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The LSO likes my LEGO Johnny:

And we have arrival! Already listened to the first 4 tracks. Amazing! I liked this score previously. I am sure I am going to love it now.

Better black-out your barcode!

After a few hours of fun, here's the score in film order: S2 - A Baby Carriage Meets Heavy Traffic (2:01) S8C - Rooftop Broom Kidnap (2:42-End) [Rename to "No More Parties"] S14 - Good With Kids (1:23) S15 - Enlightenment (1:32) S9A - The Scoleri Brothers (:00-:59) [Rename to "The Verdict"] S4A - Order in the Court (:00-:2:09.4) S13C - Vigo’s Last Stand (2:05.65-End) [Rename to "Carpathian Kitten Loss"] S4B - Order in the Court (2:09.4-3:05.5) [Rename to "Bath Time"] S9C - The Scoleri Brothers (1:20-End) [Rename to "Suck in the Guts (Alternate)"] S4C - Order in the Court (3:05.5-End) [Rename to "She Cleaned"] S8A - Rooftop Broom Kidnap (:00-:38) [Rename to "Asking Janine Out"] S11B - A Slime Darkened Doorway (1:16.8-End) [Rename to "Developing Photos"] S11A - A Slime Darkened Doorway (:00-1:16.8) [Rename to "River of Slime"] S9B - The Scoleri Brothers (:59-1:20) [Rename to "No Reservations"] S8B - Rooftop Broom Kidnap (:38-2:42) [Rename to "Rooftop"] S7 - In Liberty’s Shadow (3:48) S13B - Vigo’s Last Stand (1:15.9-2:05.65) [Rename to "Janosz is Hosed"] S5 - He’s Got Carpathian Eyes (2:34) S13A - Vigo’s Last Stand (:00-1:15.9) S16 - Family Portrait (:00-1:29.86) S1 - A Few Friends Save Manhattan (2:01) Unused/Newly Composed Tracks: S12 - One Leaky Sewer Faucet (1:13) S3 - Venkman’s 6th Ave. Strut (3:06) S6 - The Sensitive Side of Dana (4:08) S10 - Oscar is Quietly Surrounded (4:23) S16 - Finale (1:29.86-End) https://chrono-score.blogspot.com/2021/08/ghostbusters-ii-1989.html S14 is tracked into a few other areas and the fanfare from S7 is also heard elsewhere. Many of the tracks are alternates of some sort. The only reason S9C is marked as an alternate is because it is 100% different from what was heard in the film but the instrumentation heard is similar to pieces from that section. The finale of S16 is heard on S1 with a piano track preceding it that is unheard in the film. Enjoy.

I keep the receipts to all the CDs I buy…

I am waiting to listen to Maurizio's podcast. I don't watch movie trailers for the same reason. I sort of want to jump in blind when the CD arrives. I'll then go back and listen to the podcast, almost like listening to an audio commentary after watching a movie. Does anyone else like to place the sound file of the Mike Matessino interviews at the end of their playlists? I think they are golden analyses, and regard them like bonus features on a DVD/Blu.

The 30-disc Star Wars set was days away from being announced, but Williams rang Kathy Kennedy and demanded the entire release was scrapped the moment he heard the Helicopter source cue was accidentally released. He also doused the only surviving Sugarland tapes with gasoline and threw them into his fireplace.

The impression I get is that MM rarely interacts with JW directly. He meets with Jamie Richardson and gives him a proposed new album, and later after Jamie and JW have listened to it, Jamie tells MM whatever JW wanted to relay about what they heard, and he makes any requested changes to the master and that's that. JW rarely goes "on the record" for anyone other than specific interviewers these days Though after reading that note he wrote about his 2nd violin concerto, I wish he'd write a few paragraphs about his old scores for each new specialty label release...

You know what's funny? I don't associate a lot of "space music" with Space. Like Star Wars I associate with heroism, CE3K with myth and human triumph, Star Trek with exploration and human progress, Moonraker with what Bespin said. But The Planets, which is not really about space at all, I do associate with space!

The action music of John Williams is never just NOISE or generic action music, it's fugues mixed with percussive madness and lyrical sections... it's structured and it have a development, it's not just sections of music randomly mixed together. That's very complex writing! And it is... just WOW!

