Bounce

Despite having the suitably attractive pairing of Ben Affleck and Gwyneth Paltrow in it, I know almost nothing of Bounce, but judging by the pictures and the leading actors, I'm hedging my bets on romantic comedy or similar. The Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan for 2000? Whatever the case, Mychael Danna's score suggest something fairly intimate that is more romance than comedy. It is actually closer in style to Thomas Newman than Marc Shaiman and in many ways more interesting than Newman's recent efforts.

I suppose the Newman aspect is mainly to do with the very delicate orchestration, rather than any melodic similarity. However, Danna mixes the gently percussive aspects with longer line string melodies which provide for a few really quite beautiful and expressive passages. Cues with a little more movement tend toward a modern, slightly folksy influenced pop ensemble with acoustic guitar, percussion and the occasional synth rhythm, which by and large works very well indeed.

Despite being recorded in London, the album is fairly short, but I suspect any longer and would most certainly have outstayed its welcome. It mercifully avoids being overtly understated - in other words not subtle to the point of non-existent; there is always something going on and something new just around the corner. A nice, moody score that shows a composer of evident talent.