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What Is The Last Score You Listened To From 2021?


Jay

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Henry Jackman - Ron's Gone Wrong


Anybody here listened to this yet?  It's like a cousin to Wreck-It Ralph and Ralph Breaks The Internet!  It's fun!

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On 17/10/2021 at 2:22 AM, May the Force be with You said:

A really nice score, I didn't plan to watch the show but I was curious by its scores and this one is probably the best of them

This really hits the spot! Thanks for recommending. 

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Naturally too long, but for whatever miraculous reason they allowed Beltrami to get some music in that doesn't sound like a collection of blockbuster trailer library clichés. We are speaking about the non-action stuff, of course. It may be Beltrami's WW1984, except that it's that score's dark twin brother.

 

The score utilizes short and flexible themes and motifs in a very Goldsmith manner (like his customary half tone steps in horn or woodwinds), but without the odd meters, which seem to have been outlawed. Other elements are very Elfman (the more apocalyptic moments and the rhythmic base), there's even some Nine Inch Nails, a Hollywood favourite since 'Seven').

 

On the downside, there's at least 30 minutes that tread water and are not interesting to listen to separated from the movie. 

 

Still, all in all solid middle class. That's big praise these days for Hollywood comic book movies.
 

 

 

Yeah, well. It's 'Kingdom of Heaven's little brother, but ain't that a left-handed compliment. Gregson-Williams latest Ridley Scott job keeps the airy medieval atmosphere and the vocal soloists, but adds neither much thematic congruence nor the sorely missed set pieces to glue the more atmospheric cues together. The few pieces with a more epic spirit are short and appear timid melodically. 

 

It's not bad, per se, and one has to applaud a lean 45-minute score for a big historical movie. Cues like 'Managing the Estate', 'I Offer you a Name' and the last two cues, 'The Aftermath' and 'Celui Que Je Désire' seem to hint at a more satisfying whole, but it's just not there.

 

 

If you eagerly awaited a new epic score that is 'Princess Mononoke' humping later James Horner, Simon Franglen's latest is for you (fittingly, he replaces Horner on the Avatar sequel). It is a pleasant surprise how the big orchestra is utilized throughout, but it's third-generation copy stuff that doesn't have anything to say beyond clichés invented by others. It should appeal to those who applaud every orchestral swell that sounds like old favourites, but the best i can say about it is that it sounds competent.

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ab67616d0000b2735498534f913092782e4eefdd

 

I've always loved Heffes' work , and although this has plenty of wonderful, Fenton-esque moments, a lot of it is hampered by generic, soulless ostinato tropes. Not quite on the level I had expected, given the canvas at his disposal. Needs serious whittling, just as with THE ELEPHANT QUEEN and EARTH - ONE AMAZING DAY. 

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This has received quite a bit of buzz, and I think I can see why. It's a lovely, pastoral score that you don't often hear anymore and that avoids the temptation of dilluting the unashamed orchestral consonance and elaborate structures with ostinato tropes or similar. Certainly a highlight of the year, and I've never even heard of the composer before.

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Same old, same old. I dubbed this style 'karaoke Delerue'. 

 

In contrast: this first glimpse on Greenwood's latest reveals him continuing his film music journey with interesting formal and instrumental choices, even if many don't find it to their liking.

 

https://open.spotify.com/album/1vxb9RaFCB8C3M6EMJLnOn?si=56juJIkATQq1be5LsNk9UQ

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1 minute ago, publicist said:

Same old, same old. I dubbed this style 'karaoke Delerue'. 

 

Ha, ha. Yeah, that's a kinda fitting description. It's not exactly opening new doors. But inbetween a lot of mediocre, anonymous scores, it stands out in its straightforward, well-composed style.

 

ab67616d0000b273f66d0f80b6cce6812e605352

 

Another promo I decided to give another chance. I mean, I like the baroque stylings and pastiche, but there are a LOT of tracks that just chug along here, Desplat-style. Or a bit like those Hooper POTTER scores. Julien is one to watch, though; I previously enjoyed bits of his music to ADIEU LES CONS.

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It's a tv series, afair. I listened to it a few months before and remember liking parts of it but also like you came to realize that i'm too lazy to wade through all the wallpaper. But i give them that, the cover has this tasty Miramax style of old that just makes you click 'play', it's so delicieux!

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13 minutes ago, publicist said:

Same old, same old. I dubbed this style 'karaoke Delerue'. 

 

In contrast: this first glimpse on Greenwood's latest reveals him continuing his film music journey with interesting formal and instrumental choices, even if many don't find it to their liking.

