About the Soundtrack: The score soundtrack for the popular television show, "Heroes" has been released by La La Land Records, featuring music composed by the duo Lisa Coleman and Wendy Melvoin. It offers a selection of 10, mostly extended tracks covering the key areas from the show. This is a digitally produced, electronic score that features a few unique instruments and a touch of vocal accompaniment that enhance the music. To be clear, this isn't an electronic score attempting to sound organic; it's simply the style that was chosen by the composers...and it fits.
What You Need to Know: I was never able to sign up for the
Heroes bandwagon. Part of the reason why I am turned off to the show is because it looks and feels like any other program that is currently on television. While I concede that the storylines may be as solid as most say, the visual direction has failed to engage me from the outset and thus, I was never able to join the legion of fans who hailed the show with such endearing praise. In my opinion, I think the show needs a signature, visual style to convert someone like me over to its side.
The music from the show, quite predictably, is also bland for my tastes. The composing team of Lisa and Wendy did an efficient job in matching the tone that was required for the show but did little else to stir any type of excitement. It felt as though the composers remained in some sort of safety net the whole time, even when the music was at its most creative points. I'm not sure if the use of an orchestra would have heightened the levels at all, but one thing is for sure -- Lisa and Wendy never strayed too far from the score's even-keeled baseline. Indeed, this score lacked a bit of a heroic punch.
Where there is promise, you'll find, is when the composers probe the cultural diversities featured in Heroes. There are a few encompassing moments of diverse motifs that stir about and make for the most interesting aspects of the soundtrack. Had there been a little more power or substance behind this strategy, then we would be discussing a different outcome. As it ended up, the score for Heroes is neither gallant or triumphant; it's simply there, lurking in the background without attracting much attention.
Final Score: The soundtrack for Heroes won't whisk you away on an enlivening adventure, and short of a few creative indulgences, it probably won't entertain you much either. It's a low key, average offering that won't add much value to your television soundtrack collection. You can be the villain and pass on this one.
