Tron: Ares, Highest 2 Lowest and more

Major new titles Tron: Ares and Highest 2 Lowest are covered in this entry, as well as a selection  of under-the-radar gems from the August and September release rosters – including, for the first time, a couple of short film scores, plus some fine archival releases.

Highest 2 Lowest (Howard Drossin, 2025)

For the latest Spike Lee “joint” – a remake of Akira Kurosawa’s 1963 film High and Low, about a music mogul caught up in a ransom plot – Lee’s usual composer Terence Blanchard gets a pass while Blanchard’s frequent orchestrator Howard Drossin gets his first major solo gig for the director. The score has elements of the sweltering, urban thriller sound that James Newton Howard perfected in the 90s (like The Fugitive), ripe with jazz modulations underneath the orchestral landscape, and a touch of romantic swell. Drossin beautifully channels the stylings of his mentor Blanchard, heavy on piano and strings. The humourous rendition of «Oh, What a Beautiful Morning» can be edited out for better flow. Favourite tracks: «Coach Foxy», «Loving Partners (Orchestra)», «We Got This (Stony Gate 2)»

Le Routard (Ludovic Bource, 2025)

This French comedy recounts the tale of a guy who’s never travelled in his life, but is inexplicably hired by the guidebook company Routard to report back from Marrakesh, Morocco. Ludovic Bource, who made his mark with the Oscar-winning (and slightly overrated) silent film score for The Artist (2011), provides a highly entertaining, upbeat and melodic score, spruced up by loads of North African instrumentation. Occasionally tip-toeing into pop fusions (somewhat surprising, given the classical orchestral stylings that originally put him on the map), Bource displays impressive versatility as he captures the proceedings with adventurous, almost James Bond-ian glee. Favourite tracks: «Le Routard Theme», «1978 Le Dog», «Seules ces Montagnes sont Eternelles»

Hollywood Grit (Nick Gomez, 2025)

Yes, there are still old-school jazz scores being produced! For this crime thriller about a man who goes searching for his missing daughter in seedy LA environs, composer Nick Gomez (previously unknown to me) provides an elegant, moody score that ticks off all the film noir boxes – including prevalent use of saxophone solos. Sneaky, sensual and deliciously dark, the lofty sax is often counterpointed by darker textures for piano and strings. Some contemporary thriller tracks (heavy on electronic pads) break up the classy pastiche somewhat, but overall this is an engrossing soundscape for rainy autumn nights. Impressive. Favourite tracks:  «Hollywood Grit (Theme)», «Vivian’s Stake Out», «Harper is Hurt»

Ireland (Brian Byrne, 2025)

It’s been quite a while since Irish composer Brian Byrne impressed me mightily with his lush Queen of Carthage (2013), but now he returns with another corker, a 40-minute documentary journey through his homeland with author Manchán Magan and a group of musicians (and narrated by Liam Neeson, no less!). Steeped deeply in Irish folk music, it’s (mostly) a romantic landscape bathed in uilleann pipes, strings  and female voices – not that far removed from James Horner’s iconic Braveheart (famously, Horner used uilleann pipes instead of Scottish bagpipes for better colour, despite geographical misplacement). I could perhaps be without yet another version of «Danny Boy», but overall a refreshingly old-school effort by Byrne. Favourite tracks: «Ireland – Opening Titles», «The Cliffs of Moher»

Tron: Ares (Nine Inch Nails, 2025)

Joachim Rønning’s third film in the Tron series is a sensory feast where story sometimes takes a backseat, but allows great canvasses for music. Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross, now operating under their band name Nine Inch Nails (for the first time in films, I think), responds by crafting a score that is partially their own industrial electro rock from yesteryear, partially an ode to Daft Punk’s score for Tron: Legacy (Wendy Carlos’ original also gets a brief nod via the Moog in «Building Better Worlds»). The score is at its best when it makes these references, or settles into funky darkwave grooves, perhaps less so when there are vocals or those grimey, gritty, fussy oscillations that defined their earlier work. Not as clean-cut and infectious as their marvelous Challengers from last year, but definitely an engaging work overall – especially when whittled down a bit. Favourite tracks: «This Changes Everything», «Infiltrator», «Building Better Worlds»

Le Secret de Martha (Romain Paillot, 2025)

This 38-minute French short film tells the story of a female writer who wants to uncover a secret about a German soldier during the second world war. Romain Paillot, a relative unknown to me, manages to compose a beautiful little tone poem over the course of the album’s 20 minutes. Traditionally symphonic in style (a considerable orchestra size for a short film too!), it holds little back in its use of broad, romantic themes, carried by pronounced brass and strings. A type of musical aching and longing you don’t hear very often anymore. Great, little hidden gem. Favourite tracks: «Le Secret de Martha (Main Theme)», «A Forbidden Love»

Foolish Heart (Zbigniew Preisner, [1998] 2025)

Caldera Records continues to champion the work of the greatest living European film composer, Zbigniew Preisner, this time with the premiere release of Foolish Heart, Héctor Babenco’s 1998 drama about the dreams and desires of a young, budding photographer. Nicknamed “Fourth Film Music Symphony” on the album, the score is beautifully structured and curated across its 42 minutes, as if it indeed were a symphony. It’s all essential Preisner –haunting flutes, pizzicato strings, plenty of triangles, slow, moody modulations and lots of delicious reverb. But the real star is the saxophone, oozing ethereal elegance (at times reminiscent of Eleni Karaindrou’s gorgeous The Beekeeper, featuring Jan Garbarek). Favourite tracks: «Part II Anna and Juan», «Part VIII Twenty Years Later»

Questa specie d’amore (Ennio Morricone, [1972] 2025)

Nobody could write lyrical love themes as well as Ennio Morricone, and this has one of his finest. Despite starring the legendary Jean Seberg, Alberto Bevilacqua’s 1972 film is a forgotten drama about love, politics and social class. However, its legacy lives on through the music, just as Morricone’s score for Bevilacqua’s earlier La Califfa (1970), one of the composer’s best works. On display here is his melancholic style, some baroque variations, his wonderful gift for woodwind writing (in this case the oboe) and the many intriguing permutations of the bucolic main theme. The soundtrack has been released many times over the years; Quartet presents a brand new reissue of the most recent and most comprehensive release from 2007. Favourite tracks: «Federico e la sua solitudine», «Roma Baldracca», «Al popolo di Parma»