Alternative Poster by John Dunn

As with October, November saw the release of one widely award-nominated score (John Williams’ score for The Fabelmans), some of my favorite scores of the year (Nathan Johnson’s score for Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery and Reznor and Ross’s score for Bones and All), as well as a figurative ton of other great releases. I even had the chance to talk with Johnson and another composer making an appearance, Colin Stetson (although that interview was for a different score). One of these I’ll catch up on these posts, so they aren’t months behind. But in honest disclosure, I don’t see that happening anytime soon. Till then, enjoy the time warp. As always, if you think I’ve missed any scores from this month (or any past months), leave a comment or get in touch and I’ll check them out!

Once again there were (as always) too many scores released this month for me to me to cover! Make sure to scroll to the end of this article for a list of even more November scores to check out!

Have a quick read about each of these excellent scores below then give them a listen. Be sure to see what other scores you may have missed by reading past editions of this column or listen below to hear me discuss a few of these and other scores released in October, November, and December:

Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery – Nathan Johnson (Interview)

Nathan Johnson returns to score Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery, the second entry in the surprisingly gleeful, riveting Benoit Blanc murder mystery film series from his cousin Rian Johnson. While the film takes place in the world of high tech, Nathan opts for an orchestral palette, avoiding the on the nose choice of something more electronic. Some of the same themes from Knives Out return, alongside new ones (particularly for Janelle Monae’s “Andi”), but everything is bigger. In fact, it’s a highly thematic score, with Nathan excitedly trying out some techniques like theme swapping, the kind that some film music fines pine for. More importantly, it’s a ton if fun. Although the mystery revolves around murder, Nathan never loses sight of the need for a good time. And Glass Onion delivers. While the score hasn’t achieved quite the same level of popularity as the first, an admittedly high bar, it’s still a can’t-miss listen.

Bones and All – Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross (Review)

It wasn’t until hearing Bones and All that I considered how emotionally distant some of Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross’s scores could be. With gentle melodies, heavy use of acoustic guitars, and cathartic atmospheric passages reminiscent of “A Warm Place” from Nine Inch Nails’ seminal album A Downward Spiral, it’s a score that pushed me to melancholy. There’s a constant sense of longing and loss, love and despair, of knowing that nothing will ever be as good as it is right now.

The Fabelmans – John Williams

Another bittersweet score is John Williams’ The Fabelmans. This feeling isn’t so much with respect to the music itself, but more so to the knowledge that there are so few Williams’ scores left. Made worse is the score release itself being so short, clocking in at just over half an hour, with a solid chunk of that being classical pieces from the likes of Bach and Haydn. The Fabelmans is a nostalgic experience, a rush of memories from a childhood you’ve never had. And somehow, across just twenty-five minutes or so, that childhood feels complete, those memories eternal.

The Menu – Colin Stetson (Interview)

I was very surprised to realize that Colin Stetson scored The Menu. After all, he’s most known in the film scoring world for frightening, punishing soundscapes for films like Hereditary or Texas Chainsaw Massacre, but The Menu shows a different side. A very melodic, elegant main theme permeates throughout the score, a reflection of the high society dining experience during which the film takes place. Yet darkness and fear punch through, at times in subtle implications and others in full bore fright. Those more familiar with Stetson’s work shouldn’t be surprised at his breadth, but for those less familiar, this should be a revelation.

A Few More Scores

As often happens, there were simply too many great scores released in November to cover, so here are a few more:

  • Armageddon Time – Christopher Spelman
  • Enola Holmes 2 – Daniel Pemberton (Interview)
  • Living – Emilie Levienaise-Farrouch (Interview)
  • Los renglones torcidos de Dios – Fernando Velazquez
  • Mascarade – Anne-Sophie Versnaeyen
  • My Policeman – Steven Price
  • Ultrasound – Zak Engel (Interview)
  • Adopting Audrey – David Robbins
  • Black Panther: Wakanda Forever – Ludwig Göransson
  • Holy Spider – Martin Dirkov
  • Devotion – Chanda Dancy
  • Marie-Antoinette: Premiers pas a la cour – Guillaume Roussel
  • Premieres urgences – Cascadeur
  • Emily – Abel Korzeniowski
  • Les Engages – Romain Trouillet
  • The Pay Day – Two Twenty Two (Interview)
  • White Noise – Danny Elfman
  • La Maison – Jack Bartman
  • Lady Chatterley’s Lover – Isabella Summers
  • The Wonder – Matthew Herbert
  • She Said – Nicholas Britell
  • Slumberland – Pinar Toprak
  • The Son – Hans Zimmer
  • Spirited – Dominic Lewis (Interview)
  • The Swimmers – Steven Price
  • Tenkiller – Chat Pile
  • Strange World – Henry Jackman