HYPE POST for Feb/March 2023
or Vikram's RRR Vacation (Release Recall Respite)

With Vik out being worldly, I'm filling in the gap here highlighting upcoming musical gaps. Since I don't typically begin listening to anything from a new year until March this may be a rough overview, but I guess we will see if I have paid proper attention to everything passing by. Nothing much comes out in the first months of a new year anyway, right? Or does it? Hmmm... let's take a quick look at everything that just zoomed by, ponder what's coming around the corner. Hey-yo, it's a hype post.

*I started this last week and, before I finished, my dog got sick, had a seizure, and I didn't get back to it. Things keep dropping so I'm behind. Managed to fix it up and add some links today. Never too late to be hyped, even if some people are well ahead and already listening, adding or subtracting from our own hype equations.

As stated, I'm still back here in 2022, and listening to a wonderful 2022 cue compilation curated by Mikael Carlsson on Spotify--which features a lot of great music that may have been lost in the sea of 2022 riches. If you haven't listened to this playlist yet it's a great afternoon, and a great way to either recall or acquaint with the past year. *I just discovered Nicklas Schmidt--and he had two great scores in 2022! Nicklas Schmidt?

Julehjertets Hemmelighed 2022
https://open.spotify.com/track/1fnj2Qj8yEdVJYbkrLUHTv?si=08b3ebd361e04777

Orkestret 2022
https://open.spotify.com/track/370xPrBUaM0d80qJ5Gepw3?si=cb6d580104f84c4e

The Carlsson Playlist:
https://open.spotify.com/playlist/70L4suYExIqiX9odFF49MF?si=393d54bdd474443b

It's also been a great time to check out all of the under the radar scores highlighted in reviews at both Jon Broxton's Movie Music UK and James Southall's Movie-Wave. (This brought The Conversation into my 2022 conversation.) If still thinking about 2022, there is music worth a listen before it falls off under the unstoppable avalanche of the new new new. Oh 2022, we hardly knew ya! Can't stop time, nor the global production of film, television, and video games. So... we continue the quest.

The 2022 tail draggers.
January had a variety of late entries for 2022, and these new releases probably highlighted the month.

*The English-expanded (Federico Jusid)
Much needed expansion from the early short release aptly provides the missing score from the mini-series. 'Tâtačiksta' this score.

https://youtu.be/yhyJDmpC8e0

*Willow V.2,V.3 (JNH, Xander Rodzinski)
Came in with mixed reception, but general consensus seems to point to V2 and V3 being the better listens of the three. I think it all just dropped late with listeners already suffering from long score fatigue. I think maybe time will be kinder to the JNH/Rodzinski effort.

*The Antares Paradox (Arnau Bataller)
Gorgeous score with some stellar cues.
https://youtu.be/nO6MIfxRQ9M

*The Pale Blue Eye (Howard Shore)
Melodic and understated. Works beautifully within the film.

*Blueback (Nigel Westlake)
This has a good share of fans, I think. Reminded me a bit of Wintory's Abzu from last decade. I'm not overly familiar with either score, so I might be making that up. It has a dreamy ocean quality.

*Knights of the Zodiac: Saint Seiya Ep1-3 (Yoshihiro Ike)
A lot to love, with 2 (or 3) more volumes on the way. I see Ike might be scoring the upcoming live action film as well, but that might be an imdb goof.

January releases for 2023

Not hearing about any big-big winners thus far. What has everyone's favorite from the year so far? Notables I've seen passing through:

Naoki Sato
Hearing some good things. Sato rarely disappoints when he stays orchestral.

Kin no Kuni Mizu no Kuni (Evan Call)
Call's latest anime film score, and first since last year's The 13 Lords of the Shogun. I think he has another coming out in this time frame as well--not sure.

Shotgun Wedding (Pinar Toprak)
Toprak seems to be getting a consistent workload these days. Looks similar to the romance/comedy/adventure thing she did last year. I like her music a lot, and I'm curious to see her continue to build on her experience.

The Offering (Christopher Young)
Christopher Young is always going to get some notice with a new horror score, though I think the word on this one is 'more experimental than orchestral melodic.' The cue length is certainly interesting.

L'envol/Scarlet (Gabriel Yared)
Yared always seems to have something released early in the year that people love a lot, and then slowly forget as the year continues. Seems that way anyway. Will that be the case for this one as well?

Dog Gone (Emily Bear)
Emily Bear is known for not being related to Bear McCreary (and, I guess, for being a young composer). Dog movies are the soup everyone's soul needs, so smart move. I'm figuring this is no Wolf Totem (score or film), but some nice reviews talking about it.

Speaking of Wolf Totem:
https://youtu.be/eLPtOCczin8

Copenhagen Cowboy (Cliff Martinez) TV
Martinez continues his collaboration with Nicholas Winding Refn. It's worked well for both, so this is probably worth a mood listen.

Also notable January releases from these composers:
La guerre des Lulus (Mathieu Lamboley)
National Treasure: Edge of History (Trevor Rabin)
The Makanai: Cooking for the Maiko House (Yoko Kanno)
Red Door: S3, Mare Fuori: S3 (Stefano Lentini)
Champions (Jeff Beal)
M3GAN (Anthony Willis)

A list of some releases coming in February/March 2023
Where is your HYPE?

