January has become known as a “dumping ground,” when the box office slumps and studios release films they’ve written off, lower budget films, and counter-programming. Nonetheless, the month produces many quality scores.
Not surprisingly, January only has one major release: Glass. West Dylan Thordson’s score is dynamic, exciting, and unconventional enough to remain interesting throughout – a welcome change from the often-uninspired scores of more mainstream superhero films.
The Kid Who Would Be King represents one of these written off films – a saturated topic (King Arthur) and minimal marketing doomed it. Which is a shame, because Electric Wave Bureau’s score is a fun, modern-synth take on medieval ideas, best displayed in “Arthur’s Theme.”
One of the most pleasant surprises is Rutger Reinders’ work on Dirty God, a very well-crafted dark synth score that fits well within the upper tiers of the 2010s’ synth resurgence.
Patrick Jonsson’s work on On Her Shoulders is a supremely beautiful, heartfelt ambient score. His work on 2018’s Evelyn was enjoyable, but this piece is more mature, with the emotional weight landing much stronger.
Finally, Rachel Zeffira’s Elizabeth Harvest is the best score of the month. Zeffira brilliantly mixes oppressive orchestral and drone work, layered choral lines reminiscent of Philip Glass, and ethereal electronic-ambient interludes. Together, these create a heavy REM dream state interrupted by bouts of terror-inducing nightmares. It will be a pleasure to see what Zeffira releases in the future.
Perhaps the best result of Hollywood’s unique treatment of January is that the composers tend to be relatively new. The light release schedule gives these composers a chance to be heard instead of being drowned out by bigger films with larger P&A budgets.