Category Archives: Reviews: Soundtrack

Soundtrack Review: Hellraiser

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hellraisercdHellraiser
Released in 1987 by Cinedisc
14 Tracks, with a total running time of 43:08 min.
Music composed by Christopher Young.

There are some contemporary scores that resonate with fans just as much as the themes from Jaws, The Omen, or even The Exorcist. They may not be as familiar with the normal public, but if you play a few seconds of Christopher Young’s score from Hellraiser, they will know what it is. Maybe because the film itself is pretty iconic and well known, but what Young has done here is make something special, and lasting. Continue reading →

Soundtrack Review: Final Exam

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finalexamFinal Exam
Released by American Entertainment Industries
13 Tracks with a Total Running Time of 36 min.
Composed by Gary S. Scott

I picked up a CD-R of this soundtrack at a convention, since it had never been released before on CD and I’m a sucker for soundtracks. I hope that it gets an official release at some point because I really enjoyed it! It is very simple, with seemingly done with a keyboard, but it is still effective. Scott comes up with some nice spooking sounding cues, others doing a nice job building some suspense, and a love theme in there. Yes, there is a track that it sounds like he’s making fart noises with this hands, but there is also a fun little song called The Executioner’s Song, with a great line about a guillotine “dripping with the memories of the people it had seen.” Awesome!

This was Scott’s first soundtrack before working on a lot of TV scores, including some work on Freddy’s Nightmares. While this might not be a classic score, for what it is, I found it pretty entertaining.

The movie, however, is not, and I would not recommend watching it. Oof!

Soundtrack Review: Fear No Evil

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fearnoevilcdFear No Evil
Released by Percepto Records, 2005
16 Tracks with a Total Running Time of 37 min.
Music by Frank Laloggia and David Spear

With a movie being about the rise of the Anti-Christ, you’d think you’ve have a score that would be more reminiscent of something like The Omen, but what you get here is a beautiful piece of music. Okay, there are a few darker elements going on here, but it is more subtle than blaring in your face.

This was the first film by Frank LaLoggia, who also did the score for this, with David Spear. It really shows LaLoggia’s talent as a musician because he comes up with a truly haunting score, that blends perfectly into the film. With a combination of some electronic music with some beautiful strings, some slow and somber guitar, the score gives a sound much bigger than what you’d expect from a low budget feature. There are a few tracks here and there that have a more sinister tone to them, but he doesn’t go the easy route with them, instead making even those sound more like church music with a darker feel.

 

Soundtrack Review: Twins of Evil

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twins of evilTwins of Evil
Released by GDI Records, 2000
22 Tracks with a Total Running Time of 44 min.
Music by Harry Robertson (listed as Harry Robinson)

One of the many things that made Hammer Films so memorable was the music. With booming sounding themes, they always made an impact. And Robertson’s score for Twins of Evil is no different. The opening theme immediately puts the images in your head of the Brotherhood riding their horses through the forest, searching out the wicked! One little cue was used in the trailer (as well as many parts of the movie) that has always stuck in my brain, probably from watching the trailer and movie more than a few times. But it is the march-type theme of the Brotherhood that is most familiar. 

The use of strings seems to be the most prominent instrument here, though we do hear from the wind instruments, such as in the Karnstein’s Guest track. This is a perfect example how a rousing score just adds to what we’re seeing on screen, and Hammer did that so well. Being one of my favorites of Hammer’s, this score is right up there as well.

Soundtrack Review: Rest Stop – Don’t Look Back

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reststop2Rest Stop: Don’t Look Back
Released by La-La Land Records, 2008
20 Tracks with a Total Running Time of 64:38 min.
Music Composed by Bear McCreary

I believe this was my second Bear McCreary score that I was reviewing and once again was amazed at the sounds coming from it, not to mention how different it was from what I was expecting. This is really almost a blues album instead of a soundtrack, but that is the beauty of it… it still works extremely well as a creepy score!

Now there are a few tracks that are regular songs, 5 of them in all, which for me was a distraction from the actual score. One track, Jesus, He Forgives You Too, has the singer listed as Rev. Buford “Buck” Davis, but damn if it doesn’t sound like Weird Al Yankovic. They are part of the overall picture, so I can’t really complain. But the tracks that are just the straight background music makes this score one of my favorites. He is able to create mood and atmosphere by some of the strangest sounds, such as the track On the Bus, almost like guitar strings being pulled and stretched, then breaking into a guitar riff and melody. Very effective. Not sure if a banjo was used at times to come up with some of the sounds, but it amazes me the sounds that McCreary can create that work so well as a musical score. This one remains one of my favorites. It has it all, creepy and atmospheric, with a nice bluesy sound to it.

