Armageddon

Columbia Records / Bootleg

Music Composed by Trevor Rabin and Harry Gregson-Williams

Orchestrated by Gordon Goodwin, Bruce Fowler, and Trevor Rabin

Conducted by Gordon Goodwin

Release Date: 1998

     Ok, I'll go ahead and just say that I am not a big fan of this movie. In fact I think it is downright putrid at times. Still, there are those who think this is a pretty good film, heck, I even know people who cried over the ending! And it wasn't because they had just kissed five bucks goodbye either. Say what you will about Michael Bay, but he does at least have enough talent to push some people's emotional buttons.

     Like pretty much all of Bay's productions, the score was composed by two Media Ventures "associates:" Trevor Rabin and Harry Gregson-Williams. The interesting thing about this score, is that it sounds much like a successor to The Rock (an enjoyable, if still stupid, Bay film). This only serves to strengthen my suspicion that much of the credit for that score should go to Zimmer and Gregson-Williams as opposed to mostly Nick Glennie-Smith (what is the deal with all the hyphens here...sheesh).

     Never at any time do Rabin and Gregson-Williams attempt to rise above the material. That isn't to say that Armageddon isn't a good score. It is definitely not a great score, but it is good for a typical Media Ventures outing. This was definitely not the film to go epic on, and sentimentality was something that would be left to James Horner for Deep Impact. The film was made with the obvious intent to make it a wild ride, and that is how the score functions.

    The music runs quite a gamut of different sounds, from the typical orchestra-mixed-with-electronics, Celtic-inspired moments, and even a country/western style that is used to symbolize the drillers. Those last particular moments are probably the most inane on the whole CD since I really hate country. The typical Media Ventures cues are the ones that work the best, and especially the Gregson-Williams contributions.

     This score has it's fair share of strengths and weaknesses. First off, the main theme is good, if nothing really extraordinary. It's pretty much an average theme compared with some of the other Media Ventures scores, but it does get a lot of incorporation throughout (mostly in moments where the emotions need to be manipulated). As with all self-respecting "impending doom" flicks, there is the inclusion of a chorus that is used to add what little epic feeling there is to the score. As for its weaknesses, the whole orchestra/electronica style just blends all together here, resulting in a batch of formless cues that work to just basically support the film. It's almost like music without a soul at times. It is definitely not as fun or interesting as The Rock or The Peacemaker.

     The version that I used for this review is the unofficial bootleg that is floating around. Don't ask how I came about it, because I won't tell. Needless to say, this is a 2-disc set that, as far as I can tell, contains everything from the film. The official release of the score contains only the cues composed by Trevor Rabin, and considering that a lot of the favorite cues form this score are from Harry Gregson-Williams, some may opt to traverse down the path of obtaining the complete boot.

     Overall, this is just an average Media Ventures release. The music works great in the film, though isolated it isn't really anything too special. It's just a notch below James Horner's score to companion film, Deep Impact, but then again that is really comparing apples to oranges. If you liked The Rock, you might have a good time with this, but for most this is one to be sampled before being picked up. ***

Track Listing - CD 1

1 - 65 Million Years Later (4:49)

2 - Defcon 3 (0:23)

3 - Meteor Shower (2:16)

4 - The Hubble (0:42)

5 - Global Killer (0:40)

6 - Finding Grace (1:06)

7 - Meet Harry Stamper (2:00)

8 - We Drill! (1:36)

9 - Call to Duty (1:14)

10 - Harry Arrives at NASA (1:01)

11 - Zero Barrier (2:25)

12 - The Freedom Crew (0:46)

13 - 5 Words (1:37)

14 - Demands (1:40)

15 - X-71 (1:32)

16 - Simulation (0:39)

17 - Flight Plan (0:38)

18 - Love Theme (1:03)

19 - Armadillo (1:15)

20 - Underwater Simulation (2:13)

21 - Leaving (2:31)

22 - I Don't Want to Miss a Thing (2:34)

23 - The Destruction of Shanghai (2:54)

24 - Harry and Grace Make Peace (1:45)

25 - Astronauts (0:52)

26 - The Launch (7:52)

27 - MIR (1:43)

28 - Death of MIR (1:52)

29 - Fuel Pod (1:51)

30 - Radio Silence (1:16)

31 - Asteroid Chase (6:52)

32 - Goodbye Independence (1:25)

33 - Survivors (2:56)

Total Running Time: 65:58

Track Listing - CD 2

1 - The Drilling Begins (2:56)

2 - Status Report (1:36)

3 - Secondary Protocol (8:27)

4 - Back in Business (1:36)

5 - Armadillo Jump (3:38)

6 - Russian Hero (0:22)

7 - Bad News (4:15)

8 - AJ's Return (4:27)

9 - Rockstorm (3:36)

10 - Drawing Straws (3:43)

11 - Sacrifice / Goodbye Gracie (2:30)

12 - Evac (3:41)

13 - Remote Destruction (1:48)

14 - A Wing and A Prayer (5:15)

15 - Returning Home (3:14)

16 - Celebration (0:44)

17 - Meteor Shower - Alternate (2:04)

18 - Russian Hero - Alternate (0:20)

19 - Astronauts - Alternate (0:58)

20 - Freedom Crew - Alternate (2:49)

21 - Armageddon Suite (5:18)

22 - Armageddon Theme (3:04)

Total Running Time: 66:21