The music of Killing Christian is as varied and exciting as the film itself! Rick Carter, of the local Birmingham band Rolling in the Hay, and Adam
Guthrie composed an incredibly original musical score for the film. In addition to their musical score contribution, our Production Sound Mixer, Morgan
Faulkner, also contributed some of his own one-man compositions for various background music and other score throughout the film, contributing over a dozen
different pieces of musical score.
We're also incredibly proud to have three wonderful local musicians contributing some truly wonderful songs to the film. Nathan Peek wrote three songs
specifically for the film, including the memorable "A Good Christian Girl" and "Hitman's Blues", two of the film's signature songs. Also, listen
carefully for two incarnations of the song "What Was I Thinking?', one at a moment you wouldn't expect it. The Dusty Winsett
Band contributed three of their songs to the film, including "Diamonds Fade", "Hangin' On", and "Snowing in Alabama." And last but certainly not least,
the group formed by some of the filmmakers on this film (Jason Kendall, Laura Mullins, Annis Hathcock, Christian Ray, and Stacy Vance) contributed six of their songs. Talmadge Lane contributed such signature songs as "When I Get
You Alone", the end credits song, as well as "Unrequited", "Tomato", "Pancakes for Two", "Leaving Me", and many others. And also, Annis Hathcock delivered an absolutely stunning cover of the Etta James
classic, "At Last." Music Supervisor Jason Kendall did an incredible job of bringing all this music together for the film, exceeding all our expectations.
Our many thanks to all the members of Talmadge Lane, Nate, Dusty, Rick & Adam, Morgan, and Annis for the gift of their musical talents! Your music has made our film
so much better.
Learn more about the incredibly talented musicians who are featured in this film:
Nathan Peek has been playing music for the last 11 years, most
recently in Rick Carter's Oasis and other Birmingham venues that promote and
feature original music. Best described as deliciously *unpredictable*, Nathan's
music peppers storytelling with grab-your-heart lyrics with styles ranging from
Americana to Roots Rock to Country to whatever else he and his band (The Nathan
Peek Band) may by feeling at the moment. Nathan wrote three original songs specifically for
Killing Christian with guitarist Hank Jones, including
the captivating montage track "A Good Christian Girl", the dark and perky
handclapping "Hitman's Blues", and the rhythmic ballad "What Was I Thinking?"
Peek found an affinity with the dark comedy energy and the dream sequences in
KC, and created the songs with that in mind after viewing a rough cut of the
film. The Nathan Peek Band released a record entitled Best Kept Ruins
a few years ago, and they are currently working on another record scheduled
to be released in December. Peek and his band hope to stay in the state and
support other local artists to be a "part of the coalition that brings the
spotlight to [the talent and creativity] in Birmingham." And from the sound
of the tracks for Killing Christian - you can tell that Nathan Peek and his band
are already doing their part.
"Diamond Dusty" is the voice of the Dusty Winsett Band and also has an arm
(literally, an arm) featured in one of the opening scenes of Killing Christian
(look for our Dusty's buff bicep in the first bar sequence serving cosmos up to
Hunter). In addition to being a talented new actor/bartender, Dusty is an
electric performer who knows how to light up a stage and fire up an audience.
With his deep, clear voice and his enchantingly powerful presence, Dusty and his
band keep 'em coming back to the Sport Zone in Decatur every Wednesday and
Saturday night. The band is comprised of Dusty Winsett on lead vocals and
rhythm guitar, Teddy "James" Winsett on lead guitar and backup vocals, Justin
Williams on Bass Guitar, and Anthony Wiggins on Drums/Percussion. They play
music from a wide range of genres - including country, hip-hop, bluegrass,
rhythm and blues, and good old rock and roll....to name a few. With a seemingly
endless supply of energy, Dusty and the guys have a repertoire of over 300 songs
to pull from and - yes, they take requests. The band contributed three of their
songs to the film - the heart-string pulling "Diamonds Fade", the deep and
throaty soulful piece "Hangin' On", and the legendary local hit "Snowing in
Alabama." Dusty has signed a contract with Zephyr Records and the band will be
releasing another cd in the early part of 2006 that has yet to be named.
