I Spit on Your Rave

Following The Martorialist’s post regarding burial soundtrack songs/themes, my choice would be Ennio Morricone’s Dies Irae Psichedelico. While Il Maestro’s more familiar The Ecstasy of Gold would have been a more obvious choice in my younger years, Metallica and JAŸ-Z have rendered it unusable, thanks to their cultural appropriation of it; permanently turning it into a clichéd theme.

I had heard Dies Irae Psichedelico well before seeing Escalation (1968), the film it is featured in. Your host immediately imagined a scene with marching angels, sounding the horns for the Rapture, or a similarly epic biblical event which would be fitting of Morricone’s remarkable theme. Sadly, Escalation is a forgettable Italian sex comedy, and the particular composition appears when giallo star Lino Capolicchio (more of him in a forthcoming film review) attends a London rave full of stoned and tuneless hippies ruining the track by screaming all over it; one of whom experiencing an epileptic fit while on the piano, by the sound of it. Bond girl and Hammer starlet Madeline Smith dancing to Morricone's disrespected masterpiece, in a brief and uncredited part, is a minor perk for what's otherwise a bitter disappointment for your host.

Thankfully, the legendary director Mario Bava managed to feature a hippie party scene that complimented another Morricone fave of mine, in the classic fumetti neri Danger: Diabolik (1968). I'm all over Eureka's forthcoming Masters of Cinema release of the film like gold on John Philip Law, by the way.

For what it's worth (no Buffalo Springfield), Gen X fares no better than annoying hippies when I'm seeing folks like the one below on my local high street blasting '90s techno rubbish upon the general public:

Sax and Violence

Abel Ferrara's revenge thriller Ms .45 (1981), a film that I've been wishing for a re-release since the old Drafthouse Blu-Ray had been long out of print and selling for silly money online, is available again thanks to Arrow Films' gorgeous 4K UHD release. Which made it an instant watch as soon it came through my letter box. Revisiting it again, it did not disappoint; even improved somewhat.

 

Worth mentioning musician and composter Joe Delia's complimentary score played an integral part reflecting the emotional and mental state of Ms .45's mute protagonist Thana (Zoë Tamerlis). The sounds of a saxophone would play prominently during scenes where she was alarmed and distressed.

 

Coincidentally, the Halloween party band we see playing just before a nun-costumed Thana goes on a violent, man-hating killing spree, can be heard playing the film's memorable theme Ms .45 Dance Party. Ironically, it's a trumpet being blown, yet it's the obvious sound of a saxophone being heard.

 

Joe Delia | Ms .45 Dance Party

Ms .45 Original Motion Picture Soundtrack | 1981/2014 

Martin McAvinney · Joe Delia - Ms.45 Dance Party

Intentional goof or not, it's a hilarious scene from what's otherwise a powerful, rape revenge film. On par with the time Dexys Midnight Runners performed Jackie Wilson Said on Top of the Pops where a big, black and white photo of Scottish darts player Jocky Wilson was shown grimacing in the background.

 

Also worth mentioning the iconic saxophone from Ms .45 would end up being sampled on my favourite Roc Marciano song. 

Don't Go in the Hell House

Don't | Short Film

Edgar Wright | 2007

Feeling like a complete philistine not realising Edgar Wright's fake film trailer Don't (2007), as featured in the Quentin Tarantino and Robert Rodriguez's double bill Grindhouse (2007), took inspiration from the opening titles in John Hough's British supernatural chiller The Legend of Hell House (1973) until now.

The Legend of Hell House | Opening Titles

John Hough | 1973

On another revelation related to The Legend of Hell House, I never realised how masterfully atmospheric the electronic score from Delia Derbyshire and Brian Hodgson (both were music composers for the long running BBC sci-fi series Doctor Who) was. Haunting would be an understatement.

