Press release from Asheville FM:
“Ben Lovett’s old-school synth score evokes the retro-futurist aesthetics of fondly remembered 1970s and early ’80s sci-fi films.” – Variety
(June 24, 2016 – Asheville, NC) – 103.3 Asheville FM and Fine Arts Theatre join Moog Music, Harvest Records and Echo Mountain Studios in presenting a special event screening of SYNCHRONICITY — featuring Asheville composer Ben Lovett’s critically acclaimed, retro-inspired original score — on Thursday, July 7th at 7:00 pm. An audience Q&A with Lovett will follow the film, along with a special synthesizer display from Moog Music. Tickets are $5 and include a digital download of the album Synchronicity – Original Motion Picture Soundtrack. Tickets can be purchased at Harvest Records, online and at the Fine Arts box office.
SYNCHRONICITY is a mind-bending ‘Sci-fi Noir’ in the tradition of Blade Runner, Gattaca and Memento. The film was released theatrically by Magnolia Pictures on January 22. The original score by Lovett was met with wide spread acclaim from the likes of The Hollywood Reporter, Variety, Filmmaker Magazine and many others. Lakeshore Records released the album SYNCHRONICITY – Original Motion Picture Soundtrack on CD and digital format and teamed with Death Waltz Recording Company to release a special edition vinyl of Lovett’s soundtrack complete with custom artwork, colored vinyl and liner notes from director Jacob Gentry. Advance copies of the vinyl will be on sale at the Fine Arts theater all weekend, and tickets can be redeemed for 10% off the album at Harvest Records.
“Likely to be a future classic… Ben Lovett’s sophisticated electronic score is a brooding, glacial synth masterpiece and one of the best scores of 2016.” — Mondo
“The visual tone of SYNCHRONICITY is sort of a love letter to science fiction films from the early 80’s, and we wanted to approach the music with similar reverie to reinforce the overall aesthetic goals of the film,” described Lovett. To recall the sound of that era he opted to work exclusively with vintage analog synthesizers, creating what would be his first entirely electronic score. The music was recorded at Echo Mountain Studios in Asheville, NC – the home of Bob Moog and Moog Music whose work was fundamental to the development of the modern synthesizer and responsible for many of the classic, iconic sounds of the era.
In SYNCHRONICITY, daring physicist Jim Beale has invented a machine that can fold space-time and ruthless corporate tycoon Klaus Meisner will stop at nothing to get it. When Jim uses the machine to tear open the fabric of the universe, a rare Dahlia appears from the future, but in order to keep the rights to his invention he must prove that it works by finding the flower’s identical match in the present. Jim soon discovers that the Dahlia lies in the hands of the mysterious Abby, who seduces him into revealing his secrets. Convinced that she is in league with Klaus to take ownership of his life’s work, Jim travels back in time to stop the conspiracy before it can happen. But once in the past, Jim uncovers a surprising truth about Abby, the machine, and his own uncertain future.
“The Ben Lovett score, which plays like a wonderfully shameless love letter to Vangelis’ Blade Runner soundtrack, is simply fantastic.” — Nerdist
Lovett’s scoring career began in 2005 with LAST GOODBYE, a drama starring Faye Dunaway and David Carradine, before making his Sundance debut a year later with THE SIGNAL, an Independent Spirit Award nominee and enduring cult favorite. He has since written and performed original scores for a wide range of feature films, shorts and documentaries, including the Duplass brothers’ indie thriller BLACK ROCK starring
Kate Bosworth; critic favorite and Gotham-Award nominee SUN DON’T SHINE from Amy Seimetz; while composing original work for shows on Disney, MTV, Cartoon Network, and many more. Lovett has been the recipient of multiple awards and worldwide recognition for numerous collaborative musical and visual projects, including the visual adaptation of his song EYE OF THE STORM and scores to the films GHOST OF OLD HIGHWAYS and THE LAST LULLABY.
“Ben Lovett’s spectacular, persistent, synthesized musical mix of percussion, piano, horns, and classical chorale swings between abstract atonality and fibrillating, unsettling sounds.” — Filmmaker Magazine
“The word ‘synchronicity’ refers to seemingly related things which are casually unrelated, and I wanted to echo this as much as possible in the music,” continued Lovett. “While there are recurring melodic elements related to specific themes in the film, there’s also a thematic repetition of individual sounds which come and go, sometimes never playing more than a single note. The interplay of these smaller peripheral elements and the way they change slightly over time are kind of a roadmap for the time travel loop that occurs in the movie.”
“This is without a doubt my first true love of 2016, a score that takes me back and on a journey through space and time. They don’t make scores like this anymore…” — Soundtrack Geek
SYNCHRONICITY screens at the Fine Arts Theatre in Asheville on July 7th, 2016 at 7:00 pm. Tickets are $5.00 and available at the Fine Arts box office, online, and Harvest Records. Proceeds benefit 103.3 Asheville FM. Additional screenings of SYNCHRONICITY will continue at the Fine Arts on July 8th & 9th at 9:40 pm.
For more information contact the Fine Arts Theatre box office 828.232.0257 36 Biltmore Avenue, Asheville NC 28801 info@fineartstheatre.com, or info@ashevillefm.org
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