Musique Fantastique

June 23, 2023

Milan Records releases THE WALKING DEAD: DEAD CITY with music by Ian Hultquist

The series follows Maggie (Lauren Cohan) and Negan (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) traveling into a post-apocalyptic Manhattan cut off from the mainland in search of Maggie’s kidnapped son, Hershel. The crumbling city is filled with the dead and denizens who have made New York City their own world full of anarchy, danger, beauty, and terror.

Ian Hultquist (ROSALINE, I KNOW WHAT YOU DID LAST SUMMER, NIGHT TEETH, GOOD GIRLS, MILLENIAL MAFIA) has composed the score, supporting vulnerable moments in the show, using strings, drums, synths, Therevox, distorted Baritone guitar, and Guitarviol. Similar to the original series, the music is dark and industrial, using sampled organic and environmental sounds. Sampled in abandoned warehouses and various other deteriorated areas, these sounds include banging on pipes, vibrating grain silos, playing instruments such as brass and guitar sounds and repitching, looping, and reverberating them in the studio. “[I had] a few friends design samples & sounds specifically for the show. They helped create a lot of the booms & percussion, and the drones in [episode 5]. My assistant Ben Van is an avid field recordist and spent his holiday break in Maine recording sounds in abandoned warehouses. They literally look like Dead City sets,” says Ian.

The 20-track soundtrack album is available today, June 23, on digital platforms here. The series is available now on AMC and AMC+.

Watch the series trailer: