Ever since I began writing music to accompany the Dooven Books, there was always a certain aesthetic I was aiming for: a hint of luxury—1960s James Bond-esque orchestral strings and brass. My upbringing with electronic music meant that, although I was always striving for this aesthetic, as described in the sleeve notes accompanying the previous albums, I was never able to effectively generate orchestral scores that represented the books properly. The closest I came was the track "Catacombs Anthem." However, with the advent of new tools to complement my polyauthoric approach to the books, I can finally produce music that is wonderfully representative of the Velvet Paw of Asquith novels' atmosphere and vibe.
Oscar is a poet who is forced to be a mercenary. Much like the 1960s British international jet-setting spy films, composers such as John Barry, Konrad Elfers and Alan Hawkshaw hint at exotic locations and embroilments similar to what Oscar endures in the Dooven Books. Thus, this new Asquith Sound Aesthetic in the upcoming albums accompanying the series' Morigan Tetralogy release is more akin to this aesthetic than the previous Dooven Muzak albums. This move away from electronica to more organic musical score is a closer fit to what I was aspiring to in the absence of both orchestration skills and the opportunity to record and produce such music.
My focus is always on writing the books. Naturally, this takes the most amount of time. Therefore, in addition to ongoing artist collaboration at the heart of polyauthorism, a means of generating material to complement the story world that doesn't impinge on writing time is welcome. So it is that the upcoming releases of Dooven Muzak's Asquith Sound Aesthetic, which also involves Fable Pop, are a far better complement to the poetic nature of Oscar and the story world he cartwheels through than the previous albums that had a greater influence of electronica and pop.
The timing of these albums is auspicious, as the upcoming Morigan Tetralogy is the penultimate New Fable adventure and one that I will not be able to surpass. Releasing the albums and tetralogy together will be ideal. And although subsequent Dooven Books will be more traditional single-novel adventures, having music that represents their intended aesthetic is not only wonderful but will help me write them. I hope readers who listen to the upcoming Asquith Sound Aesthetic albums of Dooven Muzak and Fable Pop gain a greater understanding of what the books are about, who Oscar Teabag-Dooven is, and what I've wanted to convey through them.
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