Into the Wild (soundtrack)
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| Into the Wild | ||
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| Soundtrack by Eddie Vedder | ||
| Released | September 18, 2007 | |
| Recorded | 2007 at Studio X, Seattle, Washington | |
| Genre | Rock | |
| Length | 33:04 | |
| Label | J Records | |
| Producer | Adam Kasper, Eddie Vedder | |
| Professional reviews | ||
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Into the Wild is the first solo album by Pearl Jam vocalist Eddie Vedder based on his contributions to the soundtrack for the film Into the Wild (2007). It was released on September 18, 2007 through J Records.
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[edit] Background
Director Sean Penn hand-picked Vedder to provide the music for the film. Previously, Vedder had contributed two songs to the soundtrack for the 1995 film Dead Man Walking and a cover of The Beatles' "You've Got to Hide Your Love Away" to the soundtrack for the 2001 film I Am Sam, both of which starred Penn.
[edit] Recording
The songs for the soundtrack were recorded in 2007 at Studio X in Seattle, Washington. Vedder worked with producer Adam Kasper. The album was mixed by Kasper and Vedder.
After viewing a rough cut of Into the Wild, Vedder quickly went to work writing songs for the film.[1] The following day after watching the film, Vedder began working on material. After three days, Vedder gave Penn a range of material to work with. Penn placed into the film what Vedder had given him, and Vedder then went on to work on more material that Penn could add to the film.[2] Vedder said that Penn "gave [him] a lot of freedom," and added that "the biggest thing was trust, which was just kind of unspoken."[3] Vedder also said that having to write songs based on a narrative "simplified things." He said, "There were fewer choices. The story was there and the scenes were there."[2] Vedder said that the songwriting process "grew" as Penn would ask him for more material.[3]
Vedder described the recording process as a "factory." He said, "I'd just sit in the chair, and they'd hand me a fretless bass, and they'd hand me a mandolin, and they'd take a second to do the rough mix, and then I'd write the vocal, and it was just quick."[4] On the recording sessions as a whole, Vedder stated, "It was like I kinda went into some weird space for a week or two, and then I woke up out of this daze, and it was done. I don't really remember it."[4]
[edit] Music and lyrics
Thom Jurek of All Music Guide called the soundtrack a "collection of folksy, rootsy tunes where rock & roll makes fleeting appearances."[5] Vedder is primarily responsible for the songs in the film while Michael Brook is acknowledged for composing the film's original music in the film's credits. Vedder said, "Michael made great choices with the way he orchestrated the score...Our pieces of music meshed together pretty well for not having approached it in a way of making sure these puzzle pieces fit. They just did."[1]
Vedder's cover of the song "Hard Sun" (originally written by Gordon Peterson who performed under the name of Indio on the album Big Harvest) features backing vocals by Corin Tucker of Sleater-Kinney. "Hard Sun" appears in the film along with a slew of other folky ballads. Vedder collaborates with Jerry Hannan on the song "Society", written by Hannan.
Vedder's songs help narrate the story of Christopher McCandless. After graduating as a top student from Emory University, McCandless decided to give up all of his savings and money and hitchhike to Alaska to live in the wild, after a foray into the western United States and Mexico. Vedder said that he "realized the songs could now become another tool in the storytelling."[1] On writing the songs about McCandless, Vedder stated, "It was startling how easy it was for me to get into his head. I found it to be uncomfortable how easy it was, because I thought I'd grown up."[2]
[edit] Release and reception
The soundtrack debuted at number eleven on the U.S. Billboard 200 chart, selling about 39,000 copies in its first week.[6] As of February 2008, the album has sold 243,000 copies.[7]