 

https://open.spotify.com/album/1vxb9RaFCB8C3M6EMJLnOn?si=56juJIkATQq1be5LsNk9UQ

 

Not at all bad, and nice use of the harpsichord. But it fells quite pastichey, especially channeling Albinoni too much.

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Just now, Jurassic Shark said:

Not at all bad, and nice use of the harpsichord. But it fells quite pastichey, especially channeling Albinoni too much.

 

That's what i'm saying, i cherish new-ish film composers whose sources range beyond other film composers. And of course are allowed to incorporate such weird fetish into their film scores. 

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4 minutes ago, publicist said:

 

That's what i'm saying, i cherish new-ish film composers whose sources range beyond other film composers. And of course are allowed to incorporate such weird fetish into their film scores. 

 

Oh, definitely, pastiche in film scores isn't necessarily a deal-breaker, and I'm looking forward to hearing more of the score. It's better to take inspiration from Albinoni than HanZ, as everybody else do. Victor Reyes' ultra-pastichey score Grand Piano is among the most fun to me from this millennium, guilty pleasure or not.

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Masters of the Universe: Revelation - Bear McCreary

 

Yo, this rules!  Such a fun soundtrack, with some pretty nice character themes too.  It’s the first McCreary score that’s really done it for me in a couple of years, nice to have another one.

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Lupin by Mathieu Lamboley.

 

Some of the best TV music of the year. Big symphony orchestra mixed with more modern beats. Lots of themes and a great recording.

Both volumes are excellent!!

Hightly recommended!

 

Standout cues:

Arsène

Diamonds

Louvre

Lupin

Le Secret

En Scène!

L'arnaque

Les Milliards

La Symphonie De Lupin

Dans L'ombre D'assane

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Just listened to the first few cues of DUNE. Couldn't get any further. Does having watched the film assist in enjoying the music?

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It can be enjoyed in the film, I don't know that you'd like listening on album any more after watching though. Maybe just an appreciation of the music. 

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ab67616d0000b273471da708058176bcd5f80733

 

Bataller was part of the new Spanish generation of film composers that started making their mark in the 2000s. But after his brilliant TV score for ERMESSENDA in 2011, I haven't really latched on to any of his stuff. This new score has some interesting elements -- a lot of the "shimmering" textures that owe a lot to Richter, but without his religioso harmonies and repeating figures. I don't think it's interesting enough to keep in my collection, but I am at the very least glad to hear some Bataller again.

 

On to:

 

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Nick Foster (for once without his brother Ben) delivers a solid solo score for this 2021 documentary. Dark, slowmoving and elegant. Although somewhat meandering after the midway mark.

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I've never really cared for Gordy Haab and those other guys that do big orchestral videogame/STAR WARS stuff, sorry. It's mostly "empty stuffing", IMO, that just grates. But this is quite decent. It's basically a Chinese propaganda film called MY COUNTRY, MY PARENTS. Sometimes propaganda films can sport great scores (like Windt's scores for Riefenstahl, Rahman's score for MUHAMMAD: MESSENGER OF GOD etc.). Definitely sweeping, but the value is in the broad, ethnic and romantic here rather than the action stuff. "Going to War" is a fun Horner ripoff, though.

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A bit like the recent scores by Christopher Willis, meaning it's not just the usual minimalist mill wheel rotating again, but more like a idiosyncratic romantic score with emphasis on strings, piano and a gentle theremin. Much better than most of what i listened to recently.

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John Debney - Home Sweet Home Alone

 

Hey, this score's real nice.  The 47 minutes flies by; The OST album is assembled very nicely.  Williams themes are nicely worked into the cues, rather than the score stopping to present verbatim versions of what we already have like some sequel scores do.  Nicely done!

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4 hours ago, filmmusic said:

Spencer by Jonny Greenwood.

Wow! Very sophisticated! I Love it!

 

Looking forward to delving into it soon!

 

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This is lots of fun. A mish-mash of SHERLOCK HOLMES, TOYS, MATCHSTICK MEN, Mazzaro's CHAPPIE stuff and everything inbetween. Throw in some yodeling too. A fresh and "open" score after the darker and more complex DUNE. About 20 minutes too long though, another one to the whittling list. I quite liked the film too, although it's not on the level of ARMY OF THE DEAD.

