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Godzilla: King of the Monsters (soundtrack)

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Godzilla: King of the Monsters (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
Soundtrack album by
Bear McCreary
ReleasedMay 24, 2019 (2019-05-24)
Recorded2018–2019
StudioAir Studios, Dean Street Studios, Heaven Recording Studio (Hong Kong)
GenreFilm score
LabelWaterTower Music
ProducerJoe Augustine, Bear McCreary, Michael Dougherty (exec.), Peter Afterman (exec.), Margaret Yen (exec.)[1]
Bear McCreary chronology
The Professor and the Madman
(2019) 		Godzilla: King of the Monsters (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
(2019) 		Rim of the World
(2019)
MonsterVerse chronology
Kong: Skull Island
(2017) 		Godzilla: King of the Monsters
(2019) 		Godzilla vs. Kong
(2021)
Godzilla soundtrack chronology
Shin Godzilla
(2016) 		Godzilla: King of the Monsters
(2019) 		Godzilla vs. Kong
(2021)
Singles from Godzilla: King of the Monsters
  1. "Old Rivals"
    Released: April 7, 2019
  2. "Godzilla (feat. Serj Tankian)[2]"
    Released: April 15, 2019
  3. "Rodan[3]"
    Released: May 23, 2019
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Soundtrack Universe[1]
The Action Elite[2]
Sci-Fi Bulletin[3]
Review Graveyard[4]
Filmtracks[5]

Godzilla: King of the Monsters (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) is the soundtrack to the 2019 American monster film Godzilla: King of the Monsters.[a] A sequel to Godzilla (2014), it is the 35th film in the Godzilla franchise, the third film in Legendary's MonsterVerse, and the third Godzilla film to be completely produced by a Hollywood studio.[b] Directed and co-written by Michael Dougherty, the film's musical score is composed by Bear McCreary, the third film composer to work on the MonsterVerse franchise.[c] His involvement in the film was confirmed in July 2018, and recording of the musical score began later that year in Hong Kong. Several themes from Akira Ifukube's musical score for Godzilla (1954), were incorporated and sampled in the score.[9] The album and score influenced a mix of electronic, trance and orchestral music with Japanese music for few of the themes. The soundtrack was released by WaterTower Music on May 24, 2019,[10] a week before the film's theatrical release date. A limited edition triple LP soundtrack was released by Waxwork Records on July 5.[11]

Background

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On July 21, 2018, Dougherty revealed that Bear McCreary would compose the film's score, incorporating themes from Akira Ifukube's previous Godzilla scores.[10] Regarding his involvement, McCreary stated, "I am thrilled to be the composer for Godzilla: King of the Monsters, and honored beyond words to have the opportunity to contribute to one of cinema's longest-running musical legacies."[12] McCreary further expanded on his plans and involvement, stating;

"I've known Michael Dougherty for a long time, as we both run in the same film-nerd circles. I have always appreciated his love of film music, chatting with him for hours on end over the years about the scores we both love. I was thrilled for him when he landed the gig to direct Godzilla, because I knew what it meant to him. When he later asked me to join the project, I was overwhelmed with excitement, and awe, grateful for the chance to join him in contributing to the legacy of our favorite monster. We knew from the beginning that we wanted to incorporate classic [Akira] Ifukube themes, and yet I think fans will be excited to hear how they have evolved. There are some fun surprises in store. Fitting the material and Michael's visionary film, this score is the most massive I have ever written, and I can't wait for fans to experience it!"[13]

In November 2018, a sample of McCreary's Godzilla theme was leaked online after it was used during a panel at Tokyo Comic Con.[14] In April 2019, WaterTower Music released two tracks from the soundtrack, "Old Rivals", composed by McCreary, and a cover of Blue Öyster Cult's "Godzilla" by Serj Tankian. Brendon Small, Gene Hoglan, and other members of Dethklok contributed to the Tankian cover.[2] McCreary called the cover "the most audacious piece of music" he had produced in his career, citing the orchestra, choir, taiko chanting, taiko drumming, heavy metal rhythm section, Hoglan's double-kick drums, and Tankian's vocals used to produce the track. McCreary stated "For [the character] Godzilla, I chose to incorporate and adapt the legendary Akira Ifukube's iconic theme, and for Mothra, Yūji Koseki's immortal 'Mothra's Song'."[15][16]

He further reworked into traditional Japanese music to reinforce Godzilla's character, saying that he was "drawing from Japanese sounds, and wanted to give the theme a distinctly Japanese flavor" for which he across the chants of Japanese Buddhist monks.[17] He further recalled "It’s hypnotic and beautiful and surreal and calm, and I don’t know why, but I thought, ‘That’s Ghidorah’s theme. That’s the antagonist.’ I can’t even explain it. If I tried to put it into words, it would sound like a mistake. But I set those calming hypnotic voices against this gigantic three-headed dragon, as it rises up from a frozen tomb, and it worked [...] It is only through experimentation and discovery, and that sort of indescribable act of inspiration, that an idea like that can form. So the research is super fun, and it’s really what I love the most about writing to film."[17] Apart from incorporating into Ifukube's theme, McCreary further took few samples from the score of its predecessor, which was composed by Alexandre Desplat.[17] The introductory theme for "Rodan" was released as a single on May 23.[18]

On May 31, Waxwork Records announced a triple LP soundtrack release on July, with pre-orders beginning on the same date.[11][19]

Track listing

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The official track list of Godzilla: King of the Monsters was unveiled by WaterTower Music on April 26, 2019, with a press release announcing that the soundtrack will be released digitally on May 24.[20]

All tracks are written by Bear McCreary, except where noted

Godzilla: King of the Monsters (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
No.TitleLength
1."Godzilla (feat. Serj Tankian)" (written by Donald Roeser)3:10
2."Godzilla Main Theme" (written by Akira Ifukube)2:34
3."Memories of San Francisco"2:11
4."The Larva"4:23
5."Welcome to Monarch"2:54
6."Outpost 32"7:03
7."Ice Breaker"2:33
8."Rise of Ghidorah"2:59
9."Old Rivals"3:49
10."The First Gods"5:18
11."Rodan"5:23
12."A Mass Awakening"5:32
13."The One Who is Many"5:37
14."Queen of the Monsters"3:35
15."For Andrew"1:18
16."Stealing the Orca"3:04
17."The Hollow Earth"5:26
18."The Key to Coexistence"2:18
19."Goodbye Old Friend"2:54
20."Rebirth"2:03
21."Fog Over Fenway"2:53
22."Battle in Boston"7:51
23."Redemption"4:11
24."King of the Monsters"3:34
25."Ghidorah Theme"2:41
26."Mothra's Song" (written by Yūji Koseki)2:10
Total length:1:37:21

Additional music

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The first trailer featured a rearrangement of Claude Debussy's Clair de Lune by Michael Afanasyev for Imagine Music.[21] The Beautiful TV spot and final trailer featured two different renditions of "Over the Rainbow".[22][23] An alternate mix of Nessun dorma was featured in the extended IMAX preview.[24] LL Cool J's "Mama Said Knock You Out" was featured in the Exclusive Final Look trailer.[25] Both the scores were not featured in the film and its score soundtrack.

The Japanese band Alexandros contributed the single "Pray" for the film's Japanese release. On this decision, Dougherty commented, "we feel incredibly fortunate to have had [Alexandros] contribute such an anthemic song that captures not only the gravitas of the film, but also perfectly complements its dramatic conclusion."[26] The single was released on May 13, 2019.[27]

