Music Composed by Bear McCreary
Rating: ***

Adama. Apollo. Boomer. Starbuck. The names are the same. The characters, the genders, the show itself, entirelly different. The re-imagined version of Battlestar Galactica, one of the finest shows currently produced for television, sheds the more optimistic, 1970s worldview storylines. In its place, a dark, somber, harsh world. With this drastic shift in tone came a shift in music. Gone is the famous theme from the original; in its place, dark, percussive, tribal music from Bear McCreary.

This album is a sampling of highlights from the first season of the new Battlestar Galactica. And, from the first cue, it’s obvious the new Battlestar is a totally different beast. “Prologue” introduces the Cylon theme heard throughout the series. Harsh synthesized percussion mechanically taps along while eerie strings ebb and flow on top. This gives way to the series’ main theme. This theme is no brass fanfare. Rather, it’s a longing, somber theme, played on duduk, accompanied by a militaristic percussion line.

Bear McCreary

In fact, the series music fails to fall into one set realm. Its style varies wildly, depending on the mood of the show at the time. For emotional scenes, ethnic woodwinds carry the tune. For celebration, Irish pipes are featured (”A Good Lighter”). However, celebration is rare. Most emotion deals with sadness, and when not sad, mysterious. The duduk is prominent in these instances: “Two Funerals”, “Forgiven”, and “Kobol’s Last Gleaming” are all powerful, moving statements of sadness and longing. Solo voice also comes to play in these situations, adding to the power and emotion McCreary is evoking.

Then, there’s the action music. This isn’t your typical science-fiction action music. No brass fanfares, no massive orchestral sections. This music is in your face, tribal, percussive. Massive drumming, real and synthesized, propels the music, the action, forward. The standouts here are the two longest cues on the album. “The Olympic Carrier” starts off slowly, but builds as the minutes progress, adding louder, more ferocious rhythms, with the occasional duduk or wind statement and string ostinato adding layers of complexity until the music stops, and the duduk returns, providing an emtional counterpoint to the fury that preceded it. “Battle on the Asteroid” is less fierce, less tribal than “The Olympic Carrier”, but no less effective. The cue features more winds (the ever present duduk, Irish pipes), and instead of a constant buildup, the music rises and falls, following the action through to a percussive finish.

In spite of all the offbeat, percussive, ethnic music, McCreary hasn’t totally abandoned traditional orchestral music. “Battlestar Operatica” is an original operatic aria. “The Dinner Party”, a string quartet. And, the real orchestral knockouts, “Passacaglia” and “The Shape of Things to Come”, hypnotic pieces of string magic that show off the real compositional talent McCreary has.

Now, after all this positive talk of the album, why only three notes? Well, the action music can be somewhat aimless. Minute after minute of drumming, as varied as it is, can lose its appeal after a while. Also, while the varied styles of music fit excellently in the TV show itself, on album, it makes for a somewhat disjointed listen. These flaws detract from the overall quality of the music on album.

As a whole, though, the music is well composed. It fits the series perfectly. It is well mixed on album; the instruments, especially featured soloists, are clear, nothing is muddled, the percussion is appropriately thunderous. If this CD is any indication, Bear McCreary has a promising career ahead. Highly recommended for Battlestar Galactica fans, recommended for everyone else for a unique, but slightly uneven, science-fiction experience.

Music Composed by Bear McCreary; Recorded and Mixed by Steve Kaplan; Produced by Bear McCreary and Steve Kaplan; Availability: In print; Label (Catalogue): La-La Land Records, (LLLCD 1032); Release Date: June 21, 2005

01. Prologue (0′40)
02. Main Title (US Version) (1′05)
03. Helo Chase (1′31)
04. The Olympic Carrier (5′48)
05. Helo Rescued (1′01)
06. A Good Lighter (1′55)
07. The Thousandth Landing (3′08)
08. Two Funerals (3′25)
09. Starbuck Takes on All Eight (3′46)
10. Forgiven (1′30)
11. The Card Game (3′04)
12. Starbuck on the Red Moon (2′00)
13. Helo in the Warehouse (2′01)
14. Baltar Speaks with Adama (1′54)
15. Two Boomers (1′47)
16. Battlestar Operatica (2′36)
17. The Dinner Party (3′14)
18. Battlestar Muzaktica (1′43)
19. Baltar Panics (1′46)
20 .Boomer Flees (1′16)
21. Flesh and Bone (4′06)
22. Battle on the Asteroid (6′52)
23. Wander My Friends (2′57)
24. Passacaglia (5′15)
25. Kobol’s Last Gleaming (2′49)
26. Destiny (4′44)
27. The Shape of Things to Come (2′55)
28. Bloodshed (1′50)
29. Re-Cap (0′36)
30. Main Title (UK Version) (1′05)

Total Playing Time: 78′19