By Clint Mansell

Mercury KX, out now

Modern and ancient horror inspire Mansell’s latest score…

There are several things that come to mind when Clint Mansell’s name comes up on a movie’s composer credit: Darren Aronofsky is probably one, as they’ve collaborated on so many movies; electronical sampling; dreamy choral material; staccato percussion… Most of these are all present and correct here, with the obvious exception being Aronofsky, who isn’t involved with this movie.

The film is a mix of folk horror, feminism, and fairly unsuccessful comedy, with a layer of media resonance in being about an actress seeking retreat. Most of these too are represented in Mansell’s score, with the exception of the supposedly comedic elements.

What we get as a soundtrack, then, is an on-form Clint Mansell score, beginning with “Evocation,” a track that combines his dreamy electronica with almost John Carpenter-like moments of pulsating foreshadowing; something that also recurs in “Scars” and “Rebirth.” There’s also some wonderful choral material that filters in to give us a pleasant and slightly otherworldly air, which counteracts the effective unsettling of some of the electronica that backs it.

As you’d expect from Mansell, the score blends these elements quite expertly, and no fan of his is going to be disappointed, but there is a downside to it all. The downside is, frankly, that while this is just what you might expect from the Aronofsky-style style side of Mansell’s output, it just exactly what you might expect. That is to say, it doesn’t really do anything that’s new or noteworthy for him. To be honest, the drone that continues endlessly as the backdrop to almost the entire album is also a bit wearing after a while, which is also a downside.

It feels churlish to call out these elements in what is of course generally a good score from a composer of whom we expect such scores, but somehow it niggles here more than in other scores, and that drone does get boring. So, in the end, a generally good score from a composer we’d expect to give us that, but somewhat formulaic by his standards, and best listened to as individual tracks – which may well be why they released “Invocation,” the final track, separately as well, as a sort of theme tune single.

Verdict: A must-get for Mansell fans, but casual listeners may be as well to stick to the single. 7/10

David A McIntee