Hollywood Records and Marvel Music will release the first soundtrack album for Marvel Studios’ Disney+ original series What If…? The album features the original music from the show’s first episode (What If…Captain Carter Were The First Avenger?) composed by Emmy Award winner Laura Karpman (Lovecraft Country, Set It Up, Paris Can Wait, Why We Hate, Step, Underground). The soundtrack will be available to stream/download on all major digital music platforms tomorrow, August 13. Check back on this page for the purchase link. What If…? is developed by A.C. Bradley, directed by Bryan Andrews and reimagines famous events from Marvel’s feature films in unexpected ways, focussing on different heroes from the MCU. The first episode, which explores what would happen if the events of Captain America: The First Avenger occurred differently, premiered yesterday and new episodes will debut every Wednesday on Disney+. Here’s the track list of the album: 1. Main Title (1:07) 2. My Favorite Story…?? (1:39) 3. A Lighter (1:25) 4. A New Hero (0:56) 5. Glorified Battery (1:35) 6. Attack of the Peggy (2:02) 7. What to Do (0:45) 8. You Owe Me a Dance (1:39) 9. Rescue (1:04) 10. Demands to a God (1:22) 11. You Are My Hero (0:47) 12. Tragic Fall (2:29) 13. Captain’s Speech (0:39) 14. Assault to the Castle (2:06) 15. Growing Tentacles (1:08) 16. All Day (1:44) 17. She’s Gone (0:37) 18. We Won the War (0:38) http://filmmusicreporter.com/2021/08/12/first-soundtrack-album-for-marvels-disney-series-what-if-to-be-released/ Her score for Lovecraft Country was pretty interesting, so I'm curious to listen to her music for What If, specially if it has references to previous MCU scores.

A.I. Artificial Intelligence (2001) "I'm sorry I didn't tell you about the world." I've always felt there was an important piece missing from my understanding of Spielberg's filmography. I could never quite figure out what it was, and I certainly didn't expect the answer to come from a film that had already been made. While there remains a handful of holes in my viewing of his work (A.I. being one of them for the longest time), I had long thought it likely that this void might only ever be filled by a new Spielberg project, a coda that had the opportunity to convey something truly and deeply retrospective (The Fablemans perhaps?). Nonetheless, I now realize that this unexplained absence I had once felt was merely an oversight on my part, and has been wholly remedied by what is surely one of the most reflective and rewarding films of Spielberg's career. While many will revisit what may be one of our greatest director's most misunderstood films for its 20th anniversary this year, this was a first time viewing for me. It's hard to articulate the impact inherent in the nature of the material, so I will avoid diving too far into the many philosophical questions the film raises, but the endlessly captivating presentation is perhaps the single finest delivery that one could hope for. Spielberg, Williams, and Kaminski manage to communicate such immensely rich and complicated concepts in perfect synthesis, achieving a pure combination of music and images to create what some have described as "a glimpse into eternity" (such a phrase may read as cheesy hyperbole, but I doubt it has ever been more true). As always, John Williams' contribution is nothing short of masterful. In many ways, A.I. is one of his finest works; a tone poem worthy of the concert hall. Williams' instrumentation is particularly dynamic, with piano, cor anglais, and wordless choir all playing vital roles that stand above comparison in his vast body of work. I'm not skilled enough to wax lyrical about the countless masterstrokes present throughout this score, although I would very much like to be able to. I will say, however, that Abandoned in the Woods is my personal favourite cue, as it splendidly accentuates a heartbreaking scene with equal parts tension and emotion. The way Williams' develops his leitmotifs really lends well to scoring moments such as this, as there is a remarkably effective sincerity to the emphasis his music provides that ultimately marks the argument of manipulation as void. His ability to develop thematic material in this manner has never been more subtle, and yet all of the power that would be expected in a more overt approach is completely retained, if not multiplied, as this fascinating catalogue of motifs weaves together to form one of Williams' greatest tapestries. Janusz Kaminski gets a lot of flack for his work in the early 2000s, with an aesthetic typically defined by bright white lighting and intense bloom. With A.I., however, there's a clear and consistent visual purpose to nearly every scene, solidifying it as a definitive high for Spielberg's longtime cinematographer. DPs and directors can go their whole career without ever coming close to the superb symbolism constantly on display here. For example, the image of David's confused and estranged face framed through the empty eye of his replica (see top left); the same manufactured shell, yet seen through an entirely different set of eyes. Further emphasis on David's multiplicity is made apparent by another striking shot (see top right), with the camera constantly refuting his hopes for human individuality by repeatedly reinforcing that he is still one of many. A dinner scene offers yet another vivid image to dissect (see bottom left): a halo over David echoes the manufacturer's marketing of the boy as "the perfect child", yet it is the same thing that separates him from his adoptive parents in the shot. The depth of these stills alone is unmatched. The lonely and isolated image of David abandoned in the woods (see bottom right) is a lasting one, and it is important to note that it is seen not through the eyes of Monica, but through the soulless reflection of the car's side mirror. There is no other perspective to turn to, as Monica cannot bring herself to look back. I do not possess the ability to unpack in mere words the philosophical wellspring that is so crucial to this wondrously provocative narrative, and while there are certainly several equally valid interpretations to be compared and analyzed, the film ultimately requires a more independent and personal understanding. Nonetheless, there's no doubt in my mind that the efforts of all involved combine to create a truly astounding and transcendent experience. I look forward to seeing how my relationship with this film changes as I grow older, as I'm certain new nuances will come to the fore with age. "Make a wish." "It came true already." P.S. I wrote about this film two months ago and for whatever reason I never posted about it here. Better late than never I suppose.

