CD/DIGITAL DOWNLOAD REVIEW - WELCOME TO THE RILEYS


Welcome to the Rileys
Music by Marc Steitenfeld & Various Artists
Lakeshore Records (US)
18 Tracks

This is a film that has been attracting some attention due to the fact that Twilight Saga star Kristen Stewart plays a pole dancer, opposite Sopranos star James Gandolfini in Jake Scott's drama. Unfortunately, those of you hoping to see much more of Kristen than has gone before are going to be disappointed as I gather much of her on stage footage has been cut from the film.
As for the film's music, German-born Marc Streitenfeld has worked on Ridley Scott's last four films and now extends his alliance to the great director's son Jake.
The album leads off with 12 tracks of Streitenfeld's music, and concludes with six numbers by the likes of Kitty Daisy And Lewis, Odetta, Joe Simon, Shiny Toy Guns, The Kills, and Ying Yang Twins.
The score is quite a sparse affair, typically represented by the mandolin-lead title theme, reflecting the largely downbeat nature of the film, and features an assortment of acoustic instruments, many of which are played by the composer himself. There are few bright moments, like the propulsive "I Am Here," and A touch of jazz is injected for "Walking in New Orleans, with something of a country feel to "Alive."
The Welcome to the Rileys album is available both on CD and as a digital download.