Buffy the Vampire Slayer - Once More, with Feeling
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Free Music Notes for Buffy the Vampire Slayer - Once More, with Feeling
Free Music Review: ...And I'm Not A Buffy Fan...
Hit: 5 Stars
Before I start, I'll just say that I'm not a Buffy fan by any means. And that I don't know many actor/actress names, so I'll just use character names.Now, a friend of mine knew I loved musicals, so she decided to show me the "Once More With Feeling" episode, which she had recorded, one day.
I decided to humor her.
Now I'm glad I did.
This music was remarkably good. And I'm serious.
Buffy may not have the best voice, but she carries her part very well...however, I can't exactly say the same about Xander, or Willow...(pardon me for the lack of actor names) Xander did well enough in "I'll Never Tell", that's probably one of my favorite tracks, its very cute...allows even first-timers of the show to get a good idea of Xander and Anya's relationship. Of course, I loved Anya's "Bunnies" rift...it was absolutely priceless.
Dawn's voice is pretty and delicate, but could use some development.
Willow...now, judging from the two lines she got throughout the entire musical, I'm really glad she didn't do much singing.
The three notable singer on this track were entirely unexpected for me.
Spike's "Rest In Peace" is one of my favorite tracks...it was just remarkable. I loved the rock feel, and especially the lyrics...the song was wonderful.
Giles' "Standing" was amazing...I never knew he had released a CD before, but he's certainly worthy of his own CD. The man is a remarkable acoustic "rocker", for lack of a better word.
And I'd have to say my absolute favorite was Tara's "Under Your Spell." Its beautiful, uplifting, soaring...just a gorgeous song sung by a beautiful voice.
Of course I loved the duet between her and Giles. The counterpoint was amazing, and between the two best voices in the musical, no less.
Ah, I almost forgot. Hinton Battle does a marvelous cameo in this, as Sweet, a sort of demonic Lord of the Dance. But as a Broadway veteran that would only be expected.
Hmm, I wrote quite a bit.
Well, overall, I loved this CD.
Even if you're like me and you're not a Buffy fan, so long as you appreciate good music, you'll probably appreciate this CD...(or most of it, at least.)
Free Music Review: The Multi-Talented Cast of Buffy
Hit: 5 Stars
Joss Whedon is a talented writer in that he can go from funny to tear-jerking without missing a beat. This is apparent in his hit television shows (Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel) as well as this cast album from the Buffy episode "Once More With Feeling."
For anyone wondering about the story surrounding this musical, Joss Whedon sums it up in the linear notes of the album. After reading that, even someone unfamiliar with the show is ready to immerse themselves in this album. The songs are beautiful, funny, and never do that musical-tear thing. What is a musical-tear thing, you say? This is where songs are injected into a musical awkwardly for the sole purpose of making the listener/viewer sad, but in a forced and artificial way. The music on this album creates genuine emotion and avoids the aforementioned manufactured musical-tear moments.
Each song retains the personality of the character, and it's really says something about the quality of the cast when every single actor can sing, not only in character, but also well. The only cast member who really can't sing is Alyson Hannigan, who plays Willow, but she pulls off the few lines she's given. Joss Whedon clearly molded these songs around the talents of each cast memember, and it was all the stronger for the effort. The best of the bunch are the rousing "Walk Through the Fire," Gile's raw emotional ballad "Standing" and the reprise with Tara, Spike's "Rest in Peace," and--saving the best for last--Xander and Anya's "I'll Never Tell."
Along with these amazing song is a collection of bonus tracks, the best being "Sacrifice." This song was played at the end of "The Gift" and is some of the best scoring I've ever heard. Every bonus track--much like the album--is listenable.
I'm not sure how much a non-watcher of Buffy would enjoy this album, but each individual song is great in its own way. I do advise watching a few episodes before listening, though.
10/10 Classic.
Free Music Review: An epic that DESERVED an Emmy...
Hit: 5 Stars
No other show on television would have had the guts to do a musical episode and not end up being tongue-in-cheek. The Jossmeister has once again gone beyond episodic television to give us a superb episode... and now you can own the soundtrack!Because the shooting schedule of Buffy is so chaotic, the actors didn't have time to sing on-set, so the songs were recorded off-set and lip-synched during takes. Here, you can own the original, "uncut" songs from the episode. Excellent all-round performances from the entire cast, in particular, praise for Amber Benson, James Marsters and Tony Head. "I'm Under Your Spell" is a track I keep playing and playing, along with Amber and Tony's sublime duet "Wish I Could Stay".
