ComingSoon sat down with American Rust: Broken Justice composer Marty Beller to discuss his work on the Amazon Prime series.
ComingSoon: What drew you to scoring American Rust: Broken Justice, particularly given its exploration of the American dream through Chief of Police Del Harris?
Marty: When Dan Futterman, the creator of American Rust, told me about the show and asked me to be the composer, I was really drawn to the project on multiple fronts. Dan and I have had a long-term, wonderful, creative relationship and friendship, so I was, of course, thrilled to collaborate with him again. The depth of themes and character exploration for Del Harris and the other main characters was foremost on our minds from our first conversations and throughout the two seasons.
We set out to establish the music as a character weaving through the narrative and evoking the small town of Buell. The goal was to connect with the inner conflicts and dramatic tension, juxtaposed with emotional warmth and empathy.
Del is the broken compass at the center of it all. He is pulled in many different directions emotionally, he has a strong sense of right and wrong, but he is terribly conflicted, fatalistic, and ultimately motivated by his love for Grace. There was so much to explore musically. And Jeff Daniels, Maura Tierney and the entire phenomenal cast gave us such great performances to work with.
Can you walk us through your creative process when composing for a series like American Rust: Broken Justice? How do you approach capturing the essence of the narrative through music?
The first thing I do is have conversations with the creative team and hear everything they have to say – about the show, the characters, the themes, the story. I am also always wanting to gain a real understanding, in as many different ways as possible, of how they would like the music to feel. What is the tone, the pace, the different dramatic elements, and colors? We always were focused on being very aware of how the music should support the story. Sometimes it is subtle, haunting, and layered. Other times more overtly driving the pace or emotions. For this show we also worked closely with and were given great insights from the terrific editors on both seasons. These conversations are really a launching pad and such a key part of the creative process.
At the beginning, along with the music producer Daniel Miller, we will start developing ideas of many shapes and sizes related to the show. We have many conversations about our overall approach to the score and about specific types of scenes, themes, and characters. For both seasons, we had the luxury of a few months of lead time, so we were able to build a library of themes, ideas, and palettes. These will, of course, evolve and get developed and changed significantly as we score to picture and see and hear what works, but we want to be as prepared as possible.
How did you tailor your musical compositions to reflect the setting of a Rust Belt town in southwest Pennsylvania?
We set out to evoke a strong feeling of the region and the town itself, the natural as well as emotional atmosphere, environment, ambience, and tension. We were excited and inspired to combine instruments often found in Appalachian music, such as Dulcimer, Psaltery, Mandolin, Violins, Bucket Bass, with our palette and sensibility for dark, emotional, driving, ambient dramatic scoring, which for this show included a variety of traditional and non – traditional percussion instruments, analog synths, Cello, several different Acoustic and Electric Piano sounds, Electric and Acoustic Guitars, Pump Organ and many atmospheric pads and samples.
With such a diverse portfolio of projects, what unique challenges did scoring American Rust: Broken Justice present compared to your previous work?
I know you asked about challenges, but I can’t help but state how extraordinary the creative team was that I had the opportunity to work with on this show. I think it relates to the question because while of course there are always challenges, we really got such clear creative direction, feedback and support for what we were doing. This was so vital in helping solve the puzzles presented to us.
Two ways come to mind that more directly answer this question. In the first season, because of the pace and schedule of post-production, we would often be working on episodes out of chronological order and bouncing from one episode to another depending on what was shot and edited and ready for us to score. So, we really had to be aware of where we were in the story and where we were thematically with the music, as we wanted to keep everything connected and evolving as we moved from episode to episode.
This season a new challenge was balancing how much the music/themes should come directly from the first season and how much new music there should be. We were encouraged to maintain a strong connection to the music in the first season as there are returning characters with established themes, and a good portion of the story takes place in Buell. This was an important direction for us to keep in mind, to maintain and build off what worked so well for everyone in the first season. As the narrative moved in different directions and to different locations and characters, we introduced new themes and sounds that expanded on the palette of Season
Were there any specific themes or motifs in the series that you found particularly inspiring or challenging to interpret musically?