TALMADGE LANE
"I'm just the guitar player," says Jason Kendall, the lone male member of the
newly formed group Talmadge Lane. A guitarist and songwriter for the last two
years, Jason found the right voices to make beautiful music with when he linked
up with friends Annis Hathcock, Laura Mullins, and Christian Ray in February
of 2005. The haunting harmonies of Annis, Laura, and Christian (along with
Stacy Vance - who joins them as a guest vocalist on a couple of the songs in
Killing Christian) blend together in beautiful songs that manage to capture emotions out of the air and
put them to melodies that stay with you for days. An accomplished singer and
performer, Annis Hathcock brings to Talmadge Lane a rich voice reminiscent of a
seductive lounge singer while she also plays rhythm guitar for the band. Laura
Mullins is a singer, songwriter, and accompanying guitarist whose powerful,
heartfelt voice provides a pied-piper like quality that keeps audiences
mesmerized and quiets a noisy crowd in a matter of seconds. Christian Ray is the
bass player who provides an ethereal, mystical soprano on backup vocals while
adding an edgy rock-and-roll lead on other songs. {FYI - Stacy V. is the
writer here and has no idea how to describe herself}. Put this mix together -
Jason, Christian, Laura, Annis, and Stacy - and you have Talmadge Lane - the
band that has been described as alternative, folksy, rock-n-roll,
something...... You may not know exactly how to describe them, but you can bet
their sound will draw you in. The music of Talmadge Lane is featured throughout Killing
Christian, with original songs by both Jason Kendall and Laura
Mullins, including TL favorite "Anything Less than Beautiful", the funky and
upbeat "When I Get You Alone", the beautifully sorrowful "Unrequited", "Tomato"
(no! you can't ask what the name means!), and the belt-it-out tune "Pancakes
for Two."
RICK CARTER & ADAM GUTHRIE
Rick Carter is not only a really nice guy, he IS a Birmingham
institution. One look in his eyes and you can see the experience of a lot of
living, soul, and wisdom swirling around a true passion for music. Playing for
many years with Telluride and currently with Rollin' in the Hay, Rick is listed
personally and with both bands as a Music Achiever in the Alabama Music Hall of
Fame. With his musical roots starting in Sunday School at age 6 where his
mother was a pianist at the church, Rick began pounding on the ivories then and
moved to guitar in the late 60's (and he also plays a mean ukelele!). His music
is a get-down-and-funky mix of Bluegrass, Blues, Americana and Rock and Roll
weaved into stories and legends of love, heartbreak, and the good times of
life. Rick and his good friend Adam Guthrie welcomed the challenge of putting
together a film score, and first came up with a hauntingly melodic piece
that captures the David Lynch-y, independent film motif of KC (that
ironically fit perfectly within Hunter's famous....ahem.... "masturbation
sequence" in the film -- though we've heard that was purely accidental!). In
his years as a local singer/songwriter, Rick has learned that "tenacity pays
off," and his advice to other artists and musicians is to "make your mark and
make it stronger on your family." He says, "when it comes down to it there is
nothing more important than your family", and that - along with the gift of his
music - is what makes him a local legend.
MORGAN FAULKNER
Morgan Faulkner is a man of many talents, and he devoted so many of them to the production
of Killing Christian. In addition to being our Production Sound Mixer and in charge of
Location Sound, Morgan also composed several new original score compositions to complement the
score by Rick & Adam, and extended it even further to bring new shadings of mystery and comedy
to the film that enhanced its effect even more. Morgan clearly has a gift, and often composed
new pieces of the score right in the middle of putting together his final sound mix for the film.
By the end, Morgan had composed over a dozen compositions for the film, and in conjunction with
Rick and Adam's contributions, the film is filled with an incredibly rich and detailed musical
score.
2008 (c) Copyright Killing Christian, LLC. All Rights Reserved.
