'21' composer on LCD Soundsystem, the Rolling Stones
When “21” opens on Friday, it will come complete with scenes that feature ubiquitous singles such as Rihanna’s “Shut Up and Drive” and Peter Bjorn and John’s “Young Folks.” Securing the mega-hits was the easy part, as composer-producer David Sardy eventually found out. But if one wants to remix the Rolling Stones, one better be able to work in handcuffs.
The pop-and-dance-focused compositions that dot “21” accompany a glossed-up tale of a rogue group of card-counting students who take Las Vegas casinos for hundreds of thousands of dollars. Inspired by the Ben Mezrich nonfiction book “Bringing Down the House,” the film turns the high-stakes risk of card counting into a teenage romp.
And the man who placed such mainstream hits in the college-kids-gone-gambling film is former noise rocker-turned-producer Sardy. Having gotten his start in late-'80s hardcore band Barkmarket, Sardy went on to produce or mix music for the likes of British rockers Oasis, metal faves Slayer and alt-rockers the Red Hot Chili Peppers, among many others.
Tapped for “21” to produce the soundtrack and recruit artists for the film, Sardy ended up composing a host of original compositions, including a cut with Duke Spirit vocalist Liela Moss, who takes a break from her rock band to lay some acerbic vocals over a beat-heavy cut. A soundtrack was released last Tuesday, and Sardy says his score will be officially issued this spring. Despite the pop-heavy feel of “21,” Sardy’s music accounts for what he estimates as 60% to 70% of the music on screen.
He’s also the one responsible for bringing in Belgium electro-rockers Soulwax to remix the Rolling Stones’ “You Can’t Always Get What You Want,” and for nabbing James Murphy, the man behind disco-punks LCD Soundsystem, to compose an original song for the film (Sardy had done some mixing work on LCD Soundsystem’s 2007 album “Sound of Silver”).
Sardy will soon be working on the Paul Rudd film "I Love You, Man," and talks here about his first major film project and the decision to remix the Rolling Stones.
The LCD Soundsystem song has gotten a fair amount of press, but when watching the movie, it’s so heavily slanted toward popular music that it’s not obvious to catch a lot of the original compositions.
Yeah, I wrote a ton of music for the movie, and it’s all meant to have the feel of an awesome record collection, as opposed to a classical score. So I was kind of writing a traditional score, but with nontraditional score instruments. Where there would be cellos, we were using a synthesizer and a distorted bass guitar. Where there was high frequency, there would be crushed and distorted and stretched cymbals, as opposed to symphony drums.... But I’m glad it had that affect when you were watching it. That’s the idea. It hopefully makes watching the film feel current or exciting.
On the subject of current, you’re dealing with some pretty well-known pop songs. Isn’t that approach going to make the film feel dated?
Well, you’re hoping that when you’re picking those songs, you’re getting a song that works for the scene and that everyone digs, and the hope is that it will also be timed nicely. Your goal is to make the movie work, and everything else falls after that. If we get it right here and there, hopefully you’re picking a song that has a classic resident-of-the-moment kind of feel.
What was your directive when you were brought in?
They kind of left it up to me. They said, "These are the characters, and they’re in college." That was the directive. What’s going on right now, and what are people listening to? If you’re making a movie, or making a record, you have to hope that you’re making something that’s classic enough that by the time it comes out, it’s still going to feel timeless and fresh.
What was your role in co-producing LCD Soundsystem’s “Big Mistake”?
James and I had been talking about working on stuff for ages. We had been talking about me producing some stuff for his label, so it was more a question of what would work with our timing. It just worked out great that we could come up with a song for this movie.... LCD is probably the coolest band out there. His lyrical and production work is so spot-on that I just kind of went, "Yes, sir."
Was it your call to remix the Stones’ “You Can’t Always Get What You Want”?
That was a song that was there from the very first cut of the movie. So the debate was: Do we leave it as is, or do something with it to make it feel like the rest of the movie? ... We were talking about doing a remix for the Stones, and the question was, "Who is going to completely destroy this?" On some level, if you’re going to mess with the Stones, you’re going to have to go pretty far to make it exciting, I think.
There’s probably an age-dividing line on [the remix]. If you’re over a certain age, you’re just completely and utterly offended by it, and if you’re under a certain age, you don’t care. You dig it or you don’t.
So you went to Soulwax with an assignment?
Yes, the idea was try it and see if it worked. It was a conundrum, since the original is in the movie, and as the credits roll, it switches to the remix. That just kind of upped the ante of the party feel of the end of the movie. It’s a triumphant ending. The remix has become kind of controversial in certain circles. People either think it’s the most heinous thing they’ve ever heard, or the coolest thing. If you’re getting that kind of reaction, that’s something.
Going after a Stones piece, that’s a pricey little endeavor.
And to shred it from the original masters. They sent over an engineer with a briefcase with a handcuff on it. I am not exaggerating. He sat with the Soulwax guys and watched their every move. I’m 100% serious. It was something out of a James Bond film.
So you have to be cuffed to mix the Stones? Is that conducive to the creative process?
Well, I think the Soulwax guys are so on it. I think they were into the ludicrousness of it all. So was I. When I was told about it, I just started laughing. It was so straight-up crazy that you had to dig it.
Photo: From left, Sam Golzari, Kate Bosworth, Jim Sturgess, Aaron Yoo and Josh Gad in "21"; credit: Columbia Pictures
