Intrada Soundtrack Forum

8/1/06

Now that it's on DVD, listen again to Dario Marianelli's V FOR VENDETTA score. Probably the best meld of music with image so far this year.

James McTeigue's movie draws from the Vertigo/DC graphic novel, the Wachowski Brothers write it, Natalie Portman stars. It's mostly on-target, shows a totalitarian England in rule. The U.S appears to have fallen from power. In any case, it has no presence in the tale. Hugo Weaving wears the mask of Guy Fawkes (real-life 17th century terrorist), stirs rebellion at every corner, Natalie Portman by circumstances comes on board.

Dario Marianelli has a tough job. He's got to mirror this oppressive totalitarian world, he's got to draw the rebellion growing out from under it and he's got to bring sympathy to a terrorist. His solution is really cool. He writes a dark, oppressive score naturally. But he anchors everything around a block of four chords, one minor and three ostensibly major. The order of the chords never changes. At points of interest, Marianelli simply brings them in, keeps his rebellion taking root, moving, growing. Their quasi-heroic, major-key emphasis commands our sympathy. Since they also represent a universal struggle for freedom, they easily get our attention. It's a neat idea because Marianelli doesn't try to write a "theme" for any of the major players. He just paints this bleak atmosphere then nurtures a small idea out of it. It may not be particularly profound as musical commentary but it sure does give what the movie asks for.

The album presents every one of the major highlights. Cues are long, deliberately paced. Regarding that four-chord motif, "Evey Reborn" is one of several highlights. The chords appear, repeat, crescendo, repeat, crescendo... you get the idea. Matched with those visuals, it's a really massive setpiece. So's the domino sequence. And with thundering percussion in tow, the flashy finish these moviemakers have assembled is one of the year's best.

I watched with few expectations. Just the opposite of what happened when I watched SUPERMAN RETURNS. So I was entranced with the unexpected. I'm a fan of movies where some feel for whatever world they're posing shows up there on screen. BLADE RUNNER and ROBOCOP also come to mind. You get the feeling that someone has a vision of what things might look like within the context of their tales at hand.

So it is with V FOR VENDETTA. And, like the other two just-mentioned sci-fi movies, this one's got a score that shares that vision.

I can't wait to hear - and see - what Marianelli has in store next!

8/3/06

I'm happy to say we'll have our next Special Collection release available on Wednesday the 9th. Being creatures of habit, we'll stick to our routine and post an official announcement Tuesday afternoon before we head home for the day.

Granted, we'll have our hands full when we arrive Wednesday morning but - then again - we'll get to play the new album before you do. And it's a good one. So there's a trade-off in there somewhere!

8/8/06

Revisiting a familiar theme. One we all hear from time to time. I sing it myself.

What's left out there to release? My response is - lots of stuff. But with these piles of CDs coming out lately, what additions have been made to the woefully under-represented composers? Well, to paraphrase Topol in FIDDLER ON THE ROOF - "That I can tell you in one word." Not a whole lot.

So who's still MIA? Mostly the same guys I mentioned eons ago. In that regard, nothing much has changed.

Kenyon Hopkins stays missing for one. All those cool LPs yet the only CD spine I see on the shelf is BABY DOLL. I'd like to put EAST SIDE WEST SIDE next to it and ELEVEN AGAINST THE ICE next to that and then THE HUSTLER and LILITH and MISTER BUDDWING and THE REPORTER and THIS PROPERTY IS CONDEMNED and THE YELLOW CANARY and whatever.

Frank Skinner's still missing, too. He's got a wall of beautiful albums but the CD shelves remain dry as a bone. SHENANDOAH's a favorite, MAN OF A THOUSAND FACES comes up close behind!

Quincy Jones is a big name in parts of the music business but I don't see much activity with all his wonderful sixties stuff. We don't even have a CD for his Oscar-nominated IN COLD BLOOD! To say nothing of MIRAGE and SLENDER THREAD and MACKENNA'S GOLD.

When I was a kid I remember seeing what seemed like a new Neal Hefti LP every month. But now that I'm old enough to know better, I don't see much in the way of Neal Hefti CDs. Where's the colorful DUEL AT DIABLO, the tuneful BAREFOOT IN THE PARK, the breezy HOW TO MURDER YOUR WIFE? Or even that wacky singing he does himself on BOEING, BOEING?

John Addison's in that same misplaced brigade, too. We've got the ones with the bridge and the curtain but not much else. Not even a complete CD for his Oscar winner! (TOM JONES to the CD-only generation.)

These guys weren't one shot wonders, either. Vinyl heaven is chock full of their stuff.

