March 14, 2022
Three new limited CD Zombie Horror Soundtracks are Available at Quartet Records
Spain’s Quartet Records, in collaboration with Cinevox Records, reissues classic Stelvio Cipriani score for Umberto Lenzi’s 1980 cult horror plague film INCUBO SULLA CITTA’ CONTAMINATA (aka NIGHTMARE CITY, aka LA INVASIÓN DE LOS ZOMBIES ATÓMICOS). Stelvio Cipriani’s iconic score for INCUBO SULLA CITTA’ CONTAMINATA is largely electronic with a few live instruments providing a bit of light-hearted counterpoint to carnage. The music features heart-pumping action cues for the attacks themselves and a restrained solitude theme for the moments of reflection on the anti-nuclear message; even a selection of catchy pop tracks pop up in the mix. These fun bits serve as the perfect counterpoint to the film’s most notorious sequence, a zombie hoard’s attack on a televised aerobics class. This CD features the same musical contents as the out-of-print complete score released by Digitmovies in 2013 and produced by Claudio Fuiano, but for this Quartet edition the audio has been newly remastered by Chris Malone from the original session tapes.
The label also presents the premiere release of the soundtrack to Bruno Mattei’s 1980 iconic zombie film VIRUS (aka VIRUS, L’INFERNO DEI MORTI VIVENTI, aka APOCALIPSIS CANÍBAL, aka HELL OF THE LIVING DEAD), which compiles together both library music and an original score composed by Gianni Dell’Orso. The original budget didn’t allow for Mattei’s wish of having an original score by Goblin, so a deal was worked out to feature some of the band’s tracks from ZOMBI (1978) and CONTAMINATION (1980). Luis Bacalov’s rhythmic theme for Fernando Di Leo’ DIAMANTI SPORCHI DI SANGUE (1978) was also raided for the main title. However, the film does feature an original cool score by Gianni Dell’Orso providing percussion-based tribal music. This CD, produced by Claudio Fuiano and mastered by Chris Malone, compiles Dell’Orso’s original tracks together with the Goblin and Bacalov tracks that were featured in the movie.
The third zombie soundtrack is a reissue of fan-favorite experimental Giuliano Sorgini score for Jordi Grau’s masterpiece THE LIVING DEAD AT THE MANCHESTER MORGUE (aka LET SLEEPING CORPSES LIE, aka NO PROFANAR EL SUEÑO DE LOS MUERTOS, aka NON SI DEVE PROFANARE IL SOGNO DEI MORTI). In a technological innovation, composer Sorgini was given the budget to record his score on four-track tape, a historical first for Italian horrors. The core idea for the score is giving sound to the titular dead – the screams, howls, laughs, cries and whispers. Recalling the works of Italian avant-garde composer Luciano Berio, the inclusion of human voices (including Grau’s own voice in the mix) reminds audiences of the humanity of these now disfigured characters.
Each CD features new liner notes by Gergely Hubai discussing the film and the score. For more details, see www.quartetrecords.com