I am curious about your associations. Mine might be a bit vanilla, but there it is:

beside of "insanely non-chronological" I am sooooooo happy to finally have the possibilty to listen to this music. I'm happy with this release. I fully agree with Richard: those three tracks with the addition of He's Got Carpathian Eyes !!! just awesome childhood memories and thank you @Turbo for this fast analysis

Ghostbusters, 2016. When I learned about this movie, my first reflex was to hate it because I didn’t understand why we needed to remake movies and change people’s sex/gender, I have no idea what’s the right word these days. And I still don’t. Just make new movies. Then I watched the original one and found it to be rather sexist and stupid, an opinion that greatly offended a fellow forum member and that was not shared by two women I spoke to who still remembered its premiere. Anyway, I turned the 1984 one off. And now I just turned this one off too. The score and songs are good, but even though Kate McKinnon and Kristen Wiig are in it, I knew deep down I was never going to finish it since I turn off every single Melissa McCarthy movie I come across. But she’s not annoying at all compared to Lesley Jones. My God. There’s also to many rude jokes. Wait a minute, Chris Hemsworth is Australian? Nice! Y’all enjoy reacting to my post, babies.

Next challenge: get it signed by JW himself.

The Neon Demon (2016) Photographically sound, but that's about it. And to be very clear, 'photographically sound' doesn't mean 'cinematographically sound'. There's more to movies and the language of film than good compositions and beautiful lighting. 5/10

Out of weakness, I went ahead and ordered the uncorrected pressing from another retailer. I contacted him and made sure it would be the July stock from LLL and he confirmed. OCD is a horrible thing.

Please don't bother specialty labels with questions about orders you placed while things were in stock. You'll just slow them down from shipping those early orders out. If you don't get a shipping notice in a few days, ask then. But you'll probably get it today

This is a really good point. The passion that went into making those films, especially Lord of the Rings, never ceases to amaze me. The love and respect for the source material is apparent in every scene, and you could tell these are people who really cared about what they were doing, and wanted to show the world what Kiwi ingenuity & talent could produce. I love watching the Appendices (again, to LOTR) almost as much as the films themselves.

Ok, so I guess you are a more mature personality than we are.

Unfortunately the way international shipping is scaled for overseas buyers really disincentives small purchases. So I really just have to hope all the stars align and the 4 titles I want to buy will be in stock once Eiger returns.

Probably just a side effect of having been on film music forums for 25 years, and seen the topic come and go about a million times. I realize there are fresh and young people coming in for whom this is a brand new topic.

I actually did a podcast episode on this very topic in 2014. It's in Norwegian, but you can click the playlist to see some of my favourites within this "genre": http://celluloidtunes.no/celluloid-tunes-24-musikk-fra-verdensrom-filmer/

"In Liberty's Shadow" is everything I could have wanted and more with that opening. What an ending too! 32 years waiting!

Urgh, that just feels wrong. 6 movies and one season in New Zealand and then they move. Just doesn’t seem right. NZ has been well established as Me in this onscreen universe so it’s an awful pity to break continuity like that. There’s some lovely places in the U.K. and obviously the Professor was inspired by places in the U.K. when writing the books but it seems inconsistent. The U.K. doesn’t have any of those sweeping mountain ranges we see in the films for example.

