It’s a rare enough thing that television offers art of remarkable quality, but (imho) Battlestar Galactica — the “reimagined” series which aired beginning in 2003 — did just that. Not only in its scripts, cinematography, visual effects and acting, but also the soundracks scored by Bear McCreary and (for the pilot) Richard Gibbs. Exquisite stuff which produced my favourite cover of Bob Dylan’s “All Along The Watchtower” (Yes, even eclipsing Hendrix’s own definitive effort — though this effort borrows largely from it.). It’s scored by McCreary and performed by an ensemble including former members of the LA band Oingo Boingo.
side note: Some of you may have heard of Danny Elfman — among the most prolific and gifted scorers of feature films in the last couple decades — well, he was Oingo Boingo’s lead vocalist and songwriter.
This sequence includes a lengthy introduction which, in the tv series, was used as a foreshadowing device. Several characters kept hearing snippets of a melody they couldn’t quite put together. Eventually it drew them all to one place, in a cataclysmic moment, and then it all became horrifyingly clear.
Anyway, something to blast you out of your slumbers. Volume to 11 please.
Gawd! Doncha love the freakin’ sitar!
