(2021) William Ryan Fritch - Freeland


Review:
In being soundtrack material William Ryan Fritch created for the well-received feature film by directors Mario Furloni and Kate McLean, Freeland presents another opportunity to consider that familiar conundrum: whether a soundtrack should be broached on stand-alone terms or assessed in terms its effectiveness as part of the project whole. In this case, Fritch’s Freeland holds up well on both counts: it’s a natural fit for the film, but it also rewards on purely musical terms, even if it (understandably) downplays melody for atmosphere. By way of context, the storyline concerns Devi (played by Krisha Fairchild), a cannabis farmer whose idyllic lifestyle is upset when pot’s legalization forces her to contend with sweeping changes within the weed industry that threaten her livelihood. Fritch would seem to be the perfect choice of soundtrack composer, given that the story plays out within the redwood forests of Northern California and specifically within an isolated Humboldt County community. He’d no doubt be capable of creating a satisfying soundtrack for a Wall Street-based drama, yet the oft swamp-like quality of his music makes him a natural fit for Freeland. Further to that, he wasn’t brought in at the eleventh hour but was rather a close participant in the project for over two years, Fritch apparently having worked with the directors as the script was developed in order to produce the ideal musical content for the film. As in his personal releases, the music created for the forty-two-minute soundtrack called upon his gifts as a multi-instrumentalist. Strings, steel guitar, woodwinds, horns, and percussion meld together in the service of an evocative and texturally abundant score designed to enrich the film’s visuals. As mentioned, the material more emphasizes atmosphere than melody, with the fourteen pieces registering less as formally structured songs and more allusive mood sketches. Dark, suspenseful episodes appear alongside pastoral ones, the contrasts no doubt mirroring the twists and turns of the narrative. Striking moments are many, among them the crystalline swoop of the steel guitar flowing through “What You’ve Built” and the low-register saxophone flutter animating “Gnawing Away,” “Husk,” and other haunting set-pieces. Whereas the penultimate track, “Submersion” oozes funereal portent, the peaceful closer “Resurface” acts as a soothing antidote. As the music creeps, crawls, shudders, and shakes, acoustic instruments swim in a heady, molasses-thick mix, all such details mindfully assembled to offer a sympathetic complement to the visual imagery. Fritch brings a high level of dedication to every project, soundtrack or otherwise, and Freeland is no exception. Admittedly, it would be inadvisable to treat it as representative of his music in general, given that his non-soundtrack material is as rich in melody and song structure as texture and atmosphere, but it’s nevertheless an interesting addition to his ever-growing discography.





Tracklist:
1. Devi’s Last Deal
2. Bygones
3. Cited
4. Threshing Floor
5. Siren Call of the Land
6. Outed
7. Dropped
8. What You’ve Built
9. Gnawing Away
10. The Old Commune
11. Husk
12. Outmoded
13. Submersion
14. Resurface


Media Report:
Genre: ambient, original soundtrack
Format: FLAC
Format/Info: Free Lossless Audio Codec, 16-bit PCM
Bit rate mode: Variable
Channel(s): 2 channels
Sampling rate: 44.1 KHz
Bit depth: 16 bits