Craig Wedren

Craig Wedren initiated his musical path in the 1990s by fronting the Washington, D.C. avant-punk group Shudder to Think, then moved into a thriving parallel career as a solo performer and a highly active composer for film. Though grounded in hardcore punk and emo, he steered Shudder to Think toward progressively ambitious arrangements, an approach that carried over into his independent recordings of the 2000s and 2010s, which incorporated experimental rock, folk, and sweeping orchestral textures on releases such as 2011’s Wand and 2017’s Adult Desire. At the same time, opportunities in cinema and television expanded, leading him to contribute scores and songs to titles including School of Rock, Wet Hot American Summer, and By the People: The Election of Barack Obama. His television work displayed comparable range, covering series such as Children’s Hospital, GLOW, and New Amsterdam. In 2020 he resumed solo activity with Sabbath Sessions, Vol. 1, a collection assembled solely from improvised vocal loops.

Having relocated from Ohio to the nation’s capital as a teenager, Wedren auditioned for the local hardcore act Stooge. After joining bassist Stuart Hill, guitarist Chris Matthews, and drummer Mike Russell, the ensemble adopted the name Shudder to Think and issued its first recording, 1989’s Curse, Spells, Voodoo, Mooses. Wedren’s expressive lead vocals combined with the band’s forceful style secured a contract with the respected D.C. independent Dischord, which released successive albums including 1991’s Funeral at the Movies and 1992’s Get Your Goat. With each subsequent release the group moved steadily beyond its hardcore and emo origins into more progressive territory. Following personnel changes, Shudder to Think signed with major label Epic and delivered 1994’s Pony Express Record, while Wedren also took on production duties for others, notably two albums by Cake Like, Delicious and Bruiser Queen. Once the supporting tour concluded, however, he received a Hodgkin’s disease diagnosis that paused the band’s activities during treatment. Once the illness entered remission, he rejoined the group, and although they issued the well-regarded follow-up 1997’s 50,000 B.C., the album failed to register commercially. Thereafter Wedren and his bandmates concentrated on soundtrack projects, creating complete scores for High Art and the all-star First Love, Last Rites while also supplying tracks to Velvet Goldmine, all appearing in 1998.

After the band dissolved later that year, Wedren spent several years establishing his next direction, appearing on the Verve Pipe’s self-titled 1999 album and contributing an original solo song to the Down to You soundtrack. Having composed music for the cult indie comedy Wet Hot American Summer, he was subsequently commissioned to score the entire hit Jack Black comedy School of Rock and to write the song “Heal Me, I’m Heartsick” for its soundtrack. In the years that followed, his standing in Hollywood grew as he scored films such as Laurel Canyon, Roger Dodger, and Reno 911!: Miami while simultaneously launching a solo career with 2005’s Lapland. As a songwriter Wedren gravitated toward the alt-pop singer-songwriter sphere, yet his experimental inclinations remained evident on 2011’s Wand. He continued scoring projects including the documentary By the People: The Election of Barack Obama, the comedy Wanderlust, and television programs such as Dawson’s Creek and Bones. His next solo album, 2017’s Adult Desire, merged reflective folk with expansive orchestral arrangements. Sabbath Sessions, Vol. 1, issued in 2020, ventured further still by relying exclusively on looped improvised vocals.