Review: Rise of the Planet of the Apes OST - Patrick Doyle

A well-versed, extremely nuanced composer indeed, Patrick Doyle has lent his talents to numerous orchestral works, both inside and out of the movie industry.  My first experience with him was listening to the haunting and at times terrifying score of the film Needful Things (1993), which was a movie adaptation of the Stephen King novel.  The movie itself was only decent in my opinion, but it was, however, greatly surpassed by Doyle's score.  It was through the disparity of the tracks of this album that I was to appreciate the scope of score beyond just epic fanfare.  If John Williams initiated me into this genre of music, Patrick Doyle made me fall in love with it. A combination of epic, choir rich selections reminiscent of Daemon Irrepit Callidus and sweet, fanciful tracks that highlight the ambiance of the film, Doyle made a serious impression on me.

                                            The Arrival - Chaotic and Haunting

                                          Amazing End Credits Music
                                             
But since then [1993], I haven't heard too much from him that caught my attention.  Mind you, I didn't go far out of my way to check up on what he'd been composing. I'd notice a movie or two that he'd work on, but nothing that really impressed me like Needful Things.  That is, until recently.

Rise of the Planet of the Apes was a exciting and interesting film for many reasons, its score among them.  Though it did not incorporate the vast array of instruments that Needful Things utilized, RPTA did captivate me with its balance of fast paced, epic sound and deeply emotional, even sentimental ambiance.  The film loosely dealt with the concept of adaptation and evolution and the music actually reflected this.  This score was especially significant to me as one of my all time favorite composers, the late, great Jerry Goldsmith, composed for the original Planet of the Apes (1968).

At times the album produces a vocal chant that can bring goosebumps to your skin and haunts you into a sense of wonder, but this is tempered with quick, but intense bouts of loud string and brass sequences that give you the sense that something is being hunted, a definite theme in the Planet of the Apes series.  Other tracks, such as "Lofty Swing", have a bouncy, playful tone to them, so much so that you don't even think you're necessarily listening to the same album (or watching the same film).  As the plot progresses and the plight of the main characters become more serious, so does the score and its darkness is apparent in the tracks "The Primate Facility" and "Ceasing The Knife".

Scenes of conflict or alliance between different apes had tracks of a very organic, tribal nature such as heard in "Rocket Attacks Caesar" and "Buck Is Released", and one can certainly identify with why this style was used for such a movie.  But more than just relying on drums and "primitive" sounding percussion, Doyle creates tension and build up that so closely mirrors the narrative that it is extraordinary.  In the track entitled "Cookies", he fuses prior tribal elements with a heavier string and brass  that gives the impression that these apes are gaining something.  As they get smarter and cognitively more aware, it is represented in the music by the tempo of the tracks increasing and becoming ever more complex.

"Caesar's Stand" is a track that represents a pivotal moment in the film, but still manages to support this moving scene without overwhelming it.  It takes on a more rebellious sound than the previous tracks which were either enhancing moods of sorrow, excitement or fear.  The track conveys a feeling of revolt and sounds like a rallying call in its cadence and tenor.  It definitely sets the tone for the remainder of the film.

One of my favorite songs from the album is "Zoo Breakout", which is a fast, riveting piece that produces the musical sounds of a action and sci-fi movies alike.  The entire track sounds so dire in its severity and speed, that the listener keeps expecting it to tire out, but yet it doesn't.  It continually builds upon itself forming a song that, as fast as it is, keeps increasing in complexity and intensity to the point where you wonder how much further Doyle can take it. Another phenomenal composition is "The Apes Attack".  It is amazing how Doyle can have so many things go on in one single track without having it sound like some sort of random cacophony or at the very least like a superfluous over-extension.  This reminds me of David Arnold's masterpiece of Casino Royale and tracks like "Miami International" that have such a degree of momentum that they get you  caught up in them to the point you feel like you're part of the chase.

The album terminates with the track "Caesar's Home" which brings full circle the emotion that is at the heart of this film.  It starts off slow and quiet with strings calmly and sweetly easing in.    It then progresses into a hopeful and triumphant tone that boldly impacts the listener to the last note, leaving a sense of awe and anticipation of what is to come for the future.  It is the perfect culmination of both the soundtrack itself and what Patrick Doyle does best.  It is clear that he is a versatile and articulate composer by the dynamism between instrument sections and his ability to evoke such powerful and disparate emotions across the human spectrum, no matter what genre his movies are a part of.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_wjw94XUf94

Have you heard this album? What are your thoughts, feelings, criticisms?  Please post!

Shorter Tracks, But More Freedom

One thing that I am noticing about albums is that tracks that used to be diverse in tempo or style and longer in duration are getting much shorter and more distinct.   As a result, movie soundtracks are generally having quite a few more tracks that run less time individually.

