ended up starting out self-taught. As a result, I mostly began in music as a misfit amongst the misfits of the experimental indie band world. Though much of the band music I worked on was very rough around the edges, it felt cinematic at heart. It seemed to naturally spark interest with certain filmmakers. The music supervisor Sue Jacobs was the person who really made it happen for me in the world of film. It’s been a long process, and I’m really just starting. With scoring film, there generally needs to be a willingness for constant adaptation, and an ability to quickly detach from one’s work. Much of what I love about composing for film is the collaborative energy, desperation, and tension of it. Learning to evolve with the ever-changing visions of others. I love that the art form pushes me outside of myself and my head. I love attempting to create music that unearths something within the story that could not be experienced otherwise. 

The GLASS soundtrack will be released digitally next Friday, January 18 and is now available for pre-order on iTunes HERE.

track list:

1. Physicks (1:21)
2. Brick Factory (3:30)
3. Pink Room (1:24)
4. Cycles (4:57)
5. Backfire (1:12)
6. Remember (1:49)
7. Escape (3:31)
8. David & Elijah (1:45)
9. Pierce (2:14)
10. Belief (3:03)
11. Thru the Basement (1:11)
12. Parking Lot (5:13)
13. Unraveling (1:56)
14. Ordinary Man (2:07)
15. Kevin & Casey (2:11)
16. Checkmate (2:08)
17. Origin Story (9:48)

Visit the official site: www.glassmovie.com