The Mask Soundtrack

The soundtrack for Son of the Mask, the ill-fated sequel to the 1994 Jim Carrey hit, is a by-the-numbers collection of classic rock (Neil Diamond's "Thank the Lord for the Night Time"), oldies staples like "The Twist" and Paul Anka's "Puppy Love," and one strategically placed single, Ryan Cabrera's magnificently forgettable "Inside Your Mind" – you could paste it over his current hit "On the Way Down" without any noticeable change to either. These tracks are augmented by a cover of the jazz standard "Baby Face" by Tony Award winning actress Marissa Jaret Winokur, poor uncomfortable Jamie Kennedy singing "Can't Take My Eyes Off You" and a dialed in score from composer Randy Edelman. Dreadful.

Described by producer Shu-Fang Wang as "an imaginary soundtrack originally composed for a film story set in Taipei," Before the Light gives the music of ECM recording artist Ketil Bjørnstad a cinematic twist. For this album, the pianist has written a handful of romantic melodies and atmospheric moods. The former are presented in different arrangements scattered throughout the album; the latter often include guitar soundscapes and programmed rhythm tracks. Bjørnstad is accompanied by guitarist Eivind Aarset, viola player Nora Taksdal, and keyboardist Kjetil Bjerkestrand. Each one of these short pieces (none over six minutes) makes a melodic statement that could be qualified as being quintessential ECM. .

As one-third of Yellow Magic Orchestra and an Academy Award-winning composer for his work on the soundtrack for The Last Emperor, synth pop innovator Ryuichi Sakamoto is among the most groundbreaking artists to have emerged since the late '70s. The driving force behind "Neo Geo," a cutting-edge fusion of Asian and Western classical music with other global textures and rhythms, he has been equally adept in electronic and acoustic settings, whether recording in solitude or in tandem, with decades of steady activity. His discography is immense and varied, including solo piano works, proto-techno, experimental ambient, and glitch.