Ceiri Torjussen is a 48-year-old composer, born in Cardiff, Wales, he is best known for composing the scores for big Hollywood movies like  I, Robot, Flight of the Phoenix and The Day After Tomorrow, however, he has created a large discography over the last 22 years that takes in documentaries, short films, and TV series as well as feature films both big and small. 

This CD release from Perseverance is super limited to just 100 copies and features a whopping 36 tracks. The album features a real mix of musical styles, after opening with the creepy electronica of Interrogation, the score moves into Emma and Fred, a tender, reflective piece for piano that creates a different albeit still quite melancholy sound. That sense of melancholy sticks around throughout, acting as the pivotal point through which the whole album revolves. Tracks like Bent Out of Shape feature freaky, off-kilter strings that hark back to Ennio Morricone’s wonderful score to the less-than-popular Exorcist II: The Heretic, whilst the whole album flows effortlessly together despite its musical diversity. Hej! Parade stands out as being a strange almost childlike piece that offers up something genuinely different to the piano-led ambient electronica mixed with weird strings vibe that is infused throughout the rest of the album. 

Overall, the music is very effective, I’ve yet to see the movie, but listening to the music on its own one gets the feeling it will only add extra chills and excitement to the proceedings. This lovely new limited-edition CD comes with a booklet that features liner notes by Paul Tonks that help to add some context to why Ole Bornedal has chosen to make this movie now and why he chose Torjussen to score this latest instalment in the Nightwatch franchise. Effectively, this is a well-written, beautifully executed set of musical passages that feel emotionally charged, something that suggests to me that this probably works very well with the visuals of the movie, but as yet, I cannot say for sure. If like me, you are a collector of horror movie soundtracks, this one is well worth adding to your collection, Ceiri Torjussen has created a wonderful score that evokes a series of different emotions but always feels stuck in that dark, melancholy netherworld that most horror movies strive to reach.