John Williams – Star Wars: The Last Jedi (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) (2017) [FLAC 24bit/192kHz]

John Williams – Star Wars: The Last Jedi (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) (2017)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/192 kHz | Time – 01:17:31 minutes | 2,96 GB | Genre: Soundtrack
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Booklet, Front Cover | © Walt Disney Records

The soundtrack to the most anticipated movie of the year, Star Wars: The Last Jedi. Starring Daisy Ridley, John Boyega, Benicio Del Toro, Mark Hamill and the late Carrie Fisher, the movie is the official Episode VIII in the universe-conquering film franchise. Once again composed by the legendary John Williams.

When the first Star Wars film came out 40 years ago, film-maker George Lucas showed real nerve when he chose a strongly symphonic colour for the soundtrack, and picked out a composer who knew his classics (and his Wagner in particular). At the time, early electronic music was almost compulsory in science-fiction films. In 2017, the presence of John Williams in the opening credits of a Star Wars film doesn’t have quite the same audacious feeling, and the thrill the audience feels when the prologue starts to roll derives mostly from the legendary status of both the music and its octogenarian writer. It has been asserted that in fact the real “last Jedi” in the film is John Williams! All the same, upon the release of this eighth episode, some voices have been raised (critic Michel Ciment’s in particular) to insist that John Williams has served his time and that he should give way to a younger composer. But rather than getting bogged down in the question of “the age of the captain”, we should look at the important thing: the score for this eighth work is very interesting. In particular, it shows up a fascinating dichotomy between the archetypal nature of the musical themes (very clearly illustrating a character or concept) and Williams’s extremely subtle way of developing them, to say nothing of his indisputable skill with orchestration. Beyond the many epic pieces on this soundtrack, (The Battle of Crait, The Fathiers, etc.), special mention must go to the majestic Ahch-To Island, which sees a “retired” Luke Skywalker who wants to live out the rest of his days in peace and serenity. Moreover, listeners will be pleasantly surprised to find, nestled away within this remarkably written and well-controlled score, Canto Bight, a jazzy theme with a South American flavour (which at points pastiches Brazil), with a steel drum section! This is a piece which proves that John Williams is fully at ease with all musical genres and all orchestral colours.

Tracklist:
01. Main Title and Escape 07:25
02. Ahch-To Island 04:22
03. Revisiting Snoke 03:28
04. The Supremacy 04:00
05. Fun With Finn and Rose 02:33
06. Old Friends 04:28
07. The Rebellion Is Reborn 03:59
08. Lesson One 02:09
09. Canto Bight 02:37
10. Who Are You? 03:04
11. The Fathiers 02:42
12. The Cave 02:59
13. The Sacred Jedi Texts 03:32
14. A New Alliance 03:13
15. Chrome Dome 02:01
16. The Battle of Crait 06:47
17. The Spark 03:35
18. The Last Jedi 03:03
19. Peace and Purpose 03:06
20. Finale 08:28