Laserblast

Cheesy 1970's science fiction film anyone? No? Okay, I haven't actually seen the film, but Richard Band and Joel Goldsmith's very first film score - to the 1978 film Laserblast - was recently released and while it sounds very much like 1970's synth music (which it is) it is actually quite enjoyable in parts. One of Goldsmith's first projects, there are some strong similarities to his recent sci-fi work for "Stargate SG-1" and "Stargate Atlantis. The main titles begin with a droning electronic sound that made me fear what was to come, but there are some intricate musical ideas hidden there that would come to light if this were orchestrated. Synthesized brass play countermelodies to the theme, as an example.

One interesting thing about the score is the variety of music the two composers wrote for it. Source cues like "Billy's Radio #1" were written to mimic the feel of rock or pop music from a kid's radio. The more enjoyable cues are the action bits, such as "Aliens In Ship/Alien Boss On Screen". Interestingly enough, parts of the synth work sounds like some of Jerry Goldsmith's own work from that time. "Billy Blows Town Up" is a longer action cue that brings the music to a climax before the end title. Overall, it is often a hard score to listen to and Joel Goldsmith's more recent work is much better. But fans of Richard Band and Joel Goldsmith will find it interesting to hear one of their early efforts in comparison.