Låt den Rätte Komma In
Johan Söderqvist
" A brilliant combination of pathos and horror. "Written by Joep de Bruijn - Review of the limited release
Johan Söderqvist is an incredibly gifted Swedish composer who's written scores for films such as Brodre, Efter Brylluppet, Freud flyttar hemifrån and Misa Mi. I love his subdued writing and his use of a variety of atmospheric sounds. It's one of those composers who never seizes to amaze me. In november 2008, his overwhelming score to the astonishing Swedish horror drama Låt den rätte komma in (Let The Right One In) was released by Moviescore Media.
Låt den Rätte Komma In is a film that combines vampire horror elements with dramatic and romantic elements resolving around the friendship between a girl called Eli and the vampire Oskar. A combination that challenged composer Söderqvist into writing a score that punctuated both these elements and avoided some of the horror clichés. It's good to see he keeps on expanding his musical voices on each film, with this time samples of a bass waterphone that defines the sound. But listening to a cue like ''Eli and Oscar'', you'll hear all kind of familiar things like the ever moving slow string writings and few specific atmospheric sounds.
Beyond the use of the bass waterphone, that defines the overall voice, the theme for Eli is equally important. It's an incredible complex theme that conveys a wide range of emotions. You can sense there's some very fragile, sad, dark and romantic to this theme that gets to you. The theme is performed by strings, several different types of guitars and piano. Even in the beautiful renditions of the theme, you quite often hear a dark, unsettling sound on the background. The real ominous cues are truly frightening and very effective indeed; the chilling strings and all these dissonant sound layers are simply unforgettable.
I'm very happy with yet another cd release of a genius Johan Söderqvist score. His brilliant combination of (subtle and more lyrical) pathos and horror for Låt den Rätte Komma In provided me complete satisfaction. Hopefully Moviescore Media, or other labels, will release more of his music. Highly recommended!
Tracklisting
1 The Arrival (2.46)
2 Eli and Oscar (3.12)
3 Eli's Theme (2.41)
4 The Slaughter (2.49)
5 Oscar in Love (2.11)
6 Hiding the Body (1.34)
7 After the Fight (1.06)
8 Oscar Strikes Back (1.37)
9 Virginia Wakes Up (1.10)
10 The Father (1.47)
11 Spotting a Victim (1.12)
12 Giving Up (2.20)
13 Death of Håkan (2.18)
14 Virginia is Bitten (2.31)
15 Then We Are Together (2.42)
16 Virginia in Flames (2.15)
17 Eli Bleeds (1.45)
18 Related by Blood (1.34)
19 Lacke Dies (1.47)
20 Going Home (1.40)
21 Let the Right One In (5.49)
Total Length: 46:46
The release includes a short text by the composer:
Writing the music for Let the Right One In gave me a rare opportunity to write a score that consists of both darkness and light. The filmmakers weren´t looking for your typical horror soundtrack. The most important quality of the music in this film had to be melody and harmony, so even if the overall tone of the film and the score is dark and atmospheric, there is always a sense of hope and beauty.
Låt den Rätte Komma In is a film that combines vampire horror elements with dramatic and romantic elements resolving around the friendship between a girl called Eli and the vampire Oskar. A combination that challenged composer Söderqvist into writing a score that punctuated both these elements and avoided some of the horror clichés. It's good to see he keeps on expanding his musical voices on each film, with this time samples of a bass waterphone that defines the sound. But listening to a cue like ''Eli and Oscar'', you'll hear all kind of familiar things like the ever moving slow string writings and few specific atmospheric sounds.
Beyond the use of the bass waterphone, that defines the overall voice, the theme for Eli is equally important. It's an incredible complex theme that conveys a wide range of emotions. You can sense there's some very fragile, sad, dark and romantic to this theme that gets to you. The theme is performed by strings, several different types of guitars and piano. Even in the beautiful renditions of the theme, you quite often hear a dark, unsettling sound on the background. The real ominous cues are truly frightening and very effective indeed; the chilling strings and all these dissonant sound layers are simply unforgettable.
I'm very happy with yet another cd release of a genius Johan Söderqvist score. His brilliant combination of (subtle and more lyrical) pathos and horror for Låt den Rätte Komma In provided me complete satisfaction. Hopefully Moviescore Media, or other labels, will release more of his music. Highly recommended!
Tracklisting
1 The Arrival (2.46)
2 Eli and Oscar (3.12)
3 Eli's Theme (2.41)
4 The Slaughter (2.49)
5 Oscar in Love (2.11)
6 Hiding the Body (1.34)
7 After the Fight (1.06)
8 Oscar Strikes Back (1.37)
9 Virginia Wakes Up (1.10)
10 The Father (1.47)
11 Spotting a Victim (1.12)
12 Giving Up (2.20)
13 Death of Håkan (2.18)
14 Virginia is Bitten (2.31)
15 Then We Are Together (2.42)
16 Virginia in Flames (2.15)
17 Eli Bleeds (1.45)
18 Related by Blood (1.34)
19 Lacke Dies (1.47)
20 Going Home (1.40)
21 Let the Right One In (5.49)
Total Length: 46:46
The release includes a short text by the composer:
Writing the music for Let the Right One In gave me a rare opportunity to write a score that consists of both darkness and light. The filmmakers weren´t looking for your typical horror soundtrack. The most important quality of the music in this film had to be melody and harmony, so even if the overall tone of the film and the score is dark and atmospheric, there is always a sense of hope and beauty.