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Terry's
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Music Reviews: | ||
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Lionsgate Records –
2009 | |
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Michael Wandmacher strikes from the first note to the last. It's like he swings the pick axe right through the audio mix and into our heads. MY BLOODY VALENTINE 3D is a relentless, attacking score that serves the movie magnificently. Because it's also so darn listenable, it's great to play while at work, home or in the car. I've been spinning this score a bunch of times in each of those environments. "Buried Alive (Main Titles)" sets the tone with brass that bites, snarling and snapping it's sharp teeth. But what sets Wandmacher's sound apart from most of other composers out there is he keeps melody even within that environment and he's not afraid to let things get quiet. "Left For Dead" is real ambient and creepily cool. The brass doesn't strike until a minute and half into the cut and then it's a brutal chase with the horns leading us on a roller coaster of terror. The little electronic sounds spread throughout the mix are very effective. There is a real grooving beat in "Prodigal Son" that makes it very infectious. You find your self moving to the bouncing percussion and Wandmacher does a brilliant job incorporating themes within this sound. We get nailed in the skull with the orchestral elements in "Human Pincushions." I love the big distorted percussion in "Evidence of Bodies." The softness of the piano in "A Troubled Conversation" has pleasant contrast and gives the score warmth and texture. "Cage Match" is a tug of war with your ears as Wandmacher builds the tension up using almost silence than slams you at the peaks of the track. He only releases his grip only when he reaches the summit. Nice work. ""Be Mine 4Ever" has real serious commitment issues between characters, which you feel through the composition. Over six minutes of racing terror is captured with intense strings and brass, punctuated with the percussion. "Dental Work" has metallic ringing, thunderous percussive sounds far off in the distance along with electronic sampled sounds that remind me of soft whispers. Eerie, cool and fun would best capture Wandmacher's approach. This is further carried out in "The Wind Up" which has a real gradual build up of horror. I like how the main theme is brought back just over the five minute mark, just briefly but it conjures up emotion. Boy, Wandmacher doesn't relent when he puts down his orchestral foot in "Triumvirate." Things get even more frantic and super intense in "An Axe To Grind." Right out of the box the orchestra is put into the motion of a swirling vortex of sound that takes you right to the edge of terror. I love after four minutes the little softer keyboard lines before getting punched by the aggressive parts. The last track, "First Responder," brings back the theme and mixes it up with this dark line and almost electrical distorted percussion. Michael Wandmacher is a talented composer and his true gifts are melody and an ability to make this kind of scoring hip & cool. I don't say that in a superficial way but rather anyone could enjoy listening to it because it isn't just horror music aimed to scare. He wants to scare you but make you enjoy it in the process. One of the things I love most about MY BLOODY VALENTINE 3D score is that it's jammed packed with music, running over 70 minutes in length. For me, that's an hour plus of fun filled horror scoring that brings a smile to my face every time I listen to it.
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