LOS ANGELES (June 28, 2010) – In composer Christopher Lennertz's house, "the claws are the law" between his cat, Loca and Dalmatian Miles Davis. That often contentious relationship between his furry charges inspired his scores to the upcoming Warner Bros. double bill of CATS & DOGS: THE REVENGE OF KITTY GALORE and COYOTE FALLS, a brand new Looney Tunes 3-D short. A soundtrack featuring "Concerto for Claws and Orchestra" by Lennertz will be released on July 27 through WaterTower Music on CD and digital download at Amazon.com.
"Loca rules the house," said Lennertz. "Miles just wants to play with her and she doesn't want to be bothered." Despite Loca's penchant for claws first and questions never, she has yet to make an attempt at world domination. In the movie, Kitty Galore is a former agent for a cat spy organization who has gone rogue. She hatched a plan to not only bring her canine enemies to heel, but also take down her former kitty comrades and make the world her scratching post. Lennertz – who created the score for the two James Bond video games – felt the music should be in the James Bond vein.
"For KITTY GALORE I mixed up a taste of early John Barry ("James Bond Theme") with a touch of Lalo Schifrin ("Mission: Impossible" theme) and a touch of Henry Mancini ("Peter Gunn Theme")," explains Lennertz. "Taking the best elements of the genre and create a comedic, adventurous score serves the film well. In fact, the cats have their own theme with a lounge groove and five alto flutes that is a pretty awesome tip of the hat to Mancini."
Warner Bros. signed Lennertz on to score a series of three 3-D Looney Tunes shorts to reintroduce the brand to a new generation of audiences. The first short, COYOTE FALLS stars Wile E. Coyote and Road Runner – another famed rivalry – will play ahead of the movie CATS & DOGS: THE REVENGE OF KITTY GALORE.
"My pets influence me a lot," said Lennertz. "I find a lot of humor in my pets' facial expressions and habits that I think pet owners will recognize. So it was easy for me to underscore the emotion in the films and create a sense of urgency when they were in trouble."
Christopher Lennertz composes for film, TV and videogames. Credits include SUPERNATURAL, MARMADUKE, ALVIN AND THE CHIPMUNKS, and TORTILLA HEAVEN.