Customer Reviews

Battlestar Galactica: Season 3

5 star:		(78)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

With each successive release, Bear McCreary manages to produce more and more complete soundtracks that not only tell the story of the series but can literally put you "In the moment."

The Season 3 disk is the best yet. There is almost NOTHING to skip here. Everything weaves together to tell the complete story of Season 3 and really places you back into the series with a vengeance. Bear has really come a long way with the soundtracks he is producing for the television series. Almost every track has a distinct feeling and ambience that calls into memory the exact moments in the series that they accompanied.

The whole experience kicks off with a bang as "A Distant Sadness" begins with the faint hints of what awaits us at the end of the series and the ushers in the desperation that filled the first two episodes of the third season and builds into "Precipice."

"Admiral and Commander" ushers in the first really familiar theme in this soundtrack, bringing back what has become Adama's theme from Seasons 1 and 2, and acts as a calm before the storm that is to come in "Storming New Caprica."

I defy ANYONE who has seen Exodus Part 2 to listen to this track without being immediately transported back the the phenomenal Episode and the single best Sci-If battle sequence every televised. This almost 8 minute long track that accompanied the battle sequence was/is simply perfect. Listening to it on this CD really does tell the story almost as well as the visuals did on the show. The soundtrack is worth it for this track alone.

Of course, season three takes a bit of a nose dive after Exodus, but the soundtrack really doesn't as it really just kind of skips things until the episodes "Hero" and "Unfinished Business." This is where things get interesting. "The Dance" is an odd track for this series as it's actually fun and upbeat.

The other highlights of this soundtrack also seem to mirror the highlights of the series as well, with notable stand out tracks being the returns of the Adama/Roslyn theme in "Adama Falls," the eerie "Battlestar Sonatica," the tragic "Kat's Sacrifice," the touching "Someone to Trust" and the mystery of Kara's fate in "Mandala in the Clouds" and "Deathbed and Maelstrom."

But the real jewels here are the final two tracks, "Heeding the Call" and "All Along the Watchtower," which usher in the final act of the series yet to come in season 4. "Heeding the Call" was a great touch in "Crossroads part 2" and builds slowly as four of the five final Cylons are revealed to the viewer and is a wonderful lead-in to the controversial inclusion of the Battlestar version of "All Along the Watchtower."

"All Along the Watchtower" is really a very beautiful bridge between our world and that of the series as it takes something very familiar to us and transforms it seamlessly into something that we can really feel would be very familiar to the characters of the series. It's not really a cover as much as it is a re-imagining of the song in much the same way that the modern series is a re-imagining of the original. And let's face it, this track is probably the reason you're looking at this product anyway. Rest assured that this disk is so much more than just "All Along the Watchtower."

I cannot recommend it enough...

If TV land is even slightly fair then Bear McCreary should get at least a Grammy and/or Globe for this magnificient achievement. With each passing score for "Battlestar Galactica" it gets better and better and this is the best score from the four that have been published.

I can't think of any series sci-fi, drama that publishes a soundtrack for each passing season but BSG does and for a good reason too. I don't know where to start. Maybe at the beginning.

Like the scene in the episode ("Occupation Part 1") the track "A Distant Sadness" gives you goosebumps. Raya Yarbrough sings Armenian lyrics that are beautiful and deeply sad and haunting. Interestingly enough the first few tunes are the ones from "All Along the Watchtower". Maybe a hint of things to come.

"Precipe" is a simple tour de force through percussions similiar to the track "The Olympic Carrier" from the season one score. "Admiral and Commander" is a beautiful rendition of the Adama father and son theme with Ulliean Pipes, a guitar and orchestra. It soars and is yet gentle. Off we are to "Storming New Caprica", which uses the percussions in the most furious and effective way ever. Heavy Teiko rythmns make it almost Japanese. It also mixes Ullian bagpipes to show that both Pegasus and Galactica under the Adamas have arrived and they won't give up without a fight, in the middle there is a moment of sadness and defeat. I remember that scene well. It seemed as if the Galactica had lost the battle and was doomed to a firey death. A very intense moment but then the percussions return with force.