Inner conflict, suspicion, mystery, conspiracy, and investigation. A feeling that something is broken inside. There is also a great deal of raw emotional expression. We wanted the music to be sharp and ghostly at times, making the hair on your arm stand up. But at other times have warmth and empathy for the characters.
One challenge that comes to mind was figuring out the best way to score fight scenes and violence. We had the opportunity to explore some different approaches throughout the two seasons.
American Rust: Broken Justice delves into complex familial dynamics. How did you use music to enhance these emotional layers and character relationships?
The music supports the intimacy, conflict, and intensity of these relationships. Sometimes it’s through a bittersweet melody. Sometimes it’s haunting layers of textures, and sometimes it’s a full-on driving piece with big guitars and drums. The show does a wonderful job of making the audience feel a closeness and acute awareness of these complex dynamics. So, we are collaborating with that and often figuring out how much to turn up the heat without leading the audience emotionally.
Working on a series like this, where the narrative unfolds over multiple episodes, how do you maintain a consistent musical tone while also allowing for variation and development?
That’s a great question. This is a topic we honestly think about all the time. That strong thread through a series, creating an identifiable sound that feels like, “Yeah, this is the sound of this show.” But it plays out differently for every project. A lot of it has to do with the palette of sounds and how you build and evolve that palette. In the first half of Season 1, it was about establishing a strong atmosphere and a sense of place. In the second half, we added intensity to what was established with more rhythm from the synths, strings, and percussion. This season we added more urgency and got more specific with the themes related to the conspiracies and investigations.
In the last three episodes of this season, we were encouraged to evolve the score even more as the story was reaching its peak, so we put more of a focus on the Cellos, Violins, and Orchestral sounds to accentuate the drama. The goal when adding new elements was that it always had to keep that strong thread intact and sound like this show. I give a ton of credit to the music producer Daniel Miller for his vital role in building and expanding the palette and for all the great discussion and collaboration we had related to this.
Could you share any anecdotes or memorable moments from your collaboration with the creative team or cast of American Rust: Broken Justice?
One off-the-beaten-path thing that comes to mind is when working on an episodic show like this, I like to be with the audience in terms of knowing or not knowing what will happen next story-wise if possible. So, while I do read the scripts, I don’t like to get ahead of the episode we are scoring. I love the drama of finding out and reacting as an audience member and seeing if that can influence the score in any way. Ok, maybe it’s a bit quirky and superstitious. Of course, nobody else on the show can do this as they must plan months and months ahead. Many times, we would be in a meeting, and someone would offhandedly mention a key dramatic plot point from a future episode, and either my jaw would drop, or in my mind I would scream, “Oh no, don’t tell me that!”
As a drummer for They Might Be Giants, how does your background in alt-rock influence your approach to composing for film and television?
Yes! In a number of ways. First and foremost, for me it is all about inspiring collaborations. John Flansburgh and John Linnell really encourage creativity and a free flow of ideas and individual expression. They also have a clear vision, whether for the song we are recording or how we approach the live show. So, taking direction and notes within that framework is a key part of the job. Working with a great creative team in film and television, as was the case for American Rust, the collaboration, the exchange of ideas, the listening, adapting, and evolving is very similar.
In the band or when I’m scoring, I want to have a strong creative voice and put every part of myself into it. But ultimately, doing what’s best for the song, the band, the scene, and the episode is all that matters to me.
American Rust: Broken Justice tackles themes of justice and morality. How did you use music to underscore these themes and guide the audience’s interpretation of the story?
We want the score to enable the writing and acting to hit the audience directly with these themes. So, I think the music can subtly but strongly inhabit the characters and their arc to strengthen that connection with the audience.
The atmosphere and tone we create can make the audience feel a strong and consistent sense of the world the show inhabits which is certainly a world that brings up many questions about justice and morality.
We also want the score to have a motor and evolving temperature and to be collaborating with the pace of the narrative. This can be subtle and almost subconscious or overt and driving. This is all with an eye and ear towards supporting the writing, the acting, and the story the audience is immersed in.
