Juno Recommends Soundtracks: Best of 2023

Review: Four Flies present another masterpiece from one of the all-time greats of Italian soundtrack and library music, Piero Umiliani. His work on the 1974 film Il Corpo ranks amongst his most famous work, and now two pieces have been selected from the soundtrack and presented on this exclusive single. 'Chaser' on the A side appears in an exclusive extended form which has never been released before, while 'Hard Times' on the flip remains the archetype of Italian jazz-funk perfection. This is a limited edition so don't hang around as these are sure to fly out.

Review: Adding to the niche interest of Italian film soundtrack reissues, centring on the reissuers Four Flies, comes Milano: Il Clan Dei Calabresi - a 7" single featuring two tracks from the 1977 Italian crime film Milano: Il Clan Dei Calabresi. The pieces were composed by Gianni Marchetti, an Italian composer widely known for his work in various genres of cinema. Both the funky, infectious main theme of the film, and the romantic 'La Fine Di Un Sogno' for classical flute and strings, appear on this exquisite artifact.

Review: This is a vinyl release of the original soundtrack for Joe 90, a 1968 British science-fiction television series created by Gerry and Sylvia Anderson. The soundtrack was composed and conducted by Barry Gray, a prolific British composer who worked on many of Anderson's shows, such as Thunderbirds and Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons. The soundtrack features Gray's distinctive style of orchestral music, blending classical influences with jazz and pop and electronic elements. The release includes 24 tracks selected from the show's score, pressed on two LPs with orange and blue vinyl, and also features new artwork by illustrator Eric Chu, depicting the main character Joe McClaine and his many eccentric gadgets.

Review: Who doesn't love Toy Story? It's an on going classic with a heart of gold, some of The best animation in the film world and most loveable characters to ever make the silver screen. Whether young or old, snuggling down to watch this sone is always a treat, and now you can bring some of that magic onto your decks with the red vinyl compilation album. It brings together some of the best tracks and favourite musical moments of the movie such as, of course the most notable song of them all, 'You've Got A Friend In Me (Para El Buzz Espanol)' as well as 'I Will Go Sailing No More' and 'We Belong Together.'

Review: Silva Screen Records return to their mammoth compilation project paying tribute to the late Ryuichi Sakamoto, former member of Yellow Magic Orchestra and later acclaimed film scorer: for such blockbusters as Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence, The Sheltering Sky and The Last Emperor. 'Music For Film' features star motifs from Sakamoto's back catalogue of film scores, and are all performed by the Brussels Philharmonic under the baton of Dirk Brosse. This version comes to black and white splattered vinyl.

Review: For many young film lovers today, Call Me By Your Name might have just been their first ever experience of homosexuality represented on film. It also put heartthrob Timothee Chalamet on the map, so it's not a film without its dues owed to it. Few still know of the star-studded cast of soundtrack pieces cobbled together for the film, in some cases commissioned, in others licensed from prior recordings. Notably, original compositions from the likes of Sufjan Stevens and Ryuichi Sakamoto make up the atmospheric bulk of it, largely centring on hauntingly beautiful piano pieces tempered by transitional voices and well-controlled rooms. Elsewhere come a smattering of romantic, synthy, Euro classics from FR David's 'Words' Franco Battatio's 'Radio Varsavia'.

Review: James Horner's Titanic soundtrack has become a classic in its own right, but it's certainly been a good while since it saw any proper release. Thankfully, it's now the 25th Anniversary of the astonishingly sad film, and as ever, this new reissue sees us reminded of Horner's impressive ability to wrench out just about every tear that could possibly be wrought from our ducts (and they're deep!). Classic string movements and a near-universally recognisable lead motif capture the grandeur and tragedy of the ship's story. Plus, longtime fans will be delighted at the news of an included eight-page booklet on the film and score, a well as a poster.

Review: A cinematic sensation and an instant classic and record breaker, Disney's animated movie 'Frozen' celebrates its 10-year anniversary this year with this special zoetrope double picture disc featuring scenes from one of the, now, most iconic movies of all time moving before your eyes. Included is, of course, Idina Menzel's award-winning score 'Let it Go' which charted around the world and wormed its way into the ears of parents to this day. Not to be slept on, though, is Demi Lovato's rendition that plays over the credits sequence or 'Fixer Upper', the jovial chorus musical number.The perfect Christmas gift for the fan in your life, and trust us, there is statistically one somewhere, no matter how old.

Review: Expanding on the ever-present fervour for classic industrial music, CTI's Elemental 7 lands in our laps, a reissue of the soundtrack to their 1982 film of the same name. Devastating and brutal sound effects are paired with haunting vocal performances on this two-suite clanker for the ages, while the accompanying video features cut-up video clips and dancing ghosts, while nods in the titles refer to seances and exorcisms. Don't pass on this one, as it's not just any old soundtrack; underwater worlds and vaporeal explosions make up its more unusual sonics.

Review: The latest cinematic, self-aware brand-milking is the new Barbie film, directed by Greta Gerwig and which stars Margot Robbie as Barbie and Ryan Gosling as Ken. Of course, it wouldn't be as ironically plastic as it could be without contributions from the most eminent artists in modern pop music on the soundtrack - from the likes of Lizzo, Dua Lipa, Nicki Minaj, Charli XCX, KAROL G, The Kid LAROI, Khalid, PinkPantheress, GAYLE, Ava Max and FIFTY FIFTY. It didn't quite lean as much as it could have done into hyperpop, but the soundtrack is no less fun, being as glitzy and squeaky-clean as you could possibly get.

Review: 2023 smash hit Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 finds Peter Quill still reeling from the loss of Gamora but rallying with his crew in an attempt to defend the universe. Should they not succeed it will prove a fateful mission and the dream of all this is captured in this original soundtrack. It features plenty of high-octane cuts, futuristic curveballs and even some rock and r&b from Alice Cooper and Faith No More respectively. Beastie Boys bring the heat with their classic 'No Sleep Till Brooklyn' and Florence & The Machine has still rarely bettered 'Dog Days Are Over.'

Review: If you've seen the movie Aftersun chances are it hit home, and left unanswered questions. The touching yet troubling tale of a divorced father on holiday with his daughter, and his difficult past - which we never see more than abstract glimpses of, screened within borrowed recollection of the girl now in adulthood - there's plenty of suggestion about what may have happened to him before she was born, subsequent mental health issues, and his fate after the movie ends. But the flick's real power is found in the bond between parent and kid. Patient, quiet, and deeply personal, cellist, composer and electronic music producer Oliver Coates more than meets the standards required to score such a human story. The soundtrack is meditative and reflective, hopeful but also tangibly mournful. It invokes feelings of comfort, while also - for us anyway - inspires memories of things lost in our own fires.

Review: It's the anime that changed the format forever, from storytelling to character design - Neon Genesis Evangelion is still, to this day, one of the most beloved, divisive and iconic animated series of all time. From influencing 'Madoka Magicka', 'Serial Experiments Lain' or 'Kill La Kill' to its resurgence in popularity thanks to social media and the infinite memes that the show continues to spawn off almost 30 years later. Many will know 'Cruel Angels Thesis' and the bossa nova cover of 'Fly Me to the Moon' performed by J-Pop singer Yoko Takahashi, which are used as the intro and credit sequence songs, but don't neglect the electrifying orchestral composition from Shiro SAGISU that backsets the action sequences. This is the first time the full OST is pressed on vinyl. It comes in a beautiful gatefold featuring frames from the show inside, housed on black and blue vinyl to reflect the colour palette of this hugely influential show.

Review: It's not often you get to talk about a classical supergroup. It's debatable whether the term supergroup really exists in the classical realm, although Tar, or, to use the full title, Tar (Music from and Inspired by the Motion Picture) is probably as close as you'll get to proving that it does. Evidence is coming, so don't worry.

