Don't make me call it Shocktober: vol. I

So, it's like this: a curator falls prey to the whisperings of an ancient runestone, turning him into a monster. Charged with bringing an end to his reign of terror are his ex-girlfriend, her new beau, a hard-boiled cop and keepers of ancient lore. More or less reworked as The Relic years later, this is a watchable if unremarkable thriller, helped along by an interesting cast.

This marks the last horror film that David Newman has ever scored...unless one wishes to count How to Lose a Guy in Ten Days or Norbit or Jingle All the Way or Monster-in-Law. I could go on forever, but I won't. One can think of this score in two different ways: a) a darker version of DuckTales: the Movie or b) a 70-minute expansion of Newman's Hell music from Bill & Ted's Bogus Journey.

Binding the score together is a theme starting with three ascending notes and continuing with four descending notes, a nicely off-kilter melody interwoven throughout the score, a constant reminder of the monster wreaking havoc in the character's lives.

The quieter, appropriately whispery synthesized cues earlier in the score depicting Martin falling under the runestone's sway ("The Voices First Appear", "Martin Possessed") give way to frantic, horn-based cues like "Second Killing" and "Martin Grabs Marla". "Marla Escapes Fenrir" slows the main theme down and sets it against a lurching march.

Another melody - a sort of electronic racing motif - figures into "Marla Visits Hagstrom", "Supernatural Romance" and "Jakomin". "Fenrir vs. Officer Newman" expands on what has come before with nervous strings, quaking horns and the main theme. (The main reason I'm singling out this cue is that it plays during the scene of the composer's all-too brief cameo as a cop named Graves, despite the track title.)

In between the moments of orchestral rampaging, Newman has time for lighter material, as in the soft "Heavy Petting", the reflective "That's Enough" (somewhat reminscient of The Kindred) and the pop-influenced "The Party".

The last few cues for the film's climax (from "Fenrir Reigns Terror" to "They Kill Fenrir") are delightfully chaotic from blasting horns to the "Dies Irae" as the beast is finally slain.

Perhaps my favorite melody is associated with Alexander Godunov's Sigvaldson. In an ingenious nod to the clockmaker character, Newman provides a ticking clock motif. The theme appears in an electronic guise in cues like "Sigvaldson to the Rescue", "Battle: Round One" and "Tyr", but "Sigvaldson Offers Assistance" presents the theme with a lovely, almost hypnotic flute solo.

After its initial announcement in 2007, the soundtrack was finally released this year by Perseverance Records...and, at this writing, there are less than 30 copies left, so I implore you to give it a chance.