Stephen Rennicks’s song based soundtrack to Leonard Abrahamson’s fantastical black comedy featuring Michael Fassbender as the masked leader of a doomed avant-rock group.
Dubbed by Spin Magazine “a loving and hilarious tribute to outsider music”, Rennicks leads the cast through indie songs ranging from the hilarious “Franks Most Likeable Song – People Will Love it!” to the heartbreaking indie-classic “I Love You All”. The film is inspired by cult comedy creation Frank Sidebottom, as well as underground music legends Captain Beefheart and Daniel Johnston. Rooted in Jon Ronson’s real-life account of his time playing keyboards in Frank Sidebottom’s Oh Blimey Big Band, the film follows Domhnall Gleeson as a wannabe pop star Jon Burroughs who joins the unpronounceable Soronprfbs band. The bands’ live performances often descend into chaos and the band members ooze eccentricity.
The actors play the instruments live. Maggie Gyllenhaal is Clara, the band’s severe theremin player, François Civil is Baraque, the guitarist who only speaks French, and the only professional musician, Autolux drummer, Carla Azar plays Nana, the silent type. The song “I Love You All”, performed by Michael Fassbender and the Soronprfbs, was released digitally on 11th August. The band performed the song live on The Colbert Report in NY on 6th August 2014.
“The music, composed by Stephen Rennicks, instantly places him on the map as one to watch (or listen for, rather)… Much like the interpersonal dynamics of the band, Soronprfbs is discordant, chaotic, and noisy, but like the genius of the Velvet Underground, there’s always a sublime tune swaying beneath the madness…” – The Playlist
“Stephen Rennicks’s music is quite brilliant: odder yet less mannered than most of the Brooklyn-loft sub-folk baloney recommended by this week’s essential website.” – The Irish Times
“…a raft of tunes and experimental sounds that perfectly capture the style you would associate with a band such as Soronprfbs. In particular the tracks I Love You All and The Likeable Song are wonderful odes to the quirkiness of the story and the abstract wonder of Frank’s brain.” – Cultoid