Interview with Pitch Hammer Music
We interviewed Veigar Margeirsson and Brian Brasher the founders of Pitch Hammer Music – a new trailer music library.
TMN: Pitch Hammer is a new company, co-founded by Veigar Margeirsson and Brian Brasher. Can you tell us more about yourselves? How did you meet, and what motivated you to start your own company?
Brian Brasher: I ran the Theatrical Marketing / Trailer Music department for APM Music (25+ libraries) for 8 years and worked with the Studio team. In March this year I resigned from APM and partnered with Trailer Composer / Producer Veigar Margeirsson to launch our boutique Trailer and production music library, Pitch Hammer.
Veigar Margeirsson: I’ve been scoring trailers for many years, and since Brian and I are both in the trailer world our paths had crossed several times. We became fast friends, teamed up and did a few projects together in recent years, and always enjoyed collaborating. This spring the timing was ideal for us to join forces and create our music company the way we wanted to. We hit the ground running this spring, and have already had placements in major campaigns such as The Dark Knight Rises, Iron Man 3, End Of Watch, and Resident Evil 5 just to name a few recent ones.
TMN: There are a lot of production music companies out there. What distinguishes Pitchhammer and sets it apart?
Brian & Veigar: We’ve both been in the trailer music business for a while, and over the years have established strong relationships with the trailer houses, studios, music supervisors and editors. We are home to a cutting edge roster of the most talented and diverse composers and artists in the business. We create and produce music with a unique and unmistakable sound that stands alone.
TMN: Introducing a new company to the market is critical. Can you tell us about your debut album?
Brian & Veigar: We have unique distribution system that is not necessarily album based. We provide our clients what they need on an ongoing basis, as opposed to the previous system of waiting to provice a full release (CD) when it was completed. We also provide custom music services when needed.
TMN: How important was it to create and choose a remarkable name, logo, stories, colors etc. in building this new brand?
Brian & Veigar: We like things simple and clean. Music speaks louder than colors, right? Our clients use the music in iTunes or similar programs, and the feedback we get is that they don’t necessarily pay as much attention to the artwork as they used to. We want our brand and logo to be appealing, yet functional and simple. In the end, we want the music to be the focus.
TMN: A good team complements each other’s strengths. What dynamic will each of you bring to the collaboration, and are there other composers bringing their talents to Pitch Hammer?
Brian & Veigar: As mentioned above, Brian has an extensive business and licensing background, along with his creative side. Veigar has extensive schooling and training in music composition and production, and has been providing his services to the theatrical marketing industry for years. Together we compliment each others weak areas, while really creating a „dynamic duo”, both creatively, and in business.Both of us compose, but we also have a roster of very talented writers. As a result we have a broad spectrum of styles and talent to offer our clients, while still staying boutique and focused. Due to our client relationships, the benefit to our writers is that their music is in supervisors hands almost immediately upon completion of production.
TMN: What are some of the challenges you face in creating this new library, and how will you surpass them?
Brian & Veigar: At the end of the day, this is a people business. We’ve spent and continue to spend a lot of time developing and nurturing client relationships. Our job is to make their life easier by providing them with what the need on a moment’s notice.
TMN: Even though music is a creative industry, trailer music is often driven by trends that people respond to. That said, being innovative and changing those trends is a must as well. How do you balance the two in the production music business?
Brian & Veigar: A good song is a good song, no matter what style it is in. We do follow certain trends and deliver music that’s in high demand style-wise, but we also create certain tracks without thinking of the style. If we feel a track is good, we believe it will find its place in the right project.
TMN: What are your long term plans? Do you already have some future releases in the pipeline?
Brian & Veigar: We are releasing new tracks every month, so always loads of good stuff in the pipeline. Our plan is to continue to grow slowly and stay laser focused on the theatrical and trailer market for the time being. We have many exciting ideas and plans brewing, but it is a little early to tell right now and we are excited about the future.
TMN: Thanks for your answers.
