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“In the end, GEOFF
ZANELLI's DISTURBIA is
a disturbing listen—in
more bad ways than
good.”
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Not Exactly Mr.
Rogers’ Neighborhood
Review by Cap Stewart
Imagine you lived in a
quaint-looking
suburban community.
The neighbor to your
left was a voyeur and
the neighbor to your
right was a serial
killer. Both people
would be considered
creepy, albeit in
different ways. The
nosey neighbor would
be a nuisance, whereas
the bloodthirsty
neighbor would be,
well, more of a mortal
threat. The music to
DISTURBIA, composed by
GEOFF ZANELLI, is sort
of like a combination
of those two
neighbors. At times
it’s annoying (which
is obviously a bad
thing) and at times it
oozes homicidal menace
(which, in this case,
is a good thing).
DISTURBIA tells the
story of a teenage
voyeur who is
convinced that one of
his neighbors is a
murderer. The basics
of the plot are taken
from, or at least
inspired by, Alfred
Hitchcock’s 1954 film,
REAR WINDOW, which
starred James Stewart
and Grace Kelly.
Although considered by
many to be Hitchcock’s
finest effort, REAR
WINDOW is one of my
least favorite from
the esteemed auteur.
When I discovered
Hollywood was offering
a modern retelling of
the story, I wasn’t
thrilled in the least.
You couldn’t—and still
can’t—pay me to see
DISTURBIA. (I would
say, “You couldn’t pay
me to listen to the
film score either,”
but that’s not quite
true. I mean, here I
am writing a review
with a free CD
spinning in my
computer.)
Composer GEOFF ZANELLI
joined Hans Zimmer’s
studio, Media Ventures
(now known as Remote
Control Productions)
in 1994. Not too many
of Zimmer protégés
have managed to
maneuver themselves
out from under the
famous—some might even
say
“infamous”—composer’s
shadow. Case in point,
Zanelli’s list of solo
projects is relatively
small; he is more
often credited as
writing “additional
music.” He certainly
isn’t without skill or
critical acclaim (his
score for the
television miniseries
INTO THE WEST received
an Emmy), but
DISTURBIA isn’t
exactly a stellar
example of creativity.
The “Remote Control
Sound” is definitely
there: at times, the
synth programming is
reminiscent of SPEED,
and a short portion of
track 2 sounds like it
could have been lifted
from THE MAN IN THE
IRON MASK.
The film’s primary
motif, appropriately
laced with
sinisterness, opens
the album and sets the
listener in the proper
mood. Unfortunately,
he doesn’t stay there
long. Beginning with
“Fishing” (track 2),
Zanelli introduces
some material designed
to portray the more
lighthearted side of
suburban life. It’s
not bad music, per se,
but it doesn’t meld
well with the overall
tone of the storyline.
Adding to this problem
is the utilization of
a pop/rock sound
during other moments
on the album. It’s
almost as if Zanelli
is trying to combine
the tone of THE ’BURBS
with FRIDAY THE
13th—but it just
doesn’t work. If he
had focused more
attention on
developing the
sinister side of the
score, it might have
provided for a more
effective listening
experience.
Aside from the few
functional motifs that
crop up here and
there, not much else
is worth mentioning.
The listener will
encounter several
sudden bursts of
orchestral noise,
hinting at the horror/slasher
elements of the movie.
The final track, “The
Basement Graveyard,”
offers a poor climax
to the album, ending
with a whimper and
leaving the listener
wondering, “Is that
it?” In the end, GEOFF
ZANELLI's DISTURBIA is
a disturbing listen—in
more bad ways than
good.
Rating: 4/10
|
Track |
Track Title |
Track Time |
Rating |
|
1 |
Disturbia |
7:02 |
*** |
|
2 |
Fishing |
3:52 |
** |
|
3 |
Poofoot |
1:15 |
** |
|
4 |
Voyeurism |
2:35 |
* |
|
5 |
Every
Killer
Lives
Next
Door
to
Someone |
3:35 |
*** |
| 6 |
I Like to Play |
1:46 |
* |
| 7 |
Stealth Ronnie |
5:10 |
** |
| 8 |
Walking Ashley Home |
2:01 |
* |
| 9 |
The Club Girl |
2:47 |
** |
| 10 |
Stalking a Killer |
7:15 |
*** |
| 11 |
The Basement Graveyard |
8:50 |
* |
| |
Total Running Time (approx) |
46 minutes |
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