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Master
and Commander
The
first six months of 2003 have been very busy and eventful for
Iva Davies. To begin with, rumors flew that Iva was going to be
involved with an upcoming blockbuster Hollywood movie. At the
beginning of April, Iva confirmed that he was set to score the
soundtrack to the Peter Weir film "Master and Commander:
The Far Side of the World" starring Russell Crowe. Iva flew
to Los Angeles where he began work on composing the soundtrack.
There were two other collaborators in the creating of the dramatic
score. Christopher Gordon, known for his soundtrack work for the
movie "On The Beach" and Richard Tognetti of the Australian
Chamber Orchestra completed the trio. Christopher and Richard
had previously worked with Iva on the much-acclaimed "The
Ghost of Time" recording. Iva, with Richard on electric violin,
gave a stellar performance of "The Ghost of Time" in
the forecourt of the Opera House on New Year's Eve 1999.
Also working
on the soundtrack with Iva, Christopher and Richard, was long
time Icehouse friend and co-engineer Simon Leadley. Simon has
been making quite a name for himself in the movie industry, having
worked on other movie soundtracks such as "Moulin Rouge."
This fine group of musical talents all convened in Los Angeles
at the famous Village
Recorder Studios. Other musicians utilized by the team include
Mike Fisher. Mike is a well-known percussionist noted for his
use of the Taiko drums.
Work on the
soundtrack wrapped up successfully at the end of June but not
before some old friends were able to meet and catch up. Andy Qunta
visited Iva and Simon at the studios, regaling each other with
stories both old and new (see photo below). The Village Recorder
Studios also have a few photos of the recording team and director
Peter Weir in the photo
gallery on their site.
Fox Studios
has an official
web site for the movie, which features the newly-released
trailer. It was great to see Iva's name up there in big letters!
Early predictions are that the film will be one of the top five
of the year and the buzz is that this film might be Oscar-worthy.
It certainly looks like a beautifully done film with wonderful
cinematography, cast with some very fine actors. Fans of the Patrick
O'Brien books (upon which the film is based) are sure to love
seeing their literary heroes come to life. The movie premieres
in the United States on November 14th and in Australia on December
4th. International
release dates are available on the official site's UK/AUS/SWE
area.
Spellbound
wishes to extend their congratulations to Iva for this wonderful
achievement! We think we can speak for all of your fans when we
say this is well deserved!
More
Collaborations
Another musical
project for Iva was his involvement with the latest album from
Endorphin.
Endorphin is known for his ambient/dance music and worked on the
Meltdown project, putting his stamp on "Great Southern
Land" and "Man Of Colours."
Released in May, the album Seduction contains the track
"Free World." This track was co-written by Iva and showcases
some searing vocals by Mr. Davies. If you want to rock to Iva's
voice, this song will do it for you! The lyrics are a timely commentary
on the state of affairs in the world today. To whet the appetite
for this song, go to Endorphin's web site to hear a snippet of
"Free World." We encourage fans to pick up this CD ASAP!
The classic
Icehouse song "Don't Believe Anymore" has been covered
by Australian band The Whitlams. They have released a CD single
that contains three versions of the song. While the full version
is a good cover, the interesting track is "Je N'y Crois Plus."
Hearing those familiar lyrics translated and sung in French gives
the song an unusual twist. Please check out The Whitlams' official
site for further details on the band and their current tour.
Another rumor
that was confirmed as true is the appearance of Iva at the L'Oreal
Colour Trophy awards. This event will be held in August in Melbourne
and Iva will be on hand to join in the festivities. Rounding out
the band will be long time Icehouse musicians Paul Wheeler, Steve
Morgan and Paul Gildea. The boys will only be performing one song
and, unfortunately, the event will be closed to the general public.
Extra
For American
Icehouse fans with cable access, it is worth the while to check
out the cable channel VH-1
Classic. There are many Icehouse videos in rotation. Spellbound
has caught the videos for "Crazy," "Electric Blue,"
"Icehouse," "Cross The Border," and "No
Promises."
Stay
tuned...
We are looking
forward to the next six months and the premiere of "Master
and Commander!" There is sure to be more to report in the
upcoming months.
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