The Legend of Vox Machina: S2 (Neal Acree) TV 1/23
https://youtu.be/TPFL3oezhdY

Poker Face (Nathan Johnson) TV 1/26
How does Nathan Johnson translate to a television score? Will he stay in his new Knives out comfort zone or will he return to the roots of the collaboration? Isn't everyone at least a little curious to know what he would have done on The Last Jedi? Idk.
https://youtu.be/5GCTQmna3hM

Knock at the Cabin (Herdis Stefansdottir) 2/3
Have you heard Herdis? Experimental horror textures or something closer to the MNS heyday? I see a new CC review knocking up top today.
https://youtu.be/0HyJIbNCmBA

*Hogwarts Legacy (chuck e. myers “sea”, J. Scott Rakozy, and Peter Murray) VG
https://youtu.be/NAesuW6qZU8
https://youtu.be/68DCCdzFxjM

*Hello Tomorrow! (Mark Mothersbough) TV 2/16
Seems something that might benefit very well with something bold, mid-mod, retro-futuristic. Mothersbaugh has a history of this kind of thing, and it was a great call putting him on it. A bit Jetsons, a bit Bewitched-era business suits with jetpacks.
https://youtu.be/DsxZNFVOTYg

Star Trek: Picard S3 (Russo, Barton, Wiedmann) TV 2/16
Of all the Trek series scores, I would have figured this one to be the big winner, but things don't always go as we would expect. Maybe this go around things elevate?
The composers are talented, it's Trek, what could go wrong? Is the Melumad ST:SNW score ever coming out?

*Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania (Christophe Beck) 2/17
The Beck scores have been Marvel highlights. Imagine this to continue. The music for this series has been swanky fun.
https://youtu.be/E8nxMWr2sr4

Yudo (Naoki Sato) 2/23
Do you?

Mummies (Fernando Velazquez) 2/24
Velazquez back to animation a few times this coming year. The first is Mummies.
https://youtu.be/j49IoILlrTM

We Have a Ghost (Bear McCreary) 2/24
Not sure of the tone for this film, but whatever it might be, I imagine Bear is up to the task. Imagine middle of the road Bear. but maybe this score surprises.
https://youtu.be/MWIynJMWsRo

Forspoken (Bear McCreary, Garry Schyman) VG 3/1
Garry Schyman is a name I haven't seen in a while. Bioshock seems so long ago, and it was! Maybe interesting to go take a look at that old VG score. Good stuff. Forspoken? Bear (not Emily) seems all-in lately. We'll see.
https://youtu.be/reYmHBJj0ew

Bioshock ost:
https://youtu.be/YHoG3Wg8UWs

The Mandelorian: S3 (Ludwig Göransson) TV 3/1

Creed III (Joseph Shirley) 3/3
Ludwig Göransson's co-composer on Boba Fett takes over main scoring duties.)

Scream VI (Sven Faulconer, Brian Tyler) 3/10

Shazam! Fury of the Gods (Christophe Beck) 3/17

65 (Danny Elfman) 3/17
Elfman doing an action adventure... with dinosaurs! Directors are somewhat of an unknown sensibility, so it could go sideways, but could be great.

https://youtu.be/NVyK5TRjUng

*Succession: S4 (Nicholas Britell) TV 3/26
We won't probably get a release until next year, but if/when we do, it is almost assured it will be excellent.
https://youtu.be/_JY_B0q0fog

And likely some more scores by Balfe, and Rabin, and McCreary. ?? Probably.

I'm sold on Hogwarts Legacy. The Harry Potter VG scores with James Hannigan have been favorites for me, and this looks like it is up to that same par. Probably the best of the bunch. And I'm super curious to hear the Elfman score. He's been on a pretty good roll, and hope it continues! Succession S4 will likely continue the excellence Britell has had with the project throughout. And Christophe Beck seems poised for another splash in the superhero pool. And... Hello, Tomorrow.

See anything here (or anywhere else) that looks worth some HYPE?
What is your favorite thus far in 2023?

Should be fun catching up!

(Message edited on Tuesday, February 7, 2023, at 10:40 a.m.)

> HYPE POST for Feb/March 2023
> or Vikram's RRR Vacation (Release Recall Respite)

> With Vik out being worldly, I'm filling in the gap here highlighting
> upcoming musical gaps.

How dare he have a life outside of our Scoreboard! And WORLDLY to boot!!! Tsk, tsk....

> The 2022 tail draggers.
> January had a variety of late entries for 2022, and these new releases
> probably highlighted the month.

> *The English-expanded (Federico Jusid)
> Much needed expansion from the early short release aptly provides the
> missing score from the mini-series. 'Tâtačiksta' this score.

Still need to hear the expansion. Enjoyed the score portion of the original album, though it obviously did not track enough to make my year end list.

> *Willow V.2,V.3 (JNH, Xander Rodzinski)
> Came in with mixed reception, but general consensus seems to point to V2
> and V3 being the better listens of the three. I think it all just dropped
> late with listeners already suffering from long score fatigue. I think
> maybe time will be kinder to the JNH/Rodzinski effort.

It's solid, though I found the Horner quotes to be the most memorable thing from it. There's also a lot of Hard Rock guitar work (??) which seems connected to the villain material and has me curious why/how it works in context. I think overall I'd give it a 3.5/5 or the like.

> *The Pale Blue Eye (Howard Shore)
> Melodic and understated. Works beautifully within the film.

Placed #5 in my Top 20 of 2022 and also have a review for it:
https://soundtrack-universe.blogspot.com/2023/01/the-pale-blue-eye-capsule-review.html

> *Knights of the Zodiac: Saint Seiya Ep1-3 (Yoshihiro Ike)
> A lot to love, with 2 (or 3) more volumes on the way. I see Ike might be
> scoring the upcoming live action film as well, but that might be an imdb
> goof.

Ooh... didn't realize we got another Ike! Will need to check this out soon.

> January releases for 2023

> Not hearing about any big-big winners thus far. What has everyone's
> favorite from the year so far? Notables I've seen passing through:

> Naoki Sato
> Hearing some good things. Sato rarely disappoints when he stays
> orchestral.

With the weird releases for Sato's work over here in the West, I also forget or just don't get around to his work.

> Kin no Kuni Mizu no Kuni (Evan Call)
> Call's latest anime film score, and first since last year's The 13 Lords
> of the Shogun. I think he has another coming out in this time frame as
> well--not sure.

It's good but a bit overlong and meandering like some anime scores can be. Very pretty, though.

> Shotgun Wedding (Pinar Toprak)
> Toprak seems to be getting a consistent workload these days. Looks similar
> to the romance/comedy/adventure thing she did last year. I like her music
> a lot, and I'm curious to see her continue to build on her experience.

