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John Powell - THE BOURNE IDENTITY (2002) - 2022 Varese Sarabande expanded edition


Jay

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Yeah, it's one of the most influential action scores of the century alongside Batman Begins and Inception.

 

But that doesn't mean that influence was good, as most Bourne imitators were lifeless, generic scores that directors probably pushed for their composers to follow the temp track.

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2 minutes ago, Edmilson said:

Yeah, it's one of the most influential action scores of the century alongside Batman Begins and Inception.

 

But that doesn't mean that influence was good, as most Bourne imitators were lifeless, generic scores that directors probably pushed for their composers to follow the temp track.

 

Yes, like Zanelli's THE HITMAN.

 

But I go even further than you -- BATMAN BEGINS and INCEPTION wouldn't have sounded the way they did if it hadn't been for Powell's first BOURNE score, replacing even the dominating power anthem style that Zimmer defined in the 90s with a more ostinato-driven style (a 16th note(?) Bourne riff with slight harmonic variations on top). Since Powell was once a 'student' of Zimmer's, it then begets the old STAR WARS trope that 'the apprentice had now become the master' or something to that effect.

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23 minutes ago, Jay said:

 

4 minutes ago, Jay said:

Interesting track list - it's clear now that ... he likes to put the alternate versions of cues directly into the main program immediately before or after the film versions...  I wonder why he decided on this programming philosophy

 

24 minutes ago, Jay said:

For this new album of The Bourne Identity, Powell has personally assembled a new, expanded program....showcasing the evolution of some of the film’s cues.

 

 

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I would say the evolution of cues is evident whether they are programmed to play back to back, or separate into main program and bonus tracks

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The samples sound great (as I expected with this score), and it's really great to see this released.

 

I'd be curious to compare it to the OST (spreadsheet time @Jay ) ?

 

This isn't a score I talk much about, but it is one I listen to a lot, especially on road trips.

 

One of my favorites.

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52 minutes ago, Edmilson said:

Yeah, it's one of the most influential action scores of the century alongside Batman Begins and Inception.
 


Biggest difference between Bourne and those is that it’s actually a great score!

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I am noticing two tracks on here are ones that aren't on the bootleg (Conklin Killed, Got Any ID?). However, the other one of the final tracks listed on HZ.com (Shut It Down) is absent, so either it went unused or JP didn't think it added anything to the presentation. As such, it seems we ended up with only 99% of the score now.

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4 minutes ago, mstrox said:

I’ve never heard the OST - if there are remixes and demos on it, does this mean the engorged edition is missing some of that material?

 

Looks like it. Not sure where Mood Build, Jason's Theme, The Bourne Identity or Drum And Bass Remix are.

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I'm not quite as enthusiastic about this score as some of you (I much prefer the sequels, particularly #2) but I'll certainly give it a listen to hear what's new.

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15 minutes ago, LSH said:

I'm not quite as enthusiastic about this score as some of you (I much prefer the sequels, particularly #2) but I'll certainly give it a listen to hear what's new.

 

I completely agree but:

 

1.) This edition will hopefully be more enjoyable than the OST

 

2.) Out of the 3 scores (the second being the best), this one has the most amount of substantial unreleased music (whether officially or bootlegged)

 

So overall, I'm glad this is the one that got the release. Hopefully the other two will follow in time.

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25 minutes ago, Richard Penna said:

 

I'm not into this score, but if it is, that's really annoying on principle. These expansions are not the place to be omitting cues because they don't fit in with the listening experience.

It's honestly quite baffling, I think it's one of the best cues of the score and it really elevates the scene... Why it wasn't on the OST is already a headscratcher. But it seems to be missing here as well, which is just a shame. Ugh!

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I love that Powell's into this whole expansion business and wants his scores out there in better form... but he needs a producer or at least consultant.

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2 hours ago, mstrox said:

I’ve never heard the OST - if there are remixes and demos on it, does this mean the engorged edition is missing some of that material?

 

2 hours ago, Anthony said:

 

Looks like it. Not sure where Mood Build, Jason's Theme, The Bourne Identity or Drum And Bass Remix are.

 

And of course neither the OST nor this expansion include Moby's "Extreme Ways."  Which is fine, I'm sure it would have been expensive to license, but it's an essential part of the listening experience (and probably the main musical identifier for the franchise for the average viewer) so I'll certainly be adding it manually.

 

2 hours ago, Evanus said:

Wait a minute, am I correct in thinking this cue is still missing?!

 

Is it not the track "Pont Neuf"? Nevermind, you might be right.  It should come between "Pont Neuf" and "Conklin Killed" maybe.  Uh oh!  We shall see.  Maybe it's the final minute or so of "Pont Neuf"?

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The issue I'm having is that based on the info I've seen so far, I doubt it'd be the definitely absent Shut It Down cue, since it seems to accompany a following scene. And since nothing else is listed on the HZ.com cue list there, I'm starting to wonder if it's a last minute thing that just didn't get properly written down and archived.

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1 hour ago, Stu said:

Is it not the track "Pont Neuf"? Nevermind, you might be right.  It should come between "Pont Neuf" and "Conklin Killed" maybe.  Uh oh!  We shall see.  Maybe it's the final minute or so of "Pont Neuf"?

Looking at the track lengths, doesn't look like it unfortunately. "Pont Neuf" is about the same length as the OST version. I did some digging, it should be the track "Bourne Remembers" which is about 2 minutes long. Seems like some other bits are missing too: Hans Zimmer Website (hans-zimmer.com)

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I've been eagerly awaiting an official expansion of this score for almost 15 years and now that it's finally here, I'm only getting 1 of the 3 cues I was most looking forward to having/having in good sound. I can't fucking believe it. For me, this is like getting an Azkaban expansion without the Rescue of Sirius. I no longer have any confidence my long hoped for internet cafe cues from Supremacy and Ultimatum will ever see the light of day and I'm unreasonably depressed about it. I really thought we'd get something better after the treatment the first two Dragons scores got.

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4 hours ago, A. A. Ron said:

my long hoped for internet cafe cues from Supremacy and Ultimatum will ever see the light of day and I'm unreasonably depressed about it.

 

Ha! You noticed these too! I wondered if there was a reason why these are the only two that haven't come to light - it's a strange coincidence it's two versions of a similar cue, for two near-identical scenes in two different movies!

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5 hours ago, A. A. Ron said:

I've been eagerly awaiting an official expansion of this score for almost 15 years and now that it's finally here, I'm only getting 1 of the 3 cues I was most looking forward to having/having in good sound. I can't fucking believe it. For me, this is like getting an Azkaban expansion without the Rescue of Sirius. I no longer have any confidence my long hoped for internet cafe cues from Supremacy and Ultimatum will ever see the light of day and I'm unreasonably depressed about it. I really thought we'd get something better after the treatment the first two Dragons scores got.

Yes one wonders what the point is of expansions that are missing so many cues. If you're gonna release it, then do it right.

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I saw the movie once years ago and didn't like it. Only remember banging and clanging music. Also, it's really fortunate Powell didn't decide to assemble an album out of HTTYD.

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So sometimes film versions are mixxes of previously recorded cues, not newly rearranged and recorded pieces, thats why they dont appear on sessions leaks or cd releases. Good to know to not bother too much about every note composed for the film.

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2 hours ago, bollemanneke said:

I saw the movie once years ago and didn't like it. Only remember banging and clanging music.

It set the template for action films, for many years to come. Bond drew heavily on its style of editing, and fight choreography.

If you can, give it another chance, and watch it on a good 5.1 system. It has a very detailed soundtrack. The car chase through Paris has been used as a test sequence for selling home cinema.

Per Halberg is among the best sound designers in the modern era.

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17 minutes ago, Naïve Old Fart said:

It set the template for action films, for many years to come. Bond drew heavily on its style of editing, and fight choreography.

If you can, give it another chance, and watch it on a good 5.1 system. It has a very detailed soundtrack. The car chase through Paris has been used as a test sequence for selling home cinema.

Per Halberg is among the best sound designers in the modern era.

I really like Bourne Identity but I think Supremacy and Ultimatum are much better, both films and scores. But identity sure had an impact on action films.

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So it sounds like the music you guys heard in the film that you like, that doesn't seem to be in the tracklist, could be because it was music tracked in from one of these new alternates you've never heard before, and not an actual cue written for the scene, if I'm understanding correctly 

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I think Identity is the warmest film and Ultimatum is the most polished. Supremacy is my favorite though, both film and score. I love how it has the smallest stakes of the trilogy. After Marie’s death, it seems like Bourne has no real reason to keep fighting so hard to survive, but then we get to the end of the film and we realize that he was literally just fighting to get to Moscow and make a clumsy, heartbreaking apology to a young woman whose life he ruined when she was still a child.

 

On 21/5/2022 at 9:55 AM, Jay said:

So it sounds like the music you guys heard in the film that you like, that doesn't seem to be in the tracklist, could be because it was music tracked in from one of these new alternates you've never heard before, and not an actual cue written for the scene, if I'm understanding correctly 


That might be a possibility for Bourne Remembers, yes. The internet cafe cue we keep referencing from Supremacy is a similar situation. That cue uses parts of the Room 645 cue. It can’t be recreated by fans though as it only uses certain parts of the mix/doesn’t include all of the instruments.

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38 minutes ago, Jay said:

So it sounds like the music you guys heard in the film that you like, that doesn't seem to be in the tracklist, could be because it was music tracked in from one of these new alternates you've never heard before, and not an actual cue written for the scene, if I'm understanding correctly 

 

It sounds like an identical thing to what appears at first to be a missing cue from the Sleepy Hollow set, but is actually tracked from an alternate version of another cue.

 

Powell's basically saying they included everything that was recorded, so those bits must be tracked.

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Wow, that's surprising if the "Bourne Remembers" cue is actually an alternate version of another track. I hope that bit of music is present, then.. any idea which track it could be?

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No. The car chase is definitely NOT tracked or pieced together from other recordings. It could be a demo I guess, but it is missing.

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1 minute ago, A. A. Ron said:

No. The car chase is definitely NOT tracked or pieced together from other recordings. It could be a demo I guess, but it is missing.

How do you know it is not taken from an unreleased alternate?

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I remember being disappointed that the three CD THE BLACK STALLION didn't include the climactic race cue.

The notes explained it was created by overlapping two previously composed cues to create a new track.

So. There you go.

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23 minutes ago, Counterparts said:

How do you know it is not taken from an unreleased alternate?

Because it’s over 3:00 long and we’ve heard most of the alternates on the bootleg. Also, none of these alternates are even action cues.

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28 minutes ago, A. A. Ron said:

No. The car chase is definitely NOT tracked or pieced together from other recordings. It could be a demo I guess, but it is missing.

You mean this one, right?

 

It does seem to be missing, yeah. I'm still not convinced the entire film score is actually there, but we'll see.

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