Dave Sitek & Nick Z Created Dramatic Music For Scarlett Jo To Act Over

Lots of people are jazzed to hear whether Scarlett Johansson can sing or not and wondering what her debut album will sound like. Of course, I have mad faith in Dave Sitek and Nick Z to make anything sound good coz as far as I have heard, these 2 can do no wrong! After reading an article on HARP Mag's website today, I have even more faith in their magical powers, at least Sitek's powers of perception. Before he started the project with the adorable starlet, he recognized some really important things about singing and acting. He went into the studio with the intent of creating a dramatic atmosphere that would allow Scarlett to do what she already does so well - act. HARP learned this from Sitek himself during the listening party recently held for the press and here's what they're reporting:

Speaking to HARP, Sitek explained how he embraced the fact that Johansson is an actor first and subsequently found a way to make her comfortable with the recording. “Whenever an actor makes a record, there is a sort of resistance to the cinematic quality in their craft,” he said, “and I didn’t want to move away from that.” He shaped eerie and dramatic instrumentals with his signature synths, purposely making them like his interpretation of film scores so that Johansson “could act on top of the music.”The pair traveled to Louisiana’s Dockside Studios to record the bulk of the songs and were joined by Yeah Yeah Yeah’s guitarist Nick Zinner, who added a wide variety of strange noises to the album’s eleven tracks. The ambiance of the Big Easy also slipped into the songs in the form of rainfall, birdcalls and incessant cicadas. David Bowie joined the all-star cast by lending his harmonies to the album’s dark highlights “Falling Down” (Big Time, 1988) and “Fannin’ Street” (Orphans, 2006).

Previously, I was curious about this album. Now I am downright stoked to hear what Dave and Nick have created, regardless of who is singing. Though, one thing HARP mentioned now has me curious about her voice too. I just assumed her voice would be feminine and sweet, but HARP describes it differently:

Covering Waits is a tall order for any singer, but Johansson’s frank demeanor and raspy voice give Waits’ songs new Nico-esque, feminine life.

Wow! Read the full story on HARP which includes the full tracklist. Anywhere I Lay My Head is due on May 20th.The album is bound to be a lot better than her famous Karaoke act from "Lost In Translation":