LOST Season 3
Michael Giacchino
" A key factor to the enjoyment of this score is already having knowledge of the material that's being presented. "Written by Anthony Cornfield - Review of the regular release
When I first decided to review this, I was struggling on what to say. In the end I found it was easier to work backwards, I formed my overall opinion, and then worked out how I had come to it. Call me crazy, but it was the only way I managed to do this sensibly.
While I could blather on about how much I personally love this score, I figured it was much more important to review it from the perspective of a more casual listener. How big of a fan of Lost you are, how much of a Giacchino addict you are, and how familiar you are with his previous Lost music will all affect how much you will enjoy the third season set.
While the first two seasons of the show focused on the middle-section survivors fight for survival and the discovery of the hatch, the third season goes all out to entangle the lives of the survivors with the mysterious Others, and their sinister (but still not so clear) agenda.
Michael Giacchino has been with Lost from the beginning, scoring all 72 episodes (that's an end of season 3 tally). His usual troop of a string section, four trombones, and an assortment of percussion is still retained in his season 3 score, but it is by far his most mature, developed and spectacular Lost work so far.
Taking up two CD's (to their maximum capacity I might add), the third season set lasts just over two and a half hours. The first disc features nearly every single highlight from episodes 1-20, while the second features the complete scores to "Greatest Hits" and the two-part "Through the Looking Glass" finale.
While Giacchino has used the same writing techniques as in previous seasons, the season 3 score sounds much larger and bombastic. The introduction of a more varied percussion section, and a large amount of unusual writing for the strings and brass give the score a very raw texture.
Opening the first disc with an aptly titled "In With a KABOOM!", and shortly afterwards "Awed and Shocked", the change in tone can be immediately heard. Both cues make great use of loud percussion, especially large drums. (These were actually introduced right at the back end of season 2, however they are used to much greater effect here). The latter cue also makes use of a French Horn, which gets a cameo appearance in the score.
We get a fully-fledged version of Ben's theme in "Fool me Twice". Played on the brass at first, but moving over to the strings, the cue features what I consider to be some of the most impressive "sul ponticello" playing we've heard in the series (playing near the bridge of an instrument). Let me point this out now fans of Giacchino's eerie string writing will feel right at home with this album.
After the loud intro dies away, the album returns to the more familiar shores of Lost scoring. Tracks such as "Pagoda Of Shame", "Church of Eko" and"Touching Moment" provide breathing room, featuring beautiful piano and string writing, while "The Island" and "Under the Knife" make up some of the more experimental tracks on the album, both containing interesting use of percussion.
Fans after the real standout cues will want to check out "Romancing the Cage", which features the "Kate and Sawyer love theme" (although it has been used for several characters before, it's stuck the longest with them).
Other fan favorites will certainly be "Ocean's Apart", (played when Jack leaves the Hydra on the boat), "Juliette is Lost", (what has come to be known as the 'submarine theme'), and "Dharmacide", which features the innocent piano version of Ben's theme. We are even treated to an orchestral version of the Daniel Moore song "Shambala", from the scene where Hurley is driving the bus around the mesa.
The second disc is less user-friendly, and it seems like it's been tacked on for the hardcore fans. Featuring the complete scores for the final 3 episodes, the disc contains a lot of short cues, as the show requires. Highlights are certainly "Jintinimading Bernard" (more great bridge writing), "Looking Glass Half Full" (from the scene that made everyone cry!), and "Flash Forward Flashback" (I'll let you guess the scene that's from!)
While I'll personally welcome any music that is made available, a complete episode score is not the most interesting listening experience you'll have. What works wonders in the show doesn't necessarily work wonders on CD. And that actually brings me to the problems with the score.
While I have mentioned this is the most developed of the Lost scores so far, that's exactly where the problem lies. Giacchino's use of themes is magnificent in Lost, however if you are not familiar with his previous work on the series, then a lot of the music here probably won't mean that much to you.