Unfortunately there hasn't ever been an official release of the soundtrack, just an extremely limited edition of a bootleg:

Servizio Fanatico: Part 2

Not only wasn't Michael Mohan's Immaculate (2024) the only film to feature a pregnant nun this year, but it also wasn't alone in recycling Bruno Nicolai's score from The Red Queen Kill's Seven Times (1972), either. Netflix's It's What's Inside (2024) is the latest film to reuse three tracks from the classic giallo soundtrack; including the most recognisable of the lot, Servizio Fotografico.

Regarding It's What's Inside, it's essentially Bodies Bodies Bodies (2022) with body swapping. Did I hate it like that insufferable turd? Well, no. It's somewhat bearable, surprisingly. However, it's still plagued with some horrible character writing. Having to endure late twentysomethings talk and behave so idiotically and selfishly, it's a total surprise they even made it into adulthood. Only in the movies, right?

Note to other Hollywood film makers: if you're gonna reuse Bruno Nicolai's The Red Queen Kills Seven Times score, can it be Terzo Delitto, my fave deep cut off the soundtrack? It's the theme that plays when Leonora (Dolores Calò) gets locked in a van after turning snitch during a photoshoot. Witnessing her being whisked away from the hustle and bustle of Würzburg City before her murder in the countryside is a scene that I find comical, but more and more disturbing whenever I rewatch it. Largely because no one in that whole city can hear her cries for help.

The Red Queen Kills Seven Times (Leonora's Death)

Emilio Miraglia, 1972 

Late for Dinner (in America)

John + Jane Q. Public - Watermelon

Dinner in America OST, 2020/2021

 

via · Watermelon - John + Jane Q. Public

"Wake up, cat f@@kers!" Apparently, Dinner in America (2020/2021) has been trending over on TikTok recently.

Watermelon, the grungy pop song featured in the film was what kicked off the film's renewed interest, as it led to people checking the film out, and it's now hitting the cinemas again. 

Dinner in America tragically fell victim to the lockdowns during its initial release, so it's great to see what's arguably one of the best films in recent years finally getting some much deserved recognition.

Franco Pops

Franco Micalizzi - Stridulum Theme

Stridulum AKA The Visitor OST, 1979

Forget what the cinephiles watching it ironically say, Giulio Paradisi's sci-fi horror The Visitor (1979) is dreadful. Despite the A-list cast, it's a train wreck cursed with a nonsensical plot (and not in the Lucio Fulci fever dream kind of way) that takes obvious inspiration from The Omen (1976) and Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977) and still manages to be a perplexing bore. Not even an uncredited Franco Nero as Space Jesus can save it.

Fortunately, it does have one redeeming feature: its soundtrack. Franco Micalizzi blessed the film with a score way better than it deserved. The tracks themselves serve as a great time capsule of Bork jazz funk and traditional orchestral sounds that mimicked American composers in the Seventies.

Pick of the bunch for your host is Stridulum Theme. Sounds like the perfect musical accompaniment to an over-the-hill, pudgy boxer walking towards the ring. More importantly, it's an absolute head nodder. Genuinely surprised it hasn't been sampled that much.

Izzy Wizzy, lets go Micalizzi! Other soundtrack gems from the composer:

Trinity (Main Title) / They Call Me Trinity (1970)

Suspicion (Opening Titles) / The Two Faces of Fear (1972)

Without Fear / You're Unlucky Friend, You Met Sacramento (1972)

Bargain with the Devil / Beyond the Door (1974)

Seq. 14 / Syndicate Sadists (1975)

Manile / Laure (1976)

Seq. 6 / Rome Armed to the Teeth AKA The Tough Ones (1976)

The No-Peace Pursuit / Italy at Gunpoint AKA A Special Cop in Action (1976)

Breathlessness / The Cynic, the Rat and the Fist (1977)

Main Title / Brothers Till We Die (1977)

Running Away from Jerzy / Stridulum AKA The Visitor (1979)

Big Giallo Taxi

Keith Emerson - Mater Tenebrarum

Inferno OST, 1980

Genuinely thought I was hearing Dario Argento's prog band mates, Goblin the first time I watched Inferno (1980); the second film in his Three Mothers trilogy. It turned out to be one third of Emerson, Lake & Palmer - Keith Emerson. Same ball park, innit?

