The Best Soundtrack On Middle-Earth! (The Lord Of The Rings: The Return Of The King - Soundtrack)

Member Name: hypnoticstate

Product:	The Lord Of The Rings: The Return Of The King - Soundtrack
Date:	28/09/07 (33 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: The score is beautiful and you will be able to listen to it over and over for decades

Disadvantages: If you really want to appreciate this soundtrack then you should listen to the 1st 2 OST's 1st.

This is one hell of a soundtrack, or, more accurately, score. Howard shore composed all of the music to the "Lord of the Rings" trilogy and what a work of art it is! In fact, this amazing music was even the showcase of Howard's world tour of the Lord of the Rings symphony. EVERYONE must have seen LOTR by now and should therefore be familiar with the several music themes that come with it. Right the way from the "Fellowship of the Ring" soundtrack, right through to this one, there are various themes for specific events in the movies. Despite this, the albums are far from repetitive but instead give a feeling of identity and place to each aspect of the music. You know when you are listening to music that might be about dwarfs, about hobbits, about the ring or about evil. Everything seems to blend together while maintaining its own signature. The final track on the soundtrack - "Into The West" - was performed by Annie Lennox and won an Oscar for "Best Original Song".

I personally have quite a large collection of music from a whole variety of genre's. often, i will make playlists in which i will have only rock music or only classical music and so forth. I have never wanted or felt the need to add the LOTR soundtracks to any of these playlists. These soundtracks are in a league of their own. They create the sounds of various places and cultures from the entire world of middle-earth and for this reason, it could never blend with other music. They stand proud on their own and the Return of the King soundtrack is no exception. It is certainly my favourite of the three soundtracks. The same themes are present that were in the FOTR soundtrack though they have grown and changed to become something completely different; something which reflects the development of the characters in this epic story. The tracklist is as follows:

1. A Storm Is Coming
2. Hope And Memory
3. Minas Tirith (Feat. Ben Del Maestro)
4. The White Tree
5. The Steward Of Gondor (Feat. Billy Boyd)
6. Minas Morgul
7. The Ride Of The Rohirrim
8. Twilight And Shadow (Feat. Renee Fleming)
9. Cirith Ungol
10. Anduril
11. Shelob's Lair
12. Ash And Smoke
13. The Fields Of The Pelennor
14. Hope Fails
15. The Black Gate Opens (Feat. Sir James Galway)
16. The End Of All Things (Feat. Renee Fleming)
17. The Return Of The King (Feat. Sir James Galway, Viggo Mortensen & Renee Fleming)
18. The Grey Havens (Feat. Sir James Galway)
19. Into The West (Performed By Annie Lennox)

Summary: An Excellent Score That Will NEVER Get Old.