The CD throws you straight into the action; hurling already developed themes straight at you without any clarification to where they came from. Could you immediately identify the themes for Jack, Kate, Locke or Hurley? If you answer "no" to these, then the score certainly won't be as interesting to you as to someone who can.
A key factor to the enjoyment of this score is already having knowledge of the material that's being presented. Thematic development is great, as long as you can identify where it started off.
A similar problem will probably turn some casual Lost fans away. While the album contains lots and lots of highlight tracks, can you still remember where some of the less interesting cues are from? If the music quality drops at all, it actually becomes quite a bore. For example, the opening 3 minutes of "Claire-a Culpa" is a total slog to get through, unless you know exactly what's happening on screen. The same goes for the majority of "Flying Hig". This should not be the case with soundtracks. While these cues work perfectly in the show, out of it they lose their uniqueness.
If you're not too familiar with the music and just want the highlights, get things such as "Romancing the Cage", "Ocean's Apart", "Juliette is Lost", "Shambala" and "Dharmacide" from iTunes or the like.
That said, I'm still reviewing this from the position of a casual listener.
Hardcore Losties are going to find a lot of music on this they will enjoy very much. Those of you that are already very familiar with the themes and motifs Giacchino has developed over the years are going to be right at home. For those of who that see this as just "another Lost album" then I recommend just the highlights, but for the hardcore Lost and Giacchino fans among us, this is the release we all dreamed of.
Tracklisting
CD 1: 78.21
1. In With a KABOOM! (1.56)
2. Main Title (0.16)
3. Awed and Shocked (1.34)
4. Fool me Twice (3.18)
5. Pagoda of Shame (2.02)
6. The Island (2.57)
7. Eko of the Past (2.45)
8. Church of Eko's (0.58)
9. Leggo my Eko (3.12)
10. Romancing the Cage (1.48)
11. Under the Knife (4.18)
12. Teaser Time (2.52)
13. Here Today, Gone to Maui (4.53)
14. Distraught Desmond (3.36)
15. Achara, Glad to See Me? (2.25)
16. Ocean's Apart (3.02)
17. The Lone Hugo (3.34)
18. Fetch Your Arm (2.24)
19. Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Nothin' (2.05)
20. Shambala (2.04)
21. Claire-a Culpa (5.21)
22. A Touching Moment (2.34)
23. Sweet Exposé (4.36)
24. Storming Monster (1.31)
25. Heart of Thawyer (1.51)
26. Juliette is Lost (1.28)
27. Beach Blanket Bonding (1.54)
28. Rushin' the Russian (1.06)
29. Deadly Fertility (2.05)
30. Dharmacide (3.56)
CD 2: 76.24
1. Paddle Jumper (1.16)
2. She's Dynamite (1.16)
3. The Good, The Bad and the Ominous (1.07)
4. Charlie's Fate (2.58)
5. Paddle Jumper Reprise (2.12)
6. Ta-Ta Charlie (1.28)
7. Heirloom Holiday (1.21)
8. Greatest Hits (6.03)
9. Flying High (6.30)
10. The Good Shepherd (0.58)
11. Manifesting Destiny (0.40)
12. The Looking Glass Ceiling (3.30)
13. Ex Marks the Jack (2.10)
14. Jintimidating Bernard (2.42)
15. Benomination of the Temple (0.39)
16. An Other Dark Agenda (0.36)
17. Kate Makes a Splash (0.32)
18. Diving Desmond (0.47)
19. Weapon of Mass Distraction (0.50)
20. The Fallen Hero (0.26)
21. Sticking to Their Guns (0.58)
22. Torture me Not (2.44)
23. Through the Locke-ing Glass (2.13)
24. The Only Pebble in the Jungle (1.31)
25. Early Mourning Mystery (1.54)
26. Patchy at Best (2.04)
27. All Jack'ed Up (0.12)
28. Hold the Phone (3.49)
29. Code of Conduct (1.42)
30. Act Now, Regret Later (5.11)
31. Just What the Doctor Ordered (1.24)
32. Hurley's Helping Hand (1.06)
33. Looking Glass Half Full (4.16)
34. JACK FM (0.30)
35. Naomi Phone Home (4.01)
36. Flash Forward Flashback (4.16)
37. End Title (0.32)
While I could blather on about how much I personally love this score, I figured it was much more important to review it from the perspective of a more casual listener. How big of a fan of Lost you are, how much of a Giacchino addict you are, and how familiar you are with his previous Lost music will all affect how much you will enjoy the third season set.
