We’re an Anglo-American musical group called SQUARE HALO and we’re keen to get songs from our Lyme disease awareness album ‘The Lyme Years’ featured in independent films. We have original, evocative, catchy, high-quality songs for sync licensing and we’re happy to waive the licence fee too!
Exclusively for Raindance, here are our favourite all-time movie soundtracks…
Singer-songwriter Demetrios Loukas of SQUARE HALO: His top 2 movie soundtracks:
The Bodyguard
Back in December 1992, I vividly remember going to watch the late Whitney Houston in her cinematic acting debut ‘The Bodyguard‘ at Ealing Cinema in West London. She did not disappoint. The lead song from the film’s soundtrack ‘I Will Always Love You‘ had already been released and her vocal performance was nothing short of supernatural! Actress Jenifer Lewis who co-starred alongside Whitney Houston in the ‘The Preacher’s Wife‘ in 1996 described Whitney’s voice as “the eighth wonder of the world”, and I absolutely agree with her. The soundtrack features a total of 6 songs by Whitney and I love them all but ‘I Will Always Love You‘, ‘I Have Nothing‘ and ‘Run to You‘ are legendary!
Yentl
I discovered the film ‘Yentl’ over a decade after its release in 1983. It stars the multi-talented Barbra Streisand whose character’s innermost observations, questions and perception of life, love and religion are poignantly expressed through song. Barbra Streisand’s acting and singing are not to be underestimated; at the very end of the film, she powerfully belts ‘Papa, watch me fly…’ and sustains the belt for 20 seconds!!! I love the entire soundtrack but my personal favourites are ‘Where is it Written?‘, ‘Papa, Can You Hear Me?‘, ‘The Way He Makes Me Feel‘, ‘No Matter What Happens‘ and ‘A Piece of Sky‘.
Composer, arranger and producer Treyvonce Ambers-Moore of SQUARE HALO: His top 2 movie soundtracks:
Black Panther
As the screen faded to black inside a packed movie theatre for the film Black Panther, it quickly jumped to a vibrant and fun full ending of credits that went perfectly with soundtrack “All The Stars“. As a Kendrick Lamar and SZA fan, I knew as soon as I heard the combination of drums and flowing vocals that this song was going to the top of my playlist in an instant. I remember going to Apple Music and already seeing it being number one in the new releases category. This song truly made the year 2018 an all-around rememberable experience because It was being played everywhere; from festivals, cornerstores to social media platforms. Even now, “All The Stars” inspires me to add unique rhythm to my production.
Interstellar
Coming back from my college class in the year of 2014, I remember walking into the room amazed at what was being played through the television speakers. The emotional yet intensely played piano keys instantly struck my interest and captured my attention. It’s no surprise to me that the famous composer Hans Zimmer is the one responsible for the musical creation. Interstellar has surely become one of my favorite movie soundtracks to this day. Fast forward to the current year 2023, you now hear various snippets of this soundtrack being used in multiple trends on TikTok videos. Whether people use it for comedic videos or for their serious projects, it only goes to show you the power an amazing soundtrack can boost the remembrance of a movie.
Composer and co-writer Omar Shelesh of SQUARE HALO: His top 2 movie soundtracks:
Love Actually
It was whilst watching Richard Curtis’ romantic comedy in the cinema, way back in 2003, that I distinctly remember thinking it’s Craig Armstrong’s soundtrack that’ll make this movie a modern classic. Fast-forward some 20 years later, and Love Actually is still an enduring perennial favourite on many people’s Christmas watch list. Amongst the soundtrack’s standout features is Armstrong’s original orchestral score which, with its sweetly emotive and thematic cues, carries the audience along with each of the characters’ respective narrative journeys, and is at times used in spectacular fashion to thrust home the film’s most romantic and powerfully emotional moments. The soundtrack also features a seductive selection of popular songs, some of which are tastefully arranged to blend with Armstrong’s score.
Aliens
James Horner‘s original score for the classic sci-fi horror movie, Aliens (1986) is considered to be one of the best film soundtracks of the 1980s and continues to be widely acclaimed by critics and fans alike for its groundbreaking use of unconventional musical elements, fusing action and horror into a single, exhilarating new genre. Having recently re-listened to the soundtrack in isolation, it remains a haunting and intense musical experience that effortlessly communicates the scenes of dread and desperation experienced by Ripley and her fellow protagonists as they try to evacuate the alien planet. The most notable cues from the album include “Main Title”, “Ripley’s Rescue”, and “Bishop’s Countdown”.
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‘SQUARE HALO’ are a trio of creatives from across the globe: we have London-based singer-songwriter and Lyme disease lobbyist Demetrios Loukas, Minnesota-based music producer Treyvonce Ambers-Moore and Demetrios’s long-time co-writer Tokyo-based composer Omar Shelesh.
Their story begins with Demetrios, a former primary school teacher who contracted Lyme disease back in 2005 whilst on a school trip to a farm in Oxfordshire. The infection went undiagnosed and untreated for 8 years and during this time his health deteriorated with the infection spreading and his life hanging in the balance. He was however clinically diagnosed in 2013 and since then, his health has improved.
In 2015, Demetrios reached out to Treyvonce online and they started collaborating remotely. Their debut album ‘The Lyme Years’ took the group over 5 years to complete.
Whilst still suffering from the disease, Demetrios managed to turn this experience on its head and was inspired to fight back and thus two projects were born, the first being ‘The FIGHT LYME NOW Campaign’ and the second ‘SQUARE HALO’. We have a mismatch of science and music combining forces with two main objectives – to spread positivity and awareness of Lyme disease through musical collaborations and also lobbying for the recognition of chronic Lyme disease (which is currently dismissed by the international medical establishment) and the need for effective treatment for both acute and chronic Lyme disease including Lyme disease co-infections (which are currently not considered, much less treated).
Contact Demetrios by email here.
