The new podcast series A Murder Without End features original music by Fredericton-based musician Dillon Anthony.
Matt Carter
Born and raised in Saint John, New Brunswick, Tristan Stewart-Robertson now makes his home in Glasgow, Scotland, where over the past five years he has been developing a podcast series investigating a decades-long story. A Murder Without End, released earlier this year, explores how a shooting in Jacksonville, Florida led to a tragedy in Scotland and one of the longest extradition battles in British legal history.
“This is a true crime podcast, but crime isn’t an act that’s isolated from the humans affected,” said Stewart-Robertson. “I wrote the script initially imagining it would be a feature, then a book, then adapted it to audio. But ultimately the goal was the same: to give a voice to those left behind after a murder, to hear their fight for justice, their loss.”
To create a moving atmosphere for his story to exist within, Stewart-Robertson went on the hunt for a musician to compose original music for the production. His search led him to Fredericton-based musician Dillon Anthony.
“As soon as I heard Dillon’s theme (Miles Away), I knew it was perfect and exactly the tone of melancholy that the series demanded,” said Stewart-Robertson.
Over the past several years, Anthony, who is also a member of the rock group Kill Chicago, has developed a unique set of creative skills that have led to his involvement in countless recording, performing, photo, and video projects created in collaboration with artists from his home province of New Brunswick as well as others around the world.
“I was put in touch with Tristan through a mutual friend, and asked if I wanted to create a melancholic film score for a true crime podcast. Of course, I jumped at the idea,” said Anthony.
“Musically, it was as challenging as it was rewarding. I wanted to create an overall atmosphere with overlapping themes, all of which are connected. Most are variations on the main theme but with different instrumentation.”
Involving a wide range of instruments including acoustic, nylon, and electric guitar, bass, banjo, dobro, pedal steel, accordion, and others, Anthony chose to approach this project in a way that would reflect the guiding narrative of each episode.
“Writing music for a podcast has the challenge of being the supporting role, creating a warm bed for the voice to float above,” said Anthony. “I wanted to stay cognisant of joining the journey Tristan was leading, without ever distracting the audience.
“A lot of the pieces have a bit of a slow-burn, where the dynamic variations may take multiple minutes to reach their peak. A bit of musical storytelling on my part,” he said.
In addition to Anthony, the logo for A Murder Without End was designed by Halifax-based artist Jason Skinner whose work can be found on the side of the MEC store on Granville Street in Halifax and at the Alderney Gate Library in Dartmouth.
Three East Coast voices contributing to an intriguing true crime story.
A Murder Without End is available now on all major podcast platforms.
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