Music Review: Perfume - Original Motion Picture Soundtrack

I got a little carried away at the local Newbury Comics yesterday and came home with a stack of horror soundtracks. They were all winners but there is this one standout that I'd like to share with you. Even if you don't particularly like scary music this is worth a listen.

I'm going to be right up front with the fact that I haven't seen the film. This purchase was either an act of bravery or abandon or just plain old dumb consumerism. Probably all three. What consciously pushed me to lay my money down, though, was really two things. First, I knew a little about the book upon which the film is based and it's a great premise. Second, the soundtrack is largely orchestral.

I found out after the fact that the score for Perfume was actually composed by the film's director, Tom Tykwer, along with Johnny Klimek and Reinhold Heil. Big points there for the director getting in on the music (Hello? John Carpenter?). The music is performed by Simon Rattle and the Berliner Philharmoniker with choral performances by State Choir Latvia. The three composers also perform the soundtrack's electronic components, which are used sparingly but with great effect.

It's apparent that the aim of this score is to mirror the complexity of fine perfume by skillfully layering complementary and contrasting notes. Swelling, romantic themes are cut with a keening, faraway dissonance. Sinister motifs skulk in the shadows of illuminated passages. Revelation, joy, tension and melancholy seamlessly intertwine. The tang of dementia lingers after dissipating sweetness.

All of this is made better for me by the occasional incidental sound like the creak of a chair or the soft drawing of breath. I love to hear the people in the music. It's part of the attraction of orchestral scores.

The best prices I can find online are here (Amazon) but feel free to do your own search. I don't get paid for click-throughs or anything so it's all the same to me. Get it any way that you can.