Toaster, Brave

By: Randall Larson
Date: Thursday, February 17, 2005

THIS WEEK'S RECOMMENDATIONS

1986 was the perfect time for David Newman, eldest sibling of the Newman composing clan (brother to Thomas Newman, son of Alfred Newman, nephew to Emil and Lionel, and cousin to older composer Randy Newman to youngster Joel Newman most all notable if not legendary composers in film music circles), to compose THE BRAVE LITTLE TOASTER, released this week for the first time ever on a soundtrack CD from Percepto Records (016). David Newman started out a year or two earlier scoring a quirky episode of TV's AMAZING STORIES, Tim Burton's seminal short FRANKENWEENIE, and the tongue-in-cheek GREMLINS-inspired sci-fi comedy, CRITTERS. He also scored the darker horror films THE KINDRED and MY DEMON LOVER, all of which gave him a remarkable adeptness in combining spooky and dangerous music with more light and comic touches, the perfect combination for THE BRAVE LITTLE TOASTERS mix of high adventure, dark suspense, and home appliance anthropomorphism. In fact, Newman would go on to make even bolder statements in the realm of making deadly serious music for darkly humorous films, including THROW MOMMA FROM THE TRAIN, BILL & TED'S EXCELLENT ADVENTURE, and HEATHERS within a couple of years, and would go on to provide compelling and evocative scores for films like THE FLINTSTONES, GALAXY QUEST, ANASTASIA, SCOOBY-DOO, THE CAT IN THE HAT, and many, many more.

THE BRAVE LITTLE TOASTER mixes cutesy-pootsie cartoon songs (composed by musician Van Dyke Parks) with the kind of high-adventure Hollywood film scoring that Newman was beginning to excel at. This belated soundtrack recording includes all the music, all the songs, and a handful of dialog moments from the film 27 cues totaling just about an hour. The music is rich although I personally would have enjoyed segregating Newman's underscore from the songs and the dialog parts just to enjoy it on its own right. The score is an adventure score this was, after all, a kind of INCREDIBLE JOURNEY involving household appliances instead of pets, and Newman provided the perfect blend of larger-than-life heroism and hyper-dramatic tension that the story needed. The music opens with a variety of awakening cues ("Main Title," "They All Wake Up," [a terrific orchestral overture that simply rages with dynamic adventurism), "They Decide To Go," etc, which gradually emerge from gently rhythmic, Morning Symphony-esque motifs which eventually solidify, as the appliances join together and determine an objective strategy to rejoin their former master in the distant city. Once the journey begins, the music is strident, self-assured, ripe with confidence, resting occasionally to reflect character ("Blanket Looks For A Place To Sleep") or support suspense or danger ("Toaster's Dream"), but constantly moving the story forward with forceful orchestral rhythms and captivating melodies. BRAVE LITTLE TOASTER is a powerful and potent work - much more than a cartoon movie score. Newman plays it totally straight and proffers the kind of high-adventure Hollywood score that could have graced most any Warner Bros or MGM action film of the '30s or '40s. Its availability on CD from Percepto is a most welcome entry, filling a notable gap in David Newman's early scoring discography. The CD package includes a lavishly illustrated 24-page booklet with extensive notes about the film and its music. www.percepto.com

Another terrific score released this week is the soundtrack to Lucasart's videogame,

MERCENARIES: PLAYGROUND OF DESTRUCTION. Composed by Michael Giacchino and Chris Tilton, the composer and orchestrator (respectively) of THE INCREDIBLES, the score is a hard-hitting orchestral sounding action score that starts out pretty relentless and never really lets up. Released on CD by La-La Land (LLLCD 1029), the music is energetic and evocative, rich in swelling orchestral maneuvers and a fierce musical attitude. Sampled choral material gives the sound an impressive texture, while more furtive motifs ("Destination: DMZ") proffer a cool atmosphere of anticipation and danger. www.lalalandrecords.com

Disney Records has released Joel McNeely's provocative score for the studio's direct-to-video release, MULAN II (61257-7). Like Jerry Goldsmith's score for the original MULAN, McNeely's is built around Chinese rhythms and instrumentation, and also takes on Western orchestral sensibilities of grandeur and adventure. McNeely, who also scored the animated RETURN TO NEVERLAND, has provided a straightforward heroic adventure score, which includes occasional nods towards a phrase of one

song's melody or another included into the underscore. But it is a splendid film score in the best Hollywood tradition. One of the best tracks is "The Attack," rousingly swashbuckling, with furiously enraged trumpets, windblown strings, rolling and pounding percussion, an incredibly dynamic cue that is utterly ferocious; the solo Chinese erhu that segues out of the fury midway through really gives the cue an amazing texture and counterpoint, one that is echoed by the ensuing trombones and strings, reflecting the previous orchestral violence in a mirror of soothing serenity. The overall sensibility is a rich mixture of East and West, featuring luxuriant orchestral swells for full the symphony and intimate musical filigrees for ethnic instruments. The songs, one of which McNeely wrote; one is by Matthew Wilder, two are by Jeanine Tesori), and one by the band Atomic Kittens, are ok but not up to the standards of the first film. There is also an instrumental version of McNeely's song. www.disneyrecords.com

