John Carpenter is a legend. As the director and composer behind dozens of classic movies, Carpenter has established a reputation as one of the greatest filmmakers in the history of modern cinema, as well as one of its most influential musicians. The minimal, synthesizer-driven themes to films like Halloween, Escape From New York, and Assault on Precinct 13 are as indelible as their images, and their timelessness was evident as Carpenter performed them live in a string of internationally sold-out concert dates in 2016. Anthology: Movie Themes 1974-1998 collects 13 classic themes from Carpenter’s illustrious career together on one volume for the first time. Each theme has been newly recorded with the same collaborators that Carpenter worked with on his hit Lost Themes studio albums: his son, Cody Carpenter, and godson, Daniel Davies.
Anthology is a near-comprehensive survey of John Carpenter’s greatest themes, from his very first movie, the no-budget sci-fi film Dark Star, to 1998’s supernatural Western, Vampires. Those sit alongside the driving, Led Zeppelin-influenced Assault on Precinct 13 theme, Halloween’s iconic 5/4 piano riff, and the eerie synth work of The Fog. Carpenter and his band also cover Ennio Morricone’s bleak, minimalist theme for The Thing. (“I asked Morricone to please compose something with a very few notes,” Carpenter says. “And brilliantly, he did.”)
We also get vital new recordings of the themes to ’80s classics and fan favorites Big Trouble in Little China, Escape From New York, Christine, and They Live, along with the romantic Starman, which earned Jeff Bridges his first Oscar nomination as a lead actor. The collection is rounded out by the menacing, heavy themes to Prince of Darkness and In the Mouth of Madness, the latter a Metallica-inspired riff originally played for the film by Kinks guitarist Dave Davies, and now played by his son Daniel.
In the weeks following Anthology’s October 20 release, Carpenter will return to the road, playing both classic movie themes and material from his two Lost Themes albums. The performances will once again affirm the power of the Horror Master’s brilliant work as a composer and musician, and undoubtedly send audiences rushing home to their DVD libraries to dive yet again into the most rewarding filmography in genre cinema.
John Carpenter has been responsible for much of the horror genre’s most striking soundtrack work in the fifteen movies he’s
both directed and scored. The themes that drive them can be stripped to a few coldly repeating notes, take on the electrifying thunder of a rock concert, or submerge themselves into exotic, unholy miasmas. It’s work that instantly floods his fans’ musical memory....more
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This album is simply incredible. I've loved it for years and years, and it's what got me into darksynth. Sentient will always have a special place in my heart. I also love Disco Inferno and The Uncanny Valley. snogking
supported by 224 fans who also own “Anthology: Movie Themes 1974-1998”
IMO, Perturbator's best and most consistent work. Always a "listen from start to finish" type of album. Now if only I could get the vinyl anywhere for less than $300... skeozz
Julia Holter, The Orielles, Masal, and more reimagine all 10 tracks from Lush co-founder Emma Anderson's solo debut. Bandcamp New & Notable Sep 24, 2024
A truly original blend of haunting electronics and gothic drama mirroring the complex and unknowable nature of human emotions. Bandcamp New & Notable Nov 30, 2023
supported by 178 fans who also own “Anthology: Movie Themes 1974-1998”
Sans hésiter l'uns des mes albums préféré (et plus proche de la première place que de la dernière). Jamais la nuit n'as sonné aussi extatique. De la pure MDMA sous forme sonore. Un trip dansant, nocturne et ultra énergique qui se vit comme un sabbat noir et dont on ressort changé a jamais. Jeremysoreille