Like the Yin and Yan ya know... the Yohn and Yerry! I love you Yohn!

Thanks for addressing my concerns and thanks for the help. By the way, I checked my e-mail after said concerns were relieved… Shipped!

Sure. There were lots of practical reasons to film exclusively there, the strength of the USD vs. NZD, support of the NZ tourism board, and of course the fact that the director lived there. But I'd disagree that it wasn't in the audience's interest to do so. One of the advantages to filming LOTR exclusively in New Zealand that's not talked about a lot is how unfamiliar it all looked to audiences at the time. It's hard to imagine this now of course, as popular as tourism there has become and as familiar with NZ's scenery world-wide audience are, but back then it was something new for a lot of people, this land at the bottom of the world that held so many spectacular vistas on two relatively small islands. The Alps in Europe, the American Rockies & plains, the Scottish highlands and the greenery of Ireland were all very recognizable to audiences, but New Zealand was something different, and that lack of familiarity to the average film goer helped create the illusion that you were peering into Middle-earth in a way none of those other locations could. I don't want to overstate it of course, NZ has always been a holiday destination, especially for Brits. But you also can't overstate how much its exploded since LOTR, and now every one is familiar with that stunning scenery, and the illusion wouldn't work as well today, but back then it was like another world to most viewers. Oh gosh, I'd hope not. The "story" they're "adapting" lends itself to being more of a Game of Thrones style drama, even perhaps a kind of family drama, than it does an epic quest.

That's for sure.

To be fair, when news initially broke out yesterday, I was having a spot of indigestion before my issue had...erm...resolved itself. So my lack of enthusiasm can be attributed to that. I do think Scotland and Wales and (if they choose to go there) Ireland could offer some very nice landscapes and as you say they can always be interspersed either with existing footage from New Zealand or from footage generated by a small crew sent there. Actually Willow intercut Wales and New Zealand quite well. I think this show will be much less predicated on a "trekking through wilderness" premise anyway: it doesn't suit the subject matter and it doesn't really fit TV anyway. So suppose we have scenes set in Forlond and Ost-in-Edhil, for the establishing shots you could recycle the same wides with the city perched into the same New Zealand landscape, and then when you cut to street level (much less to interiors) the audience will be none the wiser. It was never actually in our interest as viewers that Middle Earth be "100% New Zealand". It was in the interest of New Zealand authorities for promotion of tourism and in the interest of the filmmakers partially for convenience, but ideally the most suitable locations would have been selected from across the globe: in the audio commentary for the Rohan scenes, Jackson admits that "New Zealand doesn't have" prairie-like landscapes of flat grasslands. Indeed, there are a couple of shots that are technically NOT New Zealand: Rauros falls are, depending on the shot, either taken from footage of Niagra falls or some undisclosed waterfall in Peru.

Stuff we didn't hear in Vienna, The Throne Room and Finale, Yoda's Theme, Olympic Fanfare (because olympics this year), Superman Theme, things like that would be nice, in addition to a few classics of course.

I'm impressed there's still all this stamina to discuss something so tired and old. The Williams vs. Goldsmith debate has been a stalwart discussion for as long as I've been visiting film music forums (long before too, but then less visible). What happened with enjoying both composers' work for their own inherent values?

Just clicked through to that recent trailer. This movie looks dumb as shit. Can’t wait to watch it!

the Zimmer way!

That, or maybe a new arrangement on "Arts and Sports" movement from American Journey. That one wasn't part of An Unfinished Journey, back in December 31 1999, and I recall it being played on the 2002 Oscar Ceremony, as attendees were getting seated. That was the same ceremony were Williams premiered his Tribute to the Film Composer.

Um, am I supposed to know any of these actors?

I enjoyed hearing the Arrival on Kamino motif being used and it worked quite well for the initial scene…then it kept being used and it started being ridiculous. Mostly because it was almost the exact same in presentation each time, so it was like the same needle drop (I know it’s a synth recording) over and over.

The best part is that after doing it, he told Columbus "you need a better whistler than me for this", and he replied "I know, but if I have to read this joke one more time, you won't live to 89." (No, seriously, he said he wasn't very good, listen to the interview)

So do you like him more now?

And Spielberg's movie about the childhood of J.G. Ballard is my favorite Spielberg movie. I hope Williams will not be on autopilot with this one.

So is it pronounced "Spum-see" or like spunk but with an "m"?