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Spencer by Jonny Greenwood

 

I watched the film at TIFF back in September and was looking forward to having the OST available (as with his score to the Campion film). This is a cousin score to Phantom Thread, eschewing its romantic elegance for a more rigorous and intellectual baroque palette and structure. Ground basses with harpsichords and organs galore, counterweighted by some wild contemporary jazz and Greenwood's typical modernist stylings. There's a great cue that feels like it's about to erupt into some Vivaldi before its hackneyed by a nightmarish collage of jazzy trumpet delays, atonal harpsicord accents and quarter-tone fun. Nice hearing this evolution in Greenwood's musical sensibilities.

 

 

 

The Eternals by Ramin Djawadi

 

Aside from the one nice choral cue in the middle, the bulk of it is nothing to write home about. With that said, the opening title theme is pretty catchy, especially the ostinato. The whole thing could use some more organ.

 

 

 

The Electrical Life of Louis Wain by Arthur Sharpe

 

Pleasant writing, unabashedly sentimental with some nice colours. It can be a lot for an hour, depending on your mood, but solid stuff.

 

 

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Eternals went from having a couple of nice (but hardly groundbreaking) samples, to a score that's now easily in my top scores of 2021.

 

It's simplistic and has some pretty cookie-cutter action material, but the rest of it is just beautiful and memorable. The album plays really well, and from the sounds of the Pitch Meeting, probably best left that way.

 

And while I'm on the subject, The Last Duel, which I originaly wrote off as a KoH clone.... well my words shall be eaten. I've played this one loads of times.

 

I suppose Annabelle Comes Home would also fit 'recently listened to'. It's an outlier in Joseph Bishara's otherwise rather listened unfriendly horror scores which I actually find interesting.

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ab67616d0000b2730a7b3b53fb5243b0e092dcd1

 

Such a disappointment. It's like there was a mantra here - "insert the occasional BLADE RUNNER sound, but try to keep it as generic and boring as possible otherwise". This is a far cry from both Vangelis and Zimmer/Wallfisch. Maybe a handful of decent tracks in the much-too-long, 73-minute running time. They should have gotten Frank Klepacki to do it, he solved it beautifully in the 1997 videogame. I do look forward to seeing the series itself, though.

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6 minutes ago, Thor said:

This is a far cry from both Vangelis and Zimmer/Wallfisch. 

 

Since the Blade Runner 2049 score is a piece of shit, i just cannot imagine this thing being any worse. I will investigate soon!

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Yeah, we won't see eye to eye on this one, I'm afraid.

 

ab67616d0000b2736e3c2f54d9bfc7aa638a89b2

 

Straight-up consonance is anathema to Greenwood -- which is both a source of frustration and fascination. Especially when he wanders this close, both in the jazz and classical realms. But by all means -- there's enough here to properly explore.

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11 hours ago, Thor said:

ab67616d0000b2730a7b3b53fb5243b0e092dcd1

 

Such a disappointment. It's like there was a mantra here - "insert the occasional BLADE RUNNER sound, but try to keep it as generic and boring as possible otherwise". This is a far cry from both Vangelis and Zimmer/Wallfisch. Maybe a handful of decent tracks in the much-too-long, 73-minute running time. They should have gotten Frank Klepacki to do it, he solved it beautifully in the 1997 videogame. I do look forward to seeing the series itself, though.

Is this a video game, tv series???😗

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Kaamelott by Alexandre Astier

One of my favourite score of the year, truly terrific with some great lyrical writing.

For those who don't know Astier is also the main actor, director, writer and editor of this show/movie, which make you realised how talented he is when listening to this score

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The Power of the Dog by Jonny Greenwood

 

Another enigmatic and rewarding cocktail from Greenwood. This time assembling a series of broadly cryptic horn duets, wonky mechanical piano solos and lovely chamber string miniatures. I remember these gestures really making me think of TWBB when I watched the film months back, but this feels more like its own thing on the OST, while very much in Greenwood's musical vernacular. And boy, does this guy understand the power of brevity when it comes to albums. 

 

 

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Nami Melumad - Star Trek Prodigy

 

I just can't get into this one, I think because the OST album is 94 minutes long and not a nice short introduction to this world.  I just tune out after a while.  Giacchino's opening theme track likewise is exciting at first then kinda peters out.  Oh well.

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11 minutes ago, Jay said:

Nami Melumad - Star Trek Prodigy

 

I just can't get into this one, I think because the OST album is 94 minutes long and not a nice short introduction to this world.  I just tune out after a while.  Giacchino's opening theme track likewise is exciting at first then kinda peters out.  Oh well.

There's also an album almost half it's runtime. But for me personally it didn't do much

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