The Town
Composed by Harry Gregson-Williams and David Buckley

When a score relies heavily on the visual accompaniment of the film for it to work effectively, than the soundtrack doesn't have much of a chance to take flight. This is what happened with, The Town, a score co-composed by Harry Gregson-Williams and David Buckley for Ben Affleck's much-hyped feature. The soundtrack, which was recently released by Silva Screen, provides little allure other than then bittersweet piano theme (which is heard a few times) and a couple of determined action cues that depict the mayhem from the heist sequences. Beyond that, there is a fairly repetitive flow of electronic ambience that proves to be a bit challenging to sit through as purely a listening experience. I also found it interesting that there were a couple of references to Goldenthal's Heat in how some of the build-up to the heists were represented.

All in all, tough to green light this one as a recommendation.

Supernatural (Seasons 1 - 5 )
Composed by Jay Gruska and Christopher Lennertz

When dealing with a soundtrack like Supernatural (Seasons 1 thru 5), the listener basically needs to size up what he or she is looking for from the score. If you're game for a varied, broad-reaching dose of thriller/horror music, than the music by composers Chris Lennertz and Jay Gruska will agree with you. However, step out of that genre zone and you may find that this score simply didn't turn the corner enough to satisfy your soundtrack needs. For me, I found that there were segments of this score that elevate toward something special but that there were also instances that lacked a bit of the personality that the stellar moments granted us with. Such is the life of television composing; sometimes you run out of real estate.

As a final note -- props to the composers for taking the time to massage the musical cues from the series into an assortment of "suite" tracks. Their time and effort is duly appreciated.

One Night in Turin
Composed by Stuart Hancock

Released earlier in the summer of 2010, Stuart Hancock's score for One Night in Turin is a brief venture but also one that makes a lasting impression. Simply put, the material is of an extremely high quality where rousing sports-inspired statements converge with the elegance of operatic classical music. Given the fact that this album wraps up at just under 20 minutes, MovieScore Media has adjusted the price accordingly so please don't view length or price as a deterrent. Plus, the album will give you plenty of returns on your modest investment as this is a score that you'll find yourself listening to again and again.

The Millennium Trilogy
Composed by Jacob Groth

The Girl With the Dragon Tatoo took hold of global audiences with its edgy characters and sinister plotlines and has now paved the way for the rest of the trilogy to be unveiled to the world (just before Hollywood commandeers it!) The music, composed by Jacob Groth, is highlighted in a new release from Silva Records, entitled The Millennium Trilogy and makes for a compelling listen. This release contains themes heard throughout all three films in the trilogy, and features the soundtrack to the second and third films (The Girl Who Played With Fire and The Girl Who Kicked The Hornet’s Nest); it is a compilation that stands out as an excellent companion piece to Milan's release of The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo. In all, The Millennium Trilogy offers listeners a unique experience full of dark beauty and a modern underscore that is rather trendy.

As it is in this case, it's never too late to discover a talented, veteran composer like Jacob Groth.