A music podcast where we discuss our favorite albums, song by song. New episodes every other Tuesday.

151: John Carpenter - Anthology: Movie Themes 1974-1998 (2017)

“I cherish all my bad reviews. If the critics start liking my movies, then I’m in deep trouble.”

—John Carpenter

Discord & Rhyme goes to the movies! This Halloween we're ringing in spooky season by exploring the work of filmmaker and musician John Carpenter. Best known for introducing the world to Michael Myers with the horror classic Halloween, Carpenter has built a solid filmography as a director while also providing his own distinctive musical vision with his scores. The 2017 career-spanning collection Anthology: Movie Themes 1974-1998 features fresh recordings of some of his most recognizable and beloved soundtrack work. Join Dan, Mike, and Rich as they slightly drift from the usual Discord & Rhyme format to indulge their movie nerd obsessions.

Miscellany

A good chunk of the John Carpenter concert Mike went to can be found on YouTube, including the opening performance of “Escape from New York” and a storming blues rock version of “They Live.” Mike is pretty sure one of those heads bobbing down at the front is his.
Shirley Walker, who composed the Memoirs of an Invisible Man theme, collaborated frequently with Danny Elfman, particularly on the Batman soundtracks. In fact, she was the sole composer of the Batman: The Animated Series theme, which some consider the greatest Batman theme of all time. She sadly passed away from complications following a stroke in 2006.
“Big Trouble in Little China” by the Coupe de Villes is not available on Spotify, but the music video is on YouTube, and consists of the band performing the song while editing the movie.
Kim Richards miraculously survived her ice cream cone-related shooting in Assault on Precinct 13 and grew up to star in The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills.

Discord & Rhyme Roll Call

Dan Watkins (host)
Rich Bunnell (moderator)
Mike DeFabio

Anthology: Movie Themes 1974-1998 tracklist

In the Mouth of Madness
Assault on Precinct 13
The Fog
Prince of Darkness
Santiago (Vampires)
Escape from New York
Halloween
Porkchop Express (Big Trouble in Little China)
They Live
The Thing
Starman
Dark Star
Christine

Other clips used

John Carpenter:

I Have a Message for You (with Alan Howarth)
Chariots of Pumpkins (Anthology II version)
Vortex
Wrong Flavor
Ice Cream Man on Edge
Prologue from The Fog (with John Houseman)
Darkness Begins (with Alan Howarth)
Slayers (with the Texas Toad Lickers)
Halloween Theme (Main Title)
Laurie's Theme
Pork Chop Express (Main Title)
Big Trouble in Little China (with the Coupe de Villes)
Coming to L.A. (with Alan Howarth)
Wake Up (Anthology II version)
Christine Attacks (Plymouth Fury) (with Alan Howarth)
Season of the Witch (Anthology II version)
My Name Is Death
The Bank Robbery (with Alan Howarth)
Snake Shake (with Alan Howarth)
Christine (from Live Retrospective 2016)

Others:

Alan Howarth and Tommy Lee Wallace - Halloween TV Commercial
Metallica - Enter Sandman
Oingo Boingo - No One Lives Forever
Led Zeppelin - Immigrant Song
Mike Oldfield - Tubular Bells
Johann Sebastian Bach - Toccata and Fugue in D Minor
DJ Shadow - Transmission 1
DJ Shadow - What Does Your Soul Look Like (Part 4)
Darkspace - Dark 3.16
Ennio Morricone - Once Upon a Time in the West (Main Theme)
Goblin - Suspiria
Ice-T - The Tower
Secret Chiefs 3 - Personae: Halloween
Arnold Schoenberg - Pierrot Lunaire: I. Mondestrunken
Angelo Badalamenti - Audrey's Dance
Ennio Morricone - The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (Main Title)
Ennio Morricone - Le Foto Proibite di una Signora per Bene
Ennio Morricone - Trafelato
Ennio Morricone - Fuggire Lontano
Ennio Morricone - Chi Mai
Ennio Morricone - Forza G
Ennio Morricone - Cavallina a Cavallo
Ennio Morricone - The Untouchables
Ennio Morricone - Seguita
Koji Kondo - Starman
Joe Cocker and Jennifer Warnes - Up Where We Belong
Julee Cruise - Falling
M83 - Skin of the Night
Bernard Herrmann - Prelude and Outer Space
Meat Beat Manifesto - Drop
Kavinsky - Nightcall
Francis Monkman - The Long Good Friday (Main Title)
Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross - Challengers: Match Point
Zombi - Challenger Deep
George Thorogood and the Destroyers - Bad to the Bone

Band/album personnel

John Carpenter – composition, performance, recording
Cody Carpenter – performance, recording
Daniel Davies – performance, recording
John Spiker – recording and bass (1)
John Konesky – guitar (1)
Scott Seiver – drums (1)
Ben Lee – harmonica (9)

Credits

“Discord & Rhyme (theme),” composed by the Other Leading Brand, contains elements of:

Duran Duran - Hungry Like the Wolf
Amon Düül II - Dehypnotized Toothpaste
The Dukes of Stratosphear - What in the World?? ...
Faith No More - Midlife Crisis
Herbie Hancock - Hornets
Kraftwerk - Autobahn
Talking Heads - Seen and Not Seen
John Carpenter - Assault on Precinct 13 (this episode only)

You can buy or stream Anthology: Movie Themes 1974-1998 and other albums by John Carpenter at sacredbonesrecords.com, your local record store, or the usual suspects such as Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube, and Amazon. Follow Discord & Rhyme on Instagram and Threads @DiscordPod for news, updates, and other random stuff. Editing is by Rich Bunnell, and special thanks to our own Mike DeFabio, the Other Leading Brand, for production and original music. See you next album, and keep as cool as you can.

UP NEXT

Discord And Rhyme are taking a trip to Canterbury, England to talk about Caravan - specifically, their third LP, 1971's In The Land Of Grey And Pink. Generally considered a landmark amongst prog lovers, the album remains relatively little known outside of those circles, despite being an incredibly warm, accessible, lovely album. Join Phil, John, and Mike on November 19 as they talk about what makes this album so special.