Les Miserables Soundtrack

Greetings my friends.  So many of you know that my husband and I post on this blog.  We can have very different tastes in music sometimes and this is a good thing because it gives you the reader more music to listen to and bands to read about.  Today I have chosen to share the music from the new installment of Les Miserables.  I took my husband on a date to see this new movie on Saturday and have had the music imprinted on my brain for days now. 

First thing you should know is that I love musicals.  I saw Phantom Of The Opera like 5 times in the theater and bought the soundtrack the second we were able to.  I really enjoy the Broadway soundtrack and knew that I had to see this new film.  Not to mention the star power behind the singing.  One thing you should know about this movie is that all of the singing is live and recorded during each scene.  None of the music you will hear is prerecorded.  That is and of itself is amazing.  You can feel the emotion behind the song and you can definately see it on screen.  The soundtrack features such actors as Hugh Jackman playing Jean Valjean, Russel Crowe is Javert, Ann Hathaway is Fantine, Amanday Seyfried plays Cosette, plus you hear Sasha Baren Cohen, Helana Bonham Carter, and many more.  In my opinion they do an amazing job.

Les Miserables is a famous play adapted from the book written by Victor Hugo.  The book has been adeapted at least 5 times with the most famous being the 1980's musical complosed by Alain Boublil and Claude-Michel Schonberg.  This is the music that the cast sticks with this new film.  The songs are very familiar and yet you get to hear them as if for the first time.  You can purchase the entire 1980 version in stores or on Amazon.  Unfortunately the new film soundtrack has selected tracks and so you do miss out a little on some of your favorites, but what is featured on the album is well your time and your money.  It is available at most retailers and on I-Tunes. Below is a track from the new film soundtrack, it features almost the entire cast singing One More Day.  Enjoy


  If you like what you have heard I encourage you to go out and experience this for yourself.  The music in this movie is incredibly moving and the actors do a great job singing. -Kristy
P.S.  I have also included a brief album preview.  It lets you sample some of the music on this soundtrack.

Cloud Atlas teaser and a new EP from Beliefs

Today we have two juicy items for those of you salivating for some fresh tunes. 

First things, first...I'm not a huge fan of album teasers or 'previews' as they are sometimes called, because with some music you just can't get a fair taste of what you are going to get should you choose to purchase the album.  So far, the preview is the only legitimate piece I have found from the movie Cloud Atlas. 

If you have not seen Cloud Atlas, I sadly cannot recommend it because I have not seen it.  I have not even watched the full trailer, so I have no idea what takes place in the movie.  However, being an avid fan of film score music, I have been eagerly anticipating the soundtrack to Cloud Atlas.  The film features Tom Hanks and Halle Berry to name two.  Tom Tykwer, Johnny Klimek, and Reinhold Heil are credited with creating the music in the film. 

What I have heard so far is the same thing I'm embedding here.  The music is mostly quiet, minimalistic orchestral compositions interspersed with some creative, spatial electronic moments.  I'm all for trying new technology in film scoring, so this was not worrisome at all.  I indeed like what I have heard, but some of it lacks in the 'epic' factor that I enjoy so much.  Of course, this is coming from hearing just the first minute or so of each track.  The good news is that film compositions often start off quiet and build toward a grand climax.  That is what makes motion picture music so...moving.  Take a listen to the soundtrack preview below.


Second, there is a new 'Untitled' EP from Beliefs.  Beliefs is a shoegaze/dream pop outfit from Toronto.  The new EP is steady mix of outstanding reverb-laden shoegaze rock and dream pop.  The band blends spacey atmospherics and ambiance with psyched out rock rhythms and excellent vocal work.  These vocals depart from the standard shoegazing fare by showing more prominently in the mix and being of a deeper, somewhat baritone variety.  I like what I have heard, but am a bit disappointed that the EP contains only two tracks.  You can stream both tracks below. Thank you for reading and enjoy!