a curious collection from danny elfman
“Who could ask for more?” OINGO BOINGO
If you were a very, very good kid this past Christ-
mas, you may have unearthed a special musical treasure under the tree. The Danny Elfman and Tim Burton 25th Anniversary Music Box collects all the misfit boys’ collaborations, most notably the thir- teen scores Elfman has composed for Burton’s feature films, plus unreleased demos and other treats. The sixteen CDs, bonus DVD of interviews, hardcover book and loaded USB key are all pack- aged in a special black and white box that looks like it fell out of the sack of Sandy Claws from The Nightmare Before Christmas. And it costs $500 US. (A price even hardcore soundtrack col- lectors have been moaning about, especially since it applies to both signed limited editions and the general release.) But don’t fret – there is still quite a bit of Elfman music that is available at much more normal-person-friendly prices. The 1990 compilation Music for a Darkened Theatre Volume 1 gathered
some of Elfman’s best known themes, composed for Burton and others, and is perfect for those who don’t yet have a large collection of his scores. Included are his iconic, brooding work for Batman, the downright silly songs of Beetlejuice and Pee Wee’s Big Adventure and a lot of stuff you probably forgot he ever did, such as the whimsical Tales from the Crypt and the omi- nous/obvious Batman knock-offs Nightbreed and Darkman. The 1996 fol- low-up Volume 2 is less interesting for genre fans. It’s packed with beloved tracks from Edward Scissorhands and Nightmare, sure, but you could just pick up the soundtracks for those films and forgo his work on stuff such as Mission: Impossible (1996). More recently, Elfman composed Serenada Schizophrana, his first full- on classical concert. Released on CD in 2006, this (mostly) instrumental recording is unsurprisingly cinematic and will appeal to fans of his soundtracks. And if you’re looking to rock out a bit more, don’t forget the 1985 album Dead Man’s Party from his old band Oingo Boigo for spooky, kooky fun. One of the best sources for bonus (and free) Elfman music is the fansite Music for Darkened People, which, while not updated lately (I wouldn’t blame them for giving up on him after that Wolfman score, personally) contains rare and exclu- sive audio treats. The demos for Little Demons, a musical he wrote that never got filmed, are creepy cute and a nice companion
to his Nightmare work. All that said, if one of you dear readers has a 25th Anniversary Box without a home you can send it directly to me here. I promise I was very, very good last year. LIISA LADOUCEUR
RM 4
THE BLOOD SPATTERED GUIDE CAN BE HEARD WEEKLY ON
RUEMORGUERADIO.COM 6 A U D I O D R O M E
standout psalms such as “Like a Ghost” and “In the Ground,” but there’s little trace of such in the goth checklist posted on their social networking pages (Skinny Puppy, The Cure, Bauhaus and Type O Negative, et al). Enjoyable? Yes. Is this the answer to human suffering, as TCoAS claims it will be? Not really. It is, however, something decent to throw on while you’re waiting for the world to end. JS 000
ACID WITCH Stoned
METAL
HELL’S HEADBANGERS Taking lyrical inspiration from classic, particularly British, ’80s occult cin- ema, Michigan’s Acid Witch filter flicks such as Blood on Satan’s Claw, Mark of the Devil and The Conqueror Worm right through their musty, doom/death metal with sinister, sa- tanic glee. Though it’s been two years since the band’s Witchtanic Helluci- nations debut, Acid Witch’s penchant for layering crazed, skittering lead guitar atop everything seems intact, as do the creepy, Suspiria-esque synths. Indeed, the atmosphere here is certifiably old-school, revelling in that warm analog sound the same way video hounds worship their ragged Hammer VHS tapes. Though the band’s transcontinental Finnish member, Lasse Pyykkö, seems to be absent here, Stoned is essentially on par with Witchtanic’s brilliance, even if it doesn’t necessarily top it. If any- thing, both records serve as comple- mentary examples of hellish, terror-soaked doom/death metal, ex- pertly performed by a duo of horror- worshipping freaks. GP 0000
album deals with human fears and phobias, though this isn’t exactly ap- parent from song titles such as “Em- peror of Ruins” and “The Ferryman.” This German five-piece plays a style that is basically power metal with el- ements of thrash and even metalcore thrown in – something along the lines of Nevermore or Iced Earth – best characterized on standout cuts “Hu- manize the Demon” and “Angel of the Fall.” Their sound is dominated by the clean, soaring vocals and guitar har- monies typical of power metal, on- which are peppered by hardcore metal breakdowns from time to time. It even turns radio-friendly occasion- ally. Still, there’s no denying that Athorn’s cornball factor ranks very high, so if you suffer from an acute fear of cheesy music (as I do), stay away. AVL 0
ATHORN Phobia
METAL
AFM RECORDS As the title suggests, Athorn’s debut
CHAOSMOGONIC RITUALS OF FEAR Various I, VOIDHANGER RECORDINGS Extreme metal has long had a love affair with H.P. Lovecraft, but the dark ambient, doom, space rock and ex- perimental stuff that’s found on this metal tribute to the master of cosmic horror (the first in a trilogy) is infi- nitely more appropriate than the usual sledgehammer noise of, say, Obituary. Four bands each deliver an epic-long track, beginning with Finnish duo Jääportit’s twenty min- utes of hallucinogenic drone in the vein of Tangerine Dream. Umbra Nihil follows with some weird doom metal that’s heavy on the prog and slightly overwrought. Aarni’s offering “Love- craft Knew” falls somewhere be- tween doom and folk metal, while alien voices conspire in the back- ground. Strange stuff. The best is saved for last with obscure Italian project CAPUT LVIIIm, whose nearly 30-minute contribution “Resurgent Atavism” sounds like epic sludge metal, complete with tortured screams, filtered through mega re- verb. Though far from perfect, Yog- sothery – Gate 1 makes for a fittingly bizarre musical tribute to a literary master who may have been from an- other world himself. AVL 000½
YOGSOTHERY – GATE 1:
METAL
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