Although John Carpenter’s primarily worked in (and forever defined) sci-fi and horror pictures, the man has long loved noir. (Never forget Harry Dean Stanton being offered an entire series of PI films on the basis of his minor detective role in Christine.) It was maybe just a matter of time until his decade-running Lost Themes series turned that way, and thus today brings the release of Lost Themes IV: Noir, a 10-track tribute that plays on the genre’s dark tones with guitars and synths.
Not quite a smoky orchestral score, a fact they’re willing to acknowledge. Says longtime player Daniel Davies, “Some of the music is heavy guitar riffs, which is not in old noir films. But somehow, it’s connected in an emotional way.” While we wait for the younger-than-you-think Carpenter to reconsider a return to feature filmmaking, this is a nice pitstop.
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