Last Wednesday’s groundbreaking episode of Mr. Robot, “eps3.4_runtime-error.r00,” is the perfect example of multiple collaborators coming together to execute creator Sam Esmail’s overall creative vision. And specifically for episode 305, a type of long-form production referred to in the film and TV industry as a “oner” for the way it looks like one continuous shot throughout, Mac Quayle’s score does its fair share of layering on the tension and advancing the themes of the season.

“It was certainly a challenging episode,” Quayle told USA Network, “and the music was no exception because, being one take, the music isn’t non-stop, but it almost is. There are not too many breaks in the music.”

The Emmy winner, who brings his Mr. Robot score to a live performance at Los Angeles’s legendary Roxy Theatre on the Sunset Strip this December, explained how he took on the fifth episode before any others this season.

“We did use some existing music that we've had from other episodes and also wrote new music," the composer said. "It's kind of a mishmash of stuff. There are also some great pieces -- a couple of Philip Glass pieces in there -- which are really special. It was challenging to put it all together and I'm sure Sam knew that, so this was the first thing we worked on musically before all the others. I hadn't seen anything else, so here I just jump right into season three with this crazy one-take episode. I was like ‘Wow, this season is gonna be a ride.’”

Indeed, Mr. Robot continues to outdo itself and Wednesday’s standout episode garnered critical acclaim for its technical and creative achievements.

In season three, Quayle builds upon the musical themes already established in the first two seasons of Mr. Robot, while adding new motifs and sounds to the score. The composer, whose pre-television career was based in electronic music, is also integrating more organic elements this year.

“The foundation is still in electronic sounds,” Quayle explained, “but there's much more use of orchestral strings, there's use of some real percussion instruments, and there's more piano being used.”

There’s also now a live component to Quayle’s Mr. Robot music. He first performed pieces from the soundtrack at an Emmy FYC event in Los Angeles earlier this year, which informally served as a beta test for performing to a wider audience. Quayle then brought the same group of musicians to Málaga, Spain, where they shared the music of Mr. Robot at the MOSMA SoundtrackFest. Now, the upcoming show at the iconic Roxy Theatre is the next stop in the evolution of performing the score.

“My wish is that the music can have its own life and can be appreciated separated from the show,” said Quayle, whose first two seasons are available as a soundtrack on CD, vinyl, digital download, and streaming. “I have tried to rearrange and change the music in such a way that it can hopefully be entertaining for an audience without having the show playing at the same time.”

Tickets are on sale now for to hear Mac Quayle perform his Emmy-winning score live at The Roxy in Los Angeles on Tuesday, Dec. 5!

INFO:

M@cQuayle_TheMus1c0fMrRob0t.mp3

The Roxy Theatre

9009 West Sunset Blvd.

West Hollywood, CA

Doors: 7:00 PM Show: 8:00 PM

All Ages $25





