Medal of Honor: European Assault
Christopher Lennertz
" Short but promising uprising of Lennertz's Medal of Honor music. "Written by Thomas Glorieux - Review of the regular release
It's fair to say the departure of half of the crew left a big weight on the shoulders of those trying to keep the MOH franchise afloat, including the musical gap beloved composer Michael Giacchino left behind. With Medal of Honor: European Assault they made a promising release that made good things happen in a sadly brief lasting game. The missions were excellent, the features of real surviving war veterans was a true calling card to the games authentic look, the gameplay became a thrilling (read more realistic) improvement that made it for PlayStation standards more interesting and the score by Christopher Lennertz kept growing in the series with a more promising score than his opener Rising Sun and Pacific Assault.
As said, it's frustrating therefore the game doesn't last that long at all, leading the gamer in a short but pleasing war zone, while the music covers a brief game despite making up for the flaws they instated in the first game. Therefore, European Assault is probably the shortest listen of all the MOH scores so far. Despite it having a low running length, some tracks could ultimately develop the ideas to come. Further along, what European Assault has in advantage to Lennertz's other two scores is a winning main theme.
The wonderful noble heroics growing over the main menu every time you started the game, leaving you constantly waiting for it to finish after minutes. See it as a growing elegiac theme that expands over solo trumpets to more orchestral noble intentions, finally unleashing choral majesty, letting the emotional content of the music soar over the game's menu. That is found in "Dogs of War (Main Title)", a brilliant opener.
With "Operation Chariot" we come to one of the first and perhaps best action tracks. Not really exploding in the Giacchino spirit of bombast, but at times getting close with a brassy enemy theme over whirling strings. He introduces us to more main theme variations in this piece too. "Casualties of War" and the closing "One Man can Make a Difference" have a softer, more noble variation on the theme setting a calmer mood down. This through cello and soft strings or through the expanding brass and choir.
"Redball Express" captures the more expected music with the brass and strings doing what they were doing in other scores as well. "Clearing Tobruk" is a short but pleasing return to more Giacchino fleshed out ideas, namely a marching brass stinger. Sadly the longest track "North Africa" is not exploding to anything, but at times receiving a darker tone and some theme variations but never becoming more than a light suspense builder.
"The Desert Rats" briefly again puts Giacchiano back at the helm, "Russia, 1942" is the best piece of the secondary part, putting a choir over an assault of brass ultimately leading to the main theme's pounding galore. "Battle of the Bulge" never resolves to the desirable finish (despite the appearance of Giacchino's Nazi theme in the beginning).
Medal of Honor: European Assault is a good score, a better feeling MOH-score than Rising Sun but it never explodes into the thrill Michael Giacchino puts in even just one track alone. That was Giacchino's strength! He created for each track a sub theme, and he expanded on that theme from start to finish. In here, the finish is at times absent. Nonetheless, Christopher Lennertz wrote a great main theme that alone carries half of the weight of this score. Various good pieces float around it, perhaps not making a final splash but still creating waves that will please many people of the MOH series. Orchestral there is nothing wrong with this score and thematically it will please the most with its performance. It only falls a bit light at the end if you want to compare.
Tracklisting
1. Dogs of War (Main Title) (2.57) Excellent track
2. Operation Chariot (3.16) Excellent track
3. Casualties of War (1.39)
4. Redball Express (3.17)
5. To Stalingrad (3.14)
6. Clearing Tobruk (2.05)
7. North Africa (5.21)
8. The Desert Rats (2.18)
9. Russia, 1942 (2.16) Excellent track
10. Battle pf the Bulge (4.15)
11. One Man Can Make a Difference (2.09)
Total Length: 33.12
As said, it's frustrating therefore the game doesn't last that long at all, leading the gamer in a short but pleasing war zone, while the music covers a brief game despite making up for the flaws they instated in the first game. Therefore, European Assault is probably the shortest listen of all the MOH scores so far. Despite it having a low running length, some tracks could ultimately develop the ideas to come. Further along, what European Assault has in advantage to Lennertz's other two scores is a winning main theme.
The wonderful noble heroics growing over the main menu every time you started the game, leaving you constantly waiting for it to finish after minutes. See it as a growing elegiac theme that expands over solo trumpets to more orchestral noble intentions, finally unleashing choral majesty, letting the emotional content of the music soar over the game's menu. That is found in "Dogs of War (Main Title)", a brilliant opener.
With "Operation Chariot" we come to one of the first and perhaps best action tracks. Not really exploding in the Giacchino spirit of bombast, but at times getting close with a brassy enemy theme over whirling strings. He introduces us to more main theme variations in this piece too. "Casualties of War" and the closing "One Man can Make a Difference" have a softer, more noble variation on the theme setting a calmer mood down. This through cello and soft strings or through the expanding brass and choir.
"Redball Express" captures the more expected music with the brass and strings doing what they were doing in other scores as well. "Clearing Tobruk" is a short but pleasing return to more Giacchino fleshed out ideas, namely a marching brass stinger. Sadly the longest track "North Africa" is not exploding to anything, but at times receiving a darker tone and some theme variations but never becoming more than a light suspense builder.
"The Desert Rats" briefly again puts Giacchiano back at the helm, "Russia, 1942" is the best piece of the secondary part, putting a choir over an assault of brass ultimately leading to the main theme's pounding galore. "Battle of the Bulge" never resolves to the desirable finish (despite the appearance of Giacchino's Nazi theme in the beginning).
Medal of Honor: European Assault is a good score, a better feeling MOH-score than Rising Sun but it never explodes into the thrill Michael Giacchino puts in even just one track alone. That was Giacchino's strength! He created for each track a sub theme, and he expanded on that theme from start to finish. In here, the finish is at times absent. Nonetheless, Christopher Lennertz wrote a great main theme that alone carries half of the weight of this score. Various good pieces float around it, perhaps not making a final splash but still creating waves that will please many people of the MOH series. Orchestral there is nothing wrong with this score and thematically it will please the most with its performance. It only falls a bit light at the end if you want to compare.
Tracklisting
1. Dogs of War (Main Title) (2.57) Excellent track
2. Operation Chariot (3.16) Excellent track
3. Casualties of War (1.39)
4. Redball Express (3.17)
5. To Stalingrad (3.14)
6. Clearing Tobruk (2.05)
7. North Africa (5.21)
8. The Desert Rats (2.18)
9. Russia, 1942 (2.16) Excellent track
10. Battle pf the Bulge (4.15)
11. One Man Can Make a Difference (2.09)
Total Length: 33.12