Hildur Guðnadóttir

Over the weekend, I just discovered Hildur Guðnadóttir and her music and I am in love. This stuff is so in my wheelhouse. It actually happened while I was watching Joker. As the movie went on, I just kept thinking to myself how incredible the soundtrack is and how it captures all the moments and feelings. I looked it up afterward and learned that she's been scoring films for a while now (Chernobyl, Trapped, Sicario) and that, for Joker, she just won a Golden Globe for Best Original Score (she's also the first woman to win the award as a solo composer, which is like what the fucking fuck, but it's something, right?). Listen to the Joker score here. She's also just reissued her 2010 album, Mount A which I've been listening to as well, check it out here.

Midsommar

The following post contains mild spoilers for the film, fyi. 

Midsommar is probably my favourite film of the year. Equally as important, in my mind, is Bobby Krlic's score to the film. You might know him better as The Haxan Cloak. My first encounter with him was his production work on Björk's excellent 2015 album, Vulnicura (listen to it here), but he had been around long before that. In any case, I don't know how he got involved with Midsommar, but his score is gorgeous. Midsommar is a weird film in that much of it is set in daylight (land of the midnight sun) despite it being billed as a horror film. Krlic somehow manages to translate the beauty of the surroundings while simultaneously underscoring the dread that lurks just beneath the surface. The payoff of the final track is dazzling, both in the film and on its own. Combined with the film, it contrasts the horror that's happening onscreen but it also lifts you up as the ritual reaches its zenith. Eye-opening and jaw-dropping, for sure. On its own, the track shimmers, glows and builds over nine and a half minutes of blazing glory. It's so fucking good (I've added it to my end-of-year mix). Do yourself a favour, see the movie (it's available digitally) and listen to the Midsommar soundtrack here.

You got me burnin'

I was watching The Terminator the other night. During the Tech Noir club scene (in which Sarah Connor first encounters the Terminator as well as Reese), I'm reminded that, 80s production aside, I actually like a few of the songs that pop up in the film (although it might just be nostalgia). Namely, Tahnee Cain & Tryanglz's Burnin' in the Third Degree, Photoplay and You Can't Do That. All of these are on the Terminator OST, which I used to have on vinyl way back when. Tahnee Cain was married to Jonathan Cain (The Baby's, Journey). I think someone could actually cover/update these and they wouldn't be half bad songs. Well, maybe if they ditch the guitar solos.

Tahnee Cain & Tryanglz - Burnin' in the Third Degree