CD REVIEW - HALO: REACH


Halo: Reach
Music by Martin O'Donnell and Michael Salvatori
Sumthing Else SE-2084-2 (US)
Disc 1 - 7 Tracks 56:15 mins
Disc 2 - 20 Tracks 51:22 mins

The Bungie team's final offering in the Halo series of videogames is Halo: Reach, which tells the story of Noble Team, a squad of heroic Spartan soldiers, and their final stand on Planet Reach.
The music is provided by series regulars Martin O'Donnell and Michael Salvatori (with additional music by C. Paul Johnson and Stan LePard), whose efforts are released on this splendid two-disc set from Sumthing Else Music. Culled from more than five hours of recorded material, the music is here presented in the same order that gamers experience them in the game, though some pieces are shortened and combined. As with previous scores, the composers utilise a combination of orchestra (The Northwest Sinfonia), percussion, voices, electric guitar and synths. There's the usual wide variety of styles on display, with strong thematic material, some exciting moments, often driven by percussion, as well as the almost religious choral passages we've come to expect.
For more detailed reviews of the release, go to http://g4tv.com/thefeed/blog/post/707727/halo-reach-soundtrack-review.html, where you can also listen to samples; and www.tracksounds.com/reviews/halo_reach_martin_odonnell_michael_salvatori.htm.
The Halo: Reach soundtrack is available on CD from all good retail outlets, or as a digital download from www.sumthingdigital.com or iTunes.