The Two Towers

Track Listing

01 - Foundations Of Stone (3:51)

02 - The Taming Of Smeagol (2:48)

03 - The Riders Of Rohan (4:05)

04 - The Passage Of The Marshes (2:46)

05 - The Uruk-hai (2:58)

06 - The King Of The Golden Hall (3:49)

07 - The Black Gate Is Closed (3:17)

08 - Evenstar (3:15)

(featuring Isabel Bayrakdarian)

09 - The White Rider (2:28)

10 - Treebeard (2:43)

11 - The Leave Taking (3:41)

12 - Helm's Deep (3:53)

13 - The Forbidden Pool (5:27)

14 - Breath Of Life (5:07)

(featuring Sheila Chandra)

15 - The Hornburg (4:36)

16 - Forth Earlingas (3:15)

(featuring Ben Del Maestro)

17 - Isengard Unleashed (5:01)

(featuring Elizabeth Fraser & Ben Del Maestro)

18 - Samwise The Brave (3:46)

19 - Gollum's Song (5:51)

(performed by Emiliana Torrini)

Orchestrated and Conducted by Howard Shore

Performed by The London Philharmonic Orchestra,

The New Zealand Symphony Orchestra,

The London Voices, and

The London Oratory School Schola

Produced by Howard Shore and Suzana Peric

Released by Reprise Records on December 10th, 2002

Total Running Time: 77:15

It seems like it's been no time at all, but the second film in the Lord of the Rings saga is finally upon us. While the first film was met with a lot of trepidation from fans who were hoping that Jackson would get it right, the sequel seems more of a less controversial affair. Since Fellowship of the Ring was such a resounding success, the biggest questions concerning this film are whether the computer-generated Gollum will make or break a new era in digital effects, and whether or not Shore can keep up his level of excellence with the follow-up score. The first question will remain unanswered until December 18th when the film hits U.S. theaters, but as for the second question...keep reading.

If you cued up this score directly after Fellowship of the Ring, you would be hard pressed to spot any rough transitions. Shore himself intends for the entire three Lord of the Rings scores to amalgamate into one giant musical work, and so far the two scores fit perfectly. The Two Towers opens with a segment recalling the fateful trip into the Mines of Moria, obviously a flashback depicting what happened to Gandalf after he fell into the abyss, before segueing into a mournful version of the Fellowship theme, detailing the current status of the fateful group. From there it moves along steadily into darker territory that the previous score pretty much only hinted at. The only major theme missing from Fellowship of the Ring is the one performed by Enya for the romance of Aragorn and Arwen. Practically everything else makes an appearance, and are joined by a host of new themes. Of these, the theme for the Riders of Rohan (and it's usage seems to be for the race of men in general) is the most satisfying and the variations that Shore throws at the listener are quite fun. The most interesting of these is the variation that seems to represent the character of Eowyn. It is the same as the main Rohan theme, but it's played on a Hardanger fiddle that gives it a folksy sound. Perfectly fitting for the character, and one of the highlights within a highlight on the album (such as can be found in tracks three and six).

The theme for the Ring itself seems to be incorporated more, and takes on new power. Sometimes the theme is woven in an almost invisible way, but careful listening can pick out it's influence. It is moments like these that make Shore's music work the best. There are themes and sub-themes going on all over the map, and though it takes careful listening to pick out everything (especially outside of the film), it is very rewarding in the end. But The Two Towers is not without a few slight faults. The books continue to get darker in tone as they move along, and the films are no exception. The music reflects this, and thus may seem a little jolting to the listener. Thankfully, the descent is somewhat gradual instead of just plunging headfirst into that style. The chorus moments have definitely gained momentum, and outside of the elvish moments they can be quite overwhelming.

While the score doesn't have a similar "Breaking of the Fellowship" cue that ended the first score's release, it instead has a song devoted to Gollum. It's quite an odd little song and Emiliana Torrini's vocalizations strongly remind me of Bjork's. It's a fitting reflection of the character, and it lasts long enough to make an impression, but then quickly segues into an end credits suite. As with Fellowship of the Ring, there are multiple releases of this score as well, though at least with the more expensive disc you get a track from the expanded Fellowship of the Ring film that was released on DVD a short while back. Whether or not it's worth the extra bucks depends on how much you're dying for the "Farewell to Lothlorien" track.

In the end, fans of the original score should have no trepidation about picking up the sequel as well. I am greatly looking forward to hearing the suite that Shore plans to bring out after all three scores are completed, especially after listening to this one. It is a great continuation of the excellent music that has come before.