The tagline for ABC’s
FlashForward is “What did you see?” – a reference to the future visions glimpsed during the opening episode’s two minute and 17 second global blackout. Lately, though, fans of the show are asking, “What did you hear?”
Each week, the sci-fi drama draws on A-list bands to add punch to whatever’s on screen. In one episode, a bus plunges into a lake to the eerie simplicity of Bjork’s “It’s Oh So Quiet.” In another, Rufus Wainwright sings the Beatles’ “Across the Universe” as Olivia and Mark mope after an argument. A couple weeks ago, Mick Jagger belted out “Like a Rolling Stone” as Janis was ambushed and shot in a parking lot.
“We’ve really spared no expense in spotlighting music that adds emotional oomph to the show,” says executive producer Jessika Goyer. “In many cases, we’ll design a scene around a really great song.”
Coming soon: Pearl Jam supplies the beat for part of the November 12 episode. “Unthought Known,” off the band’s new album, “Backspacer,” has not yet been released as a single but will play nearly 40 seconds – “a very long time in television time,” Goyer says – in that episode’s opening montage.
“Pearl Jam very rarely allows its music to be used for purposes like this,” Goyer says, “but they really appreciated the way we feature music in long stretches and highlight it rather than use it as background noise.”
Other music featured this season includes Sea Wolf’s “Scary Monsters (And Sugar Creeps),” Jeff Buckley’s “Lover You Should’ve,” Smashing Pumpkins’s “To Sheila” and Nick Drake’s “Place to Be.”