Legendary award-winning composer Bear McCreary—who has created the musical foundations for projects like God of War, League of Legends, Battlestar Galactica, and Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power—has announced new music. He has recently created a concept album featuring equally legendary collaborators. The album, titled The Singularity, is part of a larger project which includes a graphic novel and a concert experience.
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Recently, McCreary released the first single, “Type III” which features Rufus Wainwright. The Singularity will be available for pre-order on March 22 and will drop on May 10.
“Type III” is synth- and strings-heavy in the beginning, but shifts into shreddy guitar near the middle. Wainwright’s vocals are tinged with reverb, which gives his voice a desperate quality. Overall, the composition is chill-inducing, especially when Wainwright exclaims, “I’ll never be the same” over a backdrop of grungy guitar and strings.
Of the collaboration with Wainwright, McCreary said, “Perhaps the most surprising guest [on The Singularity] is Rufus Wainwright. I have always adored how his sonorous voice floats above brilliant arrangements with artful lyrics. I never thought I’d hear Rufus’s operatic tenor tone soar above a bombastic heavy metal track. However, I sent him a few tracks and I was thrilled when he wanted to sing ‘Type III.’”
Per a press release, McCreary continued, “Rufus recognized in the track an evocatively operatic melody with a tragic sadness in the lyrics he knew he could convey. He brought intense, heartfelt longing to the choruses, ‘Can’t turn away from you.’ I am grateful Rufus took a chance with me and sang in a genre he had never before. The result is truly unique.”
Composer Bear McCreary Announces Concept Album with Collaborations from Fellow Music Legends
Other singles set to be released are “Incinerator” featuring Serj Tankian of System of a Down, and “The End of Tomorrow” featuring Slash of Guns ‘N Roses and McCreary’s brother, musician Brendan McCreary.
“Incinerator” feels like a car on fire screaming down the highway. In comparison, “The End of Tomorrow” begins with beautiful, lilting strings before kicking into strong, clear guitar phrasing. There’s juxtaposition in the instrumentation of all three songs, showcasing the differences in style of each collaboration. For example, the guitar in “Type III” and “Incinerator” is dirty, grungy, and a little loose, while in “The End of Tomorrow” it’s clean and sharp in Slash’s signature style.
Other collaborators include Corey Taylor of Slipknot, Jens Kidman of Meshuggah, Joe Satriani, Buck Dharma of Blue Öyster Cult, Kim Thayil of Soundgarden, Scott Ian of Anthrax, and Ben Weinman of the Dillinger Escape Plan, among many others.
On Sunday, May 12, Bear McCreary will perform an exclusive show at Los Angeles, California’s Fonda Theatre. Tickets can be purchased here now.
The album itself is a global endeavor featuring guitar, choir, and strings as well as bagpipes, morin khuur, and nyckelharpa. The Singularity is bursting with story and color, co-written and co-produced by Brendan McCreary, and features three spoken-word introductions from the accompanying graphic novel. These tracks are read by Lee Pace (The Hobbit), Danai Gurira (The Walking Dead), and Ryan Hurst (Sons of Anarchy).
Featured Image by Ted Sun
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