Unearthed

Yes, it's true - this album is not a soundtrack.  But I wanted to take the time to let you all know about it because it could be a soundtrack.  "Unearthed" is hard to categorize.  If you didn't know any better, you would think it was a soundtrack to a film.  Stylistically, E.S. Posthumus (who I am assuming to be artists Helmut Vonlichten and Franz Vonlichten) could be best described as "Craig Armstrong meets Vangelis meets Graeme Revell".

Beginning with a "Antissa", a female soloist vocalizes, with a bit of electronic distortion every now and then (ala Cher).  When the percussion beat comes in, you start to fall into the groove.  Then the orchestra and backup choir join in.  It's a thematically engaging cue, and a great way to start the album.  "Tikal" is a more action-oriented cue.  With a repetitive exotic melody, the orchestra keeps building until the choir comes in for a little chanting at the climax.  "Harappa" is a more choral-heavy piece, and reminded me at times of Dune.  "Ulaid" features the Uilleann Pipes and Low Whistle to lend an Irish flare to the album.  "Cuzco" has a South American feeling to it, and is a light and airy cue.

"Ebla" contains more chanting and orchestral that builds (with rhythms and synth) to a rousing finale.  This happens to be one of my favorite cues on the album, probably because of the large "epic"-sounding choir.  Thematically, this could be a classical piece (actually, most of the pieces could be classical in theme), updated with a rhythm section and orchestra.  Two other cues I can't get enough of are "Menouthis", with it's tense percussion and chorus, and "Pompeii", with it's rhythmic chanting and dark edge.

Not all of the cues are my favorites, though, and I found myself losing interest in parts of "Nineveh" and "Lepcis Magna", probably because the other cues were so enthralling that I immediately set my standards and expectations too high.  "Estremoz" is a soft almost romantic cue that bridges "Menouthis" and "Pompeii".  "Isfahan" is a tender and calm cue that caps off the album nicely.

In case you hadn't notices, the track names are all ancient cites from around the globe; no doubt they all provided some inspiration for the cues.  Running almost an hour long, this album didn't feel quite like a musical journey around the globe.  Rather, it felt like a commendable film score - but the film doesn't exist.  Incidentally, two of the cues here were used in the marketing campaign for The Planet of the Apes, which is how I found out about the album to begin with.  If what you heard in the trailer grabbed you, then by all means try the album.  If you're still not sure what it's all about, and you want to hear a sampling for yourself, there are sound clips available at the official E.S. Posthumus website.  It's also the only place you can buy the album, so go check it out at http://www.esposthumus.com/