Fun 'tropical' action-comedy musical shenanigans. In one ear, out the other for me but had fun while it lasted.

> The Offering (Christopher Young)
> Christopher Young is always going to get some notice with a new horror
> score, though I think the word on this one is 'more experimental than
> orchestral melodic.' The cue length is certainly interesting.

So far the highlight of the year. Not for all sensibilities as it is largely experimental, but done oh so well and really shows Young mastery at his craft.
My review for more info:
https://soundtrack-universe.blogspot.com/2023/02/the-offering-capsule-review.html

> L'envol/Scarlet (Gabriel Yared)
> Yared always seems to have something released early in the year that
> people love a lot, and then slowly forget as the year continues. Seems
> that way anyway. Will that be the case for this one as well?

Lovely little score and the second highlight of the year so far. It's Yared very much in his comfort zone, but fans should not hesitate to check it out.
My review:
https://soundtrack-universe.blogspot.com/2023/01/scarlet-capsule-review.html

> Dog Gone (Emily Bear)
> Emily Bear is known for not being related to Bear McCreary (and, I guess,
> for being a young composer). Dog movies are the soup everyone's soul
> needs, so smart move. I'm figuring this is no Wolf Totem (score or film),
> but some nice reviews talking about it.

Jon seems to really like this and seeing as how the movie is on Netflix, I'll probably give it a gander. No other comments thus far.

> Copenhagen Cowboy (Cliff Martinez) TV
> Martinez continues his collaboration with Nicholas Winding Refn. It's
> worked well for both, so this is probably worth a mood listen.

Surprised Riley hasn't mentioned this one.

> A list of some releases coming in February/March
> 2023
> Where is your HYPE?

> Poker Face (Nathan Johnson) TV 1/26
> How does Nathan Johnson translate to a television score? Will he stay in
> his new Knives out comfort zone or will he return to the roots of the
> collaboration? Isn't everyone at least a little curious to know what he
> would have done on The Last Jedi? Idk.

... eh. As for Johnson & Johnson for Last Jedi... I'm glad we got Williams.

> Knock at the Cabin (Herdis Stefansdottir) 2/3
> Have you heard Herdis? Experimental horror textures or something closer to
> the MNS heyday? I see a new CC review knocking up top today.

It's fine. At times veering towards the thriller tones of JNH but mostly a lot of tense strings and blaring horns/woodwinds.

> *Hogwarts Legacy (chuck e. myers “sea”, J. Scott Rakozy, and Peter
> Murray) VG

Been seeing a lot of commercials for this on YouTube. Will check it out when it lands.

> *Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania (Christophe Beck) 2/17
> The Beck scores have been Marvel highlights. Imagine this to continue. The
> music for this series has been swanky fun.

Looking forward to this.

> Yudo (Naoki Sato) 2/23
> Do you?

Dunno.

> Mummies (Fernando Velazquez) 2/24
> Velazquez back to animation a few times this coming year. The first is
> Mummies.

Yay! New Velazquez!!

> We Have a Ghost (Bear McCreary) 2/24
> Not sure of the tone for this film, but whatever it might be, I imagine
> Bear is up to the task. Imagine middle of the road Bear. but maybe this
> score surprises.

New McCreary is always good. Movie looks.... eeeh.

> Forspoken (Bear McCreary, Garry Schyman) VG 3/1
> Garry Schyman is a name I haven't seen in a while. Bioshock seems so long
> ago, and it was! Maybe interesting to go take a look at that old VG score.
> Good stuff. Forspoken? Bear (not Emily) seems all-in lately. We'll see.

Bring on McCreary (and friends) in video game land.

> Bioshock ost:
> https://youtu.be/YHoG3Wg8UWs

Probably need to investigate this score for possibly future coverage. Seems to be a well regarded title.

> The Mandelorian: S3 (Ludwig Göransson) TV 3/1

This will be interesting. Not sure if I'll 'like' it, but should be interesting.

> Creed III (Joseph Shirley) 3/3
> Ludwig Göransson's co-composer on Boba Fett takes over main scoring
> duties.)

> Scream VI (Sven Faulconer, Brian Tyler) 3/10

Low-ish expectations for these.

> Shazam! Fury of the Gods (Christophe Beck) 3/17

Ah, Beck crossing the Major Studio Superhero streams....

> 65 (Danny Elfman) 3/17
> Elfman doing an action adventure... with dinosaurs! Directors are somewhat
> of an unknown sensibility, so it could go sideways, but could be great.

Oh! Didn't realize Elfman was doing the music to this. Color me HYPED.

> *Succession: S4 (Nicholas Britell) TV 3/26
> We won't probably get a release until next year, but if/when we do, it is
> almost assured it will be excellent.

Vik will be pleased... and annoyed if it comes out next year.

> See anything here (or anywhere else) that looks worth some HYPE?
> What is your favorite thus far in 2023?

Already mentioned my two favorites so far (Scarlet, The Offering). Besides those two, it's been a typical beginning of the year for scores with mostly fine but not great efforts. Jon really likes 'M3GAN' more than I, which is somewhat amusing though Clem's 'Knock on the Cabin' review is pretty spot on.

A few titles worth noting from Jan/Feb so far are:

Anne Rice's Mayfair Witches (Will Bates)
Kin no Kuni Mizu no Kuni (Evan Call)
Deadspace (Trevor Gureckis)
Trigun Stampede (Tatsuya Kato) (or at least parts of this one)

Note should be made that none of these break above 3.5/5 in my books, so make of that what you will.

(Message edited on Tuesday, February 7, 2023, at 11:53 p.m.)

> How dare he have a life outside of our Scoreboard! And WORLDLY to boot!!!
> Tsk, tsk....

Funny enough, switching time zones has helped me notice how odd your posting hours have become. I'll absentmindedly refresh the scoreboard on my phone mid-afternoon when everyone's asleep and what do you know, Bennett is replying to something.

