Issue 70 - Sound

Welcome to Issue 70 of Deep Life Reflections, where I share five things I’ve been enjoying and thinking about over the past week.

In this week’s issue, we examine the impactful role of sound in our lives. We start with the hugely entertaining 1995 thriller Relic, co-written by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child. Next, we explore the dark and disturbing Oscar-winning film The Zone of Interest. Finally, we contemplate how sound shapes our experiences and ways we can be more intentional and appreciative of the sounds around us.

Join me as we explore this week’s Friday Five.

1. What I’m Reading

Relic. By Preston & Child.

“What might happen if a creature from Jurassic Park came to New York City.” – Chicago Tribune

Museums have never struck me as particularly scary places. Maybe that’s because they’re usually brimming with people, offering a sense of safety in numbers. But imagine visiting one of those grand, old museums like the London or New York Natural History Museum and finding yourself alone. No other soul. Just you. The only sound is the echo of your footsteps on the polished and pristine floor. Suddenly, wandering through the vast, dimly lit exhibition halls, staring at ancient and eerie artifacts, the experience becomes something else entirely.

This sense of fear through isolation and sound is brilliantly brought to life by co-authors Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child in their 1995 horror-thriller, Relic. Set in the New York Natural History Museum, the novel transforms this familiar and safe institution into a cavern of tension and terror. And we’re along for the ride.

The basic premise of Relic revolves around the New York Natural History Museum, which is preparing for a highly anticipated exhibition called ‘Superstition’ when a series of brutal murders disrupts their plans. Visitors and staff are found savagely killed, throwing the museum into chaos. A colourful cast of characters, including an FBI agent, a museum curator, and a journalist, start to piece things together. They discover a link between the murders and a mysterious artifact shipped from the Amazon jungle several years earlier. The artifact is connected to a monstrous and deadly creature lurking within the museum’s shadowy corridors and long-forgotten subterranean basements.      

Now, this may or may not be your thing. But as a thriller, it is the very definition of a ‘page-turner.’ I went through 450-pages in no time. The skill of the writers to flip the essence of the New York Natural History Museum into a sort of fog-ridden, 1880s-like setting reminiscent of Jack the Ripper’s East End of London is rather genius. Their use of sensory details, especially sound, heightens the sense of isolation and fear. Given we are in the midst of summer holidays, Relic might be the perfect read for the beach or pool. Safety in numbers.    

I actually visited the New York Museum of Natural History in 2017. Suffice to say, it was a very different experience. Just me and fifteen thousand others—that’s a lot of footsteps and a lot of sound. But if I’d been alone? Well, I’m glad I hadn’t read this book by then.

2. What I’m Watching

The Zone of Interest. Directed by Jonathan Glazer.

The Zone of Interest, winner of Best International Feature at this year’s Academy Awards, captures a different kind of terror and horror—one that is self-inflicted and all too real. The film tells the true story of Rudolf Höss, the highly efficient commandant of Auschwitz. Höss, his wife Hedwig, and their children live in a large and comfortable house with a big green garden just outside the camp. They go about their daily lives in a state of normalcy as countless atrocities are committed just beyond the barbed wire fence. Incidentally, the title of the film is an expression used by the Third Reich to refer to the 40 square kilometre area around Auschwitz.

Director Jonathan Glazer has made a film that is hard to shake once you’ve seen it. It’s chilling and dark, deeply uncomfortable—the kind of film you likely watch only once. It opens with a two-minute shot of a black screen, accompanied by a sound that increasingly gets louder. Film critic Brian Tallerico suggests that this unusual opening aims to “take viewers from the ordinary world into this film. Put down your phone. Pay attention. Listen. What you will hear in this film will be as important as what you see.”

Sound is central to the film, yet there’s very little music. Instead, Glazer tasked his sound designer Johnnie Burn with creating a soundscape that would depict the off-screen horror. Glazer didn’t want the atrocities to be seen, only heard (and we never see graphic depictions of violence). Burn subsequently built a comprehensive sound library including the noises of a furnace, boots, trains, dogs, manufacturing machinery, period-accurate gunfire and the human sounds of pain. This is what we hear—a constant throbbing of menacing sounds, from trains arriving to gas chambers operating. They are ever-present. The sound becomes the film.

The film’s originality and unease lie in how Glazer juxtaposes the seemingly ordinary and banal experiences of the Höss family with the unimaginable suffering taking place just beyond their backyard. Discussions about garden improvements and holiday plans unfold against the backdrop of one of the most horrifying chapters in world history. They are not oblivious to what’s happening, it has simply become mundane to them. This emotional detachment illustrates the nature of complicity. As Owen Gleiberman from Variety says: “[The] movie holds human darkness up to the light and examines it as if under a microscope.”

Rudolf Höss was executed for his crimes by hanging on April 16, 1947. He was hanged on a gallows constructed outside the entrance to Auschwitz, the place where he oversaw so much horror—a place that is now silent.

3. What I’m Contemplating

Sound is a constant presence in modern life, shaping our environment, evoking joy or fear, and affecting our mood and wellbeing. Ironically, silence can have the same powerful effects.

In The Zone of Interest, sound creates an atmosphere of psychological tension and unseen menace. The audience, like the characters, can never escape or forget where they are. In Relic, sound—or the lack of it—creates an atmosphere of isolation and vulnerability, especially within the dark, empty, and brooding museum.

Hearing is our fastest sense. The human ear can perceive sounds in less than 0.05 seconds. This primal instinct protects us from potential danger. Unexpected noises can trigger fear and anxiety, making us more alert and reactive. When the fire alarm goes off in my building in the middle of the night, for example, it's a jarring experience—but that’s the point.

Our ears have an incredible range, from the deep rumble of a bass drum to the high-pitched chirping of a cricket. These sounds shape our experiences and emotions, influencing our mood and perceptions. Certain sounds can also trigger memories and emotions, which can be comforting or disturbing, depending on the context.

Often, we go through life on autopilot, taking the sounds around us for granted. Spending a few moments regularly to really listen to what’s around us can help build more intention and appreciation in our lives. Watching the Tour de France yesterday, I wondered what it must be like to hear the 100-plus rider peloton fly past at 60 km/h. What does that sound represent? How does it make us feel? Everyone will have their own interpretation. It’s a good exercise to try the next time you’re feeling stressed—take a few moments to listen to what you can hear at that moment and then ask yourself what that sound means to you. You might surprise yourself and find a moment of inspiration.

4. A Quote to note

“The ear is the only true writer and the only true reader.”

- Robert Frost

5. A Question for you

How do you use sound to create a specific atmosphere or mood in your home or workspace?

Thanks for reading and being part of the Deep Life Journey community. If you have any reflections on this issue, please leave a comment. Have a great weekend.

James

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