Musique Fantastique

September 18, 2023

Intrada Releases James Horner’s Complete 24-track HUMANOIDS FROM THE DEEP Soundtrack

Following closely on the heels of Intrada’s release of James Horner’s DEADLY BLESSING comes another early horror score from Horner: HUMANOIDS FROM THE DEEP (1980). Although previously released on CD several times, this is the first release to work from the complete 24-track recording sessions, restoring Horner’s score into a complete program. This new program features a level of detail not previously heard, particularly in the some woodwind and percussion colors that are almost inaudible in the original mix. Horner composed the score for an orchestra of strings, woodwinds, piano, harp, xylophone, marimba and an array of percussion, including mixing bowls, as well as the blaster beam. A lone trumpet is the only brass instrument in the score. Following the complete score program is the newly remastered original album, preserving those edits made for the LP program as well as the album mix with which collectors have become familiar.

HUMANOIDS FROM THE DEEP tells the story of a village divided: an impending construction of a new cannery by the Canco company sets the indigenous community against the rest of the town. Each believes the other is out to get them, but the paranoia escalates when local women begin to go missing. With the arrival of a Canco scientist, it emerges that the village is under siege by human-sized fish monsters – hyper-evolved from coelacanths (an ancient order of fish) who had consumed experimental salmon from a Canco laboratory breach. The action culminates as the creatures lay siege at the local salmon festival.

There are two principal themes in HUMANOIDS FROM THE DEEP, both debuting in the “Main Title.” First is the eerie and seemingly alien theme for the HUMANOIDS on solo trumpet. The second major idea is the theme for the village of Noyo and its blue-collar residents. First appearing on piccolo, the tune is melancholy, with a shifting tonal center that captures the depressed and uneasy state of the village. Horner weaves these themes throughout the score, along with a plethora of suspense and action, showcasing what a world-class composer James Horner was even so early in his career.

The score was meticulously restored by Douglass Fake and Chris Malone and will be available on both on CD and digitally from Intrada. Shout!Factory will be releasing it on vinyl in the near future.

For details see Intrada.

Check out the trailer here: