I’m going to take a bit of a detour for today’s blog post. I normally write about concerts and rock musicians who I love, but I am also a die-hard fan of David Cronenberg’s 1983 sci-fi/horror motion picture masterpiece Videodrome, and today I want to share some huge news for my fellow Videodrome enthusiasts.
La-La Land Records and Universal Pictures will finally release Videodrome: The Complete Restored Score on CD in a limited edition production run of 2,000 units. Mondo will release a vinyl LP version which has already sold out, but the company recently tweeted that there will be another pressing.
This release marks the first time that Howard Shore’s original score from the movie will be available in any format. The original release of the film’s soundtrack was actually a remixed version of selections from the score, but this new release restores the complete score in its original form. Howard Shore has personally overseen the restoration. The restored score has been produced by Shore and Alan Frey, and was mastered by Simon Gibson at Abbey Road Studios.
I have been obsessed with Videodrome since the first time I saw it late at night on HBO sometime in the mid 1980s. I consider it to be Cronenberg’s finest, most relevant work. Long before virtual reality was achievable with today’s technological wonders, Cronenberg captured the awesome wonder and awe of the subject and, in true Cronenberg fashion, explored the horror that could ensue when the lines between the virtual world and the real world begin to blur.
The visuals of the movie — along with masterful performances by James Woods, Deborah Harry, and the rest of the cast — created an indelible, haunting vision that left me fascinated and in deep thought long after the credits rolled, and not just days later, but decades later. As much as Videodrome is a Cronenberg project (both written and directed by Cronenberg), I would argue that it is equally a Howard Shore project. The complete and total vision and impact of Videodrome could not have been fully realized without Howard Shore’s haunting, unsettling, fascinating score. His music paints the perfect aural landscape to match the bizarre visual world that Cronenberg so wonderfully created. In the same way that the Star Wars movies would not be the same without John Williams, Videodrome would not be the same without Howard Shore. I am thrilled that his original score is finally available. For more information, check out the links below.
The Great Song Traveler: Chasing Songs From Town To Town 