What Is The Last Score You Listened To From 2022?

[Thor 7,478]

16 hours ago, Knight of Ren said:

Emily - Abel Korzeniowski

 

It's always great to hear Korzeniowski in his fully orchestral mode, and this soundtrack it's a great representation of his overall style, with gorgeous orchestral passages of inmense beauty, being a particular highlight the use of a violin solo in some cues, which partially reminded me of The Village by James Newton Howard, which is one of my favorite scores ever.

 

It's a pleasant soundtrack, with beautiful melodies, fully orchestral, and while it might offer anything completely new, as I said, it's always nice to hear Korzeniowski in his purely orchestral style because he does it so well!

 

Listening to this now as well. I'm not quite as enthused as you, but fairly so. I obsessed over Korzeniowski a bit in the late 2000s and first half of the 2010s. Even met him in Ghent during this period. Just adored his take on the post-minimalist romanticism that became fashionable at the time (alongside Marianelli, Richter etc.). However, he hasn't done anything that has wowed me since ROMEO & JULIET almost 10 years ago - whether that is because that particular style has become somewhat omnipresent since then or because he himself hasn't captured former glories.

 

TILL didn't do it for me this year, but EMILY comes pretty close (I'm glad he added choir in certain tracks to add some extra flavour to what would otherwise have been stale ostinati). It's strong enough to enter my iTunes collection, so I'll have to see if it fares after a few more listens.

[filmmusic 1,823]

Listening now to White noise by Elfman.

If I didn't know better (that is, read the synopsis of the film), I would think this is for a fantasy film. Weird.

[filmmusic 1,823]

The Batman (Michael Giacchino)

This kind of music isn't for me...

I still think Elfman's masterpieces can't be reached.

[Tom Guernsey 2,281]

Disenchanted (Alan Menken) - Well, that was... disenchanting. Having seen the film on Disney+ and listened to the album a couple of times, I would still find it challenging to hum any of the songs, fun though they are. It feels like Menken has lost some of that effortlessness of his older works (even if I'm sure they weren't effortless to write, it sounds like they were), the songs from Disenchanted never quite land where you expect, but not in a good way. I'm sure I'll give them a few more goes but can't help be a bit disappointed (especially compared with the glory that is Aladdin in its expanded edition). The film itself was something of a let down; a decent and clever idea that just kinda falls flat and goes on far too long. Oh well, roll on live action Little Mermaid (fingers crossed they don't make a hash of it).

 

Matilda (Tim Minchin, score by Christopher Nightingale) - As someone who saw the original production in Stratford by the RSC and absolutely loved it, I'm pleased that the translation of the songs for the screen has been done very effectively, especially Emma Thompson who seems to be have a wail of a time as Miss Trunchbull. The new song, Still Holding My Hand, is lovely and fits in really well alongside the existing songs (something that isn't always the case... I'm looking at you Speechless from the live action Aladdin which sounds like it's from a totally different show/film/score). Christopher Nightingale isn't a name I know, but seems to have some MCU additional music credits and adapts some of the song melodies effectively for the few snippets of underscore that are sprinkled across the album.

 

It's a shame that Tim Minchin's musical film for Dreamworks was buried, and shame on them for not only cancelling it but also not letting him take his work somewhere else. Corporate bullshit and its most shitty.

[GerateWohl 4,344]

22 hours ago, Tom Guernsey said:

Disenchanted (Alan Menken) - Well, that was... disenchanting. Having seen the film on Disney+ and listened to the album a couple of times, I would still find it challenging to hum any of the songs, fun though they are. It feels like Menken has lost some of that effortlessness of his older works (even if I'm sure they weren't effortless to write, it sounds like they were), the songs from Disenchanted never quite land where you expect, but not in a good way. I'm sure I'll give them a few more goes but can't help be a bit disappointed (especially compared with the glory that is Aladdin in its expanded edition). The film itself was something of a let down; a decent and clever idea that just kinda falls flat and goes on far too long. Oh well, roll on live action Little Mermaid (fingers crossed they don't make a hash of it).

For quite some time now I got the impression that already in the 90s Menken ran out of song melodies.

[filmmusic 1,823]

On 19/11/2022 at 9:31 AM, publicist said:

The Son' is supposed to be written by Hans Zimmer, but truth to be told, it's completely empty of any of his (or anyone else's) characteristics - it's 20 minutes of wafting (it could be used as background for hospital recovery rooms without offending too many). 

Just listened to this too.

yeah, I agree that it doesn't sound like Zimmer.

I liked "Love is not enough", but the rest seemed too static too me..

 

[thestat 348]

Agree about White Noise - it's okay as an Elfman sampler but so disjointed (more or less like anything he does nowadays). Some very interesting material but it's all so obviously parodic that it kind of defeats the purpose.

 

Have not bothered listening to Menken since someone Tylerified his Beauty and the Beast and Aladdin scores for the remakes (ie. he's got a massive team of orchestrators that 'translated' the originals into the modern shapeless, uniform vernacular of orchestral Hollywood scoring).

 

The Batman I like - it is actually interesting. A lot of contemporary scoring is about finding interesting sounds (see the work of Ariel Marx - great soundscapes, but would never listen to that stuff outside of the shows). MG manages (only here, his other works are terrible orchestral nonsensescapes) to do a soundscape and actually make it listenable as a score - that's something to be appreciated nowadays

 

Korzeniowski's work here is great - he's finally allowed to do more than The Single Man and it shows, even if it is a bit samey:

 

[publicist 4,643]

 

Xmas bliss with Yamaha charm.

[JNHFan2000 2,944]

53 minutes ago, publicist said:

 

Xmas bliss with Yamaha charm.

Haven't listened to it yet, but just hoping he actually gets the the real musicians this time. He is too good a composer to just being able to use samplers

[Jay 37,323]

Danny Elfman & Chris Bacon - Wednesday

 

Oooh, I liked this!  It's a lot of fun!  If you decide to check it out, note that the first 33 tracks are the main 89 minute score album, and the rest are bonus tracks.  I'd recommend just starting with the main score program and saving the bonus tracks for a second listen.

[publicist 4,643]

 

Elfman in a time capsule. It's not bad, but apart from 'Mars Attacks' his circus stuff never held much appeal for me and this makes no exception.

[GerateWohl 4,344]

2 hours ago, publicist said:

 

Elfman in a time capsule. It's not bad, but apart from 'Mars Attacks' his circus stuff never held much appeal for me and this makes no exception.

I must say it again. When I hear such scores, I wonder why Elfman was never asked to write a score in the Hogwards franchise.

[JNHFan2000 2,944]

I love the Wednesday score. But I might be a bit biased, because I also love the series and the other Addams Family scores

[JNHFan2000 2,944]

Not really a score, but DreamWorks animation has a new logo. Music by Harry Gregson-Williams.

 

 

[JNHFan2000 2,944]

Should anyone be interested in a shorter playlist of the 2 volumes of 1883, a vinyl release is on Amazon with the following tracklist. 13 tracks from both volumes totalling just under 45 minutes. Great way to discover the score should you feel like the almost 3 hours is a lot.

 

1. 1883 Theme
2. Requiem
3. Fort Worth
4. Enter James Dutton
5. Sounds Like A Song
6. The Hell They Know
7. Lost Love
8. Lightning Yellow Hair
9. Worthless Pretty Things
10. Tornado
11. This Thing Called Death
12. It Was Beautiful
13. 1883 Main Titles

[Bespin 8,480]

Usually I don't listen to scores recorded before the 70s... 1883... What can I say?

[publicist 4,643]

 

The theme from 'Knives Out', Part 2 in its harpsichord-flavored playfulness seems like modernized Marple-Goodwin - the general dreariness of current mainstream scoring makes this a very welcome anomaly indeed. Unfortunately, the complete score  can't keep up and meanders along (like part 1) - but reduced to 15 minutes (first quarter, last quarter) it's still a nice year-end highlight.

[JNHFan2000 2,944]

Our Universe - Anne Nikitin & Jessica Jones

 

This a pleasant album. It's not as grand as some of the other nature documentaries like Our Planet or Planet Earth, but I still enjoyed it.

There's more use of solo vocals and electronics. I didn't really pick up on the theme in the body of the score. Maybe my thoughts will change after seeing the series.

[publicist 4,643]

 

Federico Jusid's surprisingly good score for a new tv series that just came out. A revisionist Western drama with Emily Blunt about a woman seeking revenge on the man she blames for the death of her son. It's a curious recall of the edgy intricacy of Goldsmith's 60's westerns (think of an updated 'Hour of the Gun') in spots, especially with the prominent featuring of prepared piano and the driving string triplets, coupled with a broader theme full of european melos, which could also grace a modern setting (which gets a surprising, for a tv series. that is, workout in the 8-minute 'Soon has Come' cue). And with hardly 30 minutes in length it avoids the usual stillstand that befalls so many of the longer recent releases.

[Thor 7,478]

13 hours ago, JNHFan2000 said:

Should anyone be interested in a shorter playlist of the 2 volumes of 1883, a vinyl release is on Amazon with the following tracklist. 13 tracks from both volumes totalling just under 45 minutes. Great way to discover the score should you feel like the almost 3 hours is a lot.

 

1. 1883 Theme
2. Requiem
3. Fort Worth
4. Enter James Dutton
5. Sounds Like A Song
6. The Hell They Know
7. Lost Love
8. Lightning Yellow Hair
9. Worthless Pretty Things
10. Tornado
11. This Thing Called Death
12. It Was Beautiful
13. 1883 Main Titles

 

That's neat! I have the 1 hour 20 minute first volume, which was way down on my "whittle list". Didn't know when I was going to get around to it. That's about the amount of minutes I wanted to whittle the first volume down to. Guess I need to get volume 2 first, though.

[Bespin 8,480]

Time of the year to make a little recap of the 2022 releases who got my attention this year so far.

 

25 new releases and expansions for me! Again it was a huuuge year! And the year is even not finished yet (few titles announced recently will make it in my next January order!).

 

[JNHFan2000 2,944]

Slumberland - Pinar Toprak

 

I liked this. It's much like a fantasy score by James Newton Howard, which makes sense because the director usually works with him.

There are some nice themes and it's fully orchestral. Not one of the best of the year, but I enjoyed it a lot

[Thor 7,478]

 

Colin Stetson is always one to watch, but sometimes his avantgarde soundscapes get a bit too abstract for my taste (as was the case with COLOR OUT OF TIME last year -- spectacular film, but the score left me cold). This is more accessible -- lots of shimmering, static textures, with some faux-upper-class underneath, underlining the satire of the warped, posh restaurant industry. Okay, but not something I'll keep, I think.

[JNHFan2000 2,944]

Dominic Lewis has created one of the biggest surprises of the year for me. It's a fully orchestral christmas action score.

It has big brass, a great theme, christmas carols/songs and is just a ton of fun. I absolutely love it.

 

My favourite cue is definitely "Feliz Navi-Dead". The whole cue is great but the final 30 second made me laugh out loud. Incredible!

[Tom Guernsey 2,281]

32 minutes ago, JNHFan2000 said:

Dominic Lewis has created one of the biggest surprises of the year for me. It's a fully orchestral christmas action score.

It has big brass, a great theme, christmas carols/songs and is just a ton of fun. I absolutely love it.

 

My favourite cue is definitely "Feliz Navi-Dead". The whole cue is great but the final 30 second made me laugh out loud. Incredible!

Nice. I’ll have to check this out. His score for Spirited is pretty good fun but more filler for between the songs. As someone who thinks the Greatest Showman is a crime against musicals, I was not predisposed to like the Pasek and Paul songs but I have to admit they are infectiously fun even if, as one reviewer of the film described them, they sound like an impression of a musical rather than anything original. But it’s a lot of fun (and much more enjoyable than Disenchanted which pains me as a massive Menken fan). 

[Knight of Ren 787]

 

I was familiar with Ivan Palomares because of his excellent score for En las Estrellas, and he recently recieved a nomination for best original score for the music of this movie in the spanish equivalent of the Oscars (En las Estrellas also got nominated).

 

The movie came out a couple of months on Netflix, but I recently realized that the score was released like a week ago on Spotify, and I absolutely recommend it to lovers of classical-inspired, beautiful and emotional music. The score fits perfectly with the movie (which is fine, nothing great), and makes many scenes be improved by his work. There are some atmospheric passages and even some horror hints, but when the main theme enters the scene (like in El Pantano de Cristal) the music soars.

 

These beautiful orchestral passages with his own themes, and the clever interpolations he does of fragments of the Giselle ballet by Adolphe Adam (which got partially rearranged and re-recorded by the composer for the movie) are an absolute highlight, and a strong recommendation if you're looking for a gorgeous, emotional and dramatic score which isn't afraid to burst with emotion and beauty.

 

One of my biggest surprises of the year, and I think Ivan Palomares really deserves that award (even if the other scores are also great!)

[JNHFan2000 2,944]

Thanks for the recommendation

[Matt C 452]

Home Sweet Home Alone - John Debney

 

It's certainly leagues better than Nick Glennie Smith's score for Home Alone 3 -- but Debney is doing a William Ross-esque job of rearranging and placement of Williams' themes  wholesale for the most part (and he quotes them frequently). Even the villainous husband-wife duo get a similar woodwind motif to Harry and Marv. 

 

It's not a bad score but Debney hardly brought anything new to it. Stick with Williams' original score.

[Disco Stu 15,495]

I watched the Pitch Meeting for the movie and felt that was probably as much as I needed to see

[LSH 968]

A MAN CALLED OTTO - THOMAS NEWMAN

 

Very Newman-esque. Quirky and rhythmic. Very little orchestra for the most part - there's the odd warm string chord passage, bass pizzicato, noodly woodwind and harp here and there. Couple of nice softer cues that sound like they're from Saving Mr. Banks.

 

Deserves another listen before I complete judgement; it's quite nice but a bit boring.

 

Looking forward to his score to the other Marc Forster film more.

[Thor 7,478]

On 04/12/2022 at 12:55 AM, LSH said:

A MAN CALLED OTTO - THOMAS NEWMAN

 

Very Newman-esque. Quirky and rhythmic. Very little orchestra for the most part - there's the odd warm string chord passage, bass pizzicato, noodly woodwind and harp here and there. Couple of nice softer cues that sound like they're from Saving Mr. Banks.

 

Deserves another listen before I complete judgement; it's quite nice but a bit boring.

 

Looking forward to his score to the other Marc Forster film more.

 

The Swedish original, A MAN CALLED OVE, was great. Not going to pass any judgement before I've seen this remake, but judging from the trailer, this is a far cry from the biting commentary and genuine emotion of that film. Likewise, Gaute Storaas' score for the original is one the composer's best, and is recommended listening to everyone. 

[LSH 968]

7 hours ago, Thor said:

 

The Swedish original, A MAN CALLED OVE, was great. Not going to pass any judgement before I've seen this remake, but judging from the trailer, this is a far cry from the biting commentary and genuine emotion of that film. Likewise, Gaute Storaas' score for the original is one the composer's best, and is recommended listening to everyone. 

 

I'll definitely check out that score. Ta Thor. 

 

 

 

You can tell that HGW enjoys scoring these DisneyNature docs... and this might be his best effort yet.

 

It doesn't have a solid thematic identity but that really is the only thing holding it back. It's full of lovely airy solo woodwinds, twinkly piano, epic french horn solos, and soft synth. Dramatic but very playful in parts.

 

It's completely evocative of the locale - 'icy' but warm hearted; very much in the same vein as Alex Wurman's similarly constructed March Of The Penguins.

 

I can't recommend it enough. It's lovely.

[Under-Terrestrial 51]

https://music.apple.com/nz/album/the-whale-original-motion-picture-score/1655344840

 

 

https://music.apple.com/nz/album/empire-of-light-original-score/1656642218

 

 

https://music.apple.com/nz/album/guillermo-del-toros-pinocchio-soundtrack-from-the/1653184761

 

[publicist 4,643]

 

'Babylon': Not a film score, but a ragtag collection of what is supposed to be a greeting card of the era (for fans of the movie) the movie is set in but really isn't: either it's a deliberate choice or Hurwitz just doesn't have any feeling or affinity for the music of the 20's/30's, as all the mambo, bebop, jazz and so on sounds like nothing of that time but filtered through a weird prism of modern latin pop and hiphop. Having not seen the movie i reserve judgement, but it sure isn't my thing.

 

 

Much better. Desplat's 'Pinocchio' is firmly anchored in his style, but if you compare it with Silvestri's bland Zemeckis version, you easily can tell what's the artist and the hack version of this zillionst retelling of the famous story. Apparently Desplat was heavily involved with the handful of songs that permeate the story, and though the actor's voice work varies noticeably (the Pinocchio voice actor has a Broadway inflection that doesn't sit well with me), Desplat holds it all together. There's a very european vibe here, kind of Fellini-esque, though i rather not seek to find out out why this Pinocchio joins war (?) - the score has a very prominent song-like main theme, though it's also eclectic (it doesn't rely too much on it and then there are cues like 'Paint Battle' that stand alone rather well).

