What Is The Last Score You Listened To? (older scores)

[Matt C 452]

Chronicles of Narnia: Voyage of the Dawn Treader - David Arnold

It's still fairly enjoyable, with touches of Arnold's stylistic choices -- mostly harmonic with light "Stargate" touches (like the choir usage in "Lilandil and the Dark Island" and "Time to Go Home". I do like how he weaves in Harry Gregson-Williams' theme in sparingly but effectively (better-arranged too!). This is a more fun listening experience than Gregson-Williams' previous two Narnia scores.

[Incanus 5,713]

Well, there is a clear progression of major ideas and you can hear everything coming together. It made me realise how the first 10 minutes of An Unexpected Journey turns out to be the crib for all crucial material in the trilogy - House of Durin, Erebor, Thorin, Arkenstone, Mirkwood Elves, Smaug. In some ways, it's even more successful and consequential than The Lord of the Rings prologue.

Karol

Absolutely. I loved the Hobbit prologue from the beginning but it became even better with that realization of how it presents so many central elements of the entire story arc in musical form in those 8 minutes. The Lord of the Rings prologue was a rewrite and the previous version largely adopted to highlight the Power of Mordor motif with assorted hints of other central themes. They did go for the overture-like feel with several themes presented in succession more heavily with the film version, which in particular gave the History of the Ring its prominence. With the Hobbit Shore obviously had a clearer image of what the prologue would be, had themes fleshed out and approved and so could give the audience a truly comprehensive opening to set the stage for the whole story. He had to revise passages for the final film but it is mostly intact thematically in the movie. It is really satisfying from musical storytelling perspective how these 7 ot 8 new central motifs are already place right at the beginning and you can chart their progress from one score to the next.

How to Train Your Dragon 2 by John Powell: As I have said before the sheer joie de vivre of this music is electrifying. Powell's score is a powerhouse of themes, very colorful and deft orchestrations and exhilarating orchestral and choral writing that really combines majestic with intimate.As I have said this music sounds like Vaughan Williams on steroids and it is quite true as Powell's themes seem to spring from the same folk music source as some of his aforementioned esteemed colleague's music but he then gives them a very modern spin and it all works brilliantly. This is also big music that doesn't stint on emotion or flair which makes it highly singular on album and it is one of the few albums from last year that grabbed from the first track and kept my attention until the last note.

[publicist 4,643]

As i was told by TGP some time before not to thrash Michael Giacchino, i actually took the time to really listen through his new opus, putting my thoughts down in Pasternakian magnitude - i officially state that i despise these unwieldy post lengths that usually betray a vain writer in desperate need of a good editor but here it still is...

My generally lukewarm reception of MG's film scores - save for some spirited exceptions like RATATOUILLE or some MOH's - is due to what i perceive a certain lack of depth in his writing. Like many of his contemporaries, Giacchino has adapted into what i call a film music meme, a general sound that, listened to through a filter of dialogue and sound effects, seems to push the right buttons but really often is just a diluted (or more brute) version of idioms brought into the craft by the generation of Williams, Goldsmith, Horner & Broughton - composers with the distinct advantage of knowing the classical repertoire they were drawing from. I am not claiming Giacchino has no idea of said repertoire but his music never seems to come to its own conclusions when he goes into Mahler/Prokoviev/Strawinsky or even Philipp Glass territory. When Giacchino i. e. offers a hair-raising finale to some action cue it's the doubled staccato hits of ALIENS's BISHOP COUNTDOWN repurposed without ever hinting at another musical idea at play. The same goes for dissonant parts that often cite modern Williams, say LOST WORLD Williams onwards, without deviating much from these origins. Add to that the often undistinctive themes and you end up with another reason to abandon the hobby altogether.

This of course often is par for the course for modern entertainment blockbusters that do not demand much from their respective scores - just that they cut enough through the elaborate sound mix to make the added weight of a costly 100-piece orchestra heard from time to time.

JUPITER ASCENDING, with its mammoth length and genre-spanning styles neatly packed up, now makes a case for a Giacchino par excellence, with all strengths and weaknesses lined up for examination. The jokey demeanor in MG's cue titles makes the lofty MOVEMENT I-IV monikers on the opening cues more than a bit suspect, though they actually do a good job of introducing us to the main thematic material, though i am not sure how well it would (should?) fare in a symphony hall. It's rather broad and not very challenging in any way (based on ascending fifths? I am too lazy to count, partly reminiscent of JOHN CARTER, for sure) but stylishly orchestrated for strings with a boy soprano adding some angelic color. The third movement introduces us to what i dreaded most, the minimalist ostinato 4/4 stuff - it was fucking boring in 2006 and 2014 words fail my despair of it arriving here in such generous quantities. The 4th movement thankfully returns to the more reflective take on this material though by now you wonder how much more can be done with this before it has run its course.

