|
“Clint Mansell’s
albums truly work as albums—not just underscore, but as listenable
albums that move from beginning to end. ”
|
Aces Smokin'
Review by Steve
Townsley
After giving SMOKIN'
ACES a listen, I
brought a friend over
to play the final
track (“Dead
Reckoning”) for her,
just to see what she
thought. After
digesting it, and
pondering it, she said
“Well, thanks a
lot—now I have to hear
the rest of the
album!”
Yes, CLINT MANSELL is
kind of like that. I
intended to ruin
nothing for my friend
just by playing the
final track—only to
see what she (not
being a devoted film
music follower) would
respond. To get her
hooked made me feel
somewhat like a
dealer—(but a
well-intentioned one!)
CLINT MANSELL has
composed music for
artistic drama
(REQUIEM FOR A DREAM,
THE FOUNTAIN) and has
shown that he is
more-than-capable of
composing music for
mainstream action
films (SAHARA.) SMOKIN'
ACES is some bizarre
amalgam of both.
Many soundtrack
enthusiasts and others
took notice when
Mansell’s REQUIEM FOR
A DREAM was beefed up
for the trailer of
LORD OF THE RINGS: THE
TWO TOWERS—the simple,
minimalist 2-note
repetition was given a
powerful urgency in a
way that had probably
not been as effective
a mood-setter since
the advent of “Jaws”
some 30 years prior.
“Aces” touches upon
that urgency,
cleverly, masking it
under a rock beat and
some ethnic guitar
work that really
spices up this dark
comedy-action flick.
Clint Mansell’s albums
truly work as
albums—not just
underscore, but as
listenable albums that
move from beginning to
end. They are moody
and atmospheric,
gentle and coarse, and
“Aces” is no
exception. The whole
score throbs with
carefully crafted
energy, which builds
up to a thrilling
climax. At a solid 45
minutes, it’s the
ideal length to listen
to all the way through
without getting too
weary. Play it!
Rating:
9/10
|
Track |
Track Title |
Track Time |
Rating |
|
1 |
Surveillance
(I-Spy and the
FBI) |
8:02 |
**** |
|
2 |
Yo'Te Queiro
(Oh Ma
Corazon) |
4:01 |
*** |
|
3 |
Smokin'
Aces/It's
Buddy's
World |
10:08 |
** |
|
4 |
Three
for
the
Roadkill |
2:44 |
*** |
|
5 |
Welcome
to
Tahoe! |
2:36 |
*** |
| 6 |
Shellshock (Another Day, Another Dollar!) |
8:04 |
**** |
| 7 |
Aftermath (Body Count) |
7:06 |
**** |
| 8 |
Dead Reckoning |
3:15 |
**** |
| |
Total Running Time (approx) |
45 minutes |
|
|
