Back catalogue: Soundtracks

Review: Peaky Blinders is a saga that will live on in British cultural folklore long after people stop streaming the show itself. And the legacy of arguably the coolest show to come out of the UK in several years is as much to do with the contemporary stylisation of what's essentially a period piece as it is the attitude it exudes. An atmosphere that's distinctly British, to say the least. A key aspect of the overall impact is the soundtrack, and who better to craft the score to this dark, violent, socially-imbalanced, politically-volatile period in English gangster history than Anna Calvi. The high priestess of alternative, brooding, tense rock & roll plucked straight from the depths of surrealism, every pluck and chord seems to intensify the overall feeling, seducing us with a combination of breathy spoken word, operatic contralto, and tense virtuoso guitar playing.

Review: .If the aim of any commissioned soundtrack score is to provide music that enhances and emphasises the on-screen action, then Anna Calvi's work on BBC smash Peaky Blinders is up there with the best of them. While Calvi only provided soundtracks to two seasons - five and six, both of which are presented on this limited double-disc release - the distinctive sound worlds she created suited series' dark and stylish visual tone. All low-slung basslines, dystopian effects, snarling riffs and squally, stretched-out guitar solos, the collected instrumentals stand on their own two feet while naturally conjuring up mental glimpses of key scenes for those who watched and loved the award-winning series.

Review: Is Wendy Carlos one of the most underrated and overlooked of the female synth pioneers? It probably depends who you ask, with the die hard archivists no doubt ready to stand up and scream "who doesn't remember, respect, and revere her?" Nevertheless, in terms of popular culture she hasn't received the same level of reappraisal as the likes of Delia Derbyshire in recent years, in the UK at least, although perhaps that's because Britain always loves celebrating British achievements.

In all honesty, Carlos is just as important as anyone who has ever laid a finger on a synthesizer. Her legacy includes helping develop the benchmark setting Moog, alongside three truly unforgettable and iconic soundtracks. The Shining, A Clockwork Orange, and finally Tron, the latter - this - forsaking omnipresent tension and sense of impending doom, and menacing, snarling electronic takes on classical overtures, for something more in keeping with a Disney movie - fantastical, sweeping, and emotionally charged.

Review: Essex based composer and music producer Robin Carolan is the man behind the acclaimed Tribute Angle label. He's worked with a fine array of artists including Bjork and Holy Other and now links with Seb Gainsborough who makes electronic and orchestral music as Vessel. This is the first time the pair have worked with director Robert Eggers on a score together and the results speak for themselves. It is harsh and uncomfortable with a dirty aesthetic that is designed to match the film, The Northman, and does so with great sympathy and respect to the authenticity of the Viking era period piece.

Review: Don't believe the hype - we certainly don't. Halloween Ends, 2022's trilogy-concluding horror flick that brought the story of evil Michael Myers to a bone chilling climax, is almost definitely not going to be the last time we hear the terrifying piano riff John Carpenter came up with for his original 1978 slasher classic, Halloween. Nor will it likely be the final outing for the mask-wearing, knife-wielding menace of Haddonfield, Illinois; fictional town the franchise centres on.

Let's face it, the most recent outing in the saga only represented the conclusion of the last three films, but since the first time there have been 13 movies, many comic books, one video game and tons of merchandise. All that aside, you can believe the hype surrounding the latest score, which sees synth and atmosphere master Carpenter, alongside son and regular collaborator Davies, invoke the eerie unease that first catapulted Halloween into the pantheons of all-time greatest scare fests. Don't sleep after listening, then; who knows what's out there.

Review: Is John Carpenter the most formidable force in 20th Century US moviemaking? He must certainly be in the running. Say what you will about the genres he focuses on (horror, suspense, sci fi, slasher, those details aren't significant. Instead, what's important to remember is that for decades the director has dedicated his career to creating not just vivid on-screen worlds, but atmospheres and feelings. Taking ownership of his own scores is a big part of that, and in many ways Carpenter's tunes are as memorable as his plots. Here joined by son Cody, and Lost Themes I & II sparring partner Daniel Davies, many of the most iconic tones, keys, melodies, and hooks from more than 20 years of cinematic delights are presented as new - and we couldn't be happier.

Review: It only seems like yesterday when Nick Cave delivered his wonderfully captivating joint piece with fellow-Australian Bad Seed Warren Ellis. In fact it was early March, and since then we've all likely been through the kinds of highs and lows this record reflects so accurately. There's a lot of space to Carnage, but it's also an album of intensity, in a refined and sophisticated way.

Packed with incredibly cinematic, theatrical and dramatic moments, at its loudest 'White Elephant' is bordering on a genuinely euphoric religious experience, one rousing and hugely emotional crescendo of chorus and big stage notes after another. At its quietest, 'Shattered Ground' sounds like one man alone with a piano and eternal sadness. Meanwhile, the title track is classic troubadour business. In summary, a grand, mesmerising and personal voyage.

Review: .By its very nature, Tenkiller is a very different beast to Chat Pile's other releases. Recorded in the winter of 2020 to be the soundtrack to Tenkiller, an indie movie about the lives of ordinary people in small-town America, it sees the noise-rock/post-hardcore combo focus on mood and tone, rather than form and function. As a result, fuzzy and forthright cuts of the sort you'd expect come supplemented by dystopian, industrial-influenced soundscapes, lo-fi alt-country, guitar-laden mood pieces, low-slung and effects-laden creepiness, intense electronica and the kind of slow-burn ambient-not-ambient that was once the preserve of cult bands such as Labradford.

Review: Film buffs will be smitten by this blood-splattered vinyl copy of The Godfather Trilogy's soundtrack, performed by The City Of Prague's Philharmonic Orchestra, interpreting Nino Rota's original works. Across two discs spanning 19 original pieces - from 'The Godfather Waltz', to the infamous establishing scene dreamlike of the Sicilian landsacpe, for which 'Sicilian Pastorale' sets the mood - this rendition is almost certainly an offer you can't refuse.

Review: Oliver Coates is a composer, cellist and producer who has worked with notable bands lie Radiohead and artists such as Mica Levi. He turns out some of his best work here on the score for Significant Other which is dark and dense, unsettling and absorbing. The movie follows some rather sinister happenings that blight a young couple on a trip backpacking through the forest of the Pacific Northwest. This edition comes on nice blue vinyl and with a download code as well as a double-sided printed inset. It's a real collector's edition for sure.

Review: He will forever be known as the frontman of Pulp, but for many music lovers Jarvis Cocker has also won our affections with his erudite selections for his BBC 6 Music show. Entitled Jarvis Cocker's Sunday Service, it ran every week from 2010 to 2017 and now a selection of his personal favourites get the compilation treatment. Reflecting the mood of most Sundays, the music is soothing, soft and mellow, but always high quality. There are stunning covers or Beyonce by Anthony & the Jonsons and Gary Numan's "Cars" on steel drums, plaintive piano pieces from John Baker and a classic from Nina Simone amongst a whole treasure trove of gems.

Review: Hauled from the vaults of cult ephemera, Endgame: Brox Lotta Finale is a 1983 gem of low-budget sci-fi trash for all B-movie weirdos. But if the film itself relies on its flaws for its charm, don't let that detract from the excellent soundtrack by Carlo Maria Cordio. The Italian synth composer also known for Troll 2, Pieces and other niche favourites serves up a panoply of incidentals, themes and sequences that will leave you reeling in a reverie of VHS grade bombast. Pulse Video have gone to town on this reissue, with high end artwork and eight collectible lobby cards in a gatefold sleeve which make this a must-have for all devotees of retro cinema oddities.

Review: In the mid-80s, Svitlana Okhrimenko, Oleksandr Kohanovs'kyi, and Tamila Mazur, students at the Reinhold Glier Kyiv Academy of Music, formed the foundation of Cukor Bila Smert. Their blend of music and camaraderie led to the addition of Eugene Taran, who further helped shape the band's vision. Dubbed Sugar - White Death, their ironic moniker challenged media sensationalism and amidst endless musical exploration, they crafted two albums in 1988 and 1989. The band's unique "sugar calypso sound" emerged, a blend of Kohanovs'kyi's music and lyrics by Okhrimenko and Taran. A significant studio session in 1990 yielded tracks featured on the Mannered Music compilation which sparked international interest. Their journey concluded in 1993 with the release of "Selo" by Koka Records, and now some of the best bits make it onto this new collection.