> Placed #5 in my Top 20 of 2022 and also have a review for it:
>
> https://soundtrack-universe.blogspot.com/2023/01/the-pale-blue-eye-capsule-review.html

> So far the highlight of the year. Not for all sensibilities as it is
> largely experimental, but done oh so well and really shows Young mastery
> at his craft.
> My review for more info:
>
> https://soundtrack-universe.blogspot.com/2023/02/the-offering-capsule-review.html

> Lovely little score and the second highlight of the year so far. It's
> Yared very much in his comfort zone, but fans should not hesitate to check
> it out.
> My review:
>
> https://soundtrack-universe.blogspot.com/2023/01/scarlet-capsule-review.html

But the hustle never sleeps haha

> Jon seems to really like this and seeing as how the movie is on Netflix,
> I'll probably give it a gander. No other comments thus far.

> Surprised Riley hasn't mentioned this one.

He did though

> Funny enough, switching time zones has helped me notice how odd your
> posting hours have become. I'll absentmindedly refresh the scoreboard on
> my phone mid-afternoon when everyone's asleep and what do you know,
> Bennett is replying to something.

Heh, my natural inclination to being a night owl has become more prevalent recently, I suppose.

> But the hustle never sleeps haha

Gotta get those click, man!

But seriously, if it's something I've already spent time carefully expressing my view on, why not just link to it instead of trying to reword everything? Admittedly I don't this for ALL scores I've heard or reviewed, as I definitely try not to be THAT guy... or at least not too often.

> He did though

.... *ahem* Oh hey! Riley mentioned this! How cool.

> How dare he have a life outside of our Scoreboard! And WORLDLY to boot!!!
> Tsk, tsk....

> Still need to hear the expansion. Enjoyed the score portion of the
> original album, though it obviously did not track enough to make my year
> end list.

I think I'm probably Jusid's Scoreboard fan club president, or at least he is typically in my top coty list regularly (including #2 in 2022), so I it's hard to know when I'm being objective, though I don't appear to be alone in my love for The English. I also have Sin Limites and Santa Evita top #25 atm.)

> It's solid, though I found the Horner quotes to be the most memorable
> thing from it. There's also a lot of Hard Rock guitar work (??) which
> seems connected to the villain material and has me curious why/how it
> works in context. I think overall I'd give it a 3.5/5 or the like.

That seems fair. I typically enjoy the listens I've had, but find them overall weirdly lost and unmemorable. I don't understand why, but I think JNH's voice is lost here, and it may be because of the Horner shoe he's trying to fit.?? Haven't seen the show, but imagine this is part of the "problem." Still, they are very good by some relative measure that isn't 2022.

> Placed #5 in my Top 20 of 2022 and also have a review for it:
>
> https://soundtrack-universe.blogspot.com/2023/01/the-pale-blue-eye-capsule-review.html

I like it a lot, but only enough to put it in my top 50 this year. Too competitive. I think maybe Christian Bale had the best actor/score batting average in 2022. Three great scores to the films he appeared in.

> Ooh... didn't realize we got another Ike! Will need to check this out
> soon.

Quietly had a great year, though not sure more than a handful of people listen to Ike's scores to take notice. "Into the Darkness" from Vampire in the Garden is vying for my cue of the year.

> With the weird releases for Sato's work over here in the West, I also
> forget or just don't get around to his work.

A favorite composer for me, so I just do what I have to to find them. Luckily more are ending up streaming lately, including this one (The Legend & Butterfly).

https://open.spotify.com/album/093nRjQ6Ln9YfjiI1T494M?si=Z79ZO1BBSiaNjc1KoMD1xg

> It's good but a bit overlong and meandering like some anime scores can be.
> Very pretty, though.

Yeah, that sounds like an anime score. Look forward to hearing it!

> Fun 'tropical' action-comedy musical shenanigans. In one ear, out the
> other for me but had fun while it lasted.

Figured this. I think overall Toprak has struggled to really nail a score. I listen to a cue like "Nemo & Dad Reunite" from Slumberland and I know she has a top 5 score in her someday.

> So far the highlight of the year. Not for all sensibilities as it is
> largely experimental, but done oh so well and really shows Young mastery
> at his craft.
> My review for more info:
>
> https://soundtrack-universe.blogspot.com/2023/02/the-offering-capsule-review.html

Well super curious, but still wishing for that full-on gothic Young to get another opportunity.

> Lovely little score and the second highlight of the year so far. It's
> Yared very much in his comfort zone, but fans should not hesitate to check
> it out.
> My review:
>
> https://soundtrack-universe.blogspot.com/2023/01/scarlet-capsule-review.html

Noted!

> Jon seems to really like this and seeing as how the movie is on Netflix,
> I'll probably give it a gander. No other comments thus far.

Oh, I'll be watching. I'm such a sucker for dog movies. Prey was the 2022 dog-movie winner.

> Surprised Riley hasn't mentioned this one.

> ... eh. As for Johnson & Johnson for Last Jedi... I'm glad we got
> Williams.

Oh, undoubtedly. With all these strange takes on SW, I guess I'm just curious to start hearing all the approaches with Williams declaring himself done (?). I'm surprised that the Holt/Ross Obi-Wan didn't get more traction. I think it's pretty good! Same with Kiner's Tales of the Jedi.

> It's fine. At times veering towards the thriller tones of JNH but mostly a
> lot of tense strings and blaring horns/woodwinds.

---sigh

> Been seeing a lot of commercials for this on YouTube. Will check it out
> when it lands.

I broke my rule and listened. Some good cues, but overall it lacks narrative and, well, a composer like James Hannigan. Curious to hear what people think.

> Looking forward to this.

> Dunno.

Undo?

> Yay! New Velazquez!!

> New McCreary is always good. Movie looks.... eeeh.

Yeah that film looks mid.

> Bring on McCreary (and friends) in video game land.

> Probably need to investigate this score for possibly future coverage.
> Seems to be a well regarded title.

> This will be interesting. Not sure if I'll 'like' it, but should be
> interesting.

> Low-ish expectations for these.
Agreed

> Ah, Beck crossing the Major Studio Superhero streams....