[JNHFan2000 2,944]

Night At The Museum: Khanumrah Rises Again - John Paesano

 

This is a very fun score.

Paesano's makes great use of Silvestri's themes, who's scores I've always enjoyed a lot.

He also adds a few themes of himself, which are all great. There's some more comedic writing, but the fully orchestral and choral writing here is fantastic. A winner for me.

[filmmusic 1,823]

The soundtrack of the latest Makoto Shinkai film.

 

[crocodile 7,990]

 The Rings of Power - Season 1. The show itself might divide but I don't really think there's anything to dislike about Bear McCreary's score. A grand selection of memorable themes and the kind of fantasy scope you don't really hear much (especially on television). The season album is very well curated and comes recommended to pretty much anyone. I sort of think of this as an overeager "teenage show-off" version of what Shore established in his more mature "old parchment" of a score. I don't see the point of comparing the two much as they are wonderful in their own ways while sharing similar DNA. My current favourite theme is Elrond's theme:

 

 

Karol 

[filmmusic 1,823]

 

[publicist 4,643]

 

Meh...

[JNHFan2000 2,944]

 

[Thor 7,478]

 

It's pretty straightforward Söderqvist. Lots of aching strings, slowmoving. But the soulful Americana trumpets are a new element in his portfolio. Quite good, possibly his best since KON-TIKI 10 years ago, but those are big shoes to fill. Haven't seen the film yet, but I'm a huge fan of the original 1971 Jan Troell film, of course.

[filmmusic 1,823]

23 minutes ago, Thor said:

It's pretty straightforward Söderqvist.

Haven't heard anything from this composer. Just listening to the soundtrack. Quite good. How does the soundtrack of the original film compares? Do you remember?

[Raiders of the SoundtrArk 2,429]

Rings of Power

Passing after Shore's masterpiece was quite a challenge but McCreary really succeed to bring a very strong and beautiful score. I really enjoy the whole album and especially Galadriel's Theme

[Thor 7,478]

28 minutes ago, filmmusic said:

Haven't heard anything from this composer. Just listening to the soundtrack. Quite good. How does the soundtrack of the original film compares? Do you remember?

 

No details, but I do remember it being quite good. It was by Erik Nordgren, after all (Ingmar Bergman's regular composer). For Söderqvist, 5 must-haves are LET THE RIGHT ONE IN (his most famous), THE KING OF DEVIL'S ISLAND (my personal fav), KON-TIKI, IN A BETTER WORLD and BROTHERS (the original, not the remake scored by Thomas Newman).

 

DE USYNLIGE [TROUBLED WATER] would have been on the list, but alas it's unreleased.

[Edmilson 7,398]

Let the Right One In and Kon-Tiki are two wonderful scores. I used to listen them a lot a few years ago. 

 

In a Better World is decent, though I truly LOVE one track of that album.

[fenrik 36]

23 hours ago, Thor said:

 

It's pretty straightforward Söderqvist. Lots of aching strings, slowmoving. But the soulful Americana trumpets are a new element in his portfolio. Quite good, possibly his best since KON-TIKI 10 years ago, but those are big shoes to fill. Haven't seen the film yet, but I'm a huge fan of the original 1971 Jan Troell film, of course.

Really liked this score! And I really like this composer! My personal favorite is also KING OF DEVIL’s ISLAND! (Amazing film as well!). 
 

one thing I noticed is that he makes amazing end credits tracks! His end credits for BETRAYED is so good! Same for the end credits for KING OF DEVIL’s ISLAND, LET THE RIGHT ONE IN and KON-TIKI as well! 
there was no end credits made for this new movie though.

[filmmusic 1,823]

Nope (Michael Abels)

I don't know what the film is about, but the score felt a bit all over. Horror, action, western, drama...

And I didn't hear any thematic unity among the tracks.

[LSH 968]

 

I'm definitely enjoying it more with each listen.

 

Certainly a highlight of the year.

[Disco Stu 15,495]

Caroline Shaw - Fleishman Is in Trouble

 

The great contemporary composer’s first tv/film score
 

 

[Jurassic Shark 12,033]

Any good?