City of Ember Soundtrack

About the Soundtrack: Following up his successful effort on "Journey to the Center of the Earth," Composer Andrew Lockington remains underground with his score to "City of Ember," a release that his new fans are going to be eager to hear. For value seekers, the soundtrack boasts a rather extended running time of over 70 minutes and 24 tracks. Given that the length of the film is rather modest, this is quite a bountiful takeaway. The only issue I had with the content was related to the sound design; the hushed cues were a bit difficult to hear as compared to the more vibrant moments in the score, which when combined, felt like an uneven mix overall. To be fair, my copy was a digital promotional version, so it may be an issue that's corrected by the final commercial release.

What You Need to Know: For those of you who were eager to see how Andrew Lockington would follow up his surprising score for 'Journey to the Center of the Earth,' you'll be pleased to know that "City of Ember" is a worthy follow-up. In some respects, it might even be a better score.

Part science fiction film and part adventure movie, "City of Ember" offered Lockington a good opportunity to cross solid genre themes. The film depicts a doomed underground society that has only 200 years of existence left and focuses the story on the tail end of that time span as efforts are made to stave off elimination. With that flow in mind, Lockington's score features a ticking type of effect that is heard in the background on quite a few cues, presumably representing a race against the clock scenario. It's a nice strategy, even if the effect doesn't translate perfectly to the listening experience. What does translate, however, is the core of Lockington's score, which is absolutely spot on and very entertaining.

The music for "City of Ember" has its own identity, which is the first step in being a memorable score. 'Ember' offers two significant themes, the first being for the city itself, which is a slightly darker take than the music for the second theme but still remains in the fantasy/adventure category. For the second, Lockington created a sweet, uplifting theme for the character Lina Mayfleet, which is my favorite of the two. Both themes balance each other out quite well and neither are overused; rather, they are each represented effectively. To play off of these two main themes, there are string based action cues and expertly crafted background tracks that are written in a manner consistent to the 'City of Ember' world. No matter the tempo or variation, the music always felt like it belonged, which is perhaps the second step in being considered a memorable score.

No matter how good any one score is, there needs to be moments that feel climactic and impacting, which is what I consider the third step to soundtrack success. Happily, there are such moments to be found on this score as well, particularly during the final 20 minutes of the soundtrack. It's in these passages that the themes of the score become fully realized and are extended further out, pacing the final act of the film in a genuinely exciting manner. I was extremely impressed with how this score closed out and I think you will appreciate the excitement and discovery it conveys as well. In particular, the progression in the final track, "One Last Message," is exceptional!

With the three steps in place for being a memorable score, Lockington was able to notch the tri-fecta with "City of Ember."

Final Score: As an avid soundtrack fan, it's always a pleasure to find new talent that is poised to make an impact in the industry. In nailing back-to-back efforts of such high quality, Andrew Lockington is well on his way to being a composer we'll be hearing from regularly. As far as "City of Ember" goes, it's a score that you should definitely look into. Aside from a couple minor points keeping it from even higher marks, it's a firm, above average recommendation. I really enjoyed it!