Unofficial Battlestar Galactica Blog: Season 1 Soundtrack listening notes

As promised a long time ago, here is my review of the Battlestar Galactica Season 1 soundtrack. I wouldn’t really call it a review, these are more listening notes, but you get the idea. I am essentially going to blog this. I am going to hit play on the CD player and then just type as I go… sort of like the podcasts that Ron Moore does for the show… of course I don’t expect you to read this while you listen, but knock yourself out if you are up for that sort of thing.

All right lets dive in… this is going to be a long post, so grab a snack and a drink.

1. Prologue
Ahh… that famous piano intro… it gives me goose bumps every time. I tried to hack together an electronica remix using that piano but the ideas just never came to me. The rhythm is something that you just can’t get out of your head. So simple, yet so complex because it doesn’t unfold how you expect.

2. Main Title (US Version)
All I can think of when I hear this is the chills I get in the middle when they show clips from the epic battle scenes during the pilot. The wind instruments are haunting… the Taiko drums are thundering… it is rousing yet tragic at the same time… I think that is where the emotion comes from. The track is a very interesting blend of Asian and Middle Eastern influences that seems to typify the Battlestar Galactica sound.

3. Helo Chase
I am not a huge fan of action cues on soundtracks because they often stand alone, but this one does a good job doing just that. Maybe it is because it focuses on the drum rhythms which serve to build suspense instead of explain the on screen action directly. The last half reminds me of some of the soft cues that Howard Shore used during the Lord of the Rings. I can’t tell if it is natural vocal or synth/pads.

4. The Olympic Carrier
A seminal moment during the first season receives a suspenseful yet rhythmically interesting musical treatment. It is with the drums that I feel Bear McCreary really signs his musical signature. I might go so far as to say this track has moments that remind me of Eric Serra’s The Fifth Element, but that is probably due to some of the ethnic wind moments. But I compare it as a compliment. I only remember scores that I like and for McCreary to invoke those scores within me means he must be doing something right. I really love the motif at 4:30… I don’t know whose particular “theme” it is… but I look forward to every moment it appears in the soundtrack.

5. Helo Rescued
A little bit of dissonance goes a long way on this track. I don’t know why but it reminds me of some of the music used during another one of Ron Moore’s TV efforts, Roswell. Yes, I admit I watched that show… until it got REALLY strange. I do enjoy the bells this track uses though.

6. A Good Lighter
The Irish/Celtic/Highlander pipes make an appearance here and they fit really well. There is just something uplifting about them. They make you happy and sad at the same time and that is exactly what a scene like this needed. I guess it works because there is something both young and old about the sound McCreary is using. It fits as a theme for both Adama and Apollo. This show might take place in the future but there is something timeless about the night before a big battle… the anticipation… the anxiety… but also the sense of duty and the emotional calm. Whether it is hundreds of years in the future or hundreds of years in the past, there are many fathers that said goodbye to their sons. The fact that McCreary can capture this in a piece of music is talented.

7. The Thousandth Landing
If there was one piece of music that reminded me of The Fifth Element it would be this one. I don’t know if you remember that film or even saw it, but there is a scene when Leeloo escapes the reconstruction chamber and ventures out into the city. This music reminds me of that. Once again the variety of rhythm makes this pleasant track to tap your feet to… especially if you are trying to figure out the various hits. McCreary keeps you guessing.

8. Two Funerals
There is some great wind work in this one. Some ethereal pads combine with ambient backgrounds to evoke grandeur as well as sadness. It reminds me of moments from the art film Baraka. The snares arrive to add stature and dignity. The main title theme adds reverence. A very satisfying three minutes and twenty-five seconds.

9. Starbuck Takes on All Eight
With space battles brings drums. The cues in the beginning seem a bit more event driven than the other tracks and the piece seems to stand less on its own and more as part of the imagery. The awesome vocals at 1:45 and 2:25 are a good change of pace though and really leap out at you through the speakers.