I'm not sure how I feel about this.  On one hand, it allows for more freedom, especially with the Mp3 generation, where we can select tracks more specifically based on our moods and get instant gratification from hearing what we want right away. The IPod world we live in has changed much of our music listening experience, even outside the realm of film score, where we now can listen to mixes or shuffle tons of Mp3s instead of feeling inclined to listen to an entire album from one artist. I'm not saying everyone does this, but with massive amounts of music available in a compact, organized format, people are as likely as ever to hit shuffle or have more control over what they listen to.

On the other hand, there is something to be said for the old school tracks that have a longer duration and the deeper experience you get from losing yourself in the process of listening.  The longer listening experience can make a person feel very cinematic in their appreciation, from the potential variance in the track's pacing to building suspense or even teasing the listener.  Longer tracks provide more of a listening journey and if you have the time to listen to a longer track in its entirety, it can move you in the same way a powerful scene in a film does.  It allows for a greater level of complexity, simply because more can be included on the track and the orchestra's endurance or variance alone can be impressive elements.  

Despite the shorter playing times of individual tracks in general, many composers still have songs bleed into each other in a seamless fashion and thus maintain the best of both worlds.  It's great to be able to isolate a particular piece of music within a track, without having to fast forward to specific part or rewind to repeat it.  At the same time, with the overlapping of shorter tracks, one could feasibly listen to larger pieces of score without interruptions or abrupt switching between songs.  

I do wonder, though, if the current trend of shorter tracks is just a means of letting listeners have greater control of what they want to listen to when, or if it reflects the style of composition that composers/movie directors are preferring.  Especially with fast paced films such as action/adventure flicks, there may be a need for quick bursts of music, rather than long selections.  The music is always at least a partial slave to celluloid and the director's agenda and this too may account for the trend.  

How do you feel about this?  Do you prefer longer tracks and the procession of the musical/cinematic experience or do you like shorter tracks that get right to the mood/pace you enjoy or that suits you? Do you prefer a balance between the two styles  provided by short distinct tracks that overlap or blend into one another sequentially?  What are your thoughts? 

Overture

People sometimes look at me like I've lost my mind.  I don't blame them. If most people saw a guy in a station wagon blasting film score from the speakers with a big dumb grin on his face, they'd probably change lanes or at least roll up the windows.

It's like that with the genre.  Unlike more popular, "radio worthy" music, film score is not something you generally hear people bonding over at a party or even played in symphony halls, at least not on a regular basis.  But every once and a while, you make contact with someone who gets the same chills from it that you do.  Someone who appreciates it in the same way. Someone who is able to notice the distinguished nuances of the under-appreciated tapestry which enhances and validates our cinematic experience.

Appreciating orchestral movie soundtracks was not something I inherited from my folks or from a friend.  I grew up liking lots of music ranging from blues and classic rock to heavy metal and pop.  The film score genre grabbed me and pulled me to it in a unique way.  Like other people, I embraced my love by way of Star Wars.  After all, if there is one piece of film score that people know, it's probably that theme that blew people out of the back of their chairs in '77.  But I began to listen to tracks in other scenes and felt like continuing the experience even when I wasn't actively watching the movie.  I brought my CD player everywhere and always had headphones on, narrating my everyday life with tracks composed by John Williams.  It was certainly an obsession and one that provided  part of the diverse soundtrack of my teenage years.  And Williams only piqued my interest.  I had no idea what I was in store for.

I remember watching the movie Needful Things on a fall evening at age fourteen and being haunted by what I heard accompanying the images on the screen. It prompted me to take a more active role in listening and I'd go to the now archaic institutions of Tower Records or Virgin Megastore and search out the music to my favorite movies, most of them epic in nature.  And though many people may not regard it with the cultural value of opera, symphony or even the score of musicals, an emphasized appreciation is nevertheless a good thing.

Much of the background music of my life has been orchestrated by such greats as the legendary Jerry Goldsmith, David Arnold, Danny Elfman, Hans Zimmer and Howard Shore.  It got to a point where before even seeing the name of the composer in the credits or looking at the album, a few friends and I could discern composers simply by listening.  And the few people in my life that have had such an ear for score have turned me on to things I never would've thought of listening to. Many times I'd enjoy the score to a film, better than the movie itself, and I know I'm not the only one that has happened to.

So why start a blog?  Because I know there are more people out there with minds that are cinematic and imaginative.  People whose Ipods are dominated by 15 to 28 minute songs, ones that evoke every possible emotion from despair to excitement and make the listener feel like they are living through the rich and deep experiences they were meant to accompany.

Here on SCORE Bored, I'll post about recent albums/soundtracks, trends in the film score industry and any other information pertaining to the genre for lovers and up-and-coming appreciators alike.  It is my sincere hope that people will comment and contribute to discourse and debate regarding what new material is being released, even if it is something as simple as pointing out that you always liked the music that has gone along with a certain movie.  Through the course of discussion, we'll learn from each other and expose the community to just what we love so much about movie score.