Following are several shorter cues of little consequence (must a non-essential 1 minute cue like SCRAMBLED EGGS really be included with this excessive running time, anyway?). The album makes several leaps in exciting-ness starting with the almost 10-minute ABRASAX FAMILY TREE, introducing a darker-tinged take on a theme introduced in the suite that seems to act as bad guy theme and receives a great and varied workout that even manages to alternate between loud and quiet (nice low horn writing), again with humming chorus and soprano with an acceptable grand (read: LOUD) workout rom 6 minutes onward. Why material like this must always rely on such feeble rhythmisation is beyond me though.

SHADOW CHASE is another action piece featuring this dark theme which has some nifty brass writing and the custom apocalyptic choir - it isn't really epic without it, isn't it? - and in between there are some playful little scherzo ingredients that give the woodwinds something to do but it also exposes a weakness that to me runs right through every action piece Giacchino has to offer, namely the feeling that these pieces are devised in a weird mathematic way that less feels like a composer organically developing his musical palette into a, say, 6-minute cue but instead just outlines a general length on Sibelius and inserts jagged rhythms/dissonant stings/snippets along the way strategically. It's not really a pretty sight musically - if you're not a male blockbuster fan in the age range 18 - 40 forever chained to the visual stimulus of the movie.

TITUS CLIPPER is another long cue that begins more John Barry-like reflective - it's actually very Barryesque with only the flirring woodwinds entering 2 minutes into the piece hinting at its origin, concluding rather beautifully in solo violin on string bed before more brute action scoring follows.

Things pick up again in A WEDDING DARKER, harmonically finally a bit more opened up and interesting, a trend which thankfully continues in THE LIES HAVE IT, before returning to his old standby, the MEDAL OF HONOR-teutonic scherzos in HELLAVA CHASE - really the first action cue that goes through musically gripping variations that even manage to alternate between the lighter and more heavy parts in an inspired way, not just resting on sheer loudness to get by. A variation of said ingredients follows without adding or subtracting much.

The 10-minute ending cue is a slow burner but over its running time Giacchino actually rather niftily weaves in and out a lot of ideas big and small from before - soprano, woodwind scherzo, huge operatic parts and its really a nice bookend, but the fucker still goes on for another cue (rather unecessarily so).

If you select or rather deselect enough from this very long haul, there is actually a very respectable (film-) musical experience in JUPITER ASCENDING though i have my doubts if a composer should have to write 5 hours of music to arrive at a good hours worth of actually great, non-repetitive music, but there you have it.

[Incanus 5,713]

I after a few listens I actually came to much the same conclusion about the score as you did pub.

[Dixon Hill 4,233]

You hit on my main issue with his music which I'm sure I've mentioned before: the sense that you can hear the "skeleton" of the music, holding it all together in some precisely worked out way, depriving it of any real spirit or organic quality. I felt like I heard that less here than ever before in his work. It still afflicts his more extended action music.

[Sir Hilary Bray 235]

John Barry's Thunderball and Raise the Titanic

Ron Goodwin's Battle of Britain

"You could teach monkeys to fly better than that!"

[KK 3,307]

You hit on my main issue with his music which I'm sure I've mentioned before: the sense that you can hear the "skeleton" of the music, holding it all together in some precisely worked out way, depriving it of any real spirit or organic quality. I felt like I heard that less here than ever before in his work. It still afflicts his more extended action music.

But it's still very much there. It's frustrating, because this score features some lovely moments like the dark material in "The House of Abrasax" (sometimes even recalling Williams' Darth Sideous material with male basses) or the lovely harmonizations of the main themes in "A Wedding Darker". But then you get grating cues like the 3rd Movement in the first four cues or in the banal final cue (the bonus action cue). There's something about the album presentation that also makes a lot of these cues seem a bit nondescript.

I'm not yet convinced in Giacchino's ability to write themes either. But there are some nice variations that I enjoyed.

Also not a fan of the shouting trailer-like choirs (with some exceptions). Just didn't click with me.

In all fairness, I've just listened to it once so far. He's dressed it up quite well, with neat orchestrations, flashy choirs and boy sopranos, nice fuzzy IIIm - I progressions that take after Shore, but I don't quite feel it. He has great ingredients here, but I really wish he went all the way with some of the more extroverted stuff (the "throat-singing" --not really, but I liked the really deep texture of those male voices--, the polyphonic wind writing, etc etc. As it is, this score seems to lack conviction, half-baked with all the right elements, flirting with greatness but just falling short of it as a whole.

