Godzilla

GODZILLA (Original Motion Picture Score)

Music by David Arnold

In 1998, following the success of Stargate and Independence Day, director Roland Emmerich and producer Dean Devlin moved to the making of yet another blockbuster: an American take on Godzilla, the famous Japanese monster that inspired a plethora of creatures and disaster movies throughout the twentieth century. However, in the end, the American version of Godzilla ended up being one of the most hated films in 1998, both by critics and audiences. A questionable cast ensemble, a clichéd plot and even the redesign of the creature itself (and its offspring) were all major points of criticism. Nevertheless, the film reunited the filmmakers with composer David Arnold, who at the time was achieving success in the James Bond franchise.

Despite being overlapped by constant sound effects, the music for the film is an aspect that has always been praised. Arnold expanded his universe of robust action music, patriotic themes and love motifs. He even throwed in outstanding theme for the titular monster, with full brass and percussion passages that will make your room rumble!

At the time of the premiere, the score was set to receive an album treatment by Sony, but it was cancelled due to the film's poor performance. A song compilation album was released instead, which included only four minutes of Arnold's music. A number of promotional and bootleg editions appeared in the black market and those were the only available presentations of the score until 2007, when La-La Land Records released a complete 2-CD set containing most of the recordings. In 2012, Arnold's Godzilla received yet another treatment in the form of a 3-CD set, which included the complete score (plus several alternate cues) and the never-commercially-released album score. Now, Renovatio Records brings you its own arranged compilation that contains the best parts of the score. Arnold's effort in the franchise is surely worthy of remembrance, not only as a wonderfully addition to the Godzilla universe, but also as the completion of the Emmerich-Devlin-Arnold collaboration, which was the result of certainly some the composer's best works!

Track Listing:

1. Opening Titles (3:29)

2. The First Of Its Kind (1:52)

3. Visitor In Manhattan (4:48)

4. Evacuation (2:44)

5. The Tunnels (2:51)

6. The Bait (5:15)

7. Helicopter Chase (3:25)

8. Audrey Steals The Tape (2:47)

9. Nick Gets Fired (5:48)

10. Submarine Chase & Discovery Of The Nest (7:11)

11. The Eggs Hatch (3:53)

12. Babyzillas (1:28)

13. Nest Mayhem (2:37)

14. Live From Madison Square Garden (4:08)

15. Escape (3:00)

16. Taxi Chase (7:06)

17. Brooklyn Bridge (4:32)

18. Finale (4:05)

Total running time: 70:59

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Independence Day

INDEPENDENCE DAY (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)

Music by David Arnold

Continuing our trend of David Arnold scores, Renovatio Records proudly presents an ultimate nineties classic: Independence Day! The science-fiction film starring Will Smith, Jeff Goldblum, Bill Pullman, Vivica A. Fox, Judd Hirsch, Mary McDonnell, Margaret Colin, Harry Connick, Jr. and Randy Quaid, is helmed by disaster-genre master Roland Emmerich and tells the story of a worldwide-scale alien attack that leaves small groups of people scattered throught out the Earth that must find their way to unite and fight back the menace and avoid annihilation... on July 4th...

Despite the nationalist background of its plot, the film is a masterpiece in terms of visual and special effects, which in combination depict some of the most unsettling, unique and convincing alien attacks ever to be present in a sci-fi movie. At the time of its release, it was the highest-grossing film of 1996 and even nowadays, some of its scenes, like the destruction of the White House, are considered iconic.

Independence Day also brought together the team Roland Emmerich-Dean Devlin-David Arnold, after working together in Stargate. For ID4, Arnold created what is probably the most memorable score of his entire career (so far). With an orchestra composed of 90 players and 46 choristers, the music is marvellous for its rich thematic content, patriotic fanfares, menacing passages and rumbling action sequences.

The score was originally released in 1996 by BMG Classics/RCA Victor in the form of a short album that not only lacked some of the most outstanding cues of the film but also included several alternate versions for some of the tracks. Several expanded bootlegs circulated around in the black market, until La-La Land Records released a complete 2-CD presentation of the score. Now, Renovatio Records presents you with its own personal edition of the score, into a soundtrack album that includes every single cue that you expect to hear. We hope you enjoy revising this outstanding piece of art, which certainly stands a among the classics of the digital age of film music.

Track Listing:

1. We Come In Peace (2:00)

2. Radio Signal (1:52)

3. Cancelled Leave (1:43)

4. The Darkest Day (4:11)

5. Evacuation (5:48)

6. Firestorm (1:24)

7. Aftermath (3:36)

8. Base Attack(6:12)

9. Area 51 (2:19)

10. El Toro Destroyed (1:31)

11. Target Remains (4:56)

12. International Code (1:33)

13. The President's Speech (3:11)

14. Into The Mother Ship (8:28)

15. The Day We Fight Back (5:12)

16. Jolly Roger (2:17)

17. Independence Day (3:41)

18. End Credits (9:05)

Total running time: 69:59

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Stargate

STARGATE (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)

Music by David Arnold

Renovatio Records presents Stargate, composed by the great David Arnold. This film (released in 1994) was the second motion picture Arnold scored and the first major blockbuster, and led to the collaboration of Arnold with producer Dean Devlin and director Roland Emmerich for two more large scale films, Independence Day and Godzilla. Stargate is a science fiction that merges Egpytian mythological settings and a modern interstellar travel concept. Starring Kurt Russell and James Spader, the film became an instant hit and a cult classic that inspired future productions and TV series, despite initial critics opinions. When Arnold received the project, he was working at a video store in London. Composing in a secluded hotel room, doing rewrites and improving the music, Arnold provided a score that returned to the classical roots of Hollywood music.

Performed by the Sinfonia of London, the score for Stargate is full of themes, motifs and memorable moments, with strong brass passages, choruses for the fantasy element and a complex orchestration (courtesy of Nicholas Dodd, Arnold's regular collaborator) that involves local instrumentation and vocal work for the Egyptian mood. Besides being a standout score in Arnold's career, the music foreshadowed things to come from the composer. His main theme for this film is so remarkable that it has become a signature of the entire franchise and his action music (prominent in the final half) will surely rock you floor!

The soundtrack was released in 1994 by Milan Records and received a Deluxe treatment by Varèse Sarabande in 2006, with new unreleased material. The problem with both lengthy releases is that the tracks are so short that makes the listening experience rather unbalanced, changing its style and mood from one minute to the next. Renovatio Records has managed to compile a soundtrack that it's fairly organized and that provides the best moments of the score, providing a fluent listening experience that manages to tell a musical story on its own. We hope you enjoy it!

Please note that this release is also the first of the three planned releases for the scores produced by the Emmerich/Devlin/Arnold collaboration. So stick around for more Arnold in the future!

Track listing:

1. Stargate Overture (3:01)

2. Giza, 1928 (2:11)

3. Orion (1:31)

4. The Coverstones (0:59)

5. The Stargate Opens (3:58)

6. Entering The Stargate (4:45)

7. The Other Side (1:45)

8. The Mining Pit (1:34)

9. Caravan To Nagada (2:16)

10. Daniel And Shauri (1:54)

11. Symbol Discovery (1:14)

12. The Pyramid (4:09)

13. Ra - The Sun God (3:22)

14. Procession & Slave Rebellion (2:41)

15. Against The Gods (1:54)

16. Battle At The Pyramid (5:02)

17. Countdown (3:24)

18. Kasuf Returns (3:06)

19. Going Home (3:13)

20. Stargate Theme (1:13)

Total running time: 53:12

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