> Oh! Didn't realize Elfman was doing the music to this. Color me HYPED.

> Vik will be pleased... and annoyed if it comes out next year.

> Already mentioned my two favorites so far (Scarlet, The Offering). Besides
> those two, it's been a typical beginning of the year for scores with
> mostly fine but not great efforts. Jon really likes 'M3GAN' more
> than I, which is somewhat amusing though Clem's 'Knock on the Cabin'
> review is pretty spot on.

> A few titles worth noting from Jan/Feb so far are:

> Anne Rice's Mayfair Witches (Will Bates)
> Kin no Kuni Mizu no Kuni (Evan Call)
> Deadspace (Trevor Gureckis)
> Trigun Stampede (Tatsuya Kato) (or at least parts of this one)

> Note should be made that none of these break above 3.5/5 in my books, so
> make of that what you will.

Oh, forgot about Mayfair Witches. Was hoping for something up to the Daniel Hart level set with IwtV. Curious about the others, for sure.
Thanks for the thoughts!

> A favorite composer for me, so I just do what I have to to find them.
> Luckily more are ending up streaming lately, including this one (The
> Legend & Butterfly).

You might already know this, but Sato will most likely be scoring the new Godzilla movie releasing late this year. Should be good!

> You might already know this, but Sato will most likely be scoring the new
> Godzilla movie releasing late this year. Should be good!

Yeah, awesome, and highly anticipated (most anticipated?)! Director of Space Battleship Yamato, Great Archimedes, Always: Sunset on 3rd Street, so a history of great scores in their collaboration.

> HYPE POST for Feb/March 2023
> or Vikram's RRR Vacation (Release Recall Respite)

> With Vik out being worldly, I'm filling in the gap here highlighting
> upcoming musical gaps. Since I don't typically begin listening to anything
> from a new year until March this may be a rough overview, but I guess we
> will see if I have paid proper attention to everything passing by. Nothing
> much comes out in the first months of a new year anyway, right? Or does
> it?

Uh oh!

> Hmmm... let's take a quick look at everything that just zoomed by,
> ponder what's coming around the corner. Hey-yo, it's a hype post.

Let's do it!!

> *I started this last week and, before I finished, my dog got sick, had a
> seizure, and I didn't get back to it. Things keep dropping so I'm behind.
> Managed to fix it up and add some links today. Never too late to be hyped,
> even if some people are well ahead and already listening, adding or
> subtracting from our own hype equations.

Ah shoot, sorry to hear that. How's the pup? And if it makes you feel better, a week late is usually when I've posted these.

> As stated, I'm still back here in 2022, and listening to a wonderful 2022
> cue compilation curated by Mikael Carlsson on Spotify--which features a
> lot of great music that may have been lost in the sea of 2022 riches. If
> you haven't listened to this playlist yet it's a great afternoon, and a
> great way to either recall or acquaint with the past year. *I just
> discovered Nicklas Schmidt--and he had two great scores in 2022! Nicklas
> Schmidt?

> The Carlsson Playlist:
>
> https://open.spotify.com/playlist/70L4suYExIqiX9odFF49MF?si=393d54bdd474443b

Adding this to my library.

> It's also been a great time to check out all of the under the radar scores
> highlighted in reviews at both Jon Broxton's Movie Music UK and James
> Southall's Movie-Wave. (This brought The Conversation into my 2022
> conversation.) If still thinking about 2022, there is music worth a listen
> before it falls off under the unstoppable avalanche of the new new new. Oh
> 2022, we hardly knew ya! Can't stop time, nor the global production of
> film, television, and video games. So... we continue the quest.

On the one hand, they're worth shouting out. On the other, I'm done and ready to move on.

> The 2022 tail draggers.
> January had a variety of late entries for 2022, and these new releases
> probably highlighted the month.

> *The English-expanded (Federico Jusid)
> Much needed expansion from the early short release aptly provides the
> missing score from the mini-series. 'Tâtačiksta' this score.

> https://youtu.be/yhyJDmpC8e0

Okay fine I'll check this one out.

> *Willow V.2,V.3 (JNH, Xander Rodzinski)
> Came in with mixed reception, but general consensus seems to point to V2
> and V3 being the better listens of the three. I think it all just dropped
> late with listeners already suffering from long score fatigue. I think
> maybe time will be kinder to the JNH/Rodzinski effort.

Okay maybe I'll finish this.

> *The Antares Paradox (Arnau Bataller)
> Gorgeous score with some stellar cues.
> https://youtu.be/nO6MIfxRQ9M

Ope, missed this one.

> *The Pale Blue Eye (Howard Shore)
> Melodic and understated. Works beautifully within the film.

*Howard Shore Horror Score!*
*Howard Shore Horror Score!*
*Howard Shore Horror Score!*
*Howard Shore Horror Score!*

> *Blueback (Nigel Westlake)
> This has a good share of fans, I think. Reminded me a bit of Wintory's
> Abzu from last decade. I'm not overly familiar with either score, so I
> might be making that up. It has a dreamy ocean quality.

Very last new score I got to, maybe should've put in more listens before finalizing my list.

> January releases for 2023

> Not hearing about any big-big winners thus far. What has everyone's
> favorite from the year so far? Notables I've seen passing through:

> Naoki Sato
> Hearing some good things. Sato rarely disappoints when he stays
> orchestral.

Title: The Legend & Butterfly. You need that detail because you won't find it on the artist page "Naoki Sato" on spotify haha.

> Kin no Kuni Mizu no Kuni (Evan Call)
> Call's latest anime film score, and first since last year's The 13 Lords
> of the Shogun. I think he has another coming out in this time frame as
> well--not sure.

Hm, interesting.

> Shotgun Wedding (Pinar Toprak)
> The Offering (Christopher Young)
> L'envol/Scarlet (Gabriel Yared)
> Dog Gone (Emily Bear)

> Speaking of Wolf Totem:
> https://youtu.be/eLPtOCczin8

Yes.