I'll have to listen to it more before I can offer more thoughts on it. Don't hate me TGP!

[Dixon Hill 4,233]

He has yet to really write a theme that *means* something to me... outside of Lost.

[KK 3,307]

Really have to get cracking on those Lost albums soon...

This is still my favourite Giacchino theme:

Giacchino excels when he's given more intimate projects like the Pixar films.

His thematic writing takes a back seat with the blockbusters, and Jupiter Ascending hasn't really convinced me that he's the right choice for grand space operas.

[Incanus 5,713]

1941 by John Williams: A fantastically entertaining comedic romp with a brilliant swaggering main theme march which along with several smaller themes ties everything together so well. At times the music suffers from the quick switch of direction in mid-phrase but on the whole Williams plays things dramatically straight faced (when he isn't winking at you through countless musical nods from Jaws to "I'm Poppey the Sailorman") until the uproaring finale where no ammo is spared.

[Jay 37,323]

Well said!

[Hlao-roo 389]

Dear Lemon Lima (Gordon). All plucky waltzes and music box flourishes, a kind of Amélie meets Pushing Daisies without the beating heart of either, Sasha Gordon's score is overweeningly precious even at a relatively brisk 20 minutes.

[Incanus 5,713]

The Lost World - Jurassic Park by John Williams: Hands down one of the best jungle adventure scores I have heard. Johnny could use a bit more of the wonderful main theme throughout but he makes up for this by anchoring much of the music on sheer rhythms for his relentless but groovy action set pieces that are some of the most intense, furious and kinetic of his career. As with Jurassic Park the composer succeeds in creating an entirely self contained musical world and journey but since this is a sequel he at suitable moments treats listeners with appearances of the old themes from the first film but does so quite judiciously and steers mostly into a whole new direction, which I think benefits the music.

[Hlao-roo 389]

Africa (Class)

Arabian Nights (Harvey)

[Gruesome Son of a Bitch 6,488]

Johnny could use a bit more of the wonderful main theme throughout

Spielberg thought so and they tracked the hell out of that theme throughout the movie.

[Incanus 5,713]

Johnny could use a bit more of the wonderful main theme throughout

Spielberg thought so and they tracked the hell out of that theme throughout the movie.

Yeah. Perhaps too late in the post production to ask Johnny to write more new variations.

[Unlucky Bastard 7,782]

Filmtracks used to rate TLW at 4 stars. Now it's only 3 stars.

[Incanus 5,713]

Oh Clemmensen you have so much to answer for!

[Unlucky Bastard 7,782]

hehehe

[crocodile 7,990]

Medal of Honor: Frontline by Michael Giacchino

Hellboy by Marco Beltrami. I'm not actually listening to Varese album but watching the film with isolated track and composer's commentary. Actually, we could use an expansion for this one.

Karol

[Incanus 5,713]

hehehe

Not that Clemenson! The other Clemensson!

Medal of Honor: Frontline by Michael Giacchino

Hellboy by Marco Beltrami. I'm not actually listening to Varese album but watching the film with isolated track and composer's commentary. Actually, we could use an expansion for this one.

Karol

Agreed. The score is one of Beltrami's best.

[Hlao-roo 389]

A Poet in New York (Wiseman)

Dragonheart: A New Beginning (McKenzie)

NP: The Host (Pinto)

[publicist 4,643]

THE RIVER WILD - Jerry Goldsmith

As drab as i remembered it. A quick cleaner job after Maurice Jarre's more archaic take got the boot, Jerry really did a sit-down-strike on creativity to deliver what is essentially an expansive 100-piece orchestra doing second-hand imitations of RAMBO and THE WALTONS. While being much too slick and professional to be called bad, it's so uninspired and mechanical in its very calculated effects that it - Murphy's Law! - figures that it is the sole candidate from Goldsmith's vast library of genius to receive the honor of being featured as the only in-depth demonstration of the composer at work for Fred Karlin's docu.

After receiving much more unbelievable expansions of movie soundtracks in the last 10 years, it isn't really hurting the cause (that Jarre's vastly more engaging score is on disc 2 helps enormously) though it still figures that now even Jeff Bond of FSM regards this as something to remember. Trivia note: this was the first of Goldsmith 'wet' scores after being a relatively dry fellow before - this one really sounds huge and epic though it sadly doesn't help to hide its vacuousness.

