Madison Gate Records, out now

The anthology show based on Philip K. Dick’s short stories gains a digital-only soundtrack release, covering all 10 of the first season instalments across 56 tracks.

Aside from being based on sci-fi supremo Dick’s works, each of the ten episodes in Electric Dreams was encouraged to be its own thing. Different writers, directors and stars, and even different production crews on either side of the Atlantic, meant that each story was a self-contained mini-movie, and that diversity also extended to the soundtrack composers; five different composers (and a collective for episode Octopus) tackled the duties.

Harry Gregson-Williams’ (Wonder Woman) short synth-led Main Title contains a simple five-note melody which is then interpolated into both of his episodes, The Commuter and The Father Thing. Bear McCreary (Battlestar Galactica) offers a funky, discotheque backdrop to his Impossible Planet while his score for Real Life is a more emotional guitar-driven piece. His Kill All Others MexUSCan National Theme is a wonderful OTT, earnest anthem, all snare drums and brass. Seriously, it’s better than a lot of real national anthems, though very militaristic.

Cristobal Tapia De Veer’s (Utopia) Crazy Diamond gets a full 11 tracks, and those familiar with his work on Humans will know just how inventive his synthetic work is. He’s the ideal choice for this particularly bonkers episode, with retro whistles, whines and ethereal female vocals. He also scores Human Is and merits another seven tracks of warbles, whirrs and otherworldly textures.

Olafur Arnalds is a successful soloist in his own right, and has gained a high profile through scoring three seasons of Broadchurch. He also scored episode The Hood Maker, 15 minutes of which is included here over six tracks. It’s typical Arnalds, and the album is better for it. Movie soundtrack writer Mark Isham (Blade) scores Safe and Sound (five tracks), another multi-layered synth soundtrack with an urgent, thudding urgency, as well as Autofac, with composer BT, which has some stunning female solo vocals. Finally, Octopus is represented by a single track, performed by a super-group of Robyn Hitchcock, Blur’s Graham Coxon, Kevin Armstrong, John Estes, and Johnny Daukes. It’s a trippy, psychedelic song in the vein of the The Beatles’ Octopus’s Garden. Groovy, man!

Verdict: Over two hours of the best electronica from top TV and movie soundtrack composers. Even divorced from the episodes that they were written for, these snippets of scores remind you what a quality production the show was. 9/10

Nick Joy