If you heard Goblin's prior soundtracks, particularly Suspiria (1977) and Buio Omega (1979), it's an easy mistake to make, in my opinion. That isn't a slight on Keith Emerson's Inferno score, as they're excellent, but on account of them sounding so remarkably similar. The track Mater Tanebrarum might be the best example with how well Emerson's carries on from Goblin's sound at the time.

Keith Emerson - Taxi Ride Rome

Inferno OST, 1980

Taxi Ride Rome is easily the most insane theme and my personal fave off Inferno's soundtrack. Makes complete sense that it was written by a mad lad who would somersault with a grand piano as part of his routine while playing live in concert.

Incidentally, both Taxi Ride Rome and the Suspiria theme are both featured in phantasmagorically beautiful scenes involving a dreamlike taxi ride.

Cyberfonque

Children and weebs no doubt have their own picks for best animated feature film this year, but your host is still very much smitten with Jérémie Périn's Isaac Asimov inspired Mars Express (2023/24) as it's basically I, Robot (2004) without Will Smith being Will Smith in it. Also, it's probably because it's the only animated French sci-fi I've enjoyed (and most likely seen) since Ulysses 31 (1981-82).

The only real gripe I have with the film is the soundtrack is a little too generically Daft Punk.

Brian Bennett - Solstice

Voyage (A Journey Into Discoid Funk), 1978

Why couldn't Jérémie Périn incorporate some proper futuristic space sounds into his film like anything off Brian Bennett's classic Voyage (A Journey Into Discoid Funk) EP? A timeless recording which has me picturing the human race becoming truly enlightened beings and exploring the farthest reaches of the cosmos as celestial gods. Or some shit like that.

The highlight off Bennett's EP is undoubtedly Solstice which would have been the perfect accompaniment to the epic finale in Périn's film. Solstice also happens to be a tried and tested staple of space funk as it's been sampled for decades on various rap songs. However, in more recent times, last weekend, to be more exact, your host heard it amongst all the Goblin choons, Lucio Fulci OSTs and S-Express in the background to my favourite film and television essayist Crab Apple's penultimate episode in his superb Amicus Films documentary.

It's Coffin Time

Ever since Sergio Corbucci's popular, ultra violent western, Django (1966) graced the silver screen, a plethora of other films would feature the titular hero (eighty-five films, apparently) in one way or another cashing-in on the name. There was only one official sequel, when Franco Nero returned decades later to reprise the role that brought him fame in the Rambo-esque Django Strikes Again (1987).

 

Gianfranco & Gianpiero Reverberi - You'd Better Smile

Preparati La Bara! AKA Django, Prepare a Coffin, OST (1968)

Of all the unofficial sequels, I do have a soft spot for Django, Prepare a Coffin (1968), AKA Viva Django! It's because I always found its lead, Terence Hill, Italy's third most waspy-looking actor (after Al Cliver and Ray Lovelock), versatile at playing both serious and comedic parts while still maintaining a cheeky, badass persona. It's also because it sees the return of the character's trademark Mitrailleuse volley gun kept inside a coffin. Another reason is because I love the vowel chewing main song, You'd Better Smile, equally as much as Louis Bacalov's original theme. 

Anyone who copped the video game Red Dead Revolver (2004) would have heard it there, too; albeit, the instrumental titled Lucas. The game's soundtrack was a veritable goldmine for soundtrack fans like me, as it served as the definitive Spaghetti Western compilation which wasn't chock-full of Ennio Morricone hits, and it had me seeking out a bunch of films because of it. Sadly, its sequels didn't follow suit.

Gianfranco & Gianpiero Reverberi - Nel cimitero di Tucson

Preparati La Bara! AKA Django, Prepare a Coffin, OST (1968)

Even if you've never seen Django, Prepare a Coffin, or heard its soundtrack, you'll probably be familiar with Nel cimitero di Tuscon on account of it being sampled by the group Gnarls Barkley for their hit song Crazy in the mid-noughties. Despite being played ad nauseam ever since, in retrospect, it probably did us a favour as it kept Quentin Tarantino from recycling it anytime soon for one of his films.