[Dixon Hill 4,233]

I gather that I'm fortunate to have not seen the second Amazing Spider-Man film, but I'm listening to Zimmer's score again after letting it sit for a while. This is actually pretty good and I'm starting to like it more, though the more subtle moments are still more appealing to me than the action stuff. There's a really stirring moment at the end of the first disc that sounds like it probably leads into the end credits, and I can imagine some equally stirring cinematic sequence to go along with it (which, again, I gather isn't what actually happened). But it's nice that the music conjures those thoughts up on its own. Similar to how I listen to Powell's Hancock: imagining some very fine film to compliment the music.

[Sir Hilary Bray 235]

opted for Where Eagles Dare, sort of helped with the WWII writing.

[Sharkissimo 1,973]

While being much too slick and professional to be called bad, it's so uninspired and mechanical in its very calculated effects that it - Murphy's Law! - figures that it is the sole candidate from Goldsmith's vast library of genius to receive the honor of being featured as the only in-depth demonstration of the composer at work for Fred Karlin's docu.

Someone should have a go at restoring that recording of the Mephisto Waltz sessions. Fascinating watch.

[Faleel 5,342]

Quo Vadis.

[Sharkissimo 1,973]

I gather that I'm fortunate to have not seen the second Amazing Spider-Man film, but I'm listening to Zimmer's score again after letting it sit for a while. This is actually pretty good and I'm starting to like it more, though the more subtle moments are still more appealing to me than the action stuff.

There's something exceedingly powerful about the I->v->VIIb progression, something you hear a lot of in certain strands of pop but rarely in film music.

[DreamTheater 131]

SATURN 3 - ELMER BERNSTEIN

If I rewind my life about 30 years, the music of this film must've already been stuck in my tiny little mind. In fact it was one of the first instances where film music got engraved into my brain, and never to leave again. Way before Aliens, before it all took off and the passion grew.

About the score I can say this: Bernstein wrote some really fantastic and memorable material, otherwise I would've forgotten it by the time Intrada finally released it. And boy, was I happy as a schoolkid when it was released in 2006. The cues that I remember best after seeing the film are 'Training Hector' and 'The Big Dive'. I really love how Intrada handled the album, even if the recording isn't the best, it's pure nostalgia for me and a modern re-recording wouldn't be the same, with all those touches that Bernstein used.

Awesome as fuck with a sci-fi twist, exactly how I like my scores, coupled with some cool suspense and a theme that never got out of my head. Great score !

[Jay 37,323]

Wow, sounds interesting. How does it compare to Slipstream?

[Koray Savas 2,251]

I gather that I'm fortunate to have not seen the second Amazing Spider-Man film, but I'm listening to Zimmer's score again after letting it sit for a while. This is actually pretty good and I'm starting to like it more, though the more subtle moments are still more appealing to me than the action stuff. There's a really stirring moment at the end of the first disc that sounds like it probably leads into the end credits, and I can imagine some equally stirring cinematic sequence to go along with it (which, again, I gather isn't what actually happened). But it's nice that the music conjures those thoughts up on its own. Similar to how I listen to Powell's Hancock: imagining some very fine film to compliment the music.

Hey I like Hancock!

[DreamTheater 131]

Wow, sounds interesting. How does it compare to Slipstream?

I had never heard a second of Slipstream before Perseverance released it. Saturn 3 is a childhood favourite.

I like em both a lot, but they're very different scores. There is a haunting melody Bernstein wrote for the film which ended up not being used in the final cut, he later re-used it as Taarna's theme in Heavy Metal as he felt it was too precious to not use it in some way. He was absolutely right ! The theme for the evil robot is extremely cool and goes like this.

[Jay 37,323]

Cool, I'll definitely check Saturn 3 out, I like Slipstream, and other Bernstein scores I've heard (which admittedly is not a lot)

Chad Seiter - Star Trek: The Game

Such great riffs on Giacchino's themes and melodies, in some ways I like this more than Giacchino's first score! It's lacking the emotional component, and is mostly all action and suspense, but it's still a great listen. I'd have no complaints in Seiter got to score the third movie!

James Horner - Airshow Buzz Squadron

Lovely pieces. Can't wait for Horner's 4 (!!!) 2015 scores

[DreamTheater 131]

You know what... I also love what Seiter did on the Star Trek game, his action cues are so focused and relentless they're much more enjoyable than what Giacchino did for either film. His other disciple, Chris Tilton is another very talented composer I wouldn't mind doing some hi-octane blockbuster.

[crocodile 7,990]

=

James Horner - Airshow Buzz Squadron

Lovely pieces. Can't wait for Horner's 4 (!!!) 2015 scores

And what is that? Never heard of it? Is it the same thing as Write Your Soul?

Jupiter Ascending

Karol

[Incanus 5,713]

Sound of Bells: American Premierés for Brass by various composers, performed by The Bay Brass: A really neat compilation of American works for brass ensemble by John Williams, Bruce Broughton, Kevin Puts, Michael Tilson Thomas, Scott Hiltzik and Morten Lauridsen. Noteworthy for containing world premiere commercial recordings of John Williams's Fanfare for A Festive Occasion and Aloft...To the Royal Masthead the album is really a wonderful collection of very varied Americana brass writing that spans from one end of the spectrum to the next in style and colour.

[Jay 37,323]

The James Horner stuff I'm referring to is this:

http://www.jwfan.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=18966

I think he renamed it to "Flight" recently? I was just going by what the files on my ipod were tagged

[DreamTheater 131]

=

James Horner - Airshow Buzz Squadron

Lovely pieces. Can't wait for Horner's 4 (!!!) 2015 scores

And what is that? Never heard of it? Is it the same thing as Write Your Soul?

Jupiter Ascending

Karol

Write Your Soul aka The Horsemen.

I'd like to know too by the way.

[crocodile 7,990]

Oh I see, this is the same piece that's named differently in various places. Write Your Soul was the iTunes title for it, I think. And yes, it is entertaining. Looking forward to all the scores Horner has got in store for 2015 (four, you say?).

Karol

[Jay 37,323]

Yes, he has four 2015 scores coming out!

Aviation: The Invisible Highway, an IMAX Film by Brian J. Terwilliger

Wolf Totem, a Chinese drama by Jean-Jacques Annaud

The 33, about the Chilean mining disaster by Patricia Riggen

Southpaw, a boxing movie by Antoine Fuqua

All sound interesting to me!

[crocodile 7,990]

Yeah, now I remember.

Karol

[Jay 37,323]

Michael Giacchino - Jupiter Ascending

Well. When I started listening to this (BTW, I actually avoiding listening to samples and website leaks before the OST came out this time, which I rarely do. So I went in completely cold except for one watch of that first video game youtube video that had some score under it) I was afraid that this would be a score by Giacchino I finally "just don't click with", like Erik Woods with Star Trek Into Darkness or Koray Savas with Super 8. The symphony, frankly, didn't do much for me. But then the film cues started, and I liked it more and more as it went on.

There's some really cool action writing here, and an overall really cool blend of orchestra and choral work throughout. The OST seems to lack a narrative through-line - it feels more of a collection of ideas.

I've listened to it probably 3-4 times since, and I have grown to like the symphony more each time.

BTW, one thing: One of the main themes, the one that runs through Abrasax Family Tree - I swear is SO FAMILIAR to me, like it's almost note for note from some other score. I've been racking my brain but can't figure out what. Anyone know what I'm talking about?

[crocodile 7,990]

I counted 8 recurring themes in this score. At first it seemed unstructured but once you start noticing the connective dots, it all starts to make sense.

The suite is the LEAST impressive thing on this album. It's a very straighforward Giacchino presentation of his ideas. Each of the ideas in it gets better variations within the score. You got to love the variations on the main theme in the Wedding track.

But yeah, it took more than two listens to "get it". It's like The Golden Compass in this respect.

Karol

[Jay 37,323]

I will probably like it more once I see the film.

[crocodile 7,990]

I'm reluctant. Not sure if it warrants that cinema ticket. But I would check it out for score alone. We'll see.

Karol

[Jay 37,323]

I try to see every film Williams and Giacchino score in the theaters, though I missed seeing Dawn of the Planet of the Apes. I did see This Is Where I Leave You, though

[BloodBoal 7,538]

[Jay 37,323]

I'm starting to wonder if I just recognized it from either the trailer, or that youtube video of that mobile gameplay that turned up. I haven't rewatched either yet to see

[crocodile 7,990]

The theme in the trailer was the one in the final part of movement no.1. And it's very much like the variations closing the score. I call it the Ascension theme (just because I need a name).

The Abrasax theme is similiar to a lot of evil themes/motifs around there... Nero's theme would be another one of those. Or Patrick Doyle's Voldemort theme.

Karol

[Jay 37,323]

Don Davis - The Matrix Reloaded (La-La Land)

Love this score, I love the blend of orchestra and electronics. I even like all the non-Davis pieces included in the main presentation. Great release of a great score. I don't really play the bonus tracks much.