Happily, one of the guys I commonly report missing in action has turned up alive and kicking. Thanks to Film Score Monthly my CD shelf now holds 1001 ARABIAN NIGHTS and DEVIL AT 4 O'CLOCK and BELL, BOOK AND CANDLE and TOYS IN THE ATTIC. Maybe more will follow.

THE BIG VALLEY?

Hope springs eternal.

8/10/06

Numbers and colors.

First the numbers. People are asking us how many copies remain on AMAZING STORIES Anthology One. If you're budgeting things and it's on your order-before-they-run-out list, you should be in good shape.

We made 3000. We've sold about 2500. That leaves about 500. I actually figured all this out without using any beans. So my guess is copies will be on hand for a little while longer. That said, I'm a crummy better so I'm not gonna take odds.

In any case, we're hoping they're still in stock when we get Anthology Three finished because we think it'll look cool to line them up on our home page.

Now the colors.

I point you to the artwork. Things aren't just random. (Folks at Universal get a kick out of this.) Anyway, now you've got both Anthologies One and Two. Look in number two's booklet and you'll find the image for Anthology Three.

Figured it out yet?

8/15/06

Backlog update. If you're waiting for your copy of AMAZING STORIES: ANTHOLOGY TWO, figure we're wrapping them as fast as we can. We're running about three days off our customary 24-hour turn-around so hang in there. With all the other cool stuff coming out lately, there's no shortage of boxing going on back here in our mail room. But I'll make sure Jeff and George keep at it. I might even pitch in for a moment or two. In any case, your patience is muchly appreciated!

8/16/06

Big box alert. If you've ordered the 12-disc box set of Elmer Bernstein "Filmmusic Collection" CDs, you'll be getting it shipped in a larger 25-count box with plenty of extra packaging.

The set's beautifully housed in a wisely-designed maroon case that'll fit on your shelves. It's the epitome of elegance. But getting it to you takes a much bigger box! Fortunately those don't need to be so elegant so we're rustling up every extra one we can find around here.

By the way, I cringe when I see George loading up all these cartons for his trips to the post office. I'm glad I don't have his job. Then again, he hates to produce CDs so he says we're even. I'm thinking, maybe we're not. Anyway, enjoy this one. You've spent hard-earned bucks to get it. Just don't count on it fitting into your mailbox at home!

8/17/06

It's a traffic jam. A soundtrack jam? Whatever. You've no doubt noticed the onslaught of CDs lately. Wow. There's a lot to choose from. Maybe too much!

Take last week. So much came in we're still catching up with in store plays, capsule writeups, so forth. A huge shipment from Italy: Shifrin's LA PELLE, SATANIK, Lavagnino westerns, more Morricone, THE GIRL WITH THE GUN, other stuff. We released a big title of our own with a second 2-CD set from AMAZING STORIES. Some of you may have also noticed Elmer Bernstein's THREE AMIGOS began it's wide release.

Earlier this week I'm playing some of this stuff and Jeff starts opening huge boxes. Out come all these 12-CD sets of Elmer Bernstein re-recordings. (That's one busy composer!) Before Jeff unpacks them all another shipment arrives. Looks like we're now catching up with the latest titles from Perseverance: GAG, THE PROPHECY, CRYPT OF THE LIVING DEAD. They've got a big one, too: Craig Safan's REMO WILLIAMS.

A couple other things largely got buried last week but deserve mention: Philip Glass has a new score out called THE ILLUSIONIST. There's a new soundtrack from Slovenian composer Borut Krzisnik called A LIFE IN SUITCASES, which goes with the recent Peter Greenaway movie. He melds real orchestra with computer software programs and comes up with a hybrid sound that's pretty unique! In a personal letter here he describes it as having "boldness, energy, strong melodic lines, inventive harmony, high-octane intensity" then goes on to add it uses "postmodernism, modernism, traditional, pop, techno, Stravinsky, Serbian brass bands... ". I wonder if he tosses in the kitchen sink?

Anyway, as of late yesterday, delivery guys were still dropping off stuff at our door. We finally decided to climb over boxes of John Scott's PEOPLE THAT TIME FORGOT and just go home for the day.

My wife once suggested that my collecting every soundtrack that came out was a demonstration of pure insanity. So here I am looking at all this stuff from just the last ten days or so and I'm thinking.

She's right.

8/18/06
Just a moment to wax philosophic. Given all the new releases coming in lately, I'm thinking about something as I work today, listening.

We play the new stuff while we process orders. Today we've been going through discs in the new Bernstein box set. So far we've done THIEF OF BAGDAD (Rozsa), TORN CURTAIN (Herrmann), KINGS OF THE SUN (Bernstein), TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD (Bernstein) and LAND OF THE PHAROAHS (Tiomkin). We also gave REMO WILLIAMS a second spin since it's so cool. Then, just for a breather from new releases we played Jerry Goldsmith's super-exciting CASSANDRA CROSSING.

Anyway, so where's this headed? Well, as the afternoon winds down we're now playing GAG (Dennis Dreith). And here's the rub.

My capsules do have some purpose but it's all pretty basic. Just brief ideas about the music, the production, what the listener might expect. There's little value judging since I leave "reviewing" to more-qualified writers. In other words, I'm just playing salesman, not critic.

So anyway, here's the dilemma.

Meaning no disrespect to Mr. Dreith (I'm sure he contributes wonderfully to the movie's needs) but it's virtually impossible for me to hear several hours of stuff like the above, then play GAG with open ears and open mind. Those that know me know I'm open to just about anything and everything musical.

But GAG challenges me. It's music, yes. But after a day of Rozsa, Tiomkin, Bernstein, Herrmann, Goldsmith, even Craig Safan - it's difficult to be impartial and appreciate it. It's even hard to just stay neutral. I really wish the powers that be wanted "great" music in their movies again. But that seems to be nothing more than a pie in the sky.

Anyway, for what it's worth, moments like this make writing mostly positive capsules a challenge.

8/23/06

We're targeting September 5 for the next Special Collection release. That's the day after Labor Day. Looks like it won't be labor-less around here! Anyway, watch for the proper announcement at that time. It's not the third AMAZING STORIES Anthology since we're still working on that puppy but it is a 2-CD set. And it's good music, too.

However, the Special Collection release that'll follow later in the month is pretty big. It's something people have been asking for a lot over the years. I'm excited to say you'll finally have it before too long.

So it's gonna be a busy September around here.

8/26/06

Looking for some quality time with your kids? Feel like a good movie you can watch together? Okay. Here's one. Especially if you want one with nary a gunshot, squealing tire, flashing sword, CGI spaceship, whatever.

AKEELAH AND THE BEE. It's obviously a labor of love for producer/star Laurence Fishburne. It's also a special treat to watch with your own kids, too. Yep, I'm talking a "family" movie.

Akeelah's an 11-year old South Los Angeles girl who's lost her father to tragedy, lives with a mom (Angela Bassett) who neglects her, painfully watches her brother lured by gangbangers and fights with truancy at her school. When she happens upon a local spelling bee she discovers a whole new world.

Doug Atchison directs. He's also got a late nineties movie called THE PORNOGRAPHER but I don't much more about him than that. Aaron Zigman writes the score and conducts. It's sensitive music, too. Never stands out, never gets in the way. In this movie that's a probably a really good thing.

I watched it with my 13-year-old daughter. She got more words than I did. But I cried quieter. Yeah, it goes for the heart. But that's probably a really good thing, too.

Sort of related. I try to write something for this corner two or three times a week. Happily I get to take the next few days off, though. While mom stays home and occupies our younger daughter I get to spend quality father-daughter time at Disneyland with our older girl.

There'll be no movie music for a few days. This is also probably a good thing since we've been playing so much of it around here lately. Anyway, maybe I'll test out my daughter's spelling while we go through that small world. Hey! Even if I lose I'll still be a winner!

Dads like to say stuff like that.

8/31/06

Klaus Badelt immortalized. Lot's of great movie composers came and went without seeing this. Hope Klaus feels humbled.

If you (like me) weren't aware, Disneyland's "Pirates of the Caribbean" ride was closed for several months earlier this year. It had a grand re-launch just recently to coinicide with the opening of movie two in the insanely popular franchise. And therein lies Klaus's immortality.

The ride has been tweaked. In an interesting twist, the original ride storyline has now been adjusted to include movie references. Jack Sparrow makes three appearances, too. Effects have been tinkered with just enough to put a new sheen on things. It's the old blended with the new.

Of course, you'll still be singing along with all those pirates on "Yo Ho (A Pirates Life For Me)". George Bruns big contribution.

Anyway, when you pass through that spectacular setpiece where the pirate ship lays siege to the fort, the music you'll hear becomes pure unadulterated Klaus Badelt. Yep. PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: CURSE OF THE BLACK PEARL. Front and center for a moment. Lots of great composers have contributed to various park activities: James Horner played next to Captain EO, Bruce Broughton shrinks an audience, Jerry Goldsmith soars over California, stuff like that. But getting your main theme from your hit movie inserted directly into the park's main attraction is really special.

I guess they'll either have to keep the theme in the next movie installment - or change the ride all over again.

I'm betting on the former.