M. Son of the Century (Soundtrack by Tom Rowlands)

[Born In Planet Dust]

The series is still completely unavailable where I live

Same as far as more um traditional ways go...

[ThePumisher]

Look whose doorbell rang 5 minutes ago...

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[Stefan]

Have fun, it is such an excellent record!
I really wish there were a CD edition

[inchemwetrust]

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[Wolkenkrabber]

I know MUBI has a pretty amazing catalogue but have yet to check it out. Hopefully get an update soon for when it will be available to stream.

We have update:

Mussolini: Son of the Century comes to the US, Canada, Latin America and more on September 10th

September 10th is exactly three Wednesdays from today. It's not clear what "and more" means. So I guess people living in Austria, Germany and other places not mentioned in the post below may have to investigate locally.

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MUBI trailer under spoiler. It's the same as the Sky TV trailer apart from the info at the end.

Spoiler

Twitter/X as well:
https://x.com/mubi/status/1957457526296809672

Oh wait, Twitter/X is working again on the forum?

Incidentally some of the music is noticably different - either in the edit or the actual sounds/production. And there is additional stuff here that's not on the released OST. I might do a separate post on that in the next day or two.

Due to overwhelming demand (ha!) I present some thoughts on the soundtrack that I noted on my phone's "Memo pad" whilst watching M. I actually considered hooking my laptop up to my tv to record some of the audio, but due to my Dell Inspiron headphone/mic jack not working (appears to be a well known issue over on Reddit), that didn't happen. Soz!


M: episode 1
Synth track at 31 mins - very Tom. Don't recognise. Nor did Shazam.
Wagner on gramophone player: "Das Rheingold" (during Annunzio & M meeting in Fiume). Wagner is sometimes associated with fascism. "Das Rheingold" was actually 'sampled' by New Order back in 1986, so Tom would be familiar - perhaps he sugested this classical choice?
Closing credits: TWO tracks. Avanti and then: "The Way Violence Should Be", the latter feels like a dreamy release after Ep 1's intensity. I thought this might be the way all the end credits would go but no, it's different end music every episode.

M: episode 2
Victim (should be called "Martyr" IMHO) :  Synth bass feels fatter and more upfront in the mix. Groovier than on released version. I need to own this version! Listen to the Sky YT clip under spoilers from 3:25.

Spoiler

A thought on the slow/fast drums on Victim: Are they made with that real "drum machine" - the real drum kit that's played by computer/robot? The one that got mentioned on the Chems Insta several years ago? And incidentally, could the "shuffling snare techno track" from recent DJ sets also be using that contraption?
Zang Tumb Tumb at 12 mins. This poem inspired the name of the ZTT record label (Art Of Noise, Frankie Goes To Hollywood, 808 State).
32 mins: Pumisher's Erection Song elements, (bi-plane crash). Yes the music that was on the trailer but wasn't on the released soundtrack is actually here in this episode.  Hear it at the very start of this Sky clip from the episode.

Spoiler

End credits: Victim again -  this time without dialogue over the top. We get a couple of minutes of that "fat bass" version of the track, and it feels very dancable. Someone pls record this!
This is then followed by Floria. Took me 4 listens to ID the track. Why? Because it's different to the released version. A completely different recording, I think.
The top line sounds like a synthisized voice (like Art Of Noise!). Underneath, we get a 1980's analogue bass synth sound - seemingly straight out of the box. Listen to this Sky clip from about 0:34 to 2:50.

Spoiler

M: Episode 3
29 mins: as M goes crowd surfing (probably didn't really happen), we get Floria again, and it almost sounds Middle Eastern here.
32 mins: we get Barbarism, and at 36 mins, The Way Violence Should Be is used within the series, rather than in the end credits (per Ep.1 comments).
End Music: March On Rome. Different version towards the end.

M: Episode 4
Some Madam Butterfly early on (does Opera get any better than this?)
Around 15 mins: Floria again.
Around 36-38 minutes: some slow down/speed up music which Shazam doesn't recognise.
Around 38-41 mins: some really tense music with exciting drum paradiddles. Sounds like a human drummer to me. Great!
Closing credits: one track: State Of Emergency. A different version/edit to the released OST, I think. Shazam recognises some parts of it, but not others.

M: Episode 5
Around 35 mins we get Pum's E Song elements again. This time without the descending FX that we heard in Ep2 (and also in original Pum's E song)
End Credits: March On Rome. Different version to releasd OST.  More orchestral but also with some electronic elements.

M: Episode 6
Avanti at the start but then some wonky noises.
Around 4 mins: The Violence Must Stop.
End Credits: Avanti, and nothing else.

M: Episode 7
Closing credits: 2 tracks.
1) Slow ominous music ~ (elements of the quiet squeeky sound from Victim). Then speeds up to unshazamable track. Gritty Synth riff (repetitive) with real/breakbeat sounding drum groove. NOT on released OST but good!
2) 2nd closing credits track: Different edit of Avanti for 50 seconds with "aaah". Shazam struggles with this.

M: Episode 8
21 mins:  Floria sounding middle eastern again with added "drama drums". Hints of "Enjoyed"?
Around 0:30 mins, during a phone call with M's wife, we get some un-shazambale music score.
46 mins: pounding beat... Colin Stetson?
State Of Emergency track (sorry, no time noted by me)
Closing music : sombre orchestral ominous brooding lament (trombone and dreamy vox) . Then gets faster and more Tom-ish (March On Rome's high synth but in a lower key, I think). Doesn't shazam. Good though!
This closing music sounds like David Menke (the other guy who worked on the score) and Tom together. And it works.

Additional random notes
Avanti has a hint of Further and Sabres of Paradise's Haunted Dance Hall at end.
La Gioconda is The Way Violence Should Be reworked.
March On Rome - vocoder. High synth - Tom making it 'cry'. Reminds me of live Chems.
Not a Bloodthirsty Dog - feels like the theme.

Concluding thoughts:
It seems that - like Hanna - some of these tracks were re-worked for the released OST, and some of these pieces didn't make it on to the released OST at all. Like Hanna, there aren't any samples - and I guess that makes sense - you don't want to have to wait for sample clearance when you're on a tight schedule to deliver a score.
If future official Chem Bros albums follow the sales levels of FTBF, my hunch is that we might get more Tom OST's in the future.  Personally I hope that we get more ChemBros albums and more OST stuff. We shall see...

[Stefan]

Mubi is available in Austria, but of course the content might be different in each country. Let's hope that it is included in "and more" XD

Thanks for the detailed rundown

[Stefan]

If future official Chem Bros albums follow the sales levels of FTBF, my hunch is that we might get more Tom OST's in the future.  Personally I hope that we get more ChemBros albums and more OST stuff. We shall see...

It didn't sell well? Do sales numbers even mean that much when most of it is streaming these days? I think the album was generally well received
I hope that the Chems are established enough that they won't have to worry too much of sales numbers when creating music, and/or have to mold it to please the whims of streaming service algorithms.