Soundtrack Review: Wrong Turn 2: Dead End

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wrongturn2cdWrong Turn 2: Dead End
Released by La-La Land Records, 2007
16 Tracks, with a total running time of 52:07 min.
Music by Bear McCreary

When you receive a soundtrack to review, entitled Wrong Turn 2, which was a made-for-DVD release, my expectations weren’t that high, for the movie itself, let alone the score. But I think this was my introduction to the incredible talent that is Bear McCreary, which quickly showed me how wrong my expectations were.

If I would have told you that you were going to hear a scary soundtrack that heavily featured a banjo for the main instrument, you’d think I was crazy. But listen to this score and tell me I’m wrong. The only Main Title, starting with some background noises, such as a pounding or thumping, we then hear a distorted banjo sound. Now, I may be wrong in whether this is a banjo, but it sounds like it, so that’s what I’m going with. Anyhow… you have this eerie twanging going on, then is combined with a whistling that really creates almost like a Morricone western score, except if it was made in Louisiana! Continue reading →

Soundtrack Review: Dead Silence

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deadsilencecdDead Silence
Released by Lakeshore Records, 2007
31 Tracks with a Total Running Time of 48:15 min.
Music by Charlie Clouser

While I was not a big fan of the movie itself when it first came out, it didn’t take long for the score to hit me like a freight train! With a very similar sound and feel to either a Carpenter score or even Mike Oldfield’s Tubular Bells, Clouser has created an amazing theme that just resonates with the listener, immediately giving you the chills. But it doesn’t stop with just that theme. Throughout the running time, there are many eerie pieces of music that really sets the mood. Plus, the theme returns over and over again, with slightly different sounds or tempo but it still works.

Mainly known for his scores for the Saw series, Clouser is not only a talented composer, but shows how important an effective score can is and the impact it can make on the viewer. Where some scores are just background music, Clouser makes his music part of the film experience. Well done!

 

Soundtrack Review: VFW

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VFW SoundtrackFW
Released by Lakeshore Records, 2020
27 Tracks with a Total Running Time of 73 min.
Music By Steve Moore

Much like Jeff Grace’s score for Cold in July, if you’re a fan of John Carpenter’s music, then this score is a must. Since the film VFW is a homage to Carpenter’s Assault on Precinct 13 (1976), it only makes sense to have a score that feels like a Carpenter score. And composer Steve Moore has done just that. Using simple tones and those repetitive notes similar to Carpenter, he has created an effective score that has all the feeling of something from the late ’70s to early ’80s that a lot of grew up with.

We have tracks like Montage which kind of just plays in the background, setting the tone nicely. Nothing loud or over the top, but sets the mood. Then with the next tracks like Do What You Gotta Do and Run Lizard Run, the tension starts to build. In between these more up tempo sequences, it goes back down to the slow and moody set pieces.

Moore has created a very simple and yet very effective score that works really well within the film, but is also a great one to have playing in the background. It really helped making this film the homage that it is even more so.

Soundtrack Review: Hereditary

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Hereditary soundtrackHereditary
Released by Milan Records, 2018
23 Tracks with a Total Running Time of 71 mins.
Music By Colin Stetson

I really liked this movie, even though I have a few issues with it here and there, but it still packed one hell of a punch. Several times, actually! But honestly, I didn’t remember that much about the score originally. After finding out that this was done by the same composer that did the recent Color Out of Space for Richard Stanley, I figured I would have to give this one a spin. And I’m so glad I did!

I feel like I need to go back and re-watch this film to see if the impact certain scenes make is maybe because of the music. There are certain tracks that just grab you. There are ones that are loud and bursting, while others that are quiet and more subtle, seeming into your brain. There might be little noises seemingly in the background that almost make you wonder if it is part of the soundtrack or something happening outside, such as in Track # 7, Aftermath. There are also those that start out very slow without you hearing much, then it just builds up and explodes at the end. Tracks # 5, Party, Crash and # 14, Book Burning, are perfect examples of this. Continue reading →

Soundtrack Review: Antiviral

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AntiviralcdAntiviral
Released by Lakeshore Records, 2013
21 Tracks, with a total running time of 42 min.
Music by E.C. Woodley

Having not seen the film yet, we’re going strictly on this score alone, and not how it might add or enhance the movie. But right away, we can tell how different this score is from most soundtracks. It is very quiet, slow, subdued, and very unique. To know that it is from a film directed by David Cronenberg’s son makes perfect sense. The opening track, just entitled Opening, starts out with a slow echoing piano, playing a few notes, before either a violin or an electronic device takes over right before moving into the next track. And that is what we’re in for with the rest of the score. It is very heavy on the electronic sounds, with vibrating notes holding for long periods of time with other sounds overlapping them, such as more piano or a bass sound, something soft and distance, other times loud and vibrating. Continue reading →