Most musicians would be content with playing in one of the world’s biggest bands, but most musicians aren’t Jonny Greenwood. Having made his name providing guitar histrionics for Radiohead, Greenwood has spent the last 15 years burnishing his reputation as one of the best film score composers around, collaborating with Paul Thomas Anderson on There Will Be Blood, The Master and Inherent Vice, and providing the deeply discomfiting music for Lynne Ramsay’s chilling drama We Need to Talk About Kevin.
Even by his own standards, March is set to be a significant month for the musician. Next Friday sees the release of Ramsay’s Joaquin Phoenix-fronted revenge drama You Were Never Really Here, for which Greenwood has provided the throbbing soundtrack. Before that, though, there’s Sunday’s Academy Awards, where Greenwood has been nominated for best score for Anderson’s fashion-house drama Phantom Thread.
The two scores are a testament to Greenwood’s range: You Were Never Really Here’s is modern and menacing, built on synth-led compositions; while Phantom Thread’s is a lush, romantic orchestral work hinting at Debussy, Satie and Schubert. Both are decidedly different, but unmistakably Greenwood’s.
Got any questions for Jonny? Post them in the comments below and he’ll answer the pick of them ahead of the release of You Were Never Really Here.