Send Help, Queens of the Dead and more

A couple of mini review batches ahead, that combine late 2025 discoveries with new 2026 releases. This one includes major titles like Danny Elfman’s Send Help and The Weeknd’s vanity project Hurry Up Tomorrow, as well as a few obscurities.

Hurry Up, Tomorrow (Daniel Lopatin & The Weeknd, 2025)

Labeled by some as a sheer vanity project for superstar The Weeknd aka Abel Tesfaye, this whole feature film by It Comes at Night director Trey Edward Shults  – featuring a lovesick Tesfaye in the lead role – works as a tie-in to the 2025 studio album by the same name. A slick visual style does not hide the emptiness of the woes on display, but the artist, along with his frequent collaborator Daniel Lopatin, does his best to cover the proceedings in weighty, doom-laden chords and ambient sound design. Some lovely, spiritual organ bits in the beginning and end spruce things up a bit, but this is nowhere near Lopatin’s masterful score for Marty Supreme (reviewed here) – the best of last year. Favourite tracks: «Anima Pt. 1», «Anima Pt. 2», «Tomorrow’s Coming»

Amsterdam Empire (Palmbomen II, 2025)

Dutch crime series starring Famke Janssen, about a former pop star who digs around in her mogul husband’s secrets. The infectious synth score by Dutch electronica artist Palmbomen II (real name Kai Hugo) treads the waters of 90s EDM movements elegantly, from Eurohouse to ambient techno to reggae-infused backbeats and beyond – occasionally with lyrics. He occassionally lets up for more textural, cinematic sweeps. The organic mix of these two elements sustain both variety and entertainment value throughout the album’s  43-minute running time. Somewhat of an overlooked gem, this. Favourite tracks: «Forever Pour Toujours», «Betty is Back», «Blij Dat Je D’r Bent»

Revival (Lydia Ainsworth & Alex Cuervo, 2025)

This US series, produced for the SyFy TV network, is yet another variation of the premise found in earlier shows like Les Revenants, The Leftovers and Katla – a small community haunted by the sudden non-zombie reappearance of their recently deceased. It is not so surprising, then, that the score by Lydia Ainsworth and Alex Cuervo nods respectfully to the post-minimalist romanticism of Max Richter (which so beautifully defined The Leftovers), in its static, slowly evolving bleakness – complete with soulful vocalizations. The album is on the long side at 68 minutes, with some suspense- or horror-centric cues that are heavy on the ears, but when sliced down properly, it’s a hypnotic electro-acoustic landscape that opens up. Favourite tracks: «Theme from ‘Revival’», «An Adventure Together», «Blackdeer»

Kusunoki no bannin [The Camphorwood Custodian] (Yûgo Kanno, 2026)

48-year-old Yûgo Kanno continues to be one of the most interesting Japanese composers of his generation, which he proves yet again for this anime film by director and storyboard artist Tomohiko Itô, about a disgruntled worker who is sentenced to become a tree custodian at the Tsukigô shrine. It’s an eclectic score. The basis is formed by gorgeous, orchestral, shimmering, warm textures – with an absolutely heartbreaking theme at its centre that goes through several permutations. But then it periodically breaks out into other modes – little bursts of funk, a little bit of  synthpop, some stunt poetry(!). That, combined with many super short tracks, makes it more disjointed than were it a straight symphonic poem, but not enough to rob this score of its undisputed core qualities.  Favourite tracks: «Camphor Tree Theme – Prayer», «Melody of Entrusted Thoughts», «Melody of Memories»

Queens of the Dead (Blitz//Berlin, 2026)

The feature film debut of Tina Romero is really a tribute to her late father George A. Romero – a zombie film about a group of drag queens and club kids that fight the undead during a warehouse party. The zithering electronic score is by Canadian trio Blitz//Berlin, who have made a mark for themselves in trailer music and horror media (of special note is the 2016 film The Void). It’s part contemporary, part retro as uneasy (almost queasy) horror modulations co-exist with funkier and more playfyl synthwave grooves – perhaps with a dash of disco. Most definitely an amusing soundtrack that also nods to fellow schlockmeisters Argento/Goblin, and with plenty of potential for cult appraisal. Favourite tracks: «D.E.A.D.»,  «The Ones We Lost», «Pretty Extra»

Send Help (Danny Elfman, 2026)

There are always expectations tied to the Sam Raimi/Danny Elfman collaboration (almost as much as the Burton/Elfman), although A Simple Plan (1998) with its Thomas Newmanesque vibes was the last time it really wowed me. For this film, a crossbreed of Lord of the Flies, War of the Roses and Cast Away, Raimi has a lot of fun – even referring back to his burlesque self in certain scenes. Elfman is also inspired – in part – with a haunting vocalise for the Rachel McAdams character and some exotic percussive features. Some of the “sturm und drang” suspense cues in the style of The Frighteners are rather meandering, to be honest, but the variations of the central theme keep it moderately interesting. I wouldn’t necessarily call it a throwback Elfman score, like many have, but it certainly nods to it here and there. Favourite tracks: «Linda at Home», «The Waterfall», «End Credits»

Al Batal (Suad Bushnaq, 2025)

This is one of those obscure discoveries you occasionally stumble into while perusing new soundtracks. It’s a Syrian TV series, no less, about a local hero who gets unwillingly entangled into mobster activities. The music is by the Jordanian-Canadian composer Suad Bushnaq, whose greatest claim to fame is the 2024 series The Secret World of Sound With David Attenborough. For this film, she creates a superbly melancholic work, coloured by the region’s sounds and styles. There are oboe- and zither-like instruments, for example, or a bold brass line that moves graciously above a largely sampled chamber ensemble. Perhaps a bit samey over the course of 53 minutes, but the spacey, harmonic layers are to die for. Favourite tracks: «Main Titles», «The Irony of Destiny»