10. Forgiven
With all the drums on this CD, a purely melodic track is quite the treat. It makes you treasure the calm. I am sorry to say this, and I know Bear might hate me, but there was a bit of Titanic/James Horner in this. I say that as a compliment though. Regardless of what the film score community thinks, I dig things that sounds beautiful and that is one thing this track is. I actually listened to the track four times while writing this because it is so enjoyable and calming. The best character moments in BSG take place during music like this.

11. The Card Game
Ok we are totally back with Eric Serra in The Fifth Element when Bruce Willis wakes up in the morning and is kicking around his room getting phone calls from his mom and getting held up. That is my favorite scene in that film. This track is grooving with the bass and tablas. The off beat kick keeps you guessing. It is pure funky goodness. The best is when it the bass comes back in after the break at 2:34.

12. Starbuck on the Red Moon
The sound on this one is a bit more industrial… lots of clanging metal and sloppy cymbals. It definitely captures the chaos of Starbucks marooning and her continuous struggles. The part after 1:30 reminds me of cues from David Arnold’s theatrical Stargate score.

13. Helo in the Warehouse
This is a very event driven track. Not much in the way of stand alone themes. It is very breathy with environmental ambience. The bells make a small appearance in the middle, but are gone just as you notice them.

14. Baltar Speaks with Adama
I love the chord progressions in this. The string pads build in a very effective and subtle way. The urgency is conveyed with the drums underneath, slowly growing until the moment is completed. It’s a short piece but a very important example of how McCreary crafts his themes.

15. Two Boomers
The addition of the guitars is something you won’t here often. I feel like they are meant to signify the mental/emotional chaos of Helo in the moment where he finds out the inevitable. The beginning with the wind is to my liking. The guitar part doesn’t seem to stand on its own as well without the on screen action.

16. Battlestar Operatica
If you haven’t learned by now, good science fiction always has high culture classical in it. Remember the opera from The Fifth Element? Remember Klingon Opera from Star Trek? I guess it is meant to signify that even in the ages of the future, there is still an appreciation for art and aesthetic because that is what signifies intelligence. The lyrics to this are included in the CD notes. It is sung in Italian and I love it…especially the line that goes “Number Six calls to you… The Cylon Detector beckons… Your girlfriend is a toaster…” I really would love to hear a version of this sung in English.

17. The Dinner Party
This was a very enjoyable (if uncomfortable) scene in the show. The music is exactly what it needs to be… playful, genuine, but ultimately forgettable.

18. Battlestar Muzaktica
The fact that Bear can write special Muzak for the show is a tribute to the dues I am sure he had to pay! It is probably the best Muzak I have ever heard if that means anything… On my honeymoon there was this band that would play “muzak” for the guests… live… in the middle of the resort, except that they put a calypso beat behind everything. You haven’t lived until you hear Billy Joel toons with a calypso beat. Everytime I hear Muzak I think of that.

19. Baltar Panics
I am reminded of a bazaar from Indiana Jones! Some great rhythm work, although it is the winds that really make this cut. Just when you think it is another pure drum track the piccolo-esque instrument comes in to put on a finishing touch. The last half of the track seems like a totally different song and serves as closure or comfort to Baltar’s panicked moment.

20. Boomer Flees
Bells and Taiko, strings and staccato. There is a lot that happens in this one minute and sixteen seconds. The transformation that the Boomer character makes from Cylon to refugee is evident in the transformation of this theme. As the track unfolds, it does so at the same speed that her mind does. I can’t stop listening to this.

21. Flesh and Bone
There is something very noble about the intro. It quickly gives way to introspection and a feeling of suspicion, followed by a gentle progression towards urgency, contemplation, realization and finally acceptance and action. It is very rousing… inspirational even. This is one of my favorite tracks on the CD. I am a sucker for builds.