Everyone on the cast sounds like they're having a ball, belting out each track with style and real emotion. And we get three great tracks from Chris Beck, including the heart-wrenching "Sacrifice", from the Season 5 finale, "The Gift". Chris is one of the few composers on TV whose music calls the actual images to mind. As the music rises, we see in our mind's eye Buffy swan-diving into the portal to save the world. And the final push to the grave...
My only complaint is that this is not the last track on the CD (I have to program it so that it is), but the last track is a true gem anyway.
In preparing for the musical (which Joss tells us about indepth in the funniest liner notes ever!), Joss and his wife, Kai, recorded all of the songs on a demo Cd for the cast, Joss taking the male parts, Kai the female, and a little gift at the end of this release is a track from this demo, "Life's A Show". It's amazing. Kai has a beautiful voice, and trying to compare Joss to James just confused me!
All in all, a great release, and an unusual one too.
Maybe now, we'll get the score soundtrack release that's been mooted for the past few years. If the series does come to an end this year, that would be a great final release...
Free Music Review: Buy this!
Hit: 5 Stars
don't buy this, expecting, 'buffy the musical episode' - .... buy this expecting an album - and what an album it is too! i admit, when i listened to this the first time, i did not like it. i thought it was pretty bad compared to the episode which i totally ABSOLUTELY LOVED. but then i listened to it again, and it was absolutely wonderful amazing, it was great. so what, the cast don't exactly have stellar voices, except for a few, the songs aren't exactly Grammy material (remember people, it's a TV show!! this people were not hired to sing and dance) and yet did an incredibly amazing job. the emotions they brought to their roles and songs, especially smg, - not a great voice and yet, made her songs as emotionally hard hitting as ASH's standing, (it practically made you cry)are the BEST things about it and this is why i LOVE this album. FIVE STARS!!! WARNING: the songs get stuck in your head, a LONG time after but you will just love it! also: lyrics - they all mean something - plus for buffy fans and for non-buffy fans, it's extra interesting, as it tells a story. and knowing the story, you can appreciate more fully the songs themselves, the lyrics, and where they come from.
the best song was walk through the fire. note: did anyone notice the fact that when they were singign this song, there were fire engines going by, behind them?? (the scooby gang) rather ironic>?
um...a GREAT range of songs - it has everything. there is something for everyone here. and songs like 'sacrifice'. i admit i didnt' exaclty like the suites - they're not my style but sacrifice is great esp. as it reminds you of that sad, painful but emotional heartbreaking moment when buffy jumped to her death.
ok, i m going on...
anyway
Buy THIS, buffy fan or not!! my opinion tho - i think the buffy musical episode is better than thsi tho! buy both and watch them for 100 percent satisfaction!
Free Music Review: Fantastic Soundtrack!
Hit: 5 Stars
I've been a fan of the series Buffy for a while now (and by extension Angel). It is a show that really grows on you, if you are willing to see under the surface of it.
When the episode "Once more with feeling" aired over here in sweden, I for one was very unsure about it. I've seen this before; musical episodes. It may or may not work.
But to be honest it took me with complete surprise. This ep. might be one of the best in all seven seasons. I do not buy soundtrack albums often, and even less often by the spur of a moment. But I did so in this case.
The CD is all that I expected. The cover booklet is very well made and consistent with the theme.
you get 23 tracks in total but only 19 are connected to the ep. in question. The rest are from other well chosen episodes (also good by the way).
There are many gems on this cd. Several of the cast can really sing well and over all both music and lyrics are well above good. But a few songs really shines bright. Tracks like: "Through the motions", "What you feel", "Under you spell", "walk through the fire" or "something to sing about" are super strong melodies.
Amber Bensons (as Tara to Willow) song is one of the best songs I've heard in a long time. It captures the emotions perfectly and it's all but impossible not to feel all warm and fuzzy inside...and it really gets stuck in your mind too. Brilliant!
I've played this cd many times now, as well as looked at the ep. on VCR too.
It has been said that Buffy is one of the best tv shows ever made, and you might agree or not, but this episode from season 6 and it't soundtrack will go down into the history of television - be sure of it! If nothing else in the eyes and ears of the many fans out there!
So in short: if you at all like the show you probably will love this cd. No question...