Alien Nation

This limited-edition release unearths Jerry Goldsmith's rejected score to the 1988 sci-fi buddy movie Alien Nation. Replaced prior to theatrical distribution by a tepid, ill-fitting soundtrack by Curt Sobel, this long-neglected work represents Goldsmith's third and final all-electronic score, and while not among his major works, it certainly merits rediscovery. Goldsmith performs the music himself on synthesizer, clearly relishing the otherworldly sounds and textures at his fingertips. If anything, Alien Nation is at times too severe and foreign for its own good, eschewing musical convention in favor of abstract melodies and dissonant effects. Goldsmith nevertheless conveys the tension and distance between humankind and its alien counterparts with the authority and wit that characterize all of his science fiction efforts. For all of Alien Nation's flaws, it's difficult to fathom why the film's producers scrapped his contributions. ~ Jason Ankeny