The work of Academy Award, two-time Grammy Award, and Primetime Emmy Award-winning Icelandic composer, cellist and general shapeshifter Hildur Ingveldardottir Gudnadottir (who has recorded with Throbbing Gristle and Pan Sonic, and toured alongside Sunn O))) and Animal Collective), she's only gone and blown the bloody doors off/drafted the Dresden Philharmonic, London Contemporary Orchestra, and London Symphony Orchestra for this incredible outing, which not only offers sublime tracks but glimpses of the record process itself.

Review: David Shire has one hell of a back catalogue. Active within music since the 1960s, and specifically theatre and film soundtracks in the 1970s, while many of the biggest names behind movie scores have a tendency to explore the same avenues, and therefore wind up creating tunes for relatively similar flicks, in this case that's not really true. The Taking of Pelham One Two Three (the original, of course), All The President's Men, and parts of Saturday Night Fever give some idea as to the breadth of his mastery.
The Conversation slips right in there in terms of period and genre, but is, of course, a very different classic to a movie about a New York subway train getting hijacked or social tensions in Brooklyn at the height of the disco era. While largely focused on piano solos, we also get late night dance floor jazz, tense drone, and moody avant-garde, just in case the on-screen action wasn't brooding enough already.

Review: Where do you start with this one? Stanley Kubrick's landmark science fiction movie might be best remembered for its soundtrack. Or at least the opening overture, 'Also Spruce Zarathustra', and its bombastic drums and brass that seem to scream "we're going to space and into the unknown". However, as the original score proves upon reappraisal, there's much here that you likely won't remember until you hear it again.
Not least the terrifying, shrill chorus of 'Requiem for Soprano', which almost sounds like humanity crying out for help across the great endless nothing we call the universe. Elsewhere, we have the strange, alien refrains of 'Lux Antena', which invokes similarly fitting mental imagery - spareness, desolation, a singular beacon of noise in the darkness. Or the nervous tension of 'Atmospheres'. A testament to the power of music to make you visualise.

Review: Star Trek Picard is a TV series that has been as healed for its great soundtrack as much as any of the on screen action. The award winning British composer Stephen Barton (also known for his work on Star Wars Jedi Fallen) is behind it and his work on the third season might be the best yet. Pulled out of retirement once more, Jean-Luc Picard (played by the legendary Patrick Stewart) seeks help from Captain Riker to answer a distress call and uncovers a conspiracy reaching to the furthest corners of the Federation as well as the unwelcome return of an old foe. Thematic is dramatic, absorbing and emotive and is all captured on this record.

Review: With a string of soundtrack credits as long as your proverbial arm, it's no surprise Yellow Magic Orchestra man Ryuichi Sakamoto was top of the list when it came to scoring this "sumptuous romantic melodrama" from director Ann Hui. This is his first score for a Chinese film, however, and he pulls out the emotional stops to betray the tense, tumultuous stirrings going on beneath the surface of tight lipped manners and suppressed feelings. Many of the themes are explored through simple piano playing before returning in the form of complex string arrangements, a clever trick that proves Sakamoto was worthy of his Best Original Film Score prize at the 40th Hong Kong Film Awards for this work.

Review: Jim O'Rourke handles the soundtrack for Hands That Bind, a Canadian drama film directed by Kyle Armstrong and starring Michael Shannon, Elisabeth Moss and Willem Dafoe. The American musician and producer is known for his eclectic and experimental work in a deluge of genres, spanning rock, folk, jazz, ambient and electronic - all shine through with equal gravitas on the OST, reflecting O'Rourke's talent for creating atmospheric cinematics that perfectly complement the film's theme of a local land scandal, and its conspiracy-level implications.

Review: The original soundtrack for King Creole is one of the best the Memphis magician Elvis Presley ever worked on. It was his fourth Hollywood movie and the story is based loosely on Harold Robbins' novel A Stone For Danny Fisher which tells the tale of a struggling Boxer. In the movie, that boxer becomes a singer played by Presley who also plays all the music, of course. It features r&b, Dixieland rock, jailhouse rock and plenty more gems which is why Presley himself said it was one of his favourites. It was also his last real dramatic role on screen.