Vampires

Music by John Carpenter

 

 

 

 

 

 

In his already distinguished career of creative ups and downs, director John Carpenter made his name as an obstinate craftsman of clichés. But in his case the term "cliché" is as a virtue. He may be the last director that searches the B movie essentials: pure and simple fun.

Carpenter never intended "to become adult" as Spielberg, is an eternal boy fascinated by cinema show, the matinees, double features, heroes and bandits. Vampires (2000) is one of its most entertaining movies for it mix of classic elements of horror and references to westerns. Again the director writed the soundtrack wich featured the remarkable participation of Steve Cropper (guitar) and Donald Dunn (bass), former members of the anthological group Booker T. and the MGs, beyond Carpenter himself on guitar! With its aesthetic of road movie, the music includes blues and hard rock elements sometimes in climatic tracks (as Slayers and Stake and Burn) others in action support (like Motel Sex and Valek Attacks), perfect in his assumed generic cliché. Similarly, Santiago mentions the western soundtracks with its "mariachi feeling" (on guitar). Overall Vampires is a great example of how a soundtrack can be designed with a focus on functionality more than technical exhibitionism.