The Crazies [Original Motion Picture Soundtrack]

Mark Isham

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The Crazies [Original Motion Picture Soundtrack] Review

by Thom Jurek

While it might seem a strange fit, choosing composer Mark Isham to score the Breck Eisner-directed remake of George A. Romero's 1973 cult film The Crazies was actually a brilliant stroke of creative thinking. Isham is well-known for his understatement and economy when it comes to film music. His approach, given that he comes from both jazz and new age backgrounds, is to allow a composition to develop into something that the listener is quietly a but insistently drawn into rather than hit over the ears with. He appears to have a cinematic model here. Throughout these 15 cues, one can can the influence of John Carpenter, who is one of the greatest composers of horror film scores of the last 50 years. Isham allows the feeling of taut anticipation and the ever-growing presence of dread to permeate each of these pieces, though he does so deliberately, elegantly, and without using obvious tactics to get his cues across. In those moments leading up to what is a scare onscreen, there isn't a long dynamic buildup; things get really quiet. Even when the explosive moment occurs, there is only a brief instance where pitch, dynamic, and tension are startlingly alluded to. As a piece of music that stands on its own as a listening experience, this is one of Isham’s finer moments. While it’s creepy in places to be sure, it’s also quite haunting and beautiful throughout, despite the uneasiness it creates.

Track Listing

	Title/Composer	Performer	Time	Stream
The Crazies
1	Fire Mark Isham	Mark Isham	04:49	Spotify Amazon
2	Something in the Water Supply Mark Isham	Mark Isham	07:03	Spotify Amazon
3	Bone Saw Mark Isham	Mark Isham	02:58	Spotify Amazon
4	There's Somebody Out There Mark Isham	Mark Isham	05:25	Spotify Amazon
5	Mad House Mark Isham	Mark Isham	03:24	Spotify Amazon
6	Principal Mark Isham	Mark Isham	03:05	Spotify Amazon
7	Had to Be Sure Mark Isham	Mark Isham	09:23	Spotify Amazon
8	Are We Clear? Mark Isham	Mark Isham	04:05	Spotify Amazon
9	The Long Walk Mark Isham	Mark Isham	04:01	Spotify Amazon
10	Let it Mean Something Mark Isham	Mark Isham	03:45	Spotify Amazon
11	Lights Out Mark Isham	Mark Isham	05:43	Spotify Amazon
12	A Loving Hand Mark Isham	Mark Isham	02:06	Spotify Amazon
13	Oil Pen Mark Isham	Mark Isham	00:59	Spotify Amazon
14	Getaway Mark Isham	Mark Isham	01:34	Spotify Amazon
15	Cedar Rapids Mark Isham	Mark Isham	02:20	Spotify Amazon

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The Crazies [Original Motion Picture Soundtrack] Review

Track Listing

Mark Isham Discography Browser