"Refugees Return" is not as some would expect a joyful track but a very sad one. Everyone is tired, hurt and deeply sad. So many loved ones lost their lives on New Caprica. The face of Saul alone when he looks at Bill made me cry. "Wayward Soldier" is another wonderful percussion track and then comes "Violence and Variations". Bear McCreary writes a real symphony on a variation here. Each score has a track likes that. It started with "Passacaglia" in S01, moved on to "Allegro" in S02 and now has its third movement with "Violence and Variations". I already realized that when I saw "Unfinished Business" and was giddy to hear the track alone on the CD and it is as wonderful as I hoped.

"The Dance" is nothing else but a very cheerful and jaunty Irish dance song in the best fashion. =) "Adama Falls" is a short track but made my shipper heart happy because it is a short rendition of the theme for Bill and Laura!!!! She is after all there for him and holds him up when he leaves (and is probably also the one who cleans him up in his cabin). "Under the Wing" is again a short track and features the melody that we already heard in "Violence and Variations". It must be for Kara or Kara and Lee.

"Battlestar Sonatica" already stuck out in the series and Ron D. Moore explained that they used the Moonlight Sonata by Beethoven as Temp Music while cutting the scenes and he wanted to have something similiar since he couldn't use Beethoven (his music is unlike the music from Philip Glass simply too recognizable and "earthly"). The track that McCreary composed is a wonderful, slightly modernistic piece with touches of Glass and huges touches of Beethoven. "Fight Night" - back to the percussions plus erhus for the mix which reminded me of a cue from the season two score but I can't think which one it was. "Kat's Sacrifice" boy did I cry at the end and I didn't even like Kat! This track stands out because brass is so very seldom used. Percussive elements join and make the theme very heroic and majestic. Lovely.


"Someone To Trust" is a slow piece in which the electrical violin dominates. the ending of the piece is rather eerie and disquieting. Like the memories Bill has of his late second wife. "The Temple of Five" begins with wind chimes tinkling and the strange sound that I also associated with the ruins from Kobol in which Baltar had the vision, which is fitting since D'Anna does have a vision of the Final Five. The music swells and percussive elements join. The whole track has as most tracks who deal with Kobol and Earth a middle eastern touch (the Duduk is to blame).

"Dirty Hands" is weird. It reminded me a bit "Cowboy Bebop" and I am not quite sure why. It is a dark, western style cue with percussive elements and a bass and some strange acoustic guitar. Refreshing because different. This is what I love about BSG. The plethora of styles! "Dirty Hands" is followed by a track that should have been featured earlier chronologicalywise but was probably added this late for best listening experience. "Gentle Execution" from "Exodus Part 2". The scene was very painful to watch. Like Kat, Elen had not been my favourite character but that scene hurt. Michael Hogan did an amazing job there. The track itself is the reprisal of the wonderful track "Worthy of Survival" with only slight use of percussive elements ("Worthy of Survival" had heavy Teiko drums).

"Mandala in the Sky" is nothing special. Heavy Teiko rhythms. "Deathbed and Maelstrom": That track was used for the flashback scenes in which we see the death of Kara's mother. The track is decidedly Asian flavoured due to the inclusion of the Ehru. What IS really intriguing is the short snippet of the theme we heard already in "Kobol's Last Gleaming". Why did McCreary add the theme there? Does he know something we don't? Why use a theme that was used for the foreshadowing of the Cylon future? "Heeding the Call" is just plain genius. It uses snippets of "All Along the Watchtower" and builds up more and more and leads into the song itself. I really like the version from Bear McCreary. So cool.

My final verdict: Buy it, buy it, buy it. You won't regret it. The score is just plain amazing!

Without a doubt, Bear McCreary's finest work to date, though I could sense that throughout Season 3 itself. I'm constantly amzed by the shear variety of arrangement, instrumentation and moods McCreary uses and conveys in his score, and this CD reminds us that his contribution to the show is as important as the SFX, the writing, production and acting. McCreary will be a force to be reckoned with for decades to come. I do have one minor complaint, but won't take away a star. Possibly the most important musical segment of S3 was that in the "Crossroads" finale. Although this adaptation of "All Along the Watchtower" is a remarkable piece, I too would have like to have had the mix as it was used in the show itself. As it stands here, it just doesn't have that same epic feel as it did in the finale.

BSG's Season 3 soundtrack is among the best of Bear McCreary's work, and would have been worth buying even without the inclusion of "All Along The Watchtower". With it, it's worth five stars.

For those who will listen to content besides Watchtower, Bear McCreary does many good and a few great things. With David Eick wisely letting his composer glue the end of that episode together, the solid five minute cue of "Precipice" might just be his single best work in scoring an episode; the stories simply wouldn't have interlocked without it. Although different than the broadcast version, his work with percussion shows off in "Storming New Caprica". Tying in several other cues, "Temple of the Five" may be his most important new theme of the entire season. And finally, "Heeding the Call"'s inclusion of his adaptation of the Watchtower cues just prior to the big event was a pleasant surprise.

And then comes his adaptation of "All Along The Watchtower", which alone could have sold the entire album given the amount of interest in it. One warning: it is not quite the same version as broadcast, with some instrumentals taken out. Still, immediately following the show he could have probably sold MP3's of the song for $10 a pop - so be glad he included the rest of the season too.

The value is worth 5 stars as a result, and the music is the same.

This is the BEST one Bear McCreary has put out to date. The music is complex and subtle. More cultural diversity in the tracks. A greater mix of instruments. This soundtrack definitely brings about the emotion of the episodes it represents. The best one (IMHO) is Storming New Caprica with the final seconds marking the glorious sacrifice of Pegasus. You can catch Baltar's theme, the Adama/Roslin theme, the celtic music for Adama, the theme for Starbuck, and so much more, rendered in new ways.

Yep, this soundtrack is awesome!!

Every once in a while, a soundtrack comes along that restores my faith in the whole "soundtrack" concept. Not just a cash-in for superfans of a series, not just more product to churn out, it actually stands up on its own as an artistic work. This is one of them.

I like the other soundtrack albums to Battlestar Galactica - beginning with a minimalist approach, using pounding drums, Bear McCreary was able to create a very evocative and distinctive sound. As the seasons progressed, McCreary's budget grew and he was able to broaden his scope to include more instruments and vocalists. Still, those soundtracks tend to be a little choppy: short musical segments, generally culminating in a rapid fire drum rhythm. Perfect for the show, and the albums sound pretty cool.

For season three, everything came together to transcend any limitations there were previously. The songs are more fully developed, the moods more varied, and they make much more of an impression not only as individual pieces, but as a whole as well. Listening to this album, I feel like I'm reliving all of the emotions from the show - but not the specific emotions of particular characters. Independent of the series, these are some of the most powerful pieces of music I've heard in years. The pounding drums are still there, but also gorgeous piano, swelling strings, wind instruments, ethereal vocals ... and it all builds to the extraordinary closing song, a daring remake of Bob Dylan's All Along the Watchtower, which, quite frankly, needs to be heard to be believed. It's like Hendrix's version crossed with U2's "Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me, Kill Me," crossed with the motifs McCreary's been developing over the three seasons of BSG, crossed with I-don't-know-what.

Not only is it a fantastic cd, but just consider what it took to make this. He has one of the coolest, and hardest, jobs in show business. McCreary is not given the luxury of following his muse wherever it may take him. He is writing for the program and must, in a limited period of time, create pieces that fit the assigned framework of the scene. Under such constraints, it's amazing he can come up with something adequate, let alone brilliant. But this is brilliant. Just as BSG has taken science fiction to a new level, so McCreary is doing to the "soundtrack" genre with this cd. It's that good.

Bear McCreary has outdone himself yet again. His music is one of the defining points that make the new incarnation of Battlestar Galactica the best show on television. The show simply would not work without his music, it is such an amazing fit and he can craft the music to fit each episode so well that it becomes a vital part of the episode in itself. You can imagine whole episodes just by listening to the music. Even bit pieces of music that stood out in episodes have been expanded upon here to make great tracks that never get old and make you want to fast forward to the memorable parts from the show. I was finally glad to be able to hear the new rendition of "All Along The Watchtower" and it truly does stand on its own and IMO breathes new life into a very excellent, but old, song that doesn't seem like a cheap remake with a few notes changed here and there. I can't wait to hear what Bear McCreary does for Razor (hopefully make some new and exhilarating renditions of the season 2 favorite "Prelude to War") and I know he will knock it out of the park with his work on Season 4.

When I listen to this soundtrack, I am taken back to the best scenes of the season and it reveals what an integral part this music plays in making Galactica a great show to experience. Bear McCreary pulls off a stunning feat and provides the visceral foundation for the show, from the heart-pounding rescue in "Storming New Caprica" to the heart-wrenching grief at the return of "Refugees Return" to the lonely misery in "Someone To Trust". If you are a BSG or neo-classical music fan, or if you need some good instrumental music, this is it.

Like the show it accompanies, Bear McCreary's score for Season 3 of Battlestar Galactica is even better than the previous one. He manages to weave old and familiar themes from Seasons 1 and 2 throughout the album, while at the same time creating fresh and original sounds that are entrancing, haunting, and exhilirating. "Battlestar Sonatica" (from the episode "Torn"), played entirely by McCreary on the piano, is truly beautiful. And of course, the highlight of the album is the cover of "All Along the Watchtower" from the season finale, featuring McCreary's brother, Bt4. But these are just two of a 21 amazing tracks, none of which fail to meet the expectations set by the preceding soundtracks. We can only wait with baited breath for what's in store for Razor and Season 4.

I bought this soundtrack from Amazon upon its release, since none of Bear McCreary's "Galactica" scores are available on iTunes (as of this writing). So yes, it was a bit more expensive. But it was worth every penny, and a magnificent continuation and development of many of the themes McCreary established in his scores for the first two seasons of "BSG."
Each "Galactica" soundtrack has an epic seven- to nine-minute battle theme in which the orchestra pulls out all the stops and just goes for it (e.g., Season 1's "Battle on the Asteroid" and Season 2's "Prelude to War"). For the Season 3 soundtrack, the piece de resistance is "Storming New Caprica," complete with thundering taiko drums and bagpipe clarion calls, and it's a beaut. McCreary keeps up the great action-theme work on tracks like "Precipice," "Wayward Soldier," "Fight Night," "Kat's Sacrifice," "Dirty Hands" and "Mandala in the Clouds." The soundtrack (and the Season 3 finale) closes with a fiery rendition of Bob Dylan's "All Along the Watchtower," and yes, it's as good as you've heard.
But McCreary also has a gift for slowing things down and conjuring more thoughtful moods while avoiding sentimental clichés, and he does so here on such tracks as "Admiral and Commander" (the best rendering of the "Adama family" theme yet), "Adama Falls" (which continues the lovely "Roslin and Adama" theme from Season 2 on a slightly darker note), "Under the Wing," "Battlestar Sonatica," "Someone to Trust" and "Deathbed and Maelstrom."
Poor Bear McCreary. I'm not sure how he'll top the work he's done here on the Season 4 soundtrack ... but talented composer that he is, I have no doubt he'll find a way to dazzle us "BSG" fans (and fans of great music) once again. So say we all.