Rolling Stone gave Into the Wild three and a half out of five stars. Reviewer David Fricke said that Vedder "[tosses] his weighty baritone onto earthy, folky tracks that temper the romance of absolute freedom with an eerie foreboding."[8] Leah Greenblatt of Entertainment Weekly gave the album a B. She said "a real sense of the wide-open road permeates these nine original compositions." She ended her review by saying that "though the album is flawed (some tracks on the 33-minute disc are so brief that they never leave the ground), there is still something here that's compelling enough to stand alone."[9]
"Hard Sun" was the most successful song from Into the Wild on the rock charts, charting at number 13 on the Billboard Modern Rock Tracks charts. Both "Hard Sun" and "Guaranteed" had accompanying music videos. Vedder won a 2008 Golden Globe for the song "Guaranteed" from Into the Wild.[10] "Guaranteed" was also nominated for a 2008 Grammy Award in the category of Best Song Written for a Motion Picture, Television or Other Visual Media.[11]
Vedder was nominated for a Golden Globe for his contributions to the film's original score in 2008.[10]
[edit] April Fools tour
Vedder promoted the soundtrack with a ten-date tour in April 2008 which focused on the West Coast of the United States. It was Vedder's first solo tour. The tour was dubbed the "April Fools Tour."[12]
[edit] Track listing
All songs written by Eddie Vedder, except where noted:
- "Setting Forth" – 1:37
- "No Ceiling" – 1:34
- "Far Behind" – 2:15
- "Rise" – 2:36
- "Long Nights" – 2:31
- "Tuolumne" – 1:00
- "Hard Sun" (Indio) – 5:22
- "Society" (Jerry Hannan) – 3:56
- "The Wolf" – 1:32
- "End of the Road" – 3:19
- "Guaranteed" – 7:22
- Track 11 features a hidden track of "Guaranteed" (Humming Vocal) after about two minutes of silence following the regular version of "Guaranteed"
- iTunes bonus tracks
- "No More" – 3:38
- "Photographs" – 1:00
- "Here's to the State" (Live at VH1 Storytellers) (Phil Ochs) – 5:52
- "No More" (Live In Nijmegen) – 4:32
[edit] Personnel
- Eddie Vedder - All instruments, production, mixing, layout and design; credited as "Jerome Turner" for album concept
- Corin Tucker - background vocal on "Hard Sun"
- Jerry Hannan - guitars and background vocal on "Society"
- Adam Kasper - production, mixing, recording
- John Burton, Sam Hofstedt - engineering
- Bob Ludwig - mastering
- George Webb III - instrument technician
- Mike Kutchman - assistance
- Brad Klausen - layout and design
- Sato Masuzawa - artistic facilitator
- Chuck Zlotrick, Francois Duhamel - location shots and photos of Emile Hirsch
- Anton Corbijn - back cover silhouette photo of Eddie Vedder
With thanks to:
- Jon Krakauer
- The McCandless Family
- Emile Hirsch
- Brian Dierker
Special thanks to:
In memory of:
[edit] Chart positions
Information taken from various sources.[13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21]
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[edit] References
- ^ a b c Sandler, Adam. "Films thrive on singular musical vision". Variety. December 11, 2007.
- ^ a b c Cohen, Jonathan. "Q&A: Penn, Vedder go where the "Wild" things are". Reuters. October 26, 2007.
- ^ a b Gilchrist, Todd. "Interview: Sean Penn and Eddie Vedder". IGN. September 21, 2007.
- ^ a b Grossman, Lev. "Nature Boys". Time. September 13, 2007.
- ^ Jurek, Thom. "Into the Wild". All Music Guide.
- ^ Katie Hasty, "Reba Outmuscles Kanye, 50 To Score First No. 1", Billboard.com, September 26, 2007.
- ^ Cohen, Jonathan. "Vedder Heads West For Spring Solo Shows". Billboard.com. February 15, 2008.
- ^ Fricke, David. "Eddie Vedder: Into The Wild". Rolling Stone. September 5, 2007.
- ^ Greenblatt, Leah. "Into the Wild". Entertainment Weekly. September 13, 2007.
- ^ a b 65th Golden Globe Awards Nominations & Winners. goldenglobes.org. Retrieved on 2008-01-13.
- ^ 43rd Grammy Awards - 2008. Rockonthenet.com. Retrieved on 2008-02-20.
- ^ Reuters. "Eddie Vedder to Start Solo Tour". Entertainment Weekly. February 15, 2008.
- ^ Eddie Vedder – Billboard Albums. All Music Guide. Retrieved on 2007-11-13.
- ^ SOUNDTRACK / EDDIE VEDDER - INTO THE WILD (ALBUM). New Zealand-charts.com. Retrieved on 2007-11-13.
- ^ SOUNDTRACK / EDDIE VEDDER - INTO THE WILD (ALBUM). Australian-charts.com. Retrieved on 2007-11-13.
- ^ "Top 75 Artist Album, Week Ending 27 September 2007". ChartTrack.com.
- ^ Eddie Vedder – Billboard Singles. All Music Guide. Retrieved on 2007-11-13.
- ^ Classifice Artisti - Archivio. FIMI. Retrieved on 2008-03-05.
- ^ Schweizer Hitparade. hitparade.ch. Retrieved on 2008-02-19.
- ^ Dutch Single/Album Chart / Eddie Vedder / Longplay. dutchcharts.nl. Retrieved on 2008-02-19.
- ^ French Single/Album Chart / Eddie Vedder / Longplay. lescharts.com. Retrieved on 2008-02-19.
