10 Best Pandemic Film Scores
To do something a bit topical, I’ve compiled a list of the 10 best pandemic film scores of all time. However, the list is quite fluid with several of the scores on the final list able to swap positions on […]
Monos – Mica Levi (2019)
With Monos, Mica Levi has further established themselves as the foremost contemporary experimental film composer, using dissonance and unconventional instrumentation and composition to build tension and unease. The score’s most striking music is also its most jarring. Sounds akin to […]
Interview with Room8
2019 has been a great year for electronic duo Room8, releasing their long-awaited debut album Transduction and their score for the dark drama Cuck. Room8 was kind enough to answer a few questions, ranging from the release of Transduction, their […]
Jason and the Argonauts – Bernard Herrmann (1963)
Despite the surprisingly short runtime of Jason and the Argonauts, it’s filled with everything a Hollywood epic needs – grand scope, love, betrayal, and triumph. Composer Bernard Herrmann follows suit, as his score matches every pivotal moment and tonal shift. […]
Best Film Scores of February 2020
Daniel Pemberton kicks off another month of excellent scores with Birds of Prey. The work is brimming with a sense of controlled chaos, matching the high-energy, frantic nature of its main character, Harley Quinn. Pemberton also injects a wide musical variety for […]
Howl – Carter Burwell (2010)
Howl is in many ways a cinematic ode to poetry. The film makes a deliberate choice as to when and whether to use music in its two portrayals of the titular poem. Allen Ginsberg’s public debut of “Howl” at the Six […]
Best Film Scores of January 2020
Although January 2019 had some very solid scores, it was still a fairly muted start to the year. This January is different. Instead, it’s seemingly filled with too many good scores too count (and unfortunately, far too many to cover). […]
Cat-Women of the Moon – Elmer Bernstein (1953)
The opening credits of Cat-Women of the Moon misspells then-fledgling composer Elmer Bernstein’s name. Despite this early blip in his career, Bernstein went on to become one of film’s great composers. The film generally gives Bernstein little room to work, […]
2020 Academy Award Nominations – Best Original Score
The Oscars are upon us, the keynote event of the 2020 film award season. However, at this point the best original score category feels like a retread of this season’s prior awards competitions. Of this year’s five nominees, three have […]
Tokyo Drifter – Hajime Kaburagi (1966)
Seijun Suzuki is one of film’s most stylish directors. Nowhere is this more apparent than in his magnum opus Tokyo Drifter, where Suzuki’s bombastic and bizarre indulgences flow unimpeded. Rather than try to balance this out, prolific composer Hajime Kaburagi […]
Chinatown – Jerry Goldsmith (1974)
A warm air blows through Los Angeles county; through the orange groves, the valley, the city, and everywhere in between. It is inevitable, undeterrable. It is Jerry Goldsmith’s score for Chinatown, led by the trumpet playing of the legendary Hollywood […]
Best Film Scores of 2019
After listening to nearly 700 scores released in 2019, I present the definitive list of the best film scores of the year.