BLADE and BLADE II Scores to Receive Deluxe Edition Vinyl Releases

Blade and Blade II, from prolific composers Mark Isham and Marco Beltrami, will receive deluxe reissue releases. Debuting on vinyl for the first time, both soundtracks—equally celebrated as unique contributions to the film canon—will be released in multiple unique color variants. Releasing on May 16th and available for pre-order now, these classic scores will be pressed on “Bloodbath” red vinyl exclusively via Barnes & Noble, and “Blood Splatter” clear and black translucent vinyl in a limited-edition run of 500 on the Varèse Sarabande store. Both scores will be available as 2-LP gatefold packages with brand-new artwork by acclaimed illustrator Micha Huigen.

Directed for the big screen by effects artist–turned filmmaker Stephen Norrington (Death Machine) and written by Dark City’s David S. Goyer (with uncredited assistance from David Fincher, who originally intended to direct), 1998’s Blade tapped into the Goth Avenger vein of the adaptations of The Crow and Spawn. Like those undead superheroes out to decimate their killers, Blade moved in the shadows of a big city built from eerily sleek visuals and Hong Kong–influenced action, as powered by the relentless beat of the era’s youth-appealing indie, grunge and electronica bands.

At first offered to The Prodigy, Blade’s score eventually went to Mark Isham, whose origin as a jazz trumpeter didn’t suggest the most predictable fit. It was, though, Isham’s Southwestern gothic score for 1986’s The Hitcher that marked him as a musician worthy of this daunting task.

When Director Norrington decided not to take part in the follow up for his smash film, it was only natural that Hollywood came calling for Guillermo Del Toro to take on the directing duties of Marvel Comics’ half-human vampire slayer whose 1992 appearance truly marked the beginning of the Marvel Age of movie superheroes.

Blade II presented a different challenge entirely. Receiving his master’s at Yale and studying under Jerry Goldsmith at USC, Marco Beltrami seemed a natural fit for the del Toro vehicle, especially after bursting onto the scene with Wes Craven’s meta-slasher Scream.

Beltrami’s collection of Asian instruments matched many of the themes that populated del Toro’s rendition. These included the flute-like shakuhachi, the Chinese opera gong and African percussion joined with an array of taiko drums, or “fat drums” originally used to cast away supernatural entities.

Now, both of these historic, unique soundtracks will be available for film lovers and score aficionados alike. Rarely have two films achieved such sterling visions from the same source material, and each project boasts a score to accent this one-of-a-kind style.