Underworld: Rise of the Lycans (Original Score)

iTunes Review

Veteran German prog-soundscape artists Tangerine Dream forged much of contemporary Hollywood's electronic film scoring sensibilities via such pioneering late '70s/early '80s standouts as Sorcerer, Thief and Risky Business. Thus, there's a dose of irony to latter-day T-Dream member Paul Haslinger's musically dark score to the prequel/third installment of the goth-horror-fantasy Underworld franchise, which seems more deliberately — and perhaps shrewdly — rooted in the electro-orchestral fusion sensibilities of Hans Zimmer than his former band's more ethereal ethos. The score's ominous title theme largely sets the tone for what follows: blasts of thundering percussion, suspended choral motifs and synthetic sound washes that have long since become de rigeur in the genre. While there's scarcely a melodic motif to be found in the composer's aggressive maelstrom of synthetic-organic fusion, cues like "The Most Precious Thing to My Heart" and "Sonia's Trial and Execution" offer changes of tempo and texture that deepen the intrigue and mystery of Haslinger's intense, brooding soundscapes.