One of the benefits of musicians making a movie is a guarantee that the soundtrack won’t be an afterthought. With How to Break a World Record, much of the post-production was driven by the soundtrack, with many of the songs already chosen before starting a scene edit—sometimes before even filming!
Forthright Records, who produced the documentary covering Brother Oliver’s mandolin player attempting a world record, is closely connected with artists all across the globe who are putting out what we consider to be wildly under-appreciated songs. These tracks end up on the team’s personal playlists and become a point of pride—knowing that they have a collection of “hidden gems”.
Going into this movie project, a major goal was to take those songs and get them to as many more ears as possible. Music is certainly always a personal experience and tastes vary, but the following songs have been specifically curated to help tell an award winning story and will hopefully end up on the playlists of many readers. Dive into the full soundtrack below:
“The Garden of Earthly Delights” - Brother Oliver
The sounds of the opening “Snake and Mouse” Forthright logo reveal—a suspenseful tease to let you know the show is about to begin.
“Peace” - Cougar Sweat
An energetic rock and roll banger to kick off the intro to the film. Viewers see Stephen in front of a SciFi-looking x-ray machine followed by a montage of events and characters in the film. To kick off the movie, the song needed to rip. The song rips.
“Dreamstates - One” - Richard Ames
The atmospheric mood-setter playing beneath the initial titles that lay the groundwork for the pot—cue the interview chair.
“Falling from a Cloud” - Seven Mile Lane
A song the entire team was obsessed with—it serves a great role in the film by accompanying the introduction of Brother Oliver’s backstory. It’s a big sound with even bigger vibes and really captures the energy of the journey in that moment.
“Where’s My Tie?” - Brother Oliver
The song first appears in an explosive live performance clip on stage before transitioning to the studio recording as Dan Johnson (editor; co-director of the film) discusses the impact it had on bringing him into the Brother Oliver universe—an occurrence that indirectly made the movie a reality.
“Back to the Grind” - Finding Freedom
An undeniably catchy and energetic rock anthem that accompanies the crew as they stroll into Dr. Shawn’s office. A bit of an easter egg—it’s Dan Johnson’s old band.
“Trouble” - Bloodplums
Sometimes a song fits almost too perfectly. “Trouble” comes into the film like a wrecking ball with a major plot twist—meet your new rival, Kuntal Raj Chakrabortty.
“Improving Morale (Sped Up)” - Brother Oliver
Ironically, morale was briefly stunted in this song’s accompanying scene—but things sped back up again.
“Hypknosis”- AhSelam, Gabriel
If you found yourself awake in the middle of the night, lost in thought and the depths of uncertainty, you might hear this song in your head—just like Andrew does during the 4am crisis scene in the movie.
“Alexander (If I Were You)” - Matt Fassas
Another rock banger with uncontrollably good vibes—the crew gathers to round up last minute supplies before they attempt the unthinkable. Stephen is talking to the camera to give an update on his headspace prior to the attempt and he is unceremoniously interrupted…
“Saturday” - SANSOM
Yet another example of a song that spun on repeat by the entire team even prior to production. It’s an incredibly memorable anthem for the opening moments of the attempt.
“Altars” - Brother Oliver
There’s a flashback moment in the movie detailing the making of the music video for this song—and the infamous moment where Stephen was…set on fire.
“Wound Up” - Either/Or
A highlight of the soundtrack for many on the team—this one might do the best of any other song in capturing the highs of that night.
“Dreamstates - Three” - Richard Ames
The dreamstates return as the team tries to unpack and decipher the many Guinness World Record rules and guidelines they found themselves buried under.
“Gone With Stupid” - Dead in Love
The hypnotically addictive and gritty groove of this track made it perfect not only in the film soundtrack, but also the official trailer.
“Your Beauty Offends Me” - Oats
Heavy distortion and catchy melodies come in hot right when it was needed at a point in the night where the crew was starting to battle those weary demons.
“Mala Suerte” - Loben
A cinematic beast of a song. It makes its entrance when the misery of the attempt starts to set in on Stephen and the crew and carries them to an epic second wind that might just get them to the finish line.
“Ground Coffee” - Scotty K.
After a sleepless night, the sun rises with this high energy hip hop record and re-energizes the viewer with hope that the team might actually succeed.
“Good Good Night” - Kindred Fellow
This is a deep cut from the Forthright music catalog—and a bit of an easter egg placed in the background of the scene to sound like it’s playing faintly at the venue. Kindred Fellow was Andrew and Stephen’s first band with Dakota Parler from the pre-Brother Oliver era.
“All We Wanted Was A Gem That Wouldn’t Fade - Instrumental” - Zaq Baker
This tear-jerking, heartfelt piano instrumental was a super early choice by the team—before filming even began—for what they hoped would be a feel-good moment in the movie where the record is broken.
“Say My Name” - Andrew P. Oliver
Without giving away too much about the outcome of the movie, there was some reason to celebrate, and this blue crystal banger brought the hype in that moment. Unlike the last song, it was actually played in the venue.
“Coffee and a Cigarette” - Brother Oliver
If you know Brother Oliver, this song needs no introduction. If not, well, it makes sense that they’d finish their live set in the movie with this timeless sing-along.
“Blind Belief” - Brother Oliver
A subtle nod and homage to the never say never mindset of the band—both pre and post world record attempt.
“Lesson Learned” - Scotty K.
Scotty K. returns to the soundtrack in the exact moment that a fresh lesson needed to be learned. And it was learned.
“Something Real” - The By Gods
“Is this real? Are you lying?”...There could be no other song at this moment of the movie when fates collide and destiny is determined. The song is an absolute hidden gem, but we’re determined to unhide it.
“Take All the Time You Need” - John Brewster
From the first piano notes to the slow fadeout at the end, it oozes big-smile feels. The sound of a journey completed and memories captured.
“85” - Shyland Flowers
The song is like the perfect after-party of the entire film. Let the good times—and the credits—roll.
You can listen to the entire soundtrack on Spotify via the official soundtrack playlist, here—and be sure to watch How To Break A World Record on Prime Video & Apple TV.