Film Score Monthly has resurrected Lalo Schifrin's enthusiastically scored World War II comedy film, KELLY'S HEROES, and released it as a fine Silver Age Classic for this month (FSM Vol7No 20). The music is as carelessly degenerated as the film's heroes, soldiers who devise a plan to steal loads of money from the Nazi's for their own use. The score includes characteristic Schifrin phrases that will recall moments of MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE and the like (this was, after all, 1970, only 4 years after his efforts on that show), as well as an easy mixture of purely tongue-in-cheek militaristic figures and motifs that are as zany and irreverent as the film's cynical band of brothers. A repeated motif for choral whistling signifies the attitude of the heroes and

much of the score. A few ethnic cues reflect settings. A folksky instrumental of "Burning Bridges," heard over a radio in one scene, plays through in cue 8 and is reprised as a countercultural anthem (in the film this song became the film's Main and End Titles the CD restores Schifrin's original title music to its rightful place while including the song in its proper sequence on the soundtrack); a Hank Williams' song is played, Ride of the Valkyries-style, during a tank attack scene; an instrumental variant for guitar and harmonica appears later. There is a wonderful parody of Morricone spaghetti western music at the film's climax. A couple of songs, performed on screen in the film, are included, as is the 24 minutes of re-arranged and re-performed music that make up the original soundtrack LP (the original soundtrack performances are much preferred). This was an impulsive and cleverly scored film, with a diversity of musical styles both serious and comic arranged into a provocative collision of forms that perfectly fit the pessimism of the film. A 16-page booklet describes in detail the film and its music, including a track-by-track analysis of Schifrin's terrifically diversified composition. www.filmscoremonthly.com

FILM MUSIC NEWS

Varese Sarabande has announced a March 29th release date for their soundtrack CD for SIN CITY, a vast live-action fantasy based on the Frank Miller series of graphic novels. Miller co-directs along with Robert Rodriguez and "special guest director Quentin Tarantino); the score combines the efforts of director Rodriguez (SPY KIDS 3D, KILL BILL 2), John Debney (PASSION OF THE CHRIST, SPY KIDS 2, THE REPLACEMENTS), and Graeme Revell (CHRONICLES OF RIDDICK, THE CROW). On the same date the label will release Raymond Wong's score to KUNG FU HUSTLE, a 2004 Cantonese film being released in America by Sony on April 1st. Wong's score is offset by a number of classical pieces that figure in the film, including Sarasate's acclaimed Zigeunerweisen and Khachaturian's famous Sabre Dance. www.varesesarabande.com

La-La Land's expanded original soundtrack CD to Jerry Goldsmith's EXTREME PREJUDICE (LLLCD 1028) exceeds Intrada's premiere 1987 recording by eight tracks, totally 20 tracks and more than an hour of music. A 12-page book discusses the film and its score in detail. Also issued this week from the same label is FARSCAPE Classics, Vol. 1, presenting complete episode scores from the popular Sci-fi Channel series. Vol 1 includes the quirky episode REVENGING ANGEL (featuring neat animated segments) and the darkly hewn EAT ME. www.lalalandrecords.com

This year being the centennial of songwriter Harold Arlen (WIZARD OF OZ, A STAR IS BORN, etc) who was born in 1905, a special commemorative web site has been launched at www.haroldarlen2005.com/music_01.html Milan Records has released the soundtrack to IMAGINARY HEROES, Dan Harris' new comedy drama. The soundtrack contains score co-written by Deborah Lurie and John Ottman plus songs by various eclectic artists, including I-94, "The District Sleeps Alone Tonight" by The Postal Service, Slim Harpo, Yellowman and more.

To celebrate more than 25 years of successful quality soundtracks, Milan Records

has announced the release of five digitally remastered classic scores as part of its new Silver Screen Series. The titles are beautifully packaged in a stylish O-Card and have been digitally remastered to offer a sound quality that was not available at the time of their original release. Designed to give a new generation of music fans the opportunity to discover these gems, the special editions also feature exclusive bonus content, such as recent interviews with the composers and previously unreleased tracks. These first five titles in the series will be released on March 1, 2005.

BACKDRAFT- In addition to the two tracks by Bruce Hornsby & the Range, Hans Zimmer's beautiful, timeless score has been digitally remastered. The album also features a brand new interview with Zimmer, who shares details on his experience working with Ron Howard, finding the voice for this film, how he looks at his own writing, and more.

BARAKA - This cult favorite soundtrack has been digitally remastered and now includes the opening theme of the film, which was not available on the original release. Composer Michael Stearns rediscovered the original recording after more than 10 years, and remastered it exclusively for this release.

A RIVER RUNS THROUGH IT - This Academy Award nominated score has been digitally remastered, restoring the music to its original brilliant sound. The album also includes an exclusive interview with Mark Isham, who speaks about his collaboration with Robert Redford and his memories of this unique project.

A WALK IN THE CLOUDS - The Golden Globe Award winning score by music legend Maurice Jarre has been digitally remastered and includes an in-depth interview with Jarre, who shares his thoughts on the role of film music, his experience working with various directors, and his view on film music today.

NAKED LUNCH - This remarkable soundtrack, composed by Academy Award winner Howard Shore and jazz great Ornette Coleman, is one of the first modern scores to seriously mix the spontaneity of jazz and the classicism of film music to create a unique and cohesive album. As part of the Silver Screen series, it has been digitally remastered, restoring the true sound of this one of a kind soundtrack. www.milanrecords.com/

Recommended Soundtrack sources:

www.buysoundtrax.com

www.intrada.com

www.screenarchives.com

www.footlight.com

www.arksquare.com/index_main.html

For questions or comments, contact the author at Soundtrax@cinescape.com