Craig Minowa’s recommendation: “I don’t really listen to bands’ albums much anymore. There are some really great bands out there, but then there are also piles and piles of the same old stuff. It’s starting to feel so formulaic and fashion-based that I wonder what happened to the true art of songwriting. More often, I get really inspired by some of the movie composers out there that don’t get all the fame and glory. I find film scores to be some of the most inspiring and innovative music going on out there. I’m not talking about the movies that fill their scores with the trendiest new pop songs, but rather those that are originally scored and composed. I think a lot of people don’t notice the music going on in the background of these storylines, because the visual plot is so much more commanding. But close your eyes sometime and just listen to the music, and you’ll be surprised at some of these Oz’s behind the curtain are coming up with. Maybe it’s because I started scoring music for National Geographic documentaries recently, and it’s really humbling to feel so sophomoric compared to some of these amazing composers. I’m now woken up to the whole world of composers out there that I’d never heard of before but that blow myself and just about every other musician I know of out of the water.”

Craig Minowa’s picks for those new to movie soundtrack composers: “Some examples would be Jurgen Knieper’s work in Wings Of Desire (1987 Film), John Barry’s Dances with Wolves
and even Peter Gabriel’s Passion: Music For The Last Temptation Of Christ.”

About the guest author, Craig Minowa: Craig Minowa is the frontman for the experimental/environment friendly band, Cloud Cult. The band was formed in 1995 and despite offers from major labels, they have remained an indie group on Earthology Records, a not-for-profit environmental record label established by Minowa in 1998. The group has a new full length album in August, but for now you can download their latest EP, Running With the Wolves here. You can also get to know the band in the film about Cloud Cult, No One Said It Would Be Easy: