Song Exploder

Siddhartha Khosla - Only Murders in the Building (Main Title Theme)

Aug 16, 2023

The podcast explores the creation of the theme music for 'Only Murders in the Building'. Topics include capturing the show's tone, using vocals and unique instruments, creating a demo for New York City sound, collaborating with editors, and the creative process behind the main title theme.

15:42

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Quick takeaways

The theme music for the TV show 'Only Murders in the Building' incorporates elements from the composer's Indian background, including melodies inspired by old Hindi music.

The theme music centers around the theme of emotional connection, enhancing the storytelling by using melodies that coincide with important plot points and clues.

Deep dives

The Theme Music and Creative Process

The podcast explores the theme music of the TV show 'Only Murders in the Building' and the creative process behind it. The composer, Siddhartha Kosla, started by playing his own instrumental classical record to the show's creator, John Hoffman, who immediately identified it as the perfect fit for the show's tone. Kosla incorporated elements from his Indian background, including melodies inspired by old Hindi music. He also experimented with instruments like the flute and used a digital melotron for Beatles-esque sounds. The theme music was later enhanced with drums made from paint buckets and pots and pans to capture the essence of New York City.

Introduction

2min

Creating the Main Theme for 'Only Murders in the Building'

4min

Creating a Demo for New York City Sound

4min

Creating the Main Title Theme and Collaborating with Editors

3min

The Making of the Main Title Theme for Only Murders in the Building

5min

The "Skip Intro" button first got introduced to us through Netflix in 2017, and, I know, a lot of people use it – including me. But, if I can get into old-man, back-in-my-day mode for a second, I have so much fondness for the opening theme music for so many shows. It’s a chance to set the mood for everything that you’re about to see. One of the intros that I never skip is the animated opening title sequence for Only Murders in the Building, which is a Hulu show that debuted in August 2021, and now is in its third season. It was created by Steve Martin and John Hoffman, and it stars Steve Martin, Martin Short, and Selena Gomez. The three of them play neighbors who live in the same building in New York, and they’re all obsessed with the same true crime podcast. And then when someone in their building gets murdered, they decide to start their own true crime podcast, and try and solve the mystery of who the killer is.

For this episode, I talked to the show’s composer, Siddhartha Khosla, about the show’s theme music. Coming up, you’ll hear a voice memo that Siddhartha recorded before he’d even heard about the show, which then led to a demo that you’ll hear, and eventually, the final theme.

For more, visit songexploder.net/only-murders-in-the-building.

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Song Exploder

Siddhartha Khosla - Only Murders in the Building (Main Title Theme)

Podcast summary created with Snipd AI

Quick takeaways

Deep dives

The Theme Music and Creative Process

The Emotional Connection and Storytelling

Collaboration and Evolution of the Theme

Remember Everything You Learn from Podcasts