by Danny Elfman

Disney, out now

Elfman steps up for the latest Marvel big screen event.

Right from the opening notes of “Multiverse Of Madness,” the first track, you can tell just from listening that this is an Elfman score – the bombast, the beat, the choice of instruments foregrounded by the orchestra, the somewhat childlike voicing on the early choral elements – but thankfully it eschews the endless repetition of his score for the various Men In Black movies. No, this is his epic graphic novel variety of score, more akin to his scores for Tim Burton’s movies, and, of course, for Sam Raimi’s three Spider-Man movies.

This is a no-holds-barred score, packed with blaring horns, flowing through background chorals, and absolutely all of the strings. It’s a passionate score, not in terms of being filled with romantic cues, but in terms of every cue, every passage, being full-bore and holding nothing back. The quavering strings in “Home?” quiver like strings taut on the edge of tears, while the darker tones swell and press, weighing heavily on the nerves.

It’s also a very listenable score as an album – not quite as much as, say, the Moon Knight score, but way more than something like Elfman’s Men In Black efforts. It’s a proper musical experience, in other words, and mostly harkens back to his Spider-Man and Sleepy Hollow efforts, which are just the kind of grounds you want to be treading in a comic-book epic with horror tones.

Those who rightly admired Michael Giacchino’s score for the first film, and especially Dr Strange’s main theme, may be reassured that Elfman resuses it in his score, notably bringing it in to great effect in the track “Gargantos,” and triumphantly in “Battle Time,” though it had also been subtly woven into the opening cue, and tracks like “Strange Statue”. Action tracks are actiony, mystical cues feel mystical…. You get the idea, they all hit the right tone, though that’s not always a good thing, as “Lethal Symphonies” is effectively but not pleasantly discordant.

The album as released contains 32 tracks, ending with “Unexpected Visitor,” a post-credit scene track following on from “Main Title,” but there are also three further Wanda-related bonus tracks on the iTunes release, which are lesser but effective pieces, especially the final “Wanda At Home” which echoes Wandavision’s music.

Verdict: A good listen, and Elfman’s best in years. 9/10.

David A McIntee