October 24

31 Days 31 Scores

October 24th

blade

“You better wake up. The world you live in is just a sugar-coated topping! There is another world beneath it: the real world. And if you wanna survive it, you better learn to PULL THE TRIGGER!”

Welcome Back to “31 Days 31 Scores”.  As we enter the last full week on the month.  We return to one of the classic monsters, sort of, with the 1998 score to Blade by Mark Isham.  Vampires have always been a part of Halloween and horror and Blade gives them a more modern spin.  Isham brings us in with “Intruder” with low rumbling and sound effects, sustained strings make their way into the score and with a percussion hit we change to brass and a driving semi-techo beat.  An industrial driving beat dominates then switches to low strings and metallic percussion that would not seem out of place in a Terminator film.  The score then transitions to a more orchestral sound with the tragic sounding “Daywalker”.  Isham incorporates “Rainbow Voice From Hearing Solar Winds” and it gives the score a brief ancient feel for just long enough to give us the feeling of just how long these creatures have been around.  Isham continues a wonderful vibe with droning synth in the cue “Somebody’s Gonna Take You Out”.  Here it works.

Heavy growling synth and vocal effects project ancient power in “Top Of The Food Chain” and the score has a gravity to it as if the world is going to end and Deacon Frost is going to be the victor.  Isham creates a great dark vibe and even includes a little pipe organ in “Temple Of Light”.   The rest of the cue continues the dark vibe with a true sense of dread.  “The Bleeding Stone” portrays a sense of the ancient blood god with choir and chants with low strings.  Driving metallic beats return and the low strings continue.  An occasional brass line comes in to accent the ceremony and what is at stake.  A tribal like beat with chanting comes in and brings the score an ancient tribal like sound.  Finally building into a frenzy with a final sustained string with a low sounding brass and sound effects.  It is amazingly effective.  “The Blood God” is great mix of ancient tribal and modern beats.  A “God” choir comes in to give the cue some gravity.  Isham would not have been my first choice for this score but his subtle and tribal sounding score make this a great listen.  The score must also make its way around pop songs and that cannot be easy to do.  Blade was released on the Varese Sarabande label and is in desperate need of an expanded re-issue.

Join me tomorrow for more 31 Days 31 scores where “The Family Just Got A Little Stranger.”