Review: John Carpenter Anthology II 1976-1988

A second volume of chilling Carpenter cuts...

As famous as he is for directing classic movies such as “Halloween” and “The Thing,” it’s possible that John Carpenter is more famous for the music he writes for the majority of his movies. It’s not just that he does it; he’s damn good at it too, and his scores for the aforementioned “Halloween” as well as “Assault on Precinct 13,” “Escape From New York,” and “The Fog,” have positioned him in as one of the most beloved film composers in pop culture, with the 21st-century resurgence of retro-electronica owing him an infinite debt. He’s still doing it too, composing the scores for the new “Halloween” trilogy along with his son Cody and godson Daniel Davies, who just happens to be the son of Dave Davies of The Kinks, as well as releasing several standalone records with Cody and Daniel including 2015-2021’s “Lost Themes” trilogy and 2017’s “Anthology: Movie Themes 1974-1998.”

The aforementioned “Anthology” featured main themes from thirteen of his films, with all composed by Carpenter bar Ennio Morricone’s “The Thing” and Jack Nitzsche’s “Starman,” highlighting his innate ability to just rip amazing tunes out of nowhere that perfectly fit his pictures through perfect new recordings that were sonic wonders. The follow-up, “Anthology II: Movie Themes 1976-1988,” is less of a greatest hits and more of a B-side collection, highlighting cues and secondary themes that didn’t make it onto the first record. Excitingly, it also features cuts from movies that weren’t represented previously, notably “Halloween II” and “Halloween III: Season of the Witch,” as well as some of Carpenter’s score from “The Thing.”

“Anthology II” kicks off with ‘Chariots of Pumpkins,’ a thumping piece from “Halloween III” that illustrates Carpenter’s talent for intricate pieces that belie the idea that he’s a composer of simple tunes - there’s a cluster of repeating micro-arpeggios behind the imposing main notes that feel like they’re imitating an electronic circuit, which is appropriate if you’ve seen the film. The second track gives the LP a great one-two opening punch, with the relentless ‘69th St. Bridge’ from “Escape From New York” that scores the film’s car chase, with Isaac Hayes as The Duke hot on the heels of Snake Plissken and co. There’s an angular sense to the synth lines here, a callback to that seemingly post-apocalyptic landscape where everything is analogue - right down to the calculator-style number display on Snake’s countdown watch.

Both tracks encapsulate Carpenter’s trademark feeling of impending dread, which features heavily across the album, and when I say heavily, I mean it. There’s not much of a breather, although anyone buying the album is likely to know his music already and will have an inkling of how it sounds. That said, there are a few tracks that have a different kind of intensity, adding a bit more diversity, and dare I say, fun. ‘Wake Up’ from “They Live” and ‘The Alley (War)’ from “Big Trouble in Little China” both have more of a Western vibe and while the former sounds like you’re on the way to a gunfight, the latter is what plays when you’re there. A surprising choice is ‘Julie’s Dead’ from the great “Assault on Precinct 13.” Don’t be put off by the title, it’s a nice breather with a typically cool but tender Carpenter melody - I guess it’s the reflection after the gunfight.

But it’s not long before the dread comes back, and it’s beautiful. It’s wonderful to see cues here from “Halloween II,” which was an underappreciated and much more off-kilter approach to the minimalism of the first score. It’s terrifying in places and the inevitability of ‘The Shape Stalks Again’ will have you running for the nearest closet. The same for ‘Love At A Distance’ from “Prince of Darkness,” which combines a burgeoning rock and roll flavour with the oddity of Italian scorers such as Goblin and Frizzi and the trio of tracks from “The Things,” where a sprinkling of cues by Carpenter were added to Ennio Morricone’s main score. They’re instantly recognisable stylistically and always fit with the other music, here displaying the way they help the picture keep up that unbearable tone that makes it so tense. It’s like Carpenter took the cue physically and just stretched it like a piece of bubblegum.

The album ends in a magnificent double-header, beginning with the incredible ‘Walk to the Lighthouse’ from “The Fog" that not only scores Adrienne Barbeau’s arrival at the Antonio Bay lighthouse but also her final scene as she tells her listeners to “look for the fog.” It’s just a stunning piece, with this overwhelming relief but also guilt seeping from it. It’s over, it says, but it can just as easily come back. Prepare yourself.

The final track is ‘Laurie’s Theme’ from “Halloween,” an essential theme in the Carpenter catalogue that so effortlessly captures the film’s purpose and effect. A lonely and isolating keyboard motif for Laurie herself, it’s just absolutely haunting, Carpenter builds expertly with colour and texture and suddenly it ends, you think leaving you hanging, and while it returns with more of the keyboard, it does end abruptly, denying you the catharcism you think you deserve.

“Anthology II” is a fabulously intense record, supplying a deeper and perhaps more satisfying experience than its predecessor due to the less obvious tracks selected. The recordings sound unerringly clean and the performance of the two Carpenters and Davies is impeccable, allowing for a truly unsettling listen. The record is out on October 6 from Sacred Bones Records, and there are a number of variants, including one on “The Thing” blue vinyl. An essential purchase.