"Dreams don't turn to dust," -Adam Young
James Cameron's Titanic is my guilty pleasure movie.
So naturally, I was thrilled to find out that Adam's next composer album was The RMS Titanic. Given the scale and the epicness of Apollo 11, I wondered, doubted, if that would translate into the deeply emotional and traumatic tale of the Titanic.
And, of course, Adam did.
At first, I was stunned by the entirely different composition, and feel of the album. But, like many things, it grew on me, and still, each time I listen, I find something new buried in the folds of Adam's music.
Like last time, The RMS Titanic is a twelve-track album, with cover art by the wonderful James R. Eads.
Listen to The RMS Titanic here.
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| Artwork by James R. Eads |
1. Southhampton
Mysterious and magical, this album starts off with strings and woodwinds to portray the premonition of the town where it all began.
2. Boarding
A much more exciting track with intense strings and a deep percussion score, this is the track where you can nearly see the lines of 1910's people in crisp suits and flowered hats waiting to board the beauty.
3. Captain Edward Smith
Hauntingly regretful, the song dedicated to Captain Edward Smith comes in with a legato piano melody and interlude of horns, truly showing this man's hard decisions and impending death.
4. Maiden Voyage
A vast and epic score with dark undertones, this shows the maritime journey of the Titanic over choppy seas with full-bodied strings and a hauntingly playful flute.
5. Lookout Duty
This track, complete with deep cellos and a gripping bass guitar line, makes us feel the vastness and loneliness of looking out over the open sea . . .until they come upon the iceberg.
6. The Iceberg
Ringing with suspense, horns, and a lonely piano, this song hits the listener with the flutter of panic of seeing that massive piece of ice in the water drawing nearer and nearer and nearer . . . and finally, the stun of when it strikes.
7. Distress Call
Complete with whining strings, this track shows the panic and then hopelessness that gripped every member of the Titanic on that lonely night, not only telling the story but making us feel it.
8. Sinking
A disturbingly epic and intense piece, that sweeps you off your feet with a complete and full orchestra as you feel the flutter panic as the ship is dragged under.
9. Lifeboats
A hauntingly beautiful piece, pulling the listener in with tones of loneliness and trauma, and ending it out with the hymn of Nearer My God To Thee in a brave ballad of survival.
10. Every Man For Himself
A short, jarring piece with deep horns and intense strings that completely captures the mounting panic of Every Man For Himself.
11. Silence
Evocative and solitary, this track throws you into the depths of the thick silence of that fateful night with a tuneful flute line, leaving even the listener touched with the grinding sounds of the ship's metal creaking down into the icy water.
12. Survivors
Heavy and complete, this track brings back the melody from Maiden Voyage in a reflective, regretful piece showing their perseverance and how the survivors moved on.
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Phew, boy, Adam. You've done it again. I am absolutely in love with this project Adam has going here. It is not only a creative outlet for him, but from the overflow of his creativity, other artists are allowed to burst forth. And the stream of creativity goes on.
Some of my general comments include: I love the similar melodic themes that run through it. One of my only critiques of the last score was that it didn't always feel like a cohesive piece, that the song transitions were a little rough since this is meant to be listened to all at once. However, this is seemingly a nonissue anymore, since most of the same instruments were used and the same progressions of melodies and harmonies could be found in the music, like a runaway leaving clues for us to find on a chase.
Not only does The RMS Titanic reflect perfectly the emotions of the general public but also each indiviual, but it reflects the times as well. The RMS Titanic sunk on April 15th, 1912, and the deep horns and the flutes reflected the swinging teens of the beginning of the twentieth century. This added something much more to the music that was unable to be found in the last album. You could not only feel the culture within the music, but a new story that needed to be told.
Truly, there's not enough words I can say about the beauty of Adam Young's music. You just have to go and listen to it for yourself.
~The WordShaker