Critical response

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Despite the film’s mixed reception, the soundtrack was received positively by critics. The review from Zanobard Reviews says "as monster scores go, Bear McCreary’s score to Godzilla: King Of The Monsters is mind-blowingly good. The fact that each of the featured monsters has their own theme is a great compositional choice, and the various reprises of their classic themes just makes the experience even better. The album is also breathtakingly well-orchestrated throughout, being as dramatic as it is terrifying, and featuring many a welcome action cue."[28] Critic Jonathan Broxton called the score as McCreary's "best score of his career to date" and saying that "It’s not just the fact that he respected the musical heritage of the franchise; it’s not just that the new kaiju themes are all unique and memorable; it’s not just that the score has an intelligent internal architecture that applies thematic ideas leitmotivically; it’s not just the brilliant use of so many different vocal styles; it’s not just the creative instrumentation; and it’s not just the intensity of the action material or the number of different percussion patterns he uses throughout the score. It’s the combination of all these things together that makes Godzilla: King of the Monsters so impressive."[29]

Paul Taylor of LemonWire wrote "The soundtrack successfully honors its predecessors while also managing to add some great original material of its own. The only downside with this soundtrack is that it can feel a bit repetitive at times. Lots of blaring horns. Lots of swelling strings. And lots of epic, clashing ensembles. These are offset slightly with tracks like “Goodbye Old Friend” and “Queen of the Monsters”. While McCreary’s soundtrack pairs well within the film, it’s not one I can imagine listening to on its own. While some scores can be nice to use as background music while writing or studying, this one in particular seems a bit too bombastic overall for that purpose. It’s a score that’s meant to captures your attention, not fade into the background."[30]

Notes

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  1. ^ Released as Godzilla II: King of the Monsters in some markets.[4][5]
  2. ^ The American releases of Godzilla (Godzilla, King of the Monsters!), King Kong vs. Godzilla and The Return of Godzilla (Godzilla 1985) featured additional footage produced by independent Hollywood studios. The footage featured Western actors and merged it with the original Japanese footage in order to appeal to American audiences.[6] Invasion of Astro-Monster was the first Godzilla film to be co-produced between a Japanese studio (Toho) and an American studio (UPA).[7][8] The first Godzilla film to be completely produced by a Hollywood studio was TriStar's Godzilla (1998).
  3. ^ The other musicians who worked on the previous films in the MonsterVerse franchise, are Alexandre Desplat for the predecessor, Godzilla (2014) and Henry Jackman for Kong: Skull Island (2017)

References

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  1. ^ "Godzilla: King Of Monsters (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)". WaterTower Music. Retrieved April 29, 2019.
  2. ^ a b Abbate, Jake (April 15, 2019). "Bear McCreary and Serj Tankian Cover "Godzilla" for King of the Monsters Soundtrack". SuperHeroHype. Retrieved November 26, 2022.
  3. ^ Butler, Mary Anne (May 23, 2019). "Wanna Hear Bear McCreary's Rodan Theme from 'Godzilla: King of the Monsters'?". Bleeding Cool News And Rumors. Retrieved November 26, 2022.
  4. ^ Mueller, Matthew (July 24, 2018). "'Godzilla: King of the Monsters' Has a Different International Title". Comic Book Movies. Archived from the original on January 20, 2019. Retrieved August 3, 2018.
  5. ^ Press Trust of India (April 19, 2019). "'Godzilla II: King Of The Monsters' to release in India on May 31". Business Standard. Archived from the original on May 7, 2019. Retrieved May 7, 2019.
  6. ^ Kalat 2010, p. 25.
  7. ^ Ryfle 1998, p. 121.
  8. ^ Kalat 2010, p. 84.
  9. ^ "All The Classic Godzilla Music On The King of the Monsters Soundtrack". ScreenRant. June 3, 2019. Retrieved March 30, 2022.
  10. ^ a b Sciretta, Peter (July 21, 2018). "Bear McCreary Will Compose 'Godzilla: King of the Monsters' Score, Incorporating Classic Themes [Comic-Con 2018]". Slash Film. Archived from the original on January 20, 2019. Retrieved July 21, 2018.
  11. ^ a b Spry, Jeff (May 31, 2019). "Bear McCreary's Monster Opera Lives in Waxwork's Godzilla: King of the Monsters Vinyl Set". SyFy Wire. Retrieved August 14, 2020.
  12. ^ "Bear McCreary to Score Godzilla: King of the Monsters, Will Use Ifukube Themes". Scified. July 23, 2018. Archived from the original on January 20, 2019. Retrieved January 19, 2019.
  13. ^ Butler, Mary Anne (August 6, 2018). "Bear McCreary Talks Composing for 'Godzilla: King of the Monsters'". Bleeding Cool. Archived from the original on January 20, 2019. Retrieved August 15, 2018.
  14. ^ Millican, Josh (December 2, 2018). "Audio from Bear McCreary's Theme for Godzilla: King of the Monsters Leaks Out of Tokyo Comic-Con". Dread Central. Archived from the original on January 20, 2019. Retrieved December 9, 2018.
  15. ^ Grow, Kory (April 25, 2019). "Hear System of a Down's Serj Tankian Sing Blue Oyster Cult's Wild 'Godzilla'". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on April 25, 2019. Retrieved April 25, 2019.
  16. ^ May 29, Clark Collis; EDT, 2019 at 02:00 PM. "Watch Bear McCreary create the score for 'Godzilla: King of the Monsters'". EW.com. Retrieved March 30, 2022.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  17. ^ a b c "Composer Bear McCreary talks scoring 'Child's Play' and 'Godzilla: King of the Monsters'". Hypable. July 5, 2019. Retrieved March 30, 2022.
  18. ^ Weiss, Josh. "Take Flight With Rodan's Introductory Theme From 'Godzilla: King Of The Monsters'". Forbes. Retrieved March 30, 2022.
  19. ^ "Giveaway: Win the Godzilla: King of the Monsters Triple LP Vinyl!". pastemagazine.com. June 3, 2019. Retrieved March 30, 2022.
  20. ^ "Godzilla: King of the Monsters Original Motion Picture Soundtrack Available May 24". www.businesswire.com. April 26, 2019. Retrieved March 30, 2022.
  21. ^ Barder, Ollie (July 22, 2018). "What's Up With The New 'Godzilla: King Of The Monsters' Trailer Using Debussy's 'Clair De Lune'?". Forbes. Archived from the original on January 20, 2019. Retrieved July 27, 2018.
  22. ^ Squires, John (March 28, 2019). "Stunning New 'Godzilla: King of the Monsters' Trailer Set to Somewhere Over the Rainbow". Bloody Disgusting. Archived from the original on May 20, 2019. Retrieved May 19, 2019.
  23. ^ Welk, Brian (April 23, 2019). "Godzilla Goes 'Over the Rainbow' in Stunning New 'King of Monsters' Trailer (Video)". TheWrap. Archived from the original on May 20, 2019. Retrieved May 19, 2019.
  24. ^ Reyes, Mike (April 23, 2019). "Final Godzilla: King Of The Monsters Trailer Teases A Ton Of Destruction". Cinema Blend. Archived from the original on May 20, 2019. Retrieved May 19, 2019.
  25. ^ Klein, Melanie (May 24, 2019). "Godzilla: King of the Monsters "Knock You Out – Exclusive Final Look" Video From Warner Bros. Pictures". SciFi Japan. Archived from the original on May 25, 2019. Retrieved May 24, 2019.
  26. ^ Chapman, Paul (April 13, 2019). "Rock Band Alexandros Performs Theme Song for Godzilla: King of the Monsters". Crunchyroll. Archived from the original on April 25, 2019. Retrieved April 25, 2019.
  27. ^ "Japanese Rockers Alexandros to Release New 'Godzilla' Theme Song, 'Pray'". Billboard Japan. April 28, 2019. Archived from the original on May 14, 2019. Retrieved May 14, 2019.
  28. ^ Zanobard (May 25, 2019). "Godzilla: King Of The Monsters – Soundtrack Review". Zanobard Reviews. Retrieved March 30, 2022.
  29. ^ "GODZILLA: KING OF THE MONSTERS – Bear McCreary". Movie Music UK. June 12, 2019. Retrieved March 30, 2022.
  30. ^ Taylor, Paul (November 6, 2019). "Exploring Soundtracks: Godzilla King of the Monsters". LemonWire. Retrieved March 30, 2022.

Sources

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