Soundtrack Review: Battlestar Galactica Season 4
Next Tuesday the soundtrack from Battlestar Galactica‘s fourth and final TV season is hitting stores, and composer Bear McCreary is celebrating with a series of concerts at the San Diego House of Blues, right in the middle of Comic-Con. We were able to get our hands on an advance copy, and here’s the full review of this marvelous release.
I’ve been a Battlestar Galactica fan through thick and thin and loved the emotionally complex story, while I shook my head at some less than stellar turns and plot choices in the show’s four season run. Even as I felt the quality of the show itself waxed and waned over the years, one element always stayed strong: Bear McCreary’s score. McCreary is an accomplished composer, but Battlestar is what really brought him to my attention, as well as to the collective conscious of all geekdom. The fourth season completes the musical arc McCreary began with the first episodes, taking us from the more familiar and western military themes into the more unknown and exotic territories of World Music as Galactica and her fleet ventured farther and farther into unknown and primal territory. When you see his name attached to a TV show, movie, or video game, you know you’re in for something special.
And so it is with this fourth season soundtrack that is jammed full of McCreary’s music across two CDs. The first CD in the release is something of a “greatest hits” compilation from season 4. It has all the big moments you’d expect to find, from Kara’s piano scene to all the military action surrounding the mutiny. The second CD is a faithful and comprehensive collection of the score from the final episode of the series, “Daybreak.” Included with the two CDs is a gorgeous liner book full of photos of the cast and crew, as well as with insightful and interesting statements from all involved about the show’s score.
The whole soundtrack is fantastic, but there are a few tracks that definitely are standouts in the collection. “Gaeta’s Lament” opens the soundtrack, featuring actor Alessandro Juliani on vocals, and has an instrumental reprise later on the first CD. “Farewell Apollo” recalls the Adama family theme, my own favorite theme from the series, and updates it with some synth, pipes, and a triumphant military drumline. “Kara Remembers” begins with the tentative piano playing from the “Someone To Watch Over Me” episode and escalates eerily and inevitably into the opening instrumental from McCreary’s arrangement of “All Along the Watchtower” from season 3. On the second CD, “The Heart of the Sun” mournfully but heroically captures Galactica’s final voyage, and I actually got chills when the original Galactica theme kicked in toward the end.
Disc one runs 77:28, and disc two clocks in at 59:34. That’s a lot of amazing music, and there’s absolutely no reason not to add this to your collection. It’s one of the best soundtracks I’ve listened to in a long time. For me, Bear McCreary is the John Williams of TV scoring. He truly is an amazing talent, and this two disc set provides more than sufficient evidence.
The Battlestar Galactica Season 4 Soundtrack releases July 28 from La-La Land Records.
Track Listing:
Disc One
1. Gaeta’s Lament (4:49)
2. The Signal (5:09)
3. Resurrection Hub (3:40)
4. The Cult of Baltar (5:42)
5. Farewell Apollo (2:55)
6. Roslin Escapes (2:55)
7. Among the Ruins (7:44)
8. Laura Runs (2:21)
9. Cally Descends (3:08)
10. Funeral Pyre (3:57)
11. Roslin and Adama Reunited (1:59)
12. Gaeta’s Lament – Instrumental (4:50)
13. Elegy (2:55)
14. The Alliance (2:30)
15. Blood on the Scales (5:19)
16. Grand Old Lady (0:51)
17. Kara Remembers (3:28)
18. Boomer Takes Hera (2:39)
19. Dreilide Thrace Sonata No. 1 (5:35)
20. Diaspora Oratorio (4:52)
Disc Two
1. Caprica City, Before the Fall (4:34)
2. Laura’s Baptism (2:40)
3. Adama in the Memorial Hallway (2:11)
4. The Line (3:57)
5. Assault on the Colony (15:07)
6. Baltar’s Sermon (4:25)
7. Kara’s Coordinates (4:21)
8. Earth (3:08)
9. Goodbye Sam (2:11)
10. The Heart of the Sun (3:20)
11. Starbuck Disappears (2:09)
12. So Much Life (5:01)
13. An Easterly View (4:23)
14. The Passage of Time (1:18)
