PRINTER FRIENDLY VIEW
(inverts site colors)

The composer constructed the general sound of Leave the World Behind upon tonally unusual scales with the intent of infusing classicism and dissonance. For music students, this meant emulating 20th Century French composer Olivier Messiaen and the third of his Messiaen modes. The challenging environment that results sometimes devolves into straight rhythmic suspense without much overlaid motific action, requiring the typically restrained force of the orchestra's cold demeanor to supply the right emotion for particular scenes. The ensemble consists of 34 strings, 11 brass, 6 woodwinds, and percussion, with piano a well-mixed highlight and techniques sharp all-around. Instruments are sometimes performed to emulate animal sounds. Each section of performers was recorded separately, creating a somewhat intentionally disconnected overall sound to the combined mix. As the plot exposes the degenerate nature of society, and in particular how observing animals are referenced in relation to it, Quayle increasingly slathers on heavy layers of slapping percussion in extremely unnerving methods, culminating in the largely unlistenable "Human vs. Nature." In this and several other, long dissonant crescendos, brass is applied as a blunt tool of abrasion, blurting uncomfortably. Woodwinds, particularly in the higher ranges, aid in creating a secondary suspense atmosphere that is only less uncomfortable due to its underwhelming volume. The entirety of the work is cobbled together without any regard to an overarching narrative or human connection, a trait of the story that inspired the film but one that leaves this score extremely diminished for the final context. The main theme (of sorts) is an ascending, nine-note phrase adapted all over the score, including in some of the earlier rhythmic patterns. The phrase is heard immediately at the start of "Space" on piano but never enunciates itself clearly enough to serve a connective purpose in the way a film score typically strives to connect the movie's ideas. The entire plot of Leave the World Behind is too-conveniently explained in a late scene, and the music that accompanies it in "The Third Stage" fails to capture any of the gravity of the moment, leaving only the acting to carry those duties. Because of how Quayle pieced together his work, there is no beginning, no middle, and no end to be heard in this score, only the same dissonant angst for the entire running time. The music is thus basically sufficient, but it ultimately lacks any personal touch where one was needed in the finished film. It's unpleasant thriller music that starts dirty, digs around in heaps of dirt in the middle, and closes in even more dirt. The downfall of American society demands more dramatic variance than that.  **   @Amazon.com: CD or Download

Total Time: 49:21