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Offering
outstanding package design, interesting liner notes and a terrific running
time, the Teen Titans: Trouble
in Tokyo soundtrack release gets it right.
The composers of this score (of which there are 3) and the producer all
share their thoughts in the liner notes, so it was nice to take in some of
the details behind their work. One of the tidbits I read was that since this
animated feature had a larger budget than previous installments, additional
live musicians were summoned. Needless to say, that gave the material an
immediate boost of quality.
Checking in at a running time of nearly 60 minutes, the score offers 26
tracks and a well mixed sound design. The score was composed by Kristopher
Carter, Michael McCuistion and Lolita Ritmanis, a team that has a history of
working together and creating cool music!
If ever you need something to help put you in a better mood from a day's
woes, look no further than this charming score. In an upbeat and successful
collaboration, the Teen Titans composing team has created a soundtrack with
a bounce in its step that is too campy and fun to resist. I had a great ride
listening to this album.
For those of you who might already be familiar with the music from DC
animated series', such as Batman,
Superman, Teen Titans,
etc., you would have noticed that the music is often respectable. Along with
this respectability comes a consistency that the composers have been able to
stick to in creating the scores for these animated sagas. While I enjoyed
much of this music style for what it was, the one thing that was holding it
back a bit was the inclusion of additional live musicians and instruments.
Well, given a few more to work with here, the composers made the most of it
and have shown just how impressive their work can be with such resources.
The album begins with some fun guitar riffs in the opening track, "Meet
Saico Tek", which leads up to track 3 and the Teen Titans
theme, which as one would predict makes
appearances during the remainder of the score on different occasions. It's
always been a light and catchy theme and it's one I've always gotten a kick
out of, so I was glad to see it back in play. What takes the score to
another level, however, are the more dramatic instances of the soundtrack,
including a few epic moments. Placing the cute title theme aside, the
composers have given this score more of a dramatic touch that adds more
depth to the music. Add to the fact that live instruments help pave the
course for these dramatic cues, and that there are some excellent Japanese
motifs woven in, than you have even more reasons to take a listen to this
album.
Perhaps what I appreciated the most about Trouble in Tokyo
is the originality in many of the cues. Using
a an expansive array of tools and implementing a wide range of consistent
sounding melodies and beats, the composing team was able to deliver a
musical journey that was unpredictable yet in balance. In this score there
are friendly tunes, upbeat melodies, perilous danger and a little bit of
everything else mixed in. It's a complete package. There was just one aspect
that seemed to slow the train down a bit...
With all that is good about this music for Trouble in Tokyo,
there is also a little bit of disappointment to note. The latter third of
the album started to wade into the territory of the familiar, thus,
derailing some of the positive energy that enlightened the first two-thirds
of the running time. Some of the music in this portion sounded a little flat
compared to the energetic tones preceding these segments. I suppose the bar
was set a bit too high for me as I engaged the first 20 tracks. However, the
tailing off in the final act wasn't enough to damper the overall glow I felt
about the merry melodies that comprised the majority of the score.
Teen Titans: Trouble in Tokyo is a
fantastic escape. I can recommend this to most any fan of film music,
especially those who enjoy the tones of animated adventure. While some of
the moments may be a little too lighthearted for some, I bought into it and
had a great time doing so. If additional musicians are added to the
orchestral team in a future outing, the sky is the limit with this trio of
talented composers. A warm recommendation. |
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