The world’s most awarded music, sound and audio identity company, Elias Arts (<a href="http://www.eliasarts.com.>(http://www.eliasarts.com.), announced today that indie composer/guitarist Mike Semple, former bandmate in Giant Sand and Campfire Girls, brainchild of Secretary Bird, partner in Friends of Dean Martinez, and co-composer, performer and producer of the soundtrack for Richard Linklater’s film, Fast Food Nation, has joined the company as Senior Composer.
Highly regarded in eclectic music circles for his “undeniably sincere” songwriting and “hypnotic” style, Semple has most recently garnered praise for scoring “Autism: The Musical” which premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival to critical acclaim and will make its world television premiere on HBO March 25th. In his new role at Elias, Semple will continue to score for film and television, working out of the Company’s Santa Monica studio. Ann Haugen, Elias Arts’ Executive Vice President & General Manager in Santa Monica comments, “Mike’s unique approach, style and virtuosity will complement our already amazing pool of talent. Having him on board broadens our creative range and strengthens our indie credentials.”
Semple joins the staff of Elias Arts composers that also includes indie legend Joey Santiago, lead guitarist of Pixies fame. Santiago, an Elias Arts Featured artist <a href="http://www.eliasarts.com.>(http://www.eliasarts.com./site020/pages01/OurPeople/Featured.html, is currently wrapping up “Nike Presents: Blood, Sweat and Tears: Football in the Rough.” Created by AKQA San Francisco http://www.akqa.com, the film delves into the lives of seven professional footballers both from the US and abroad, to rediscover the core essence of the game with each section scored and performed by Joey Santiago. NIKE’s Robert Sandler comments, “This film is about guts and determination and Joey’s work definitely helps surface both of these qualities.” AKQA’s David Charles adds, “Santiago’s sonic guitar riffs and his moody harmonies were perfect for the pace we needed in the film. Joey’s score definitely makes us reflect harder on the subjects discussed in the documentary.” The first chapter “Planting the Seeds” will run on Nikefootball.com for the Asian Pacific audience mid February.
Elsewhere on the indie front, Kenny Segal, Elias’ composer, producer and DJ whose specialty is hip hop/electronic and experimental music, is launching Ken Can Cook, on indie label Decon/Project Blowed. According to Decon label manager, Laurent Masset, “Kenny Segal is the latest producer talent to emerge from the Project Blowed scene, one of the most exciting breeding grounds on the West Coast.” Featuring underground legends such as Abstract Rude, Aceyalone, Nocando, Busdriver, 2Mex and more there is a great deal of excitement surrounding the release. “We at Decon have watched Kenny grow over the years and it is testament to the trust his fellow musicians have in his production skills that he has been able to surround himself with such an imposing cast of emcees for his debut album. There hasn’t really been such a collaborative Project Blowed album in a few years and we are confident this will hit all the right notes with the fans all over the world.”
In addition to having just been named winner of the “Urban Underground 2008 Battle Invatational,” and the rigors surrounding the debut of his album, Kenny is collaborating on a daily basis with company founder Jonathan Elias on a variety of innovative in-house Elias projects that combine orchestral sound with an electronic/hip-hop/rap edge.
Jonathan Elias himself is in the final stages of recording his album encore Prayers in Silence, which will be released by Universal Classics Group. The London Philharmonic Orchestra & Choir will accompany a number of vocalists on the album including Sting, Salif Keita, Rahat Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, Jonathan Davis of Korn and Sinead O’Connor.
Martin Pazzani, President/CEO of Elias Arts comments, “Jonathan Elias’s ability to consistently attract, mentor, develop, and constantly refresh a roster of top composers is truly extraordinary, but when these great talents also start working with our producers and creative directors, that’s when the magic happens. The real magic at Elias Arts comes from the composer-producer- creative director collaboration. Just as Kenny Segal has made huge strides in the past year as part of this dynamic, we are excited to add a talent of Mike Semple’s level into this equation.”
Further details about Elias Arts are available at <a href="http://www.eliasarts.com.>(http://www.eliasarts.com..
For Elias Arts:
Vivian H. Brooks
508.347.2368
vbrooks@eliasarts.com
