From the eternal memories of youth still calls a siren. Blistering through the noise of a late night binge, after crashing in front of the television for early hours entertainment, the music caught me off guard. Initially impressed by the presence of Ice Cube, it wasn't long before my inebriated self was memorized by its mechanized Industrial Metal soundtrack. Within a few songs I realized I was here for the music, as it was clear the zombie Sci-Fi Horror show set on mars was one heck of a flawed beast.
Not John Carpenter's finest moment with the pen or camera but this was my introduction to his accompanying instrumentation. Legendary to all in the cinematic world but this is one rarely mentioned. Since I saved up to get my hands on the CD soundtrack, its called me back to every now and then. Today was one of those days and with the opportunity to ponder on what words I would share here, it became clear that the nostalgia of childhood games and Frank Klepacki's timeless soundtracks to Command & Conquer share an aesthetic and spiritual overlap in patches.
As the complimenting mood setter to a bizarre and dystopian movie, it has to frequently switch temperaments, from action sequence to calms for dialog. This means its 90s Industrial percussive pallet swings into passages of ambiguous, noisy instrumentation and sound design between the barrages of Metal guitar. It does kick off with a bang however! The title track, Love Siege and Fight Train providing thrilling fast paced action and romping guitars fit for the onscreen voilent zombie onslaught.
Its the variety that births some really unusual ideas with Carpenter's collaborators Scott Ian of Anthrax, Steve Vai and even Buckethead! Somehow a little classy cheesed up Saxophone playing is worked in too via Bruce Robb as his playing and lead guitar licks often act as a voice above the brooding bass guitars and rattling drums that make up the hostile landscape. It sways between band performances and electronic arrangements, forging a disjointed soundtrack to a bizarre movie.
I find Scott Ian's contributions to be the best. Big noisy slabs of meaty distortion riffs having the Thrasher work a little out of his comfort zone to birth a couple booming syncopated riffs at the apt time. Its often what everything leads too as we pass through barren landscapes of mechanized percussion and ambiguous synth arrangements. Steve and Buckethead are like ghosts in the wind, alien voices drifting in and out on the way to the next action sequence, where Ian arrives, hitting hard.
As much as I love the experience, I have to be critical, the record is odd and jarring, things sound a little stiff and forced at times as its lead instruments try to meld that classic shred guitar flavor on top of its unearthly electro-industrial fusion. Many of the tracks lack structure and just serve as texture of the on screen tension. For some reason though, none of this bothers me. I think it slipped right into a space of curiosity in my musical journey at a time when I was ready to hear more of a sound I've now explored deeper. I also love the movie, its an odd one that tries to be tongue in cheek. A young Jason Statham is present doing his thing and a then legendary Pam Grier too! This movie tried to be a lot and It didn't resonate with many people. I'm glad to have stumbled onto, its another oddity in my collection that I'm happy to share!
Rating: 8/10