About the Soundtrack: In the Electric Mist, a suspense/thriller set in New Orleans (and starring Tommy Lee Jones) was composed by
Marco Beltrami and marks yet another impressive effort by the composer. Released by the Varese Sarabande label, there are 15 score tracks on the disc as well as one very well made song entry (co-written by Beltrami himself). The soundtrack is rather brief at 35 minutes and it reminded me of the routinely slim releases of Varese Sarabande's past. That said, this compact running time doesn't betray the album, and instead, actually made for a nice, tidy listen.
What You Need to Know: I sincerely believe that Marco Beltrami is a composer who is harnessing his craft. While I wasn't at first won over by the work he had produced earlier in his career, I've noticed a significant, skillful progression in his music in recent years. From
I Robot to
3:10 to Yuma, then
Knowing and now to this effort, he is stringing along some very accomplished offerings to the world of film music and I am certainly on board now.
As the first track got fully underway in In the Electric Mist, I gained a sense that Beltrami's score for this film would be a unique product. The sound design and overall approach to this score is quite original yet it also felt completely natural in how it played. Beltrami combines a rather modern, stylish texture to a film that required a Blues inspired score. While the Blues component is not touched on too dramatically, it is worked into the subtext of the overall score without overstepping its welcome. What really worked for me about this is Beltrami didn't resort to a typical foundation that some composers would have chosen. Instead, he brings forward a collaboration of electronic, orchestral and Blues inspired styles to the score and garners noteworthy results by doing so. The title track is evidence of this, merging an eerie folk motif within a modern orchestral mix.
On the subject of nice mixing -- the entire score was produced impeccably. There are certain soundtracks that have a flow and audio quality that are simply a pleasure to listen to and this one falls into that category. Throughout the score, there are touches of human drama, captivating suspense, and (the aforementioned) southern inspirations, all brought together in a cohesive and nicely arranged package. Aside from these stellar productions aspects, the material itself is marvelous and showcases a real sense of mature, thoughtful entertainment that I encourage you to explore.
If you haven't been following Marco Beltrami before, you may want to start doing so now.
