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: /____\ : >> John Carpenter: The Essential Film Music Collection <<
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:..:... Supplier: SER 2003 Release Date: 08/29/2003 ...:..:
: : Ripper: SER 2003 Street Date: 00/00/2002 :..:...
...:..: Genre: Soundtrack Label: Silva Screen Records : :
: : Tracks: 18 Tracks Quality: 192kbps/HQ/44,1kHz ...:..:
: : Year: 2002 Channels: Joint Stereo : :
:..:... Source: CD Size: xx,x MB :..:...
: : Language: English Rating: 90% of 100% : :
: : Grabber: EAC v0.95 Prebeta 3 Encoder: LAME v3.90.3 : :
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John Carpenter is a prime example of the ability for people to forgive
and forget. Fans of the director have been forgiving and (trying) to
forget the legendary director's misfires of the past ten years. While
clinging to the pleasant memories of being scared sh-tless by
Halloween, The Fog and Assault On Precinct 13 (for which Carpenter did
for ice cream cones what Spielberg did for sharks in Jaws). Besides
thrills, Carpenter has delivered the irreverant Escape From New York,
They Live, Big Trouble In Little China, and darker, serioso films like
Christine and The Prince of Darkness. The man is responsible for as
many "classics" as he is complete failures like The Village Of The
Damned, and The Ghosts Of Mars. What remains constant through these
pictures, good or bad, is the music. Usually supplied by John Carpenter
himself, it's a trademark layer of sparse electronics, pulsing
underneath each frame of his films. Silva Screen presents another
installment in their "essential" series, with this album of re
-performed and re-recorded tracks.
No one is going to argue that John Carpenter's film music is especially
complex. Indeed, it is fairly primitive (he agrees), eschewing
elaborate orchestrations for single, repeating motifs endlessly chugged
out by synthesizer. Despite the low-tech approach in a lot of his
earlier music, it all works extremely well in picture, often slowly
ramping up tension and terror, and sometimes making a decent transition
to album (there are few more chilling listens than Carpenter's The Fog
album). Carpenter's films often feature exploitational themes, which
are accentuated by his music -- especially when he employs contemporary
rock elements (They Live, Big Trouble In Little China). But it's
Carpenter's seminal score for Halloween that remains his most famous
contribution, both movie and music. The performance here is faithful
(two versions are supplied, for those who can't get enough). Also
included is the aforementioned The Fog (though Silva released an
expanded album for this score, they have not included an original
recording). The real revelation here is Jack Nitzsche's Starman, which
fits in with Carpenter's simple approach, except for it's gorgeous main
theme. The first performance is on synths, with the City of Prague
Philharmonic and Crouch End Festival Chorus performing a shorter
symphonic version. Both are nice, with the orchestral one edging the
anemic electronic version. Good times are supplied by Carpenter's
booming bassline in the "Main Title" from Assault On Precinct 13.
Imagine a Nintendo game about pimps and you might imagine what this
sounds like. The more soul-serious "Julie's Theme" rounds out the
Assault content.
Silva would have paid it's dues had they gone and recorded a few
additional tracks for this release. Considering that two Carpenter
films with fine orchestral scores: Memoirs Of An Invisible Man and
Escape From L.A., both by Shirley Walker, are missing from this
collection. More strangeness, George Thorogood's "Bad To The Bone" is
the single contribution from Christine. True, it's a pretty rocking
performance, but it's an bizarre inclusion -- it's neither a Carpenter
composition or written expressly for the movie. On the other hand,
doses of Dark Star, They Live, Prince Of Darkness and the almost proto
-Media Ventures martial rythms of The Village Of The Damned add some
depth.
Whether or not you can actually listen to this disc as a standalone
experience depends entirely on mood (oh, and orchestral snobs need not
apply). So far, this represents the most comprehensive collection of
Carpenter film music. The performances are close to the originals
(marks for Gareth Williams for finding electronics seemingly ancient
enough to turn out Prince Of Darkness and Assault On Precinct 13), so
hardcore film fans, or metal-head goremeisters will be pleased. But
wait -- there's more. The producers should be scheduled for some face
time with Michael Myers for including dialogue and sound effects on
this album -- which are not labelled anywhere in the packaging. What is
it that Roddy Piper said in They Live? Oh yeah, something like:
"dialogue's a b-tch, and she's back in heat"!
http://www.theofficialjohncarpenter.com/
Tracks:
01. Escape From New York Main Title (Mix 1) (4:04)
02. Halloween Theme (Mix 1) (2:39)
03. Halloween Haunted House (2:54)
04. Starman End Titles (5:44)
05. Big Trouble In Little China Pork Chop Express (4:09)
06. The Fog (3:59)
07. Assault On Precinct 13 Main Title (3:22)
08. Assault On Precinct 13 Julie's Theme (1:53)
09. Christine Bad To The Bone (4:55)
10. Halloween II Main Theme (4:33)
11. The Thing (4:30)
12. Dark Star (2:50)
13. They Live (3:25)
14. Prince Of Darkness (4:28)
15. Escape From New York Main Title (Mix 2) (4:11)
16. Halloween Theme (Mix 2) (3:08)
17. Village Of The Damned (6:34)
18. Starman End Titles (Symphonic Version) (4:48)
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