OST: The Strangers / 2008 Lakeshore / 19 Tracks / http://www.thestrangers.net / http://www.lakeshore-records.com /
There have been commercials for The Strangers practically on every station, at every time, of the day. The film itself is about events that occurred in 1981, where a couple were attacked and psychologically tortured by three individuals in their home. It is thus important to find a composer for the movie’s score that will accurately capture the high tension that exists between the captors and the capturers; tomandandy were chosen by the filmmakers to do just that. Tomandandy are Thomas Hajdu and Andy Milburn, avant-garde composers that have created scores for films as diverse as
The soundtrack varies between tracks that feel normal (Wedding seems to be the most middle of the road on this score) and bizarre and otherworldly (“3AM Knock†and “The Barnâ€). Tomandandy approach the creation of a score in a way much different than other, more mainstream individuals in the sense that they create a dialogue during their score that goes beyond merely highlighting the events of the movie. Each of the tracks may be named to showcase scenes, but individuals can take the soundtrack as a stand-alone composition easily. The placement of the film in 2005 further rationalizes the choice to have Tomandandy create the score; the work of these two were as prominent (if not more so) in 2005 as they are in 2008, and makes an accurate representation of the musical spirit of the period.  Despite the fact that a number of compositions on this album make use of atmospheric or otherwise “out there†sounds, there is an organic, humanistic approach to the tracks on this score.
What differentiates tracks focusing on the antagonists and the protagonists are the amount of humanity that Tomandandy really place in to the track. This means that the tracks featuring the antagonists are twisted, much more spontaneous, and are significantly different from the tracks dealing with the protagonists. I must admit, I had missed out on picking up a number of scores that Tomandandy have created over the last few years. However (if they are not out of print), their strong work in the creation of the score for “The Strangers†has shown me that purchasing other of their scores is an essential thing.
Top Tracks: Waiting, Run
Rating: 7.4/10
