Craig Wedren

After launching his career in the 1990s as the frontman for Washington, D.C. avant-punk band Shudder to Think, Craig Wedren embarked on a successful second phase as both a solo artist and prolific film composer. Although rooted in hardcore punk and emo, Wedren helped guide Shudder to Think toward an increasingly ambitious sound, and his subsequent solo work in the 2000s and 2010s followed suit, encompassing experimental rock, folk, and soaring orchestral elements on albums like 2011′s Wand and 2017′s Adult Desire. Meanwhile, he became increasingly in demand in the film and television industry, providing scores and songs for films like School of Rock, Wet Hot American Summer, and By the People: The Election of Barack Obama. His television scores are similarly eclectic and include Children’s Hospital, GLOW, and New Amsterdam. In 2020, Wedren returned to solo work with an exploratory set of improvised vocal loops called Sabbath Sessions, Vol. 1. Moving to the nation’s capitol from Ohio as a teenager, Wedren was invited to try out for a local hardcore band called Stooge. Once he joined bassist Stuart Hill, guitarist Chris Matthews, and drummer Mike Russell, the group changed their name to Shudder to Think and made their debut with 1989′s Curse, Spells, Voodoo, Mooses. Wedren’s dynamic lead vocals and the band’s aggressive sound helped them net a deal with renowned D.C. indie Dischord, which issued a string of albums including 1991′s Funeral at the Movies and 1992′s Get Your Goat. Musically with each album, the group shifted further away from their hardcore/emo beginnings and toward a more progressive direction. After a membership shake-up, Shudder to Think made the jump to major-label Epic and released 1994′s Pony Express Record, while Wedren tried his hand at producing others, including a pair of albums for Cake Like, Delicious and Bruiser Queen. After their supporting tour wrapped up, however, Wedren was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s disease, which put the band on hold while he received treatment. With the condition in remission, he was well enough to return to the group, and despite issuing a fine follow-up, 1997′s 50,000 B.C., the album sank without a trace. After this, Wedren and his bandmates shifted their attention to soundtrack work, writing complete soundtracks to High Art and the all-star First Love, Last Rites, as well as contributing tracks to Velvet Goldmine, all of which surfaced in 1998. Following the band’s breakup later that year, Wedren took a few years to gain his footing, appearing on the Verve Pipe’s self-titled 1999 release as well as supplying a solo song to the soundtrack for Down to You. After working on the music for the cult indie comedy Wet Hot American Summer, he landed a job composing the entire score for the hit Jack Black comedy School of Rock, as well as penning a song for the soundtrack, “Heal Me, I’m Heartsick.” Over the coming years, his profile in Hollywood continued to rise as he found work scoring films like Laurel Canyon, Roger Dodger, and Reno 911!: Miami while also launching a solo career with 2005′s Lapland. As a songwriter, Wedren’s style had shifted more toward the alt-pop singer/songwriter spectrum, though his experimental streak shone through on 2011′s Wand. He also remained busy composing soundtracks for the documentary By the People: The Election of Barack Obama, the comedy Wanderlust, and television shows like Dawson’s Creek and Bones. His next solo outing was 2017′s Adult Desire, which mixed introspective folk with expansive orchestrations. 2020′s Sabbath Sessions, Vol. 1 was even more experimental, relying only on looped improvised vocals. ~ Greg Prato & Timothy Monger