Posted on: December 9, 2010 Posted by: James McQuiston Comments: 0

I’m not sure how many of the readers of NeuFutur actually saw Apocalypto, but the movie is Mel Gibson’s latest offering, about essentially Mayan Jesus. The soundtrack itself was composed by James Horner, who individuals may know from eir scores going all the way back to 1980, with notable soundtracks including An American Tail, Glory, Field of Dreams, Legends of the Fall, Apollo 13, and Braveheart. Hell, all those movies were before 1995; the list of eir scores on Wikipedia lists around 100 different ones. The reason why Horner keeps getting asked to do these different movies is obviously because ey is good, but moreso, that the soundtracks are always different from each other.

Apocalypto is marked by the use of Qawwalian throat singer Rahan Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, something that I’ve never heard any soundtrack using. Owing to the geographic position of the events in the movie, “jungle sounds” (for lack of a better term) are present, giving a sense of naïve, not-human happiness to counteract the more brooding, dark sounds created by Horner on this soundtrack. The tracks, fourteen in count, provide much different conceptions of the film; the only thing that really links them is their difference. “Holcane Attack” uses the throat singing to create more of this darkness; even if individuals do not have the chance to watch the movie in its entirety, the use of opposed force on this album allows “Apocalypto” to be construed as a full album on its own merits.

Instead of only using an orchestra to create the music on the disc, the inclusion of vocals, while not a ground-breaking tactic, sets this disc off further. While the tracks are trying to provide different sounds and styles each time, there does seem to be something similar stuck deep in the disc’s tracks. This is the inclusion of the “Jungle Theme” through other tracks on the disc. The songs push at different sounds and styles, that is true, but this inclusion shows listeners that there are themes that are present through the entirety of the disc. Few soundtracks make it into my player for longer than a week (save for those coming from musicals), but the different sound of “Apocalypto”, the innovative stylings of James Horner, will ensure that the disc is spun during my trips around town for much longer than a week. For purchase whether you have seen the movie.

Top Tracks: Holcane Attack, Civilisations Brought By Sea

Rating: 6.9/10

OST: Apocalypto / 2006 Hollywood / 14 Tracks / http://www.apocalypto.movies.go.com / http://www.hollywoodrecords.com / Reviewed 23 April 2007

[JMcQ]

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