One listen to The Requiem and it’s clear that everything they do is with intention. The South Florida band is gearing up for the release of their Fearless Records debut full-length A Cure To Poison The World, and if the title (or the band’s name) doesn’t clue you in on their identity or style, their newest songs certainly will. With elements of alt-rock, emo, pop-punk, and even some nostalgic vibes, there’s a lot to unpack here from a musical perspective.
Interestingly, The Requiem’s style owes a lot to film and theater as well. That’s why the band stopped by (and by that, we mean email!) to attach every song on their upcoming record to a specific movie. This is honestly really cool of them to do, and it’s very much worth reading. It also gives newcomers a deeper insight into their overall aesthetic.
This Is How The World Ends
Romeo & Juliet (1996)
Directed by: Baz Luhrmann
Out of all the adaptations of Romeo and Juliet, the 1996 adaptation fits our opening track the best. The modern setting combined with the classic tones, the two deeply devoted and nihilistic lovers, and finally, their predetermined suicide. All these themes are present in our song as well.
An Elegy Written On Porcelain Arms
Requiem For A Dream (2000)
Directed by: Darren Aronofsky
The overall feeling of despair and disillusionment this movie has is similar to the one intended in An Elegy Written On Porcelain Arms. Watching a loved one decay and disappear into themselves is probably one of the worst things anyone can witness, and there aren’t many movies aside from this one that portray it in such crude and real detail. Whether through drug addiction, cancer, or some other terrible disease. Seeing someone you care for slowly dying is an experience that is not easy to transpose into song, let alone move on from. But we hope that this track can be cathartic to whoever can relate, just as it has been for us.
Less Than Zero
Lords Of Dogtown (2005)
Directed by: Catherine Hardwicke
The feeling one gets from watching this movie is what we hope others will feel when listening to this track. We want people to see the fun and hype of this song, while also catching the undertones within it. In both this movie and our song, there is a lot of resentment and disgust towards the environment and situations one has grown up in, as well as falling for vices and using self destruction as escapism. We wrote this song having a lot of alternative rock songs from PS2 games we grew up with in mind. Last but not least, we put the names of some of our favorite skate brands in the lyrics of this song when writing it (Blind, Deathwish, Zero).
I’ll Be Late For My Funeral
Donnie Darko (2001)
Directed by: Richard Kelly
This movie digs deep into paranoia and a sense of impending doom. I’ll Be Late For My Funeral does too, so we thought it would be appropriate. A lot of the imagery in the lyrics of this song is also very reminiscent of Donnie Darko’s plot twists, as well as the youthful nature that the movie tries to convey by showing the main character as somewhat mischievous and experiencing love for the first time in the form of tragedy.
L’exquisite Douleur
Silent Hill (2006)
Directed by: Christophe Gans
From the beginning of the band, Silent Hill has been one of our favorite shared franchises. We are all lifelong fans of the games and always deeply appreciated each of their soundtracks. In this interlude, we tried to shove as many complex emotions as we could into it with different layers of instruments and samples, which is what we love most about Akira Yamaoka’s work. It is also an ode to our previous band name.
Cursed
Edward Scissorhands (1990)
Directed by: Tim Burton
Both the loneliness and innocence of the main character Edward are present in Cursed, as well as his later found confidence and undying will to chase after what he loves. Even when writing this song, we were reminded of Christmas and winter, which are both big characteristics of Burton’s movies and Elfman’s music. The lyrics of this song attempt to convey a feeling of being frozen in time and fated to fail, but responding to that with perseverance and loyalty to one’s desire, which is very similar to what this movie represents.
Two Lovers Left Alive
Only Lovers Left Alive (2013)
Directed by: Jim Jarmusch
This movie, as well as Coppola’s Dracula, inspired us to write a love song from the perspective of a character who is cursed to live forever and tries to find each and every single reincarnation of the person he loves. The desolation and slow pace shown in this movie encapsulates the struggles of immortality better than any other film.
Kill The Lights
Taxi Driver (1976)
Directed by: Martin Scorsese
Kill The Lights is a song about nihilism, misanthropy, and believing society as a whole is heading straight for self destruction. Out of the dozens of movies that are related to these ideas, there isn’t a more iconic one than Taxi Driver. This movie portrays a world that is extremely dirty, chaotic, and twisted. Finally, the character in our song just like Travis from Taxi Driver, believes his rhetoric is righteous and true, despite it obviously being wrong and futile
Diary of a Masochist
The Countess (2011)
Directed by: Julie Delpy
Of all the songs in our record, this song is the only one in which one thing fully inspired the lyrics, and that is the story of Elizabeth Bathory. This movie in particular presents sides of Bathory’s life that are usually not explored in most mainstream depictions of her. Her story is full of bloodlust, loss, and political interests. It is also plagued with speculation and religious condemnation. We hope our song is now a small part of an already huge collection of media dedicated to her and to that period of history.
The Difference Between You and Me Is That I Get The Last Laugh
Kick Ass (2010)
Directed by: Matthew Vaughn
The energy we tried to capture in this song was one of blind confidence, boldness, and feeling on top of the world. The song is about proving people who have misled or belittled you wrong and rubbing that all over their faces. We felt that this movie perfectly fits that narrative and attitude. It leaves you feeling great after watching it, and we hope our song can have a similar uplifting effect on others.
Before I Go
The Crow (1994)
Directed by: Alex Proyas
“Before I Go…” is a song about someone who, on their deathbed, prays that they can see or get close to their dead lover one last time before they pass on and forget everything. The Crow is a film that tells a story with parallel themes, and it plays with a similar type of desperation. The ambiance of our song is intended to seem abandoned and decayed and that is also much like the setting in The Crow, which is a city in literal flames where everything is falling apart.
