Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
"You hear it, that tune? I've been hearing it all day.", 12 Nov 2007
Bear McCreary continues to excel with the release of the soundtrack from season 3 of Battlestar Galactica. The third season of the show dealt with a lot of weighty issues; terrorism, suicide bombings, pain, sorrow, loss and signs of things to come.
The music he's composed for this season is a leap ahead of what has been done with some incredibly touching, bittersweet and dramatic tracks which underscore the power of what you're watching on the screen. For the keen listener there are hints of leitmotif that have been built upon over the last two seasons and crop up here and there which subconsciously make you think about certain characters. In some cases it is very subtle but very well done.
Tracks of note include the opening `A Distant Sadness' which has some excellent vocals (translation on the inside cover) and is very moving. Music from the episodes which were set during the occupation on New Caprica are all terrifically bombastic, loud and at times heart-wrenching, with elements from `The Hand Of God' thrown in for good measure.
Luckily, my three favourite pieces of music from the season are included on the CD. Track 11: Battlestar Sonatica is the beautiful piano piece played in `Torn'. The piano sounds incongruous with images of Cylon Basestars floating in space but it has an epicly beautiful feel and sweep to it.
Track 6: `Wayward Soldier' is the astounding strings piece played when Bulldog returns to the Galactica and his flashbacks aboard the Basestar. Pulsing and almost hypnotic with its rapid underscore.
`All Along The Watchtower' from `Crossroads: Part II' is the final track and it is the one from the show and not the original as I feared it might be. With it's gradually building music it highlights the final shots of the episode brilliantly and ends the CD on a real high.
Through the use of eastern instruments, drums, vocals and simple hand claps, McCreary weaves an incredible spell giving you nearly 80 minutes of truly amazing music. I've just sat and listened to it non-stop 5 times through - it's that good.
An absolute must have for any music collector or fan of the show, this disc represents some of McCreary's best work to date and leaves you waiting with baited breath to see what he'll come up with for the final season next year.
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Accessible and rewarding to all, 9 Dec 2007
The music on this album is simply breathtaking and not limited to fans of the `Battlestar Galactica' TV Series, but is accessible to all listeners. While those of you who avidly watch the show like myself may recognise much of the music, to the uninitiated this is an effortlessly engaging and rewarding album. The music on this soundtrack is at its peak when around you all is quite, when there's no distraction and when your ears are able to pick-up and pick-out the many instruments, vocals, influences, timbres and moods that are utilised and extemporised to such great effect by composer Bear McCreary (who's a composer of staggering skill) on this CD.
The range is truly startling, from the melancholy and hope evoked by pipes and guitars on track (3)- `Admiral and Commander' to the cold, but touching piano-play of track (11)- `Battlestar Sonatica' (that you may remember as the back-drop to Gaius's surreal admission into the Cylon's domain) and finally to the invigorating and angry war-cry of the re-mixed and rejuvenated track (21)- `All Along the Watchtower'. Those are just a few of the stand-out tracks, but there are many more inspiring songs spread over the course of this album, in fact there isn't a single duff song on board. It's quite incredible. And empowering. Recommended to all.
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Drifts into the Mind., 21 Nov 2007
Bear McCreary's Season 3 of Battlestar Galactica.
My Review:
Battlestar Galactica gets a reformatting this season as well as more matured taste of music, Bear McCreary starts to mix and mingle every episode to the cunning vocals and intrinsically dramatic themes to starling effect.
Excellent songs include `A Distant Sadness' has some excellent vocals in Armenian. `Battlestar Sonatica' is a beautifully piano piece, carefully crosscut with outlandish images of Cylon Basestars floating in space which has but a relaxed and rhapsody effect. The hard-beating `Precipice' that really gets your blood pumping. Others include `Gentle Execution' which is but a reminder of the sadness endured by Saul Tigh and his wife, the emotional empathy we associate with him and his harsh time on New Caprica. `All Along The Watchtower' from `Crossroads: Part II' is the concluding final track that really can make you a heavy beats/ alternative rock fan if not one already. Amazing lyrics improvised by Bob Dylan's song, it really makes it stand out a lot like Hendrix's great standalone. The albums get better every season.
Verdict:
It leaves you breathless. 9/10.
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