It's a Right Royal Cockney Barrel of Monkeys

Guy Richie isn't a director I'm particularly fond of. His success can be attributed to mimicking Quentin Tarantino’s whole style and filling the void left behind from the dying Britpop zeitgeist. I do enjoy a bunch of songs which were new to me from his films, though.

The Castaways' Liar, Liar is a prime example. It’s heard during the poker scene in Richie's mockney, gangster film Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels (1998).

The Castaways - Liar Liar

Liar Liar/Sam single, 1965

The Castaways · Liar Liar

It wasn't until finding a YouTube clip of The Castaways performing the song in the film It's a Bikini World (1967) when I realised the high pitched voice on it was a bloke and not a woman after all these years.

Other songs I've discovered in Guy Richie films:

Wanda Jackson - Funnel of Love (1960)

The Pretty Things - Rosalyn (1964)

Kim Fowley - The Trip (1965)

The Sonics - Have Love, Will Travel (1965)

Nina Simone - Take Care of Business (1965)

David Axelrod - The Mental Traveller (1968)

George Guzman - Banana Freak Out (1968)

Dusty Springfield - Spooky (1970)

Roxy Music - In Every Dream Home a Heartache (1973)

Cymande - Brothers on the Slide (1974)

War - Outlaw (1982) 

E-Z Rollers - Walk This Land (Remix) (1996)

Klint - Diamond (2000)

Electrelane - Atom's Tomb (2005)

Mattiel - Count Your Blessings (2018)

Can't hate on some of Guy Richie's music inclusions, but I can shake my head in dismay at the undeserved success of Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels and Snatch (2000) when they were nothing but inferior Brit flicks compared to Croupier (1998) and Sexy Beast (2000) during that period. Well ow ov aw-da, innit?

Frog Rock

In theory, an early 1970s British horror involving a frog worshipping, undead biker gang wreaking havoc in shopping centres, and Beryl Reid as a witch, ought to be right up my alley. Regardless of its cult following, I've regrettably never been able to appreciate Psychomania (1973), even if it's ironically like most of its fans. The film lacks any real edginess and is a bitter disappointment.

Better known for playing the best versions of Shere Khan and Mr. Freeze, the unmistakably upper class sounding George Sanders would receive top billing, as Psychomania would be his final film appearance since he took his own life. You can almost understand why, if you’ve seen it.

John Cameron - Psychomania Front Title

Psychomania OST, 1973

John Cameron · Psychomania Front Title

 

On a more cheerful tip, I do like John Cameron's main theme from Psychomania's soundtrack. It manages to be both suitably eerie for the film and possesses the distinctive seventies British prog rock, which is seldom replicated convincingly by today's retro sounding millennial bands.

 

Cameron would also contribute to library music label KPM's Afro Rock album the very same year. Standouts include Swamp Fever and Afro Metropolis by the musician, but it's his fellow contributor, Alan Parker, who shines the most with his track Punch Bowl for me. The pair were members of C.S.S, better known as that band covering Led Zeppelin's Whole Lotta Love used as the Top of the Pops theme.

Alan Parker - Punch Bowl

Afro Rock, 1973

 

1000Sereez · "Punch Bowl" (Alan Parker/John Cameron)

(Street) Punk Is Dead

Jimmy Page - A Shadow in the City

Death Wish II (OST), 1982

 

Other than Death Wish II (1982) being your host's favourite film in the series, it also boasts a great soundtrack. All the more impressive is it's produced by Led Zeppelin’s Jimmy Page. Blasphemy to many, but the Death Wish II soundtrack is the only music that's related to Led Zeppelin that I can listen to without Rap making it palatable.

A Shadow in the City is the best track off the soundtrack - and defines an outsider's impression on the sound of Los Angeles via film. Mean and moody from the offset, blessed with nasty synth stings, eerie cries and a bubbling noise that I can only imagine is the pent up anger rising out of Paul Kersey's soul. Simply put: it perfectly compliments Charles Bronson's vigilante prowling the cold, urban streets of Los Angeles as its Angel of Death.

Michel Colombier - John and Betty's Theme

Deep Cover (OST), 1992

Elements of A Shadow in the City are noticeable on Michel Colombier's track John and Betty's Theme off the Deep Cover soundtrack. What I love the most about this instrumental is how it samples Page's recognisable two notes and uses it as the skeleton to a late night, minimalist track for hustlers and love makers.

The connection between the two films isn't just applicable to just these two tracks, however. Both films featured Lawrence Fishburne (previously credited as Larry Fishburne back then).

While not a leading role like his undercover cop in Deep Cover, Fishburne would play Cutter, a member of Nirvana's gang; memorable for his futuristic-looking visors. Cutter would meet his demise in a shootout and idiotically shielding himself with a boombox.

Even further down the rabbit hole, Fishburne's co-star in Deep Cover was Jeff Goldblum, who also played a nasty street punk in the first Death Wish (1974) film.

Does anyone else remember the hoax of Jeff Goldblum's death in 2009? I definitely recall it, but I also remember the bizarre use of a Goldblum scene from Death Wish as part of the news story. Of all the Jeff Goldblum film clips to use, and the one selected is where he's a horrible scumbag. Barely anyone knows he was in it, either. Sadly, I can't find the news report which contained the Goldblum's Death Wish scenes online, after all these years.

Not Quite Morricone

Roberto Pregadio - The Forgotten Pistolero II

The Forgotten Pistolero OST, 1969

 

What really set Ennio Morricone apart from other great soundtrack composers was how he dipped into multiple musical genres without sacrificing quality. A jack of all trades; master of all. Therefore, it was hardly a surprise he was called Il Maestro.

It would often come as a surprise that a film's soundtrack would contain a distinctive style, which would have you thinking it was composed by Morricone. For the longest time Roberto Pregadio's music for The Forgotten Pistolero (1969) had me completely fooled.

Here are a bunch of themes which had me fooled into thinking they were by Il Maestro:

Bendetto Ghiglia - Wanted [Adiós, Gringo] 1965

Bruno Nicolai - Main Title [Django Shoots First] 1966

Michele Lacerenza - Johnny's Theme [Blood at Sundown] 1966

Luis Bacalov - Motorcycle Circus [Summertime Killer] 1967

Bruno Nicolai - Duel [Run, Man! Run!] 1968 

Bruno Nicolai - Indio Black [Adiós, Sabata] 1970

Lalo Schifrin - Quick Draw Kelly [Kelly's Heroes] 1970 

Bruno Nicolai - Sequence 6 [Have a Good Funeral, My Friend... Sartana Will Pay] 1970

Bruno Nicolai - Sequence 1 [Apocalypse Joe] 1971

Bruno Nicolai - Sabba Sequence 2 [All the Colours of the Dark] 1972

Riz Ortolani - Quei Giorni Insieme A Te [Don't Torture a Duckling] 1972

Stelvio Cipriani - Main Theme [What Have They Done to Your Daughters] 1974

Stelvio Cipriani - La polizia ha le mani legate [Killer Cop] 1975

Berto Pisano - Main Theme [Strip Nude for Your Killer] 1975

Pino Donaggio - Main Theme [The Black Cat] 1981

No surprise his old mate and fellow peer, Bruno Nicolai, would feature so heavily.

Switchin things around, how uncanny is it that Morricone's theme for John Carpenter's classic, sci-fi horror The Thing (1982) actually sounds like something Carpenter would have composed for his film? 

Ennio Morricone - The Thing (Theme)

The Thing OST, 1982

Los Angeles Jams

American Gigolo - Openining Titles (Call Me)

Paul Schrader, 1980

Kind of funny that, despite being a band from New York City, Blondie would record a song which is forever associated with the sunny vibe of Los Angeles, thanks to it appearing on the opening titles to Paul Schraeder's thriller American Gigolo (1980). Blondie's official video for Call Me features footage of an overcast N.Y.C. Thus, it doesn't compliment the song as effectively as Richard Gere cruising in his black Mercedes convertible while on his way to satisfy some rich cuckhold's wife.

L.A. home of the body bag... and also a bunch of soundtrack choons which sum up the city that I've never been. Since I already did one of these compiliations for its east cost twin, here's the City of Angels' equivalent:

The Carrie Nations - Find It (1970)

John Carpenter - Assault On Precinct 13 'Main Title' (1976)

Rose Royce - Car Wash (1976)

Vangelis - 'Blade Runner' End Titles (1982)

Jimmy Page - A Shadow in the City (1982) 

Wings Hauser - Neon Slime (1982)

Brad Fiedel - The Terminator 'Main Title' (1984)

Tahnee Cain & The Tryanglz - Burnin' in the Third Degree (1984)

Harold Faltermeyer - Axel F. (1984)

Glenn Frey - The Heat is On (1984)

Ollie & Jerry - Breakin'... There's No Stoppin' Us (1984)

Pino Donaggio - Telescope (1984)

Wang Chung - City of the Angels (1985)

Ice T - Colors (1988)

Tangerine Dream - Truck Scene (1989)

Guns 'N' Roses - You Could Be Mine (1991)

Ice Cube - How to Survive in South Central (1991)

Dr. Dre introducing Snoop Doggy Dogg - Deep Cover (1992)

MC Eiht - Streiht Up Menace (1993)

Dr. Dre - Keep Their Heads Ringin' (1995) 

John Carpenter & Shirley Walker - History of Los Angeles (1996)

Cliff Martinez - Bride of Deluxe (2011)

Rob - Doll (2012)

James Newton Howard - If It Bleeds It Leads (2014)

Jonathan Snipes - Starry Eyes 'End Titles' Film Edit (2014)

Sweet Tempest - Mine (2016) 

A real shame that Josie Cotton's problematic Johnny Are You Queer? predates its soundtrack appearance in Martha Coolidge's teen comedy Valley Girl (1983), as it's my fave choon off the soundtrack.

Nasty Habit

Killer Nun (Trailer)

Giulio Berruti, 1979

Swedish bombshell Anita Ekberg frolicking in the Trevi fountain in Federico Fellini's La Dolce Vita (1960) might be peak cinema to snobbish cinephiles, but she'll be remembered as a drug addicted, dentures-stomping, horny nun in Giulio Berruti's nunsploitation/giallo and one time video nasty, Killer Nun (1979) by film degenerates like myself. At the risk of offending both sides of the kino taste spectrum, I can't say I'm a fan of either of those films. However, one particular track featured on Killer Nun by composer Alessandro Alessandroni has been a fave of mine for many years; which at least makes it somewhat redeemable.

Alessandro Alessandroni - Suor Omicidi, Seq. 4

 Killer Nun/The Strangler of Vienna/Lady Frankenstein compilation, 1999

 

Something about Suor Omicidi, Seq. 4's jangly acoustic guitar strumming away while the sounds of an ominous choral build in the background, concluding with a manic church organ, really does it for me. Little wonder it’s amongst my favourite giallo tracks of all time.

Killer Nun's soundtrack didn't get a vinyl release until twenty years later. The tracks finally appeared in an Alessandroni compilation containing two other scores of his: Lady Frankenstein (1971) and The Strangler of Vienna (1971). The latter, I have yet to see.

Lady Frankenstein (Trailer)

Mel Welles & Aureliano Luppi, 1971

 

From Orson Welles to Mel Welles; you know Joseph Cotten's career hit an even greater decline than Anita Ekberg's when he went from Citizen Kane (1941), Shadow of a Doubt (1943) and The Third Man (1949) to Italian horror Lady Frankenstein; a far cry from his classic earlier body of work. Far more entertaining than Killer Nun and La Dolce Vita, though.

Sgt. Howie Didn't Bagpuss

The Wicker Man (Sacrifice Scene)

Robin Hardy, 1973

 

That recent trailer for the upcoming documentary on Christopher Lee is a seasonal reminder on the existence of Robin Hardy's cult classic, folk horror The Wicker Man (1973). Unlike Brian De Palma's The Phantom of the Paradise (1974) or the ridiculously overrated The Rocky Horror Picture Show (1975), The Wicker Man is the only horror musical I can watch without being annoyed by the singing.

As a child of the seventies, there's a good reason that might explain why The Wicker Man succeeds where those films fail, and the answer comes from the kids' television series Bagpuss (1974). I'm betting Oliver Postgate, the creator of Bagpuss, had just finished watching The Wicker Man at his local cinema (we didn't have multiplexes back then) and liked the folksy and creepy music so much, he implemented it in his show. Mind blown that the song the mice sing whenever their beavering away repairing or cleaning the latest item that finds its way into Emily's shop of lost items, originates from the centuries old Sumer Is Icumen In, the chilling song at the end of The Wicker Man.

John Fulkner & Sandra Kerr - Mouse Round (Mending Song)

Bagpuss: The Songs and Music Album, 1999

How tragic that Edward Edward's Sergeant Howie, the God fearing, virgin copper and protagonist in The Wicker Man, had succumbed to temptation and wet his police whistle with a completely gagging for it Britt Ekland writhing outside his bedroom door, might have left Summerisle alive? He wouldn't have been a virgin, hence, the ruse to sacrifice a foolish virgin wouldn't have taken place. An important lesson learned right there.

Servizio Fanatico

Sydney Sweeney may very well be the hottest name in Hollywood right now, but Michael Mohan, director of Immaculate (2024), appeared in the recent Severin cellar video and talked a good one about various other films; hence he's the real reason I gave this nun themed horror a look in.

Don't have the time to delve into the film with a full review, other than to say I liked it, despite the tediously excessive jump scares and a plot that needed a little more refining. Nowhere near as great as Benedetta (2021), but way better than the horrid The Nun II (2023), which was amongst the worst films I watched last year.

As a fan of giallo cinema and Italian horror, it warmed the cockles of my heart hearing Bruno Nicolai's Servizio Fotografico, originally taken from The Red Queen Kills Seven Times (1972) soundtrack, in a montage scene from Immaculate where it fitted incredibly well. A film nerd moment which isn't cringeworthy doesn't happen too often, so it earned some props from me. It's also a nice change hearing it in an Italian style horror again after Arctic Monkeys horribly hijacked it.

Bruno Nicolai - Servizio Fotografico

The Red Queen Kills Seven Times OST (1972)

 

Taking All That Jazz

David Shire - The Taking of Pelham One Two Three (Main Theme)

The Taking of Pelham One Two Three OST, 1974)

Bbytes · David Shire - The Taking Of Pelham 123 Theme

Theoretically, David Shire's bombastic score for Joseph Sargent's classic heist thriller The Taking of Pelham One Two Three (1974) possesses a bunch of weird elements that would never click for me on their own: the roucous big brass band soundling like the New York Philhamornic Orchestra was dumped in a rough part of the city; the dizzying and off key electronic keyboard evoking some form of distress; and of course those ominous drums being perfectly suited for a grand entrance theme for any boxer walking to the ring. Yet all these bizarre elements work fantastically well as the soundscape to the dirty urban decay and ugliness of its denizens living in the Rotten Apple. Perfection.

Other Great Tunes Produced for NYC Set Movies:

Isaac Hayes - Theme from Shaft (1971)

Curtis Mayfield - Freddie's Dead (1972)

Bobby Womack - Across 110th Street (1972)

James Brown - Down and Out in New York City (1973)

Bernard Herrmann - Theme from Taxi Driver (1976)

Barry De Vorzon - Theme from The Warriors (1979)

Joe Delia & Artie Kaplan - Ms .45 Dance Party (1981)

John Carpenter & Alan Howarth - The Duke Arrives/Barricade (1981)

Roberto Donati - NYC Main Title (1981)

Francesco De Masi - New York One More Day (1982)

Jay Chattaway - Vigilante Main Theme (1983)

Grandmaster Caz - South Bronx Subway Rap (1983)

Public Enemy - Fight the Power (1989)

Eric B. & Rakim - Juice (Know the Ledge) (1991)

Crooklyn Dodgers - Crooklyn (1994)

Pisces of the Puzzle

Andre Nickatina - I'm a Pisces

Cocaine Raps album, 1997

Andre Nickatina · I'm A Pisces

Managed to finally solve the final piece recently in a doubly perplexing puzzle which consisted of two samples used on Andre Nickatina's rap song, I'm a Pisces.

Identifying their origins became something of an obsession ever since I first heard the song on an ancient rap forum. Had a hunch they were both sourced from films, but I was never 100% sure, however. Turns out I was right after all these years:

Bernard Herrmann - Cobra Dance

The 7th Voyage of Sinbad OST, 1958

 

Chanced upon randomly watching The 7th Voyage of Sinbad (1958) on TV many years ago and hearing Bernard Herrmann's Cobra Dance was a eureka moment. The music in question occurs during the scene where the villainous sorceror, Sokurah, melds a handmaiden in a giant clay vase with a cobra, like a progenator to the Brundlefly. With the aid of Ray Harryhausen's ace stop-motion mastery, the snake woman dances before the sultan's royal court. Knew this wasn't some obscure song from a far off continent, but taken from a vintage Hollywood film. Took some years to finally realise it, though.

Death Journey (Trailer)

Fred Williamson, 1976

 

Would have loved it if the vocal sample from the start of the song was a similar discovery to the one above, but this was a lot more straight forward - Googling! Yes, it took decades until your host realised he could do a simple Google search. Lo and behold it turned out to be from a Fred Williamson film called Death Journey (1976). The dialogue in question appears at 58 minutes and 21 seconds into the film, but you can hear a part of it in the trailer, too. Thus, the final piece in the puzzle which has antagonised the little grey cells for so long has finally been laid to rest.

Nobody Beats the Riz

Having heard Riz Ortolani's theme from the very downbeat The Hunting Party (1971) for the first time recently, makes this a good opportunity to list some other joints I dig from the composer. Despite scoring soundtracks for some notorious films from the world of cinema, his music has often been a universal positive to soundtrack heads like myself.

I Giorni Dell'ira / Day of Anger (1967)

Miami / Goodbye Uncle Tom (1971)

Il Ricordo di Serena / Confessions of a Police Captain (1971)

Web of the Spider / Web of the Spider (1971)

Seven Bloodstained Orchids / Seven Bloodstained Orchids (1972)

Cyclone / Cyclone (1978)

Il Corpo di Linda / The Pyjama Girl Case (1977)*

Adulteress Punishment / Cannibal Holocaust (1980)

Roma Imperial Rock / Warriors of the Year 2072 (1984)

Riz Ortolani - Do It To Me

House on the Edge of the Park OST, 1980

Ryōji Kaji · Riz Ortolani - Do It To Me

Fave Ortolani cut will always be Do It To Me off  Ruggero Deodato's thoroughly mean-spirited nasty House on the Edge of the Park (1980), which was hilariously titled wrong in the film and its trailer. It's been a disco themed earworm that could have played at Fontaine Khaled's swanky London club back in the day. The song being associated with the most amusing scene from House on the Edge of the Park, before things go very sour for its uppity class party hosts, is probably another reason, too.

* Other than Il Corpo di Linda, the soundtrack to The Pyjama Girl Case is ruined by French singer Amada Lear sounding like a heavily sedated Marlene Dietrich struggling to remain conscious and in tune. If only the much preferred trailer music was included instead as it knocks, before Lear’s awful song plays near the end. No idea if Ortolani was responsible for it, though.