Chrome Canyon editing John Carpenter

CarpenterHowarth

Chrome Canyon, one of Brooklyn’s finest purveyors of vintage synth Boogie, has taken it upon himself to spice up your Halloween with a funky little re-edit of legendary master of horror, and synthesizer wizard John Carpenter’s theme from his 1978 slash-fest Halloween.

Carpenter is the undisputed king of horror synth. Halloween, Escape From New York, Assault On Precinct 13, all synth classics, with Halloween obviously being the most creepified. So what can you do with that instantly recognisable, flesh-crawling piano line and chords of dread? Well, Chrome Canyon musters up all his electronic trickery to drop a shuffling beat and cuts the track up into dancefloor sized chunks. Building and building a robotic tension until the big Disco synths drop for the finale and the track goes manic, or should that be maniac?

John Carpenter –  Halloween Theme (Chrome Canyon Re-Edit)

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Mitch Murder covers the Airwolf theme

airwolf

Mitch Murder covers the Airwolf theme!

Seriously, Mitch Murder, one of the most talented SynthWave producers working today has covered the theme tune to Airwolf, one of the best 80’s action TV shows with one of the best TV theme of all time, what more is there to say?

Mitch Murder – Airwolf (Cover)

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Goin’ Old School: Thompson Twins, Pamala Stanley & Vangelis

Goin’ Old School isn’t a trip down music memory lane, it’s a mugging in the dark alleyway of nostalgia:

Some TOTP to start with, Thompson Twins with ‘Love On Your Side’ from 1983.

Pamala Stanley’s Italo fuelled DiscoPop from 1983,  ‎’Coming Out Of Hiding’.

OK, so it’s not a music video, but it is the first two minutes of the greatest movie ever made with the greatest soundtrack ever written. Vangelis’ ‘BladeRunner Main Titles’ from 1982 (although not properly released, not counting the New American Orchestra version, until 1994).

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Goin’ Old School: A-Ha, Duran Duran & Sheena Easton

Goin’ Old School isn’t a trip down music memory lane, it’s a mugging in the dark alleyway of nostalgia:

A-Ha with ‘The Living Daylights’ from 1987. Oh no, there’s no theme here…

From 10985, Duran Duran’s ‘A View To A Kill’. OK, maybe there is a theme going on…

In 1981, just coming out of the ‘70’s, Sheena Easton with ‘For Your Eyes Only’. Yeah, can;t really get away from the theme now.

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Pilotpriest’s ‘Original Motion Picture Soundtrack’

Pilotpriest

Pilotpriest, an artist we were only vaguely familiar with, sent us an album with twenty five tracks on it. That kind of thing tends to make us shudder a little, but we had some stuff to do so we stuck it on. Two hours later we’d got nothing done, wondered where the time had flow off too, and were in love with Pilotpriest’s ‘Original Motion Picture Soundtrack’. Yes, you read that right, two hours! It’s a rare best that is that kind of length and at no point at all gets anywhere close to boring. I’m not overly sure how easy this album is going to be to review, it really is one of these records that has to be heard, I can imagine everyone taking something different from it and the overall work truly is an experience, one that has to be had, not read about. No writing I can do will do the experience of listening to this album Justice. It’s not just a collection of songs, it’s a narrative, it’s an artwork, and your relationship to it will be different to mine.

After a bit of digging around it turns out we were familiar with Pilotpriest! Do you remember ‘The Crash’? That ‘leaked’ track from from Daft Punk’s ‘Tron: Legacy’ soundtrack, that Kanye West raved about thatwas quickly proven to be a fake, but we said we liked it anyway? Well that was him. Whist the ‘leak’ was cheeky, Pilotpriest hides behind nothing on his new record, and he would have no need to, it’s an electronic masterpiece, a couple of hours of pure bliss for an fan of synthesizer music. ‘Original Motion Picture Soundtrack’ is a collection of instrumental electronic peices, some leaning toward experimental Sci-Fi compositions, some Disco tinged dancefloor tunes, all of them named after ‘80’s movie titles. The albums opener ‘Body Double’ is a twelve minute opus that lays down the law in regard s to what to expect from the album. Layers and Layers of analog synths, intertwining melodies, emotionally resonant chord progressions and a nod toward Italo dancefloors via a driving beat and bassline. The thread here, on such a lengthy album, is Pilotpriest’s sound. Where as the individual tracks on the record play out like a movie, each one encapsulating a particular mood or a particular occurrence, they all weave together effortlessly under the umbrella of Pilotpriest’s own stylistic sonics. Drawing from ‘80’s movie soundtracks, a lot of the sounds of  Italo dancefloors and electronic instrumentalists such as Jarre or Vangelis Pilotpriest creates an analog synthesizer soundscape that is as musically rich as it is damned funky. Of course, for someone who nearly out Daft Punked Daft Punk, there is also a fairly healthy injection of French Disco in here, but while at times you can hear a Daft Punk influence, it never sounds like he’s trying to emulate them when the album does veer into Disco territory. Mostly though it’s an amazing melting pot of atmospheres ranging from high-octane to quite and introspective, a true soundtrack to any moment in life. Pilotpriest’s musically it shines through in every corner of this record, lifting it high about his peers, this record isn’t a ‘production’, it;s a work of art. If you like soundtracks, you’ll love this album, if you like Disco, you’ll love this album, if you like Italo, you’ll love this album, if you like synth music, you’ll love this album. If fact, I can’t imagine anyone who reads this webzine not loving this album. Unsurprisingly, ‘Original Motion Picture Soundtrack’ comes highly recommended. Did I mention that it’s 99¢ (that’s about 68p for us in the UK)?

♫ Pilotpriest – Risky Business

♫ Pilotpriest – Thief

♫ Pilotpriest – Rad (Radwoman)

♫ Pilotpriest – After Hours (Pleasure Glove)

Pilotpriest’s ‘Original Motion Picture Soundtrack’ is out now.

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New track from Daroc

Daroc

Daroc is like busses, you wait ages for new tracks then loads come at once. Luckily we can never get our fill of new Daroc tracks, especially tracks like his latest drop. In tribute to French singer, songwriter and composer Éric Charden, who passed away earlier this year.

The track is a cover of ‘La Bataille d’Albator’, Charden’s theme tune to the Captain Harlock animé series (known as ‘Albator’ in France, and a favourite of Daroc’s as a kid) and is instantly recognisable from that riff. Daroc is the perfect artist to keep the Sci-Fi feel in covering something like this, he creates a moody electronic mood that is full of exciting promise. Deep, dark, warping synth sounds counter optimistic melodies in a track that is a magical combination of French electronic music and French melody, Japanese theme structure, Futuristic SynthWave and just a hint of Disco. Daroc is on such a roll these days, we can;t wait to hear what he has in store for us next.

Daroc – La Bataille (Éric Charden Cover)

Daroc’s ‘Destination’ EP is out now, ‘Additional Wonders’ is released 7th May.

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Prometheus hits the UK today, so check out this Disco version of the Alien theme from 1979

space-jockey

Ridley Scott’s not-Alien prequel (i.e. it’s takes place in the same universe, and is set before Alien, like a prequel (even if it doesn’t follow the same story)), Prometheus, is out today, in the UK at least. There are showings starting right now (midnight). Reviews have been disappointingly mixed so far but I’m still looking forward to seeing it today. But we’re not a movie ‘zine, we’re an electronic music ‘zine, so what’s occurring?

Well, in honour of Prometheus’ release we want to share this little gem with you. Nostromo’s ‘Alien’, a big cosmic Disco version of Jerry Goldsmith’s theme. This was released in 1979 and was a fully licenced 20th Century Fox promotional tie-in, but both the single and the 12” received a limited (for the time) release. The track ended up mostly soundtracking light shows in new Discotheques and ‘spacey’ moments in shows, but it an awesome track in it’s own right. This is proper late ‘70’s/early ‘80’s analog Disco, the kind that so many producers we feature are emulating. There’s also a lot of Moroder in there, and Goldsmith’s beats shine through. Amazingly for a ‘70’s Sci-Fi movie tie-in it manages to shed almost all of it’s novelty value and instil a fair amount the movie’s feeling of dread amongst it’s galactic Funk. Some late ‘70’s versions of Sci-Fi themes were good (Moroder’s ‘Galactica’), some not so good (I’m looking at you, Boris Midney), Nostomo’s ‘Alien’ can definitely be categorised as awesome.

♫ Nostromo – Alien (12Inch Version)

We normally put purchase links here, but you’re going to have to do some hard work to get hold of this, but it is possible, go digging! Prometheus is showing across the UK from today. I think it opens in the US sometime next year or something?

Goin’ Old School: Jan Hammer, Dorine Hollier & Julia Claire

Goin’ Old School isn’t a trip down music memory lane, it’s a mugging in the dark alleyway of nostalgia:

First up is the atmospheric keytar master, Jan Hammer with 1986’s ‘Crockett’s Theme’ from Miami Vice.

Dorine Hollier’s Tonight…Crazy Night’ from198 is as epic a slice of Italo as you’ll ever hear!

From 1987 it’s Julia Claire’s ‘Cat In Disguise’, pure post-Italo EuroPop cheese. Awesome!

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Steve Moore’s ‘Carol Of The Bells’

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Apparently this was a track written for a project that fell through a couple of years ago, but it’s so chilling and wintery that synthesizer overlord Steve Moore though it best to release it this X-Mas.

‘Carol Of The Bells’ is a haunting, atmospheric peice that immediately makes you feel cold. It’s an icy soundscape, but shot through with a strain of hopefulness, like being lost in the dark and seeing a light. I’m not sure if it’s X-Massy or not (probably, in a creepy ‘80’s BBC children’s X-Mas drama way), but it’s beautiful nonetheless.

Steve Moore – Carol Of The Bells

Steve Moore’s new album, ‘Brainstorms’, is released January 2012.

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Tangerine Dream reMixed by Kid Machine

Tangerine Dream

All this week Manchester’s answer to someone who is damn good at writing atmospheric Italo tracks, Kid Machine, has been picking some of his top classic tunes for our ‘Goin’ Old’ School’ feature, so what better way to see him off at the end of his run than with his brand new reMix of Tangerine Dream’s ‘Unicorn Theme’.

Long time readers will know I’m quite a big fan of Tangerine Dream, especially when they are at their most energetic and cinematic. ‘Unicorn Theme ‘ comes from their soundtrack to Ridley Scott’s 1986 fantasy epic ‘Legend’, which gives me an interesting way to describe Kid’s track. Unicorn footage filmed for ‘Legend’ was inserted into Ridley’s 1992 Directors Cut Of BladeRunner (as a Replicant suggesting dream-sequence), and that is exactly what this reMix feels like, the unicorn footage from Legend inserted into BladeRunner. The magic and wonder of Tangerine Dream’s pipes and strings with Kid Machine’s Vangelis-esque rapid fire Italo synths. This reMix draws a line between the two genres of movie, and movie soundtrack, in a way the makes the geek in me really happy. It’s a killer Italo tune too!

Tangerine Dream – Unicorn Theme (Kid Machine Mix)

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