Arcade

Hans Zimmer has graced my blog twice before, this time though he does so with something so deliciously fiendish that I HAD to post it. It's from his score for Man of Steel and it's entitled Arcade. If you have seen the TV spot for the movie, the one where General Zod states we are not alone, then you've heard this track, just not all of it in its full dark glory.

There are two movements to Arcade, the first is epic and majestic. It's sweeping and massive in scope. It starts off slow and simple, just hinting at the darkness to come. The strings fade in and give the piece its tempo and pace, they are unrelenting. Hans worked with Junkie XL on this piece and if you know his music, you can clearly hear his influence. As the strings swell, the brass comes in and they push this track along, building the drama and the track really starts to cook and then it just stops.

That's where the second movement comes in. It's truly dark and malevolent. The drums are massive and the instrumentation hints at "something wicked this way comes". The second movement doesn't last as long as I would like but it's fade out conjures images in my head of an army marching off into the distance after it has vanquished the enemy.

Hans continues to surprise me, and while he is no John Williams, the score for Man of Steel is amazingly powerful and impressive (of course I got the score the moment it was available). There so many moments in the score that will either make you say "wow" of stun you into speechlessness. I know, because Arcade did that to me. Enjoy!