22. Battle on the Asteroid
At six minutes and fifty-two seconds, this is the longest track on the CD and by far the most epic. It makes sense given that Hand of God was one of the more epic moments of the first season. A lot of action requires a lot of music. Many of the character themes and motifs are recycled, but all for their required effect. This is really one of those musical moments when it all needs to come together and Bear McCreary makes it happen. If you wanted to get one sense of what Battlestar Galactica is musically like, you could listen to this one track and get a pretty good idea. The cues are very action based, but the entire piece really manages to stand alone. I am consistently surprised by Bear’s ability to pull off listenable action sequences.

23. Wander My Friends
A big victory deserves a big celebration. The lyrics are in Gaelic and are in the CD notes. They are happy, and hopeful, yet longing for those that didn’t come back. The moment when Apollo throws his lighter back to his father is a great one to witness. The triumph of that moment is perfectly captured by this song.

24. Passacaglia
I had to Google this title because I had no idea what the word was. It means “A musical form of the 17th and 18th centuries consisting of continuous variations on a ground bass and similar to the chaconne.” I guess that explains it! Besides being a beautiful motif, it is used for what some have called the greatest moment of television… the opening sequence to Kobol’s Last Gleaming. Putting the tortured imagery of the characters together with such an airy theme was extremely poignant. I am really hoping for more surprises like this from Bear McCreary and the show producers. If I didn’t like the show already, my fanatic devotion was secured with this theme and the show opening it served to complete. Many people will buy the CD just for this track… and they should… it is excellent. To listen to it and remember it in the context of the imagery we saw makes it that much better. At five minutes and fifteen seconds, we also have the joy of a full length track.

25. Kobol’s Last Gleaming
The lyrics for this are Latin and included in the CD notes. They read: “All of this has happened before, and all of this will happen again, so say we all.” The musical is correctly spiritual given the message. It really helps force contemplation over the cyclical themes that are growing in the show… a very haunting, yet meditative track.

26. Destiny
The beginning invokes a desert… isolation… something very prominent at the end of the first season. From there the track meanders in and out of rhythm, sometimes structured, sometimes a bit more chaotic. It isn’t one of my favorites but it does serve to capture much of the uncertainty surrounding the characters. I can’t say this one stands on it’s own as well as the other tracks. There is some interesting guitar work in this though… it brings a new sound.

27. The Shape of Things to Come
This borrows heavily from the Passacaglia track although I don’t know if it fits as well within the show since the imagery used (a concert hall) was much more traditional given the sound track and the juxtaposition of the classic music with science fiction situations was lost. It is a worthy redux though, from a musical standpoint.

28. Bloodshed
Who wasn’t just amazed by the last 30 seconds of the season one finale? There is the mass confusion with what you see, the ultimate hopelessness of the situation. The lyrics of this track are Latin. They are included in the CD notes and read: Thought the outcome favored the few… It led to a confrontation... At the home of the Gods. As far as I can remember, it is one of the best season finale shows I have ever seen. The music completely captures everything. For the show to end on those last few chords is just perfection.

29/30. Re-Cap & UK Main Title
Compared to the US versions, they seem a little more subdued and subtle. I can’t say I like them more, but maybe that is just the synth/pad/wind lover in me. I also miss the snares from this version. The snares make it seem so much nobler. To each their own. I am sure the reason they have two different themes is because one appears to one audience over the other.

There you have it folks. My listening notes for season one. Buy it now at Amazon and listen to your heart’s content. It is truly great stuff if you are any fan of the show. Bear McCreary is someone to keep your eye on. He writes such original and incredibly interesting stuff. Sure, I might have compared him too many times to Eric Serra and The Fifth Element, but that is only because Eric's approach to scoring that film was equally original and interesting.

The producers of Battlestar Galactica often say in interviews that they are going for simplistic rhythmic music. That may be the case, and while on the surface the music might seem that way to some, Bear writes anything but simple music for this show. He has a really large range and I can’t wait to see how he uses it for season two!