Under Siege 2: Dark Territory
Basil Poledouris
" Any guy can act once he has Basil Poledouris supporting him! "Written by Thomas Glorieux - Review of the regular release
Under Siege 2: Dark Territory is the result of the previous collaboration between actor Steven Seagal and composer Basil Poledouris. Basil scored the directorial debut of Seagal (On Deadly Ground) the year before that, and Steven will have pushed for the presence of Basil on the set after that successful move. Under Siege 2: Dark Territory isn't anything remarkably special, but it's so goddamn enjoyable that you can't help but love the sound of it.
The score opens in typical rousing fashion with Poledouris' stirring main theme, opening in fanfare style in "Main Titles: Dark Territories". The touching strings and piano in "Casey's Family" soon shows us that it will remain the one and only soft track of the disc. Because after that it's all Casey Rybeck's show, followed by Basil Poledouris enjoyable score.
"Compound Assault" throws the gasoline already on the flame with a short but enjoyable action appetizer, "Access Codes" puts a needle into the suspenseful score after that (with the whirling strings representing the satellite), all before Poledouris puts his main theme through all kinds of variations in "Intruder Discovered", keeping the tempo up high and the score incredibly rousing and enjoyable. It's the best track of the score.
The main theme gets another airing in "Dead, Not Dead", all before this score's longest track makes a name for itself. In "The Gates of Hell / Penn's Wish" Poledouris crafts a typical, easy going, free flowing experience that ignites the action with the suspense, leaving once again behind a rousing main theme in full force.
The song that's featured in "Casey's Farewell / After the Train has Gone" doesn't fully fit with the rousing score that came before it, but it nonetheless fits with Casey Rybeck's character so you could easily ignore it if you want to.
Under Siege 2: Dark Territories is incredibly short (not even 25 minutes if you delete the song at the end) and yet Poledouris makes those minutes count. It's undeniable standard music from Poledouris and yet it's something most composers today can't match. It flows so incredibly easy, delivering a rousing main theme in an adventurous album that makes it even for its 26 minutes memorable, if you dig standard yet cool Poledouris music.
Tracklisting
1. Main Titles: Dark Territories (2.37)
2. Casey's Family (2.03)
3. Compound Assault (1.47)
4. Access Codes (1.57)
5. Intruder Discovered (4.38) Excellent track
6. Dead, Not Dead (1.46)
7. The Gates of Hell / Penn's Wish (8.53) Excellent track
8. Casey's Farewell / After the Train has Gone * (3.53)
* Written by Steven Seagal and Todd Smallwood. Performed by Todd Smallwood, Abraham McDonald, Jean McClain and Steven Seagal.
Total Length: 26.34
The score opens in typical rousing fashion with Poledouris' stirring main theme, opening in fanfare style in "Main Titles: Dark Territories". The touching strings and piano in "Casey's Family" soon shows us that it will remain the one and only soft track of the disc. Because after that it's all Casey Rybeck's show, followed by Basil Poledouris enjoyable score.
"Compound Assault" throws the gasoline already on the flame with a short but enjoyable action appetizer, "Access Codes" puts a needle into the suspenseful score after that (with the whirling strings representing the satellite), all before Poledouris puts his main theme through all kinds of variations in "Intruder Discovered", keeping the tempo up high and the score incredibly rousing and enjoyable. It's the best track of the score.
The main theme gets another airing in "Dead, Not Dead", all before this score's longest track makes a name for itself. In "The Gates of Hell / Penn's Wish" Poledouris crafts a typical, easy going, free flowing experience that ignites the action with the suspense, leaving once again behind a rousing main theme in full force.
The song that's featured in "Casey's Farewell / After the Train has Gone" doesn't fully fit with the rousing score that came before it, but it nonetheless fits with Casey Rybeck's character so you could easily ignore it if you want to.
Under Siege 2: Dark Territories is incredibly short (not even 25 minutes if you delete the song at the end) and yet Poledouris makes those minutes count. It's undeniable standard music from Poledouris and yet it's something most composers today can't match. It flows so incredibly easy, delivering a rousing main theme in an adventurous album that makes it even for its 26 minutes memorable, if you dig standard yet cool Poledouris music.
Tracklisting
1. Main Titles: Dark Territories (2.37)
2. Casey's Family (2.03)
3. Compound Assault (1.47)
4. Access Codes (1.57)
5. Intruder Discovered (4.38) Excellent track
6. Dead, Not Dead (1.46)
7. The Gates of Hell / Penn's Wish (8.53) Excellent track
8. Casey's Farewell / After the Train has Gone * (3.53)
* Written by Steven Seagal and Todd Smallwood. Performed by Todd Smallwood, Abraham McDonald, Jean McClain and Steven Seagal.
Total Length: 26.34