Tech News
Reviewed by Chris McEneany, 23rd April 2011.
I can't recommend the score for Krull enough. Far better realised and accomplished than the film, itself, this is thunderously exciting stuff that strides confidently from passages of lush romantic adventure to those that are darkly sinister and infused with foreboding, yet always buoyed-along with magic, mystery and that haunting, wistful melancholy that would become a mainstay of the composer's work. James Horner was pulling out all the stops with this one, his biggest and grandest commission to date. He took sweeping, motific elements from his seminal Trek voyage, hypnotic musings and ominous dread from Wolfen and blended them all together in a rich orchestral tapestry that provided the heroic backbone and spiritual fervour that the film's performances frequently denied it.
The score has seen several releases over the years, and they have all been worthwhile, but this one sounds to me, at least, the best of the bunch. La-La Land reissue the splendid Super Tracks set, together with the excellent booklet of notes from Jeff Bond, but they add some little extra cues and slightly improved sound. For Horner fans, Krull is indispensable as a groundbreaking and ravishing fantasy score in its own right, but it is also a terrific catchment of the composer's early ideas and thematic material that would go on to serve him so well throughout a career that has become packed with instantly recognisable classics.
La-La Land have unveiled some great double-discers lately – a duo from Danny Elfman of Batman and Batman Returns, and especially Basil Poledouris' Conan The Barbarian – and Krull sits very comfortably alongside them as a extravagant set that simply demands repeat playing.
Horribly limited it may be, but there are still copies out there. Seek them out.
Read the full review...
I can't recommend the score for Krull enough. Far better realised and accomplished than the film, itself, this is thunderously exciting stuff that strides confidently from passages of lush romantic adventure to those that are darkly sinister and infused with foreboding, yet always buoyed-along with magic, mystery and that haunting, wistful melancholy that would become a mainstay of the composer's work. James Horner was pulling out all the stops with this one, his biggest and grandest commission to date. He took sweeping, motific elements from his seminal Trek voyage, hypnotic musings and ominous dread from Wolfen and blended them all together in a rich orchestral tapestry that provided the heroic backbone and spiritual fervour that the film's performances frequently denied it.
The score has seen several releases over the years, and they have all been worthwhile, but this one sounds to me, at least, the best of the bunch. La-La Land reissue the splendid Super Tracks set, together with the excellent booklet of notes from Jeff Bond, but they add some little extra cues and slightly improved sound. For Horner fans, Krull is indispensable as a groundbreaking and ravishing fantasy score in its own right, but it is also a terrific catchment of the composer's early ideas and thematic material that would go on to serve him so well throughout a career that has become packed with instantly recognisable classics.
La-La Land have unveiled some great double-discers lately – a duo from Danny Elfman of Batman and Batman Returns, and especially Basil Poledouris' Conan The Barbarian – and Krull sits very comfortably alongside them as a extravagant set that simply demands repeat playing.
Horribly limited it may be, but there are still copies out there. Seek them out.
Read the full review...