While the first two seasons of the show focused on the middle-section survivors fight for survival and the discovery of the hatch, the third season goes all out to entangle the lives of the survivors with the mysterious Others, and their sinister (but still not so clear) agenda.
Michael Giacchino has been with Lost from the beginning, scoring all 72 episodes (that's an end of season 3 tally). His usual troop of a string section, four trombones, and an assortment of percussion is still retained in his season 3 score, but it is by far his most mature, developed and spectacular Lost work so far.
Taking up two CD's (to their maximum capacity I might add), the third season set lasts just over two and a half hours. The first disc features nearly every single highlight from episodes 1-20, while the second features the complete scores to "Greatest Hits" and the two-part "Through the Looking Glass" finale.
While Giacchino has used the same writing techniques as in previous seasons, the season 3 score sounds much larger and bombastic. The introduction of a more varied percussion section, and a large amount of unusual writing for the strings and brass give the score a very raw texture.
Opening the first disc with an aptly titled "In With a KABOOM!", and shortly afterwards "Awed and Shocked", the change in tone can be immediately heard. Both cues make great use of loud percussion, especially large drums. (These were actually introduced right at the back end of season 2, however they are used to much greater effect here). The latter cue also makes use of a French Horn, which gets a cameo appearance in the score.
We get a fully-fledged version of Ben's theme in "Fool me Twice". Played on the brass at first, but moving over to the strings, the cue features what I consider to be some of the most impressive "sul ponticello" playing we've heard in the series (playing near the bridge of an instrument). Let me point this out now fans of Giacchino's eerie string writing will feel right at home with this album.
After the loud intro dies away, the album returns to the more familiar shores of Lost scoring. Tracks such as "Pagoda Of Shame", "Church of Eko" and"Touching Moment" provide breathing room, featuring beautiful piano and string writing, while "The Island" and "Under the Knife" make up some of the more experimental tracks on the album, both containing interesting use of percussion.
Fans after the real standout cues will want to check out "Romancing the Cage", which features the "Kate and Sawyer love theme" (although it has been used for several characters before, it's stuck the longest with them).
Other fan favorites will certainly be "Ocean's Apart", (played when Jack leaves the Hydra on the boat), "Juliette is Lost", (what has come to be known as the 'submarine theme'), and "Dharmacide", which features the innocent piano version of Ben's theme. We are even treated to an orchestral version of the Daniel Moore song "Shambala", from the scene where Hurley is driving the bus around the mesa.
The second disc is less user-friendly, and it seems like it's been tacked on for the hardcore fans. Featuring the complete scores for the final 3 episodes, the disc contains a lot of short cues, as the show requires. Highlights are certainly "Jintinimading Bernard" (more great bridge writing), "Looking Glass Half Full" (from the scene that made everyone cry!), and "Flash Forward Flashback" (I'll let you guess the scene that's from!)
While I'll personally welcome any music that is made available, a complete episode score is not the most interesting listening experience you'll have. What works wonders in the show doesn't necessarily work wonders on CD. And that actually brings me to the problems with the score.
While I have mentioned this is the most developed of the Lost scores so far, that's exactly where the problem lies. Giacchino's use of themes is magnificent in Lost, however if you are not familiar with his previous work on the series, then a lot of the music here probably won't mean that much to you.
The CD throws you straight into the action; hurling already developed themes straight at you without any clarification to where they came from. Could you immediately identify the themes for Jack, Kate, Locke or Hurley? If you answer "no" to these, then the score certainly won't be as interesting to you as to someone who can.
A key factor to the enjoyment of this score is already having knowledge of the material that's being presented. Thematic development is great, as long as you can identify where it started off.
A similar problem will probably turn some casual Lost fans away. While the album contains lots and lots of highlight tracks, can you still remember where some of the less interesting cues are from? If the music quality drops at all, it actually becomes quite a bore. For example, the opening 3 minutes of "Claire-a Culpa" is a total slog to get through, unless you know exactly what's happening on screen. The same goes for the majority of "Flying Hig". This should not be the case with soundtracks. While these cues work perfectly in the show, out of it they lose their uniqueness.
If you're not too familiar with the music and just want the highlights, get things such as "Romancing the Cage", "Ocean's Apart", "Juliette is Lost", "Shambala" and "Dharmacide" from iTunes or the like.
That said, I'm still reviewing this from the position of a casual listener.
Hardcore Losties are going to find a lot of music on this they will enjoy very much. Those of you that are already very familiar with the themes and motifs Giacchino has developed over the years are going to be right at home. For those of who that see this as just "another Lost album" then I recommend just the highlights, but for the hardcore Lost and Giacchino fans among us, this is the release we all dreamed of.
Tracklisting
CD 1: 78.21
1. In With a KABOOM! (1.56)
2. Main Title (0.16)
3. Awed and Shocked (1.34)
4. Fool me Twice (3.18)
5. Pagoda of Shame (2.02)
6. The Island (2.57)
7. Eko of the Past (2.45)
8. Church of Eko's (0.58)
9. Leggo my Eko (3.12)
10. Romancing the Cage (1.48)
11. Under the Knife (4.18)
12. Teaser Time (2.52)
13. Here Today, Gone to Maui (4.53)
14. Distraught Desmond (3.36)
15. Achara, Glad to See Me? (2.25)
16. Ocean's Apart (3.02)
17. The Lone Hugo (3.34)
18. Fetch Your Arm (2.24)
19. Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Nothin' (2.05)
20. Shambala (2.04)
21. Claire-a Culpa (5.21)
22. A Touching Moment (2.34)
23. Sweet Exposé (4.36)
24. Storming Monster (1.31)
25. Heart of Thawyer (1.51)
26. Juliette is Lost (1.28)
27. Beach Blanket Bonding (1.54)
28. Rushin' the Russian (1.06)
29. Deadly Fertility (2.05)
30. Dharmacide (3.56)
CD 2: 76.24
1. Paddle Jumper (1.16)
2. She's Dynamite (1.16)
3. The Good, The Bad and the Ominous (1.07)
4. Charlie's Fate (2.58)
5. Paddle Jumper Reprise (2.12)
6. Ta-Ta Charlie (1.28)
7. Heirloom Holiday (1.21)
8. Greatest Hits (6.03)
9. Flying High (6.30)
10. The Good Shepherd (0.58)
11. Manifesting Destiny (0.40)
12. The Looking Glass Ceiling (3.30)
13. Ex Marks the Jack (2.10)
14. Jintimidating Bernard (2.42)
15. Benomination of the Temple (0.39)
16. An Other Dark Agenda (0.36)
17. Kate Makes a Splash (0.32)
18. Diving Desmond (0.47)
19. Weapon of Mass Distraction (0.50)
20. The Fallen Hero (0.26)
21. Sticking to Their Guns (0.58)
22. Torture me Not (2.44)
23. Through the Locke-ing Glass (2.13)
24. The Only Pebble in the Jungle (1.31)
25. Early Mourning Mystery (1.54)
26. Patchy at Best (2.04)
27. All Jack'ed Up (0.12)
28. Hold the Phone (3.49)
29. Code of Conduct (1.42)
30. Act Now, Regret Later (5.11)
31. Just What the Doctor Ordered (1.24)
32. Hurley's Helping Hand (1.06)
33. Looking Glass Half Full (4.16)
34. JACK FM (0.30)
35. Naomi Phone Home (4.01)
36. Flash Forward Flashback (4.16)
37. End Title (0.32)