New Apple TV+ series Breakup debuted this week and is one of the most striking and unique shows of the year so far. It features Adam Scott (Parks and Recreation, Party Down) as a sad sack office drone who works for a mysterious megalithic corporation, Lumon Industries, deep in the bowels of its headquarters on the “Severed” floor of the building. What that means is best left as a surprise, if you can bear going into a blind streak, but I will say Breakup is darkly comic, with a sad atmosphere, elements of science fiction, and owes more than a little to the surrealist works of Charlie Kaufman (Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, Being John Malkovich). It also continues to surprise with each episode. The series also features Britt Lower, John Turturro, Patricia Arquette and Christopher Walkenand most of the episodes are made with great style by Ben Stiller. The first two episodes are available to stream now on Apple TV+ with additional episodes premiering on Thursdays. If you can’t stand going into a show blind, you can watch the trailer below.

To the melancholy, whimsical and dystopian atmosphere of the series is added the formidable score of Theodore Shapiro (Yellowjackets, The Eyes of Tammy Faye) that blends traditional sheet music elements, buzzy electronics, and occasional flights of fancy, like the relaxing piece “Labor of Love” that accompanies a very long walk through office hallways. There are also moments reminiscent of Bernard Hermann’s work with Hitchcock, and others that delve into post-rock and Radiohead.

“While ‘Severance’ might be classed as science fiction, it’s basically a mystery,” Shapiro says of his approach to the score. “The score’s music, built around four repetitive chords, is a gigantic question mark. As the mystery unfolds, so do the variations on our theme.

You can listen to the full Breakup notes below.

List of tracks:
01. Main titles
02. Labor of Love
03. Kimono Corridor
04. Eagans Hall
05. Note To Self
06. Tokens
07. Expiration date
08. Always Vibrant
09. Tree of Life
10. Made for the night
11. Secret places
12. Interministerial
13. After Hours
14. Beat
15. Safely Located
16. The Four Temperaments
17. This Innie
18. Cobel to Lumon
19. Alive