Bear McCreary, a composer nominated for an Emmy Award, has approached symphonic rock in an unusual way. While many progressive rock bands use orchestral sounds, and other bands sometimes record their songs with orchestras, McCreary started by writing music for TV and movies. He then realized he loved metal music and combined those two passions in his “Singularity” project, creating a fresh take on a classic musical style.
McCreary’s second album, “The Singularity: Ekleipsis,” releases this Friday and boasts an impressive lineup of guest artists including guitar legend Steve Vai, Claudio Sanchez from Coheed and Cambria, Patrick Stump of Fall Out Boy, and McCreary’s brother Brendan who provides vocals on half the songs. The album is a diverse and powerful work, embodying a bold and confident artistic statement.
He chuckled during his two-hour interview with The Times, saying he loved a particular quote and wanted to use it on posters. He described his album ‘The Singularity’ as an outburst of creativity after spending twenty years writing music for others – like a ‘temper tantrum’ releasing all those pent-up ideas. Compared to ‘The Singularity,’ his later album ‘Ekleipsis’, released two years afterward, feels more centered and reflects personal experiences.
The album “Singularity” was a double release with several guest artists, including Serj Tankian and Corey Taylor. It accompanied a graphic novel telling the story of a man who faces constant loss and death in each life he lives across multiple universes, ultimately leading to a big reveal. While McCreary’s album “Ekleipsis” exists within that same world, it doesn’t follow a specific storyline.
I have to say, listening to this new work, it doesn’t feel like McCreary intended to create another concept album, but it’s undeniably there. What really strikes me is how present and relevant the lyrics are. It feels like half of them are directly addressing the challenges we’re all facing right now, and a kind of hopeful struggle to get through them.
Jeff McCreary’s music keeps surprising listeners, and “Ekleipsis” is no exception. He teamed up with Joe Duplantier, the singer from the band Gojira, and the Bulgarian Voices choir for “Black Box,” resulting in a powerfully unsettling yet beautiful piece. McCreary also collaborated with legendary drummer Stewart Copeland on “Pray for a Storm,” building the track through spontaneous improvisation and Copeland’s energetic playing.
McCreary remembers saying to the percussionist, ‘Let’s start completely fresh in your studio – no pre-planned ideas from anyone. We’ll just plug in our instruments, record as we play, and I’ll build a song using the best parts of what we create together.’
McCreary approaches every new project as a chance to learn. He adapts to his collaborators’ preferred working styles. He was particularly impressed while co-writing the powerful song “Cool Kids” with Duff McKagan, bassist for Guns N’ Roses, and Chad Smith, drummer for the Red Hot Chili Peppers.
× The composer praised them as incredibly talented songwriters, saying they don’t get the recognition they deserve. They’ve written for artists like Ozzy Osbourne, and their process involves relentlessly refining riffs until they’re perfect. The composer described how they started with a riff written by Duff, developed it into a song, and then brought Slash in to play on it. Working with them felt like being in a real band.
Bear McCreary is a celebrated composer known for his work on popular series like “Battlestar Galactica,” “The Walking Dead,” and “The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power.” He’s also composed music for films including “Godzilla: King of the Monsters” and the “God of War” video games. His interest in metal music began about twenty years ago after a dinner with Anthrax guitarist Scott Ian, who was a fan of McCreary’s work on “Battlestar Galactica.”
I’ll never forget when Ian just straight up said to Bear, “I know you. You’re a Sepultura fan.” It was such a random connection for a composer, but it totally worked! Bear checked out Sepultura’s music – that Brazilian death metal with folk influences – and he was instantly hooked. That was the start of his whole journey into metal, as far as I understand it.
McCreary has been eager to get involved in that field, and he’s found a key partner to help him do it.
I rely heavily on my brother when I’m working on rock music,” McCreary explains. “He knows so much about the genre that he compensates for where my knowledge is lacking. We approach things from different angles, and he’s a brilliant producer because he can quickly identify what doesn’t work in a song – he knows when a part isn’t contributing. Having his perspective is incredibly helpful. Plus, he’s a talented lyricist and has an amazing singing voice.”
According to McCreary, Brendan frequently leads the songwriting process, though they occasionally collaborate with other writers. For example, Claudio Sanchez penned all the lyrics for the song ‘Sweet Misery,’ and the approach varies depending on the project.
Younger McCreary was the main songwriter for “One Fine Day.” He explains the album is about growing up as part of the Armenian diaspora and what that identity means to him. He adds that all the songs are deeply personal, making this album different from his previous work. While some past songs were personal, this record is even more so, though he admits he also included a quirky song about a robot who falls in love.
Before becoming known for playing with famous rock musicians, composer Bear McCreary received invaluable guidance from the legendary Elmer Bernstein for almost ten years. While studying at USC’s Thornton School of Music, McCreary helped organize Bernstein’s musical collection, observed recording sessions, and even attended his advanced classes for three years. McCreary credits Bernstein with shaping his career path, not through technical skills, but by showing him a fulfilling life he could aspire to during his formative teenage years – a time when he was deciding on his future.
McCreary’s career has taken him to many creative opportunities, and his latest project is the musical “Particle Fever,” co-written with Zoe Sarnak (known for “Galileo”). The show features a book by Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award winner David Henry Hwang (“M. Butterfly”) and direction by Tony nominee Leigh Silverman (“Suffs”). Inspired by the documentary of the same name, it tells the story of the discovery of the Higgs boson—often called the “God particle”—at CERN’s Large Hadron Collider. “Particle Fever” is scheduled to premiere at the La Jolla Playhouse in February 2027.
McCreary describes the musical as an exciting and sincere rock show centered around a significant breakthrough. He hopes it captures the energy and enjoyment audiences experienced with ‘Hamilton,’ despite tackling a topic—like history taught in middle school—that might not seem naturally thrilling.
At 47, the composer is known for his positive and energetic personality. He enjoys tackling difficult projects and believes having a friendly and engaging manner helps him showcase his skills.
He admits he’s naturally a very upbeat and team-oriented person. However, he realized in his twenties that his enthusiasm could be overwhelming and even bother others. He learned to tone down his excitement after that.
He still has an incredible amount of creative drive. He’s even started composing music for short films made by people he connected with on Twitter – happily offering his services. For two decades, he’s been sharing his musical journey through a blog, building a dedicated following. He jokes that if a famous composer like Jerry Goldsmith had done the same thing back in the 80s, it would have completely changed things for him.
Let me tell you about Bear McCreary – this guy is a seriously versatile musician! He started on keyboards in high school, but college is where things got interesting – he discovered the accordion, which really allowed him to move around on stage and became a signature sound in “Outlander.” But it doesn’t stop there. He’s a total pro on the hurdy-gurdy – picked it up around 2010 and you can hear it in “Black Sails” and even “God of War: Ragnarok” – and he headbangs while playing it! Most recently, he taught himself guitar just to handle the rhythm parts in his 2025 concerts. Seriously, this guy’s musical range is incredible.
You can hear these guitar riffs live at the Wacken Open Air festival this Friday, and then on McCreary’s West Coast tour in September, including a show in Los Angeles on September 17th. While McCreary is known for performing his orchestral music with orchestras in both Europe and America, he’s now also excited to play with a rock band and really turn up the volume.
The key to McCreary’s impressive achievements lies in the simple principles Bernstein instilled in him.
Composer Bear McCreary explains that the main theme from ‘God of War’ is surprisingly simple – it can be played with just one finger on a piano. He believes that ultimately, what makes music good isn’t complex production or a powerful performance, but a memorable melody. A truly good song will connect with listeners, no matter how it’s presented.
2026-07-28 13:32