Greatest Science Fiction Hits IV: (Neil Norman and
his Cosmic Orchestra) Why exactly do most people in mainstream society
consider science fiction entertainment the realm of nerds? How come
Starfleet uniforms are always mentioned in Wield Al song parodies about
nerds? Could you point to any specific part of the sci-fi world and
declare it responsible for the lack of perceived coolness of the genre?
Yes... the answer is Neil Norman. The colorful Norman and his traveling
band called the Cosmic Orchestra are a group with a loyal following of
enthusiasts, and their live shows often consist of a spectacle of
lights, costumes, and futuristic sets. Their music is a bastardized
combination of rock and orchestral film music, blurring the lines with
often horrifying results. The key to looking at their contribution to
society is to determine how seriously you consider their intent. If
you're looking for some openly dumb, unashamed fun, the Norman fits an
amusing, comical role in the universe. If you hate hearing your favorite
film scores translated for electric guitar, then you're among the larger
contingency of more sophisticated sci-fi geeks who would rather consider
the genre's themes just one step away from classical music. Even if you
can make this determination as a fan, however, Norman suffers from one
significant problem; he can't seem to decide himself if he's going to
stay true to the outlandish, rock performances that define his
uniqueness or, conversely, try on occasion to actually produce
legitimately orchestral renditions of famous themes. It's this waffling,
among other head-scratching aspects, that ruins the fourth album
installment of his band's recordings. Obviously, someone must be buying
these things, for the fact that there were four of them to begin with
shows how prolific Norman is. There are apparently people out there who
don't seem to mind hearing
Star Trek music performed by keyboards
and electric guitars. More amazing are pictures all over the packaging
with Norman hanging out with the likes of Jerry Goldsmith and John
Williams, causing anybody to wonder what exactly was going through the
composers' minds at the moment of the snapshots. The word 'fanboy' comes
to mind.
Norman utilizes a medium sized orchestra beyond his own
band, and the resulting performances range from surprisingly loyal to
the originals to embarrassingly ridiculous. The marginal highlight of
this compilation is the orchestral rendition of the
Amazing
Stories theme by John Williams, a hard item to find at the time. The
tracks from
Predator and
Men in Black are marginally
effective as well, with Elfman's music lending itself a bit better to
quirky, demo-like instrumentation. On the other hand, the cues that
require a more robust orchestral presence, such as
The Lost World
(with electric guitars and the sounds of roaring dinosaurs in the mix),
are crucified. The themes from
The X-Files and
Babylon 5
are dressed up so badly by the group that they are at times
unrecognizable. The most insufferable track on the album is Norman's
signature performance of
Star Trek themes called "Star Trek
Encounters." This collection of mutated themes, also barely recognizable
in parts, flushes through Goldsmith tunes like
Voyager and
First Contact in full guitar and rock band mode. For most
listeners, the boundary dividing the worlds of pop rock bands and
orchestral film music is definitely crossed with this nerdy trash and
it's embarrassing to even be witnessed listening to it. Scattered
throughout the album are original compositions by the band members and
the conductor of the orchestra. The most listenable of these (in a new
age sense) is "Universes" by Bill Burchell, while Norman's own "Conquest
of the Thaxton Nebula" is just as difficult to tolerate on album as
soundtrack producer Ford A. Thaxton is on the phone. The problem that
most people will have with these types of re-recordings is how pathetic
they sound when they try to be serious. The synthetic strings and choir
are cheap in their renderings; the real, marginally sized orchestra
doesn't perform on all tracks. So, for instance, even if you can dig the
rather adept percussion of the
Predator track, the synth brass
and strings will still have a tendency to annoy. It makes you wonder if
Norman wouldn't be better off not trying the more serious avenue at all,
and concentrate on his obviously more entertaining, overblown rock
performances. Outside of the context of the live performances, which are
undoubtedly a fascinating perversion for some, the albums are a painful
listening experience.
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The insert is very colorful and contains a wealth of information about the recordings.
