7 films to set the mood for Goblin’s American debut
Goblin plays the Loft on Tues., Oct. 1 with the Secret Chiefs 3.
When Italian soundtrack band Goblin plays at the Loft tomorrow, the group kicks off its first ever North American tour. The band came to prominence crafting monumentally moody scores and soundtracks for horror and thriller films in the 1970s and ’80s, particularly for giallo films, the shocking Italian murder genre where directors like Dario Argento and Lucio Fulci got their start.
In preparation for next week’s show, here are seven films that should get you on the same page. Some feature Goblin’s music, some don’t, but all deliver a great mix of suspense and unease. Cue up Netflix and turn off the lights!
The Bird With the Crystal Plumage (1970)
Director Dario Argento’s debut film offers a roadmap to his future obsessions: a mystery that plays second fiddle to mood, the killer’s leather-gloved hands, a sense of dread and foreboding, occasional comedic flourishes. A creepy soundtrack - this time provided by Ennio Morricone - sets the template for Argento’s future work with Goblin.
What Have You Done to Solange? (1972)
Though it’s got no direct link to either Argento or Goblin, Massimo Dallamano’s giallo is a real winner, and a great mood-setter representative of the genre. Morricone again provides the score, jazz-inflected and atmospheric and all-around weird, for this tale of a schoolgirls targeted by a murderer with a serious grudge.
Deep Red (1975)
Goblin first worked with Argento on his giallo Deep Red - or Profondo Rosso, if you’re the purist type to go for original titles. Unpredictable and chilling, it draws from Morricone-style discordance while ramping up the volume and bombast more typical of the prog rock Goblin’s members had been playing. (Side note: after firing the original composer for creating an unsatisfying jazz score, Argento tried to get Pink Floyd to score the film.) Argento’s straight-up horror film Suspiria followed the thriller two years later, and Goblin’s assertive score for that ballet-meets-witches tale is a true masterpiece.
Zombi / Dawn of the Dead (1978)
George Romero’s indictment of American consumer culture - a band of survivors is trapped in a mall during a zombie outbreak - is fun, shocking, gruesome and lively. Its soundtrack features Goblin, but only kinda. The U.S. release of Dawn of the Dead uses a lot of stock music alongside three Goblin tracks, while the international release of the film (titled Zombi) featured more Goblin tracks along with tunes written by Dario Argento, who also helped produce and secure financing for the film.
The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974)
The Texas setting of Tobe Hooper’s horrifying debut film is about as far from Italy as you can get, but the claustrophobic, jarring soundtrack is spiritually linked to the music of Goblin. Created from free improvisations by the director himself, the film’s score distorts upright bass, slows down and speeds up tape loops, and generally aims for (and achieves) maximum disturbance.
Halloween (1978)
John Carpenter’s holiday classic is a top-notch slasher film in its own right, but take a listen to its music. Carpenter wrote and performed the music himself, but the synth-heavy score owes a big debt to Goblin’s work over the previous five years or so, much as the film borrows the killer’s-POV camera work, trench coat-clad investigator, and inexplicable evil from the giallo genre. (Same goes for Howard Shore’s score for David Cronenberg’s 1983 creepfest Videodrome.)
Contamination (1980)
Ever wanted to see Alien but with a significantly smaller budget and much more ham-fisted dialogue? Luigi Cozzi’s 1980 film may be for you. This blatant rip-off plays as pretty corny, but Goblin’s score relies heavily on cathedral-esque organs to set a suitably grand mood.