Soul of the Ultimate Nation


Ścieżka do gry | Rok: 2006 | Format: CD
 

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# Tor   Czas
1.Sanctuary of Ether2:35
2.A Prelude To Revolt6:47
3.Tides of Hope3:19
4.Helron’s Castle2:10
5.The Triumph2:08
6.The Valley of Dragons2:18
7.Forest of The Beasts4:03
8.Empire Geist3:23
9.Night of The Crescent Moon3:05
10.The Epitaph1:35
11.Hymns of Battlefields2:14
12.Immortal Emperor2:44
13.March To Victory2:10
14.A Poem For Nemesis2:20
15.Soul of The Ultimate Nation3:13
16.Requiem For The Dead4:35
17.Ethereal Life2:53
18.A Pernicious Plot2:12
19.Graveyard of Aiort2:45
20.Menace of The Army Wings7:54
 64:22
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Soul of the Ultimate Nation - 10/10 - Przegląd wersji Tom Daish, zgłoszone w (Język angielski)
I know what you're thinking. Soul of the Ultimate Nation. What's all that about then? Well, in truth, I don't really know, my knowledge of computer games came to a shuddering halt many years ago but Soul of the Ultimate Nation or SUN, as it is more snappily known, appears to be one of these new online games where you can compete in real time with thousands of other people, without the discomfort of leaving your living room or the mindlessness of just playing against the computer. I think there's a similarly styled Star Wars game (or games) which look like good fun, but are way beyond my increasingly old fashioned brain. However, even those soundtrack fans with no interest in computer gaming will want to check out SUN in the form of its masterful score by one Howard Shore.

If your hankering for a Lord of the Rings style epic was not sated by his rather more modest efforts for The Aviator or History of Violence and gutted by the non production of his King Kong score then rest assured that the full Middle Earth effect is back in force for SUN. From the outset, the mysteriously vague Sanctuary of Ether, Howard unleashes the kind of full bore orchestra and chorus that turned his popularity on its head. It's interesting to ponder whether Shore had always had an inkling to write big, epic scores, but the films he worked on largely precluded this or whether, with Lord of the Rings, he suddenly discovered that he could write music in a much broader idiom and now relishes the chance to do it again.

It seems strange to think that a computer game would allow more freedom than a film score, after all, the slightly unpredictable nature of a computer game means that it's difficult for the music to exactly match what's going on, no matter how sophisticated the software. Therefore, that SUN was apparently penned almost as a concert work seems stranger still. However it has a coherence and natural development that implies. Perfectly self contained cues, which suggest that, beyond the basic outline of what each scene is about, Shore was free to musically roam where he pleased. The overall approach feels a little closer to Shore's better known idiom and writing methods than the Rings scores, with cleaner lines and crisper orchestration, but the drama and impact are every bit as impressive.

There is less in the way of big themes here, perhaps the most memorable a surprisingly lyrical fifth based melody in Tides of Hope, but rather than simply restating it, the theme's rhythm mutates into something more threatening in March to Victory (even if it does rather resemble the Isengard theme of the Rings trilogy). Another unusual touch is the theremin of The Valley of Dragons, Night of the Crescent Moon and Hymns of Battlefields where it is used to give a very definite melodic line, something that is difficult to do and an atypical, but extremely effective use of the instrument. The result occasionally sounds like a very resonant female vocalist humming, only when the theremin's unearthly whine asserts itself is it entirely clear that the sound is not an entirely natural one. Further interesting instrumentation includes a church organ in Immortal Emperor, a touch of which Miklos Rozsa would have been proud.

SUN is not perhaps as colourful as Lord of the Rings, there is more grim determination here than the jollity of Hobbiton, but again, this reflects Shore's more typical style (and, of course, the game). However, for a computer game (indeed, film scoring standards in general) the sophistication of the composition easily surpasses even the fine efforts of Michael Giacchino and others. Being able to write what is, effectively, an hour long concert work is a great chance for more natural musical evolution and there isn't one wasted track. Despite a concise biography of the composer and credits in English, the rest of the liner notes are, I think, in Korean (plus all the tracks are erroneously labelled as having the same length) and the album only appears to be available in Korea at the moment, but hopefully it'll be released internationally soon alongside the game's full release. A superb piece of music with a life totally independent of its origins, given a fine performance by the multitude of Russian musicians.


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