Kyle Dixon and Michael Stein Detail “Stranger Things” Season 3 Score Check out the new tracks “Starcourt” and “The Ceiling Is Beautiful”
S U R V I V E members Kyle Dixon and Michael Stein have detailed their score for the third season of Netflix’s “Stranger Things.” The album—titled Stranger Things 3—Original Score From the Netflix Original Series—is out digitally on June 28 via Lakeshore/Invada. CD and vinyl editions are forthcoming. Below, hear the new tracks “Starcourt” and “The Ceiling Is Beautiful.”
“With the Season 3 soundtrack, we’ve made an album that doesn’t feel like a ‘score’ necessarily, but one that feels more like a stand-alone record than a collection of brief cues,” Dixon and Stein said in a statement. “We’ve incorporated the main narrative elements of the series and stayed true to the original sound while at the same time expanding on our musical palette—we often pushed it to the limit. We’ve really made an effort to curate this album to showcase the moments we think are really special.”
The third season of “Stranger Things” hits Netflix on July 4. The next day, Legacy Recordings releases the compilation Stranger Things: Soundtrack From the Netflix Original Series, Season 3. It features songs by Patsy Cline, “Weird Al” Yankovic, REO Speedwagon, John Mellencamp, and more. Read “Inside the Spellbinding Sound of ‘Stranger Things’” on the Pitch.
Stranger Things 3—Original Score From the Netflix Original Series: 01 Boys and Girls 02 I Like Presents Too 03 Starcourt 04 Blank Makes You Crazy 05 I Need You to Trust Me 06 You’re a Fighter 07 The Ceiling Is Beautiful 08 The First I Love You 09 Rats 10 What Did You Do to Him? 11 Find the Source 12 The Silver Cat Feeds 13 Heather’s 14 William 15 Destroying the Castle 16 In the Void 17 Tammy 18 Mirkwood 19 Portal Drill 20 Happy Screams 21 Ruins 22 It’s Just Ice 23 The Door Is Opening 24 Planck’s Constant 25 She’s Gone Home 26 Seven Feet 27 The Week Is Long 28 Sauna Test 29 Six Facts 30 The Trees Are Moving 31 On Their Tracks 32 Not Chinese Food 33 Blueprints 34 Land Deeds 35 Not Kids Anymore 36 Code Red 37 Feel Safe 38 He’s Here 39 Scoops Troop 40 We Don’t Understand Each Other 41 Aftermath
Kyle Dixon and Michael Stein Detail “Stranger Things” Season 3 Score Check out the new tracks “Starcourt” and “The Ceiling Is Beautiful”
S U R V I V E members Kyle Dixon and Michael Stein have detailed their score for the third season of Netflix’s “Stranger Things.” The album—titled Stranger Things 3—Original Score From the Netflix Original Series—is out digitally on June 28 via Lakeshore/Invada. CD and vinyl editions are forthcoming. Below, hear the new tracks “Starcourt” and “The Ceiling Is Beautiful.”
“With the Season 3 soundtrack, we’ve made an album that doesn’t feel like a ‘score’ necessarily, but one that feels more like a stand-alone record than a collection of brief cues,” Dixon and Stein said in a statement. “We’ve incorporated the main narrative elements of the series and stayed true to the original sound while at the same time expanding on our musical palette—we often pushed it to the limit. We’ve really made an effort to curate this album to showcase the moments we think are really special.”
The third season of “Stranger Things” hits Netflix on July 4. The next day, Legacy Recordings releases the compilation Stranger Things: Soundtrack From the Netflix Original Series, Season 3. It features songs by Patsy Cline, “Weird Al” Yankovic, REO Speedwagon, John Mellencamp, and more. Read “Inside the Spellbinding Sound of ‘Stranger Things’” on the Pitch.
Stranger Things 3—Original Score From the Netflix Original Series: 01 Boys and Girls 02 I Like Presents Too 03 Starcourt 04 Blank Makes You Crazy 05 I Need You to Trust Me 06 You’re a Fighter 07 The Ceiling Is Beautiful 08 The First I Love You 09 Rats 10 What Did You Do to Him? 11 Find the Source 12 The Silver Cat Feeds 13 Heather’s 14 William 15 Destroying the Castle 16 In the Void 17 Tammy 18 Mirkwood 19 Portal Drill 20 Happy Screams 21 Ruins 22 It’s Just Ice 23 The Door Is Opening 24 Planck’s Constant 25 She’s Gone Home 26 Seven Feet 27 The Week Is Long 28 Sauna Test 29 Six Facts 30 The Trees Are Moving 31 On Their Tracks 32 Not Chinese Food 33 Blueprints 34 Land Deeds 35 Not Kids Anymore 36 Code Red 37 Feel Safe 38 He’s Here 39 Scoops Troop 40 We Don’t Understand Each Other 41 Aftermath
Can't wait for this on cd. Wish Netflix would release on cd the score for The OA.
The entire one-hour long Q&A panel with the Stranger Things composers Kyle Dixon & Michael Stein, moderated by Chandler Paul Poling from the White Bear PR agency, and recorded by me during Film Music Prague Festival 2019.
It definitely feels like an album with a collection of bonus tracks at the end this time. Feels like most of the “abrasive” cues are huddled near the end. Never captures the heights of the first volume of the first season, but there’s OK stuff on here if you like this sound.
We watched episode 305 tonight... I was surprised to hear that a cue from MIDNIGHT RUN wound up in the final mix, about 25 minutes into the episode (when Cooper is at the 7-11 gas station). It's track 3 on the OST, "Stairway Chase."
I didn't see it mentioned in the end credits, but it was definitely in there!
We watched episode 305 tonight... I was surprised to hear that a cue from MIDNIGHT RUN wound up in the final mix, about 25 minutes into the episode (when Cooper is at the 7-11 gas station). It's track 3 on the OST, "Stairway Chase."
I didn't see it mentioned in the end credits, but it was definitely in there!
Midnight run appears again in episode 6. They must love it. 6 also features an odd knock off of koyaanisqatsi that then feels like it morphs into the real thing by the end. I love both those music sources but I like the composers and sound of the show so am not loving these choices. They’re pretty distracting.
We watched episode 305 tonight... I was surprised to hear that a cue from MIDNIGHT RUN wound up in the final mix, about 25 minutes into the episode (when Cooper is at the 7-11 gas station). It's track 3 on the OST, "Stairway Chase."
I didn't see it mentioned in the end credits, but it was definitely in there!
Midnight run appears again in episode 6. They must love it. 6 also features an odd knock off of koyaanisqatsi that then feels like it morphs into the real thing by the end. I love both those music sources but I like the composers and sound of the show so am not loving these choices. They’re pretty distracting.
The piece that sounds like Koyaanisqatsi is actually from Glass's own opera, Satyagraha. I don't disapprove, but it has been strange this season to see them just flat out use pieces of actual '80s film music and classical music as the show's score (in addition to the Midnight Run cues, there's a fairly long sequence set to score music from Back to the Future later in the series). I guess rather than try to get their composers to pay homage to scores they can't pull off on analogue synths, the Duffer Brothers just decided to cut out the middle man?
We watched episode 305 tonight... I was surprised to hear that a cue from MIDNIGHT RUN wound up in the final mix, about 25 minutes into the episode (when Cooper is at the 7-11 gas station). It's track 3 on the OST, "Stairway Chase."
I didn't see it mentioned in the end credits, but it was definitely in there!
Midnight run appears again in episode 6. They must love it. 6 also features an odd knock off of koyaanisqatsi that then feels like it morphs into the real thing by the end. I love both those music sources but I like the composers and sound of the show so am not loving these choices. They’re pretty distracting.
The piece that sounds like Koyaanisqatsi is actually from Glass's own opera, Satyagraha. I don't disapprove, but it has been strange this season to see them just flat out use pieces of actual '80s film music and classical music as the show's score (in addition to the Midnight Run cues, there's a fairly long sequence set to score music from Back to the Future later in the series). I guess rather than try to get their composers to pay homage to scores they can't pull off on analogue synths, the Duffer Brothers just decided to cut out the middle man?
This is where someone with a good sense of both electronic music composition but also traditional orchestral scoring would be better served for the music chores. I think Benjamin Wallfisch would be up to the task (though this is small potatoes compared to the projects he's been landing lately).
I noticed Midnight Run as well. At some point I thought there was another Tangerine Dream track in there too, but can't remember what I thought I'd heard.
There was some good synth music in there, but the album leaves the most interesting stuff off.
The use of pre-existing material makes sense when you look at season 3 as a whole. It’s a major shift away from the darker season 2, and is mostly comprised of Spielberg-esque character banter in situations of peril and action. There’s a definite lighter touch, which actually works in the season’s favour, adding more dramatic impact to scenes where it does get dark and violent.
I can’t imagine either of the first two season finales taking time for an onscreen duet of a Limahl tune.
The use of pre-existing material makes sense when you look at season 3 as a whole. It’s a major shift away from the darker season 2, and is mostly comprised of Spielberg-esque character banter in situations of peril and action. There’s a definite lighter touch, which actually works in the season’s favour, adding more dramatic impact to scenes where it does get dark and violent.
I can’t imagine either of the first two season finales taking time for an onscreen duet of a Limahl tune.
I'm enjoying this season more , also. Three eps in. The direction is stylish and the editing is.more concise. Didn't realize they were using music from other scores !
Love the show! I have two episodes to go and it might very well be the best acted 'hero kids' film/show I've ever seen.
Unfortunately, the score is quite possibly the most disappointing score I've heard in a long, long time. Sure, the synthy 80's vibe fits with the time but this is a show that desperately needed a classic, 80's thematic fully orchestral score with some synth colours.
If you look back at the 80's 'hero kids' movie, the scores are all (except for maybe Flight of the Navigator and The Russkies) thematic, big orchestral scores. E.T., Explorers, The Goonies, The Monster Squad... hell, even Mac and Me got a big score from Alan Silvestri.
And it's not so much the synths that bother me, it's the actual composition. It's not good at all. It's totally forgettable, droning, non-thematic, loop based music which is, for the lack of the better word, boring. I can't believe it took TWO guys to create this.
