Ghost in the Shell Orignal Soundtrack

GHOST IN THE SHELL ORIGINAL SOUNDTRACK

Victor Entertainment
BVCR-729
¥3000

— by Jon Souza

1. Making of Cyborg 4:28

2. Ghosthack 5:14

3. Puppetmaster 4:21

4. Virtual Crime 2:41

5. Ghost City 3:34

6. Access 3:16

7. Nightstalker 1:44

8. Floating Museum 5:05

9. Ghostdrive 5:52

10. Reincarnation 5:44

11. Bonus Track 3:26

Mamoru Oshii's conversion of Masamune Shirow's cyberpunk thriller GHOST IN THE SHELL to the animated big screen was one of the biggest animated releases of 1996, especially in American art movie theaters. One of the most interesting parts of the movie was that its primarily instrumental track didn't rely upon heavy metal music to convey the cyberpunk feeling.

The GHOST IN THE SHELL – ORIGINAL SOUNDTRACK contains most of the music from the film. It's good, if a bit unimaginative. "Making of Cyborg," the music heard in the first few minutes of the movie as Major Kusanagi is being repaired, is mostly choir singing with a slow, ominous drum beat and chimes. As the song goes on, it slowly builds with a deeper background of bass drums and synthesizer music.

"Ghosthack" starts off with a bass drum, then other drums follow. Synthesizer music trills in occasionally, then becomes a major portion of the piece half-way through the track. "Puppetmaster" is more sinister, as metallic and glass chimes ring throughout the music. "Virtual Crime" is like the previous two tracks; the sound is laden with bass that seems to roll forever throughout the music. A faster pace of music picks up near the end of the track.

"Ghost City" is a slightly more morose remix of "Making of Cyborg," and it has an almost contradictory air. The music of this track starts off dark, and it changes to feel like a rain of glass, then returning to the choir and the chimes. "Access" is another heavy bass track with sounds of bells that mark off time like a metronome. "Nightstalker" is mostly synthesizer music and it sounds like some of the instrumentals of "Miami Vice." But it feels like a lazy sort of chase, more like a kind of game. "Floating Museum" is a mix of synthesized flute and drums, downbeat in comparison to the action of the scene it was written for.

"Ghostdive" is the last of the heavy bass music. Muted bells and dark tones rumble throughout this powerful track. The music grows even more ominous at the end. "Reincarnation" starts out slow, then the bell-like chimes and chanting choir of "Making of Cyborg" begins, with an underlying bass drum. A new theme of "Nightstalker", filled with synthesizer and violins, cuts into a new portion of the choir, complete with a soloist growing brighter and more hopeful as the music ends on a cheerful counterpoint. The "Bonus Track" on the soundtrack is a bizarrely hyperkinetic Chinese pop song, oddly too cheerful in comparison to the rest of the dark and deep music. The Brian Eno/U2 "Passengers" that was heard at the end of the US version of "Ghost In The Shell" is nowhere to be found.

In short, this CD would be perfect for the die-hard fans of GHOST IN THE SHELL or those looking for mood music. For most other people it's open to question and it might be worth waiting for an American version rather than purchasing this CD as an import.