Newcomer Stuart Hancock has composed a powerful and exciting orchestral/electronic score for this action movie about an underground tournament in London where twelve fighters clash to fight for £500,000. The music is adrenaline-pumping, heroic, intensely rhythmic and - simply put - entertaining...

The soundtrack to Underground was a welcome surprise - not that I really came to this with any preconceived ideas of what to expect, it's just that this is composer Stuart Hancock's first full score and I wasn't expecting something so well polished. This sounds more like the work of someone who has been fine tuning their work for years and puts some more accomplished composers to shame.

The main driving force behind this soundtrack is the original and very memorable main theme. But, that's not to say that this is the only noteworthy piece of music here. Hancock uses it only when necessary - and then he really goes to town on it in tracks like 'Training Montage'.

'Intermezzo' briefly flirts with a Vangelis-styled segment (sounding not unlike Bladerunner) but this homage is incredibly brief, moving on to experiment with something different.

'The Weapons Fight' sounds not unlike Harry Gregson-Williams amazing score for Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare (COD4) crossed with elements of Alan Silvestri's score for Predator. 'Round Three' also has a COD4 feel to it.

I couldn't help but be reminded of Howard Shore's music from The Silence of the Lambs as I listened the middle segment of 'Bo V Liang'.

There's plenty here to appeal to soundtrack buffs. Hancock's style is refreshingly original, while at the same time paying homage to other composers works. This is certainly a score I'd recommend picking up.

8

Darren Rea