> Copenhagen Cowboy (Cliff Martinez) TV
> Martinez continues his collaboration with Nicholas Winding Refn. It's
> worked well for both, so this is probably worth a mood listen.

Think I saw Riley post about this, lots of music from a couple other artists?

> Also notable January releases from these composers:
> La guerre des Lulus (Mathieu Lamboley)

Oh hell yeah. I also see "Les tetes givrees" as a new score from him. Somehow missed all his 2022 scores despite loving Lupin. I guess I assume if Broxton doesn't include him in his under-the-radar series it's not an essential one.

> Champions (Jeff Beal)
> M3GAN (Anthony Willis)

I also have Dominic Lewis' Kaleidoscope (season 1?), Desplat's Tirailleurs, Emile Mosseri's When You Finish Saving the World, and Chris Roe's Stewart in my library waiting for me when I get back. 14 scores just from what's supposed to be our weakest month!

Anne Kathrin-Dern did The Devil Conspiracy but I don't see a release. Ditto Beltrami and Trumpp's Plane, Zanelli's Fear, and Debney's 80 for Brady (already discussed by some of the trolls).

> A list of some releases coming in February/March
> 2023
> Where is your HYPE?

HERE IT IS! BRING ON THE HYPE!!!

> The Legend of Vox Machina: S2 (Neal Acree) TV 1/23
> https://youtu.be/TPFL3oezhdY

> Poker Face (Nathan Johnson) TV 1/26
> How does Nathan Johnson translate to a television score? Will he stay in
> his new Knives out comfort zone or will he return to the roots of the
> collaboration? Isn't everyone at least a little curious to know what he
> would have done on The Last Jedi? Idk.
> https://youtu.be/5GCTQmna3hM

I just figure recording sessions would've been firebombed by John Williams, who then goes to the LucasFilm offices, tosses the smoldering remnants of Nathan Johnson's MIDI keyboard onto Kathleen Kennedy's desk, and tells her "I said I didn't want anyone else composing for Daisy Ridley."

But also, if/when Rian gets to make his Star Wars trilogy, wouldn't be surprised if Nathan scored it. Also wouldn't be surprised if Lucasfilm pushed him towards Powell or another familiar face.

> Knock at the Cabin (Herdis Stefansdottir) 2/3
> Have you heard Herdis? Experimental horror textures or something closer to
> the MNS heyday? I see a new CC review knocking up top today.
> https://youtu.be/0HyJIbNCmBA

Wouldn't mind a sadboi Nordic score, could fit within the M. Night aesthetic.

CC " Buy it... if you desire music as abrasive and depressing as the film itself, the score harshly constricted by design and expressing dread and gloom in dissonant orchestral colors."

Okay, I'm intrigued, even though I know this is going to be a 2 star review.

> *Hogwarts Legacy (chuck e. myers “sea”, J. Scott Rakozy, and Peter
> Murray) VG
> https://youtu.be/NAesuW6qZU8
> https://youtu.be/68DCCdzFxjM

Well, JKR's BS hasn't stopped me from checking out new scores for her projects, so...yeah this should be fun!

> *Hello Tomorrow! (Mark Mothersbough) TV 2/16
> Seems something that might benefit very well with something bold, mid-mod,
> retro-futuristic. Mothersbaugh has a history of this kind of thing, and it
> was a great call putting him on it. A bit Jetsons, a bit Bewitched-era
> business suits with jetpacks.
> https://youtu.be/DsxZNFVOTYg

Okay, I'm in. Mothersbaugh also has Cocaine Bear coming 2/24 and the Magician's Elephant 3/17.

> Star Trek: Picard S3 (Russo, Barton, Wiedmann) TV 2/16
> Of all the Trek series scores, I would have figured this one to be the big
> winner, but things don't always go as we would expect. Maybe this go
> around things elevate?
> The composers are talented, it's Trek, what could go wrong? Is the Melumad
> ST:SNW score ever coming out?

A good time as any to remind people that Wiedmann's "Field of Lost Shoes" is maybe the best steal on La La Land's website. $5 for a damn good Civil War score? Seriously, no excuse to top off your next order bundle with this: https://lalalandrecords.com/field-of-lost-shoes-limited-edition/

But yeah, weird stuff going on with SNW, while Melumad's Prodigy (the Trek show on Nick) has gotten the most confusing release ever.

> *Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania (Christophe Beck) 2/17
> The Beck scores have been Marvel highlights. Imagine this to continue. The
> music for this series has been swanky fun.
> https://youtu.be/E8nxMWr2sr4

I never watched the first two but the trailer has done nothing to sell me on this movie. Doesn't seem very heisty. Either Beck is forced to pivot to sci-fi operatics (could go well), or before the third act Scott has to go "back to basics" and we get Beck doing that heisty Ant-Man sound but beefed up for multiverse shenanigans. That could be sweet.

...I also need to stop imagining scores before I give them a chance to let me down.

> Yudo (Naoki Sato) 2/23
> Do you?

The voodoo?

> Mummies (Fernando Velazquez) 2/24
> Velazquez back to animation a few times this coming year. The first is
> Mummies.
> https://youtu.be/j49IoILlrTM

Sweet.

> We Have a Ghost (Bear McCreary) 2/24
> Not sure of the tone for this film, but whatever it might be, I imagine
> Bear is up to the task. Imagine middle of the road Bear. but maybe this
> score surprises.
> https://youtu.be/MWIynJMWsRo

Comedy horror? Could be good. Rim of the World crossed with Happy Death Day?

> Forspoken (Bear McCreary, Garry Schyman) VG 3/1
> The Mandelorian: S3 (Ludwig Göransson) TV 3/1

> Creed III (Joseph Shirley) 3/3
> Ludwig Göransson's co-composer on Boba Fett takes over main scoring
> duties.)

Mando S3 is Shirley too, actually! That news might have dropped sometime after you started writing this though. Big month for him to show us what he's got.

> Scream VI (Sven Faulconer, Brian Tyler) 3/10

Sure.

> Shazam! Fury of the Gods (Christophe Beck) 3/17

Forgot Wallfisch stepped away from this one. Still should be good.

> 65 (Danny Elfman) 3/17
> Elfman doing an action adventure... with dinosaurs! Directors are somewhat
> of an unknown sensibility, so it could go sideways, but could be great.

> https://youtu.be/NVyK5TRjUng

Internesting.

> *Succession: S4 (Nicholas Britell) TV 3/26
> We won't probably get a release until next year, but if/when we do, it is
> almost assured it will be excellent.
> https://youtu.be/_JY_B0q0fog

Sigh...one can dream.

> And likely some more scores by Balfe, and Rabin, and McCreary. ??
> Probably.

Let's take a look?

Sharper (Mansell) 2/10
Your Place or Mine (Khosla) 2/10
Marlowe (David Holmes!) 2/15 (Have I HYPED this in a prior post? Sounds familiar.)
Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey (Andrew Scott Bell) 2/15
Luther: The Fallen Sun (Balfe) 2/24

A Little White Lie (Alex Wurman!) 3/3
Boston Strangler (Paul Leonard-Morgan) 3/17
John Wick: Capter 4 (Bates/Joel Richard) 3/24
A Good Person (Dessner) 3/24
Dungeons and Dragons (Balfe) 3/31

Air (composer TBD but it's a new Affleck directed film) 4/5

None stand out that much to me, but the Balfes and the Holmes are probably good given the genres. More Mansell is always welcome too (he says while forgetting to any of his recent scores).

> I'm sold on Hogwarts Legacy. The Harry Potter VG scores with James
> Hannigan have been favorites for me, and this looks like it is up to that
> same par. Probably the best of the bunch. And I'm super curious to hear
> the Elfman score. He's been on a pretty good roll, and hope it continues!
> Succession S4 will likely continue the excellence Britell has had with the
> project throughout. And Christophe Beck seems poised for another splash in
> the superhero pool. And... Hello, Tomorrow.

> See anything here (or anywhere else) that looks worth some HYPE?
> What is your favorite thus far in 2023?

> Should be fun catching up!

Indeed, let's keep the riches rolling! Thanks again for filling in!

> Ah shoot, sorry to hear that. How's the pup? And if it makes you feel
> better, a week late is usually when I've posted these.

And still incomplete without your necessary additions!
Kaiju is fine. Not sure what is going on with the (monthly?) seizures.

> Adding this to my library.

> On the one hand, they're worth shouting out. On the other, I'm done and
> ready to move on.

But you are going to listen to Nicklas Schmidt at some point, right?

> Okay fine I'll check this one out.

> Okay maybe I'll finish this.

At some point, probably, but even I, with this my #1 most anticipated going into 2022, feel like it is missing whatever it is I hoped for.

> Ope, missed this one.

Do recommend a listen at some point. When Bataller is good, he is really good.

> *Howard Shore Horror Score!*
> *Howard Shore Horror Score!*
> *Howard Shore Horror Score!*
> *Howard Shore Horror Score!*

But Pale Blue Eye is just a crime (drama) of the past? Definitely wouldn't categorize anything there as horror, though I suppose it flirts with some sort of occult pact with the supernatural.

> Very last new score I got to, maybe should've put in more listens before
> finalizing my list.

I actually didn't really love it.

> Title: The Legend & Butterfly. You need that detail because you won't
> find it on the artist page 'Naoki Sato' on spotify haha.

I guess I somehow deleted that from the post, and never caught it. huh. Thanks for the fix!

> Hm, interesting.

> Yes.

> Think I saw Riley post about this, lots of music from a couple other
> artists?

> Oh hell yeah. I also see 'Les tetes givrees' as a new score from him.
> Somehow missed all his 2022 scores despite loving Lupin. I guess I assume
> if Broxton doesn't include him in his under-the-radar series it's not an
> essential one.

Lamboley is very hit and miss overall. I want to hear everything he does, but I haven't found myself sold. Hope these are good!

> I also have Dominic Lewis' Kaleidoscope (season 1?), Desplat's
> Tirailleurs, Emile Mosseri's When You Finish Saving the World, and Chris
> Roe's Stewart in my library waiting for me when I get back. 14 scores just
> from what's supposed to be our weakest month!

Tirailleurs is forgettable. Haven't heard the others.

> Anne Kathrin-Dern did The Devil Conspiracy but I don't see a release.
> Ditto Beltrami and Trumpp's Plane, Zanelli's Fear, and Debney's 80 for
> Brady (already discussed by some of the trolls).

Ohhh, super curious about this non-Christmas Dern---and these others! Nice addition. About time we hear from Beltrami who was sort-of MIA in '22.

> HERE IT IS! BRING ON THE HYPE!!!

> I just figure recording sessions would've been firebombed by John
> Williams, who then goes to the LucasFilm offices, tosses the smoldering
> remnants of Nathan Johnson's MIDI keyboard onto Kathleen Kennedy's desk,
> and tells her 'I said I didn't want anyone else composing for Daisy
> Ridley.'

haha. Didn't mean as an instead of Williams hypothetical, but more a what would NJ have done with it curiosity. *I wonder if Williams will keep adding theme's or cues to anything should it come around.

> But also, if/when Rian gets to make his Star Wars trilogy, wouldn't be
> surprised if Nathan scored it. Also wouldn't be surprised if Lucasfilm
> pushed him towards Powell or another familiar face.

Oh, brave new world...
*Man, Ross deserves some love after his work on Obi-Wan

> Wouldn't mind a sadboi Nordic score, could fit within the M. Night
> aesthetic.

What is that?!

> CC ' Buy it... if you desire music as abrasive and depressing as the film
> itself, the score harshly constricted by design and expressing dread and
> gloom in dissonant orchestral colors.'

---sigh

> Okay, I'm intrigued, even though I know this is going to be a 2 star
> review.

> Well, JKR's BS hasn't stopped me from checking out new scores for her
> projects, so...yeah this should be fun!

Curious to hear any thoughts when people start to listen.

> Okay, I'm in. Mothersbaugh also has Cocaine Bear coming 2/24 and the
> Magician's Elephant 3/17.

Holy Mothersbaugh! He got busy.

> A good time as any to remind people that Wiedmann's 'Field of Lost Shoes'
> is maybe the best steal on La La Land's website. $5 for a damn good Civil
> War score? Seriously, no excuse to top off your next order bundle with
> this: https://lalalandrecords.com/field-of-lost-shoes-limited-edition/

That was really good. Wiedmann has definitely flashed. Probably not happening here. We'll see.

> But yeah, weird stuff going on with SNW, while Melumad's Prodigy (the Trek
> show on Nick) has gotten the most confusing release ever.

hmm...

> I never watched the first two but the trailer has done nothing to sell me
> on this movie. Doesn't seem very heisty. Either Beck is forced to pivot to
> sci-fi operatics (could go well), or before the third act Scott has to go
> 'back to basics' and we get Beck doing that heisty Ant-Man sound but
> beefed up for multiverse shenanigans. That could be sweet.

I think Ant-Man has been a Marvel bright spot for me. Not sure why I like them more than some others, but "heisty" might explain.

> ...I also need to stop imagining scores before I give them a chance to let
> me down.

> The voodoo?

You too?

> Sweet.

> Comedy horror? Could be good. Rim of the World crossed with Happy Death
> Day?

That's best case scenario, for sure. I'm doubting for now.

> Mando S3 is Shirley too, actually! That news might have dropped sometime
> after you started writing this though. Big month for him to show us what
> he's got.

Surely Shirley?

> Sure.

> Forgot Wallfisch stepped away from this one. Still should be good.

> Internesting.

> Sigh...one can dream.

> Let's take a look?

> Sharper (Mansell) 2/10
> Your Place or Mine (Khosla) 2/10
> Marlowe (David Holmes!) 2/15 (Have I HYPED this in a prior post? Sounds
> familiar.)
> Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey (Andrew Scott Bell) 2/15
> Luther: The Fallen Sun (Balfe) 2/24

> A Little White Lie (Alex Wurman!) 3/3
> Boston Strangler (Paul Leonard-Morgan) 3/17
> John Wick: Capter 4 (Bates/Joel Richard) 3/24
> A Good Person (Dessner) 3/24
> Dungeons and Dragons (Balfe) 3/31

> Air (composer TBD but it's a new Affleck directed film) 4/5
Hmm... what is Britell doing?

> None stand out that much to me, but the Balfes and the Holmes are probably
> good given the genres. More Mansell is always welcome too (he says while
> forgetting to any of his recent scores).

Nice catches. See, I knew there would be some Balfe scores, but something caused me to miss both. Idk.
Mansell can be really good. Seems like a long time since he hit with Hig-Rise, though his horror niche has been a nice surprise. Still really like what he did on Mute, and still really bitter about Balfe replacing him on GitS.

> Indeed, let's keep the riches rolling! Thanks again for filling in!

Thanks for the additions and thoughts!
Hope the sick goes away fast, and you are able to enjoy the rest of your time in India!

> And still incomplete without your necessary additions!

Just like mine are without your addenda!

> Kaiju is fine. Not sure what is going on with the (monthly?) seizures.

Good to hear, hope y'all can figure it out.

> But you are going to listen to Nicklas Schmidt at some point, right?

Yup, totally. Mhm.

*adds to library to decide on later*

> At some point, probably, but even I, with this my #1 most anticipated
> going into 2022, feel like it is missing whatever it is I hoped for.

See, I feel like I never have an answer for those "most anticipated" prompts. I couldn't tell you what's coming this year/what I'm most excited for. Gotta be something on the scale of a Williams Star Wars for me to get that HYPED this far out.

> Do recommend a listen at some point. When Bataller is good, he is really
> good.

> But Pale Blue Eye is just a crime (drama) of the past? Definitely wouldn't
> categorize anything there as horror, though I suppose it flirts with some
> sort of occult pact with the supernatural.

Edgar Allen Poe is there, good enough for me. And it's tonally reminiscent of Silence of the Lambs, which I guess is a good litmus test on the thriller vs. horror distinction.

> Tirailleurs is forgettable. Haven't heard the others.

Dang, Desplat's on a dry spell for me. Might have to revisit some of the recent ones though. And was there something about Eiffel finally getting a release soon?

> haha. Didn't mean as an instead of Williams hypothetical, but more a what
> would NJ have done with it curiosity. *I wonder if Williams will keep
> adding theme's or cues to anything should it come around.

I think it entirely depends on how much they're going to keep milking from the characters/era he's already scored.

> Oh, brave new world...
> *Man, Ross deserves some love after his work on Obi-Wan

Especially as he toed the company line to make sure they could bring him back!

> What is that?!

I've talked about it before, but basically gloomy scores that tend to come from Nordic composers, usually with a very simple but effective sound palette. Soderqvist and Johannsson are/were the kings of this niche.

> Holy Mothersbaugh! He got busy.

Maybe the *real* cocaine bear was in him all along!

> I think Ant-Man has been a Marvel bright spot for me. Not sure why I like
> them more than some others, but 'heisty' might explain.

> You too?

Undo!

> Surely Shirley?

Depends on how serious he is.

> Hmm... what is Britell doing?

Probably wrapping up Succession S4 and then sitting on the masters for 6 months with a devilish little grin on his cute face.

> Nice catches. See, I knew there would be some Balfe scores, but something
> caused me to miss both. Idk.
> Mansell can be really good. Seems like a long time since he hit with
> Hig-Rise, though his horror niche has been a nice surprise. Still really
> like what he did on Mute, and still really bitter about Balfe replacing
> him on GitS.

Yeah, the unraveling (or whatever happened) with Aronofsky really hurts. Frustrating when a composer loses one of their most reliable collaborators.

> Thanks for the additions and thoughts!
> Hope the sick goes away fast, and you are able to enjoy the rest of your
> time in India!

We're on the mend! Now to get up at 5 am for a football game tomorrow!