The Flock
Guy Farley
" While Farley has yet to be given the opportunity to do a blockbuster type film, something he is quite capable of doing, this score is a step above many other of the same genre. "Written by Thomas Kiefner - Review of the regular release
This is the third release that Movie Score Media and Guy Farley have collaborated on, the other two being a different genre. For this reviewer it shows the versatility Guy Farley is capable of. I nearly went into this score with a closed mind automatically assuming this is yet another score with the usual drone of the strings, synthetic loud noises in the background, and generally generic enough it could fit into a 100 different films. Gratefully I saw the name Farley and thought about the cleverness of the kazoo in Land of the Blind, and the heartfelt music in The Christmas Miracle of Jonathan Toomey and decided to give the press release a read and downloaded the material for a listen.
MMM uses a high quality 320 lossy MP3 for near CD quality or a CD can be ordered from SAE or MMM. Nice to have a choice in this age of limited edition material selling out in a matter of hours to collectors who have little interest in the music. In fact all 48 of his releases are available on his website as downloads with many available on a CD as well.
Starring Richard Gere and Claire Danes it tells the unpleasant story of a missing child and a suspected prior sex offender. Babbage (Gere) is a 30 year public safety officer who is training Lowry (Danes) to take his position when the missing child is linked to his parolee. Filmed in Albuquerque New Mexico with a 35 million dollar budget by award winning Chinese director Wai-keung Lau, the film was released in the US to the DVD market in May of 2008. Lau who achieved some spotlight when Scorsese adapted his film Internal Affairs into the award winning The Departed seemed to be out of his environment in New Mexico.
The opening string only theme The Flock, for the main character Babbage, begins first as an elegiac style which transitions nicely into a dark foreboding theme accentuated with percussion and piano harmony. On first listen I was somewhat reminded of Julyan's Insomnia (2002) which was a dreary written score that you were drawn into upon repeated listens. Some of the tracks such as "Scene of the Crime" have that disturbing unlistenable swarm violin droning but this seems to be the norm today and perhaps these ears will just never get use to those kind of cues.
I would much rather listen to something like his "Midnight Meet" which places a much greater emphasis on the lower register in the string section. To this reviewer this is an excellent tension track. "Alison's Destiny", the last track, is a solemn statement with the emphasis on the lower register strings again but intertwined with a delicate piano passage to give a message of hope to the viewer in this bitter tale of the seamy side of life. The piano is one of the few upbeat passages in the entire score.
Keeping in mind the plot of the film, there is nothing in the way of uplifting music in The Flock. This is music that doesn't come to the front of the film but is quite listenable if your taste runs toward the minor key and you like your music on the gloomy side. While Farley has yet to be given the opportunity to do a blockbuster type film, something he is quite capable of doing, this score is a step above many other of the same genre. Recommended!
Tracklisting
1. The Flock / Titles (5.23)
2. Viola's Story (1.29)
3. Errol Paranoia (1.28)
4. Edmund Predator (4.08)
5. Beatrice Belle (1.19)
6. The Abduction of Harriet (1.28)
7. Usual Suspects (1.42)
8. The Den (4.11)
9. Scene of the Crime (2.33)
10. People are Lies (2.03)
11. Gunpoint (2.09)
12. Harriet Captive (1.37)
13. Another Missing Girl (1.14)
14. Viola's Apartment (1.29)
15. Alison to Work (1.41)
16. Midnight Meet (1.30)
17. The Farm (2.57)
18. Wolf Attack (1.50)
19. Trailer Park (4.07)
20. Out of Control (1.10)
21. Harriet's Home (1.53)
22. Official Departure (0.46)
23. Alison's Destiny (3.11)
Total Length: 51.18
MMM uses a high quality 320 lossy MP3 for near CD quality or a CD can be ordered from SAE or MMM. Nice to have a choice in this age of limited edition material selling out in a matter of hours to collectors who have little interest in the music. In fact all 48 of his releases are available on his website as downloads with many available on a CD as well.
Starring Richard Gere and Claire Danes it tells the unpleasant story of a missing child and a suspected prior sex offender. Babbage (Gere) is a 30 year public safety officer who is training Lowry (Danes) to take his position when the missing child is linked to his parolee. Filmed in Albuquerque New Mexico with a 35 million dollar budget by award winning Chinese director Wai-keung Lau, the film was released in the US to the DVD market in May of 2008. Lau who achieved some spotlight when Scorsese adapted his film Internal Affairs into the award winning The Departed seemed to be out of his environment in New Mexico.
The opening string only theme The Flock, for the main character Babbage, begins first as an elegiac style which transitions nicely into a dark foreboding theme accentuated with percussion and piano harmony. On first listen I was somewhat reminded of Julyan's Insomnia (2002) which was a dreary written score that you were drawn into upon repeated listens. Some of the tracks such as "Scene of the Crime" have that disturbing unlistenable swarm violin droning but this seems to be the norm today and perhaps these ears will just never get use to those kind of cues.
I would much rather listen to something like his "Midnight Meet" which places a much greater emphasis on the lower register in the string section. To this reviewer this is an excellent tension track. "Alison's Destiny", the last track, is a solemn statement with the emphasis on the lower register strings again but intertwined with a delicate piano passage to give a message of hope to the viewer in this bitter tale of the seamy side of life. The piano is one of the few upbeat passages in the entire score.
Keeping in mind the plot of the film, there is nothing in the way of uplifting music in The Flock. This is music that doesn't come to the front of the film but is quite listenable if your taste runs toward the minor key and you like your music on the gloomy side. While Farley has yet to be given the opportunity to do a blockbuster type film, something he is quite capable of doing, this score is a step above many other of the same genre. Recommended!
Tracklisting
1. The Flock / Titles (5.23)
2. Viola's Story (1.29)
3. Errol Paranoia (1.28)
4. Edmund Predator (4.08)
5. Beatrice Belle (1.19)
6. The Abduction of Harriet (1.28)
7. Usual Suspects (1.42)
8. The Den (4.11)
9. Scene of the Crime (2.33)
10. People are Lies (2.03)
11. Gunpoint (2.09)
12. Harriet Captive (1.37)
13. Another Missing Girl (1.14)
14. Viola's Apartment (1.29)
15. Alison to Work (1.41)
16. Midnight Meet (1.30)
17. The Farm (2.57)
18. Wolf Attack (1.50)
19. Trailer Park (4.07)
20. Out of Control (1.10)
21. Harriet's Home (1.53)
22. Official Departure (0.46)
23. Alison's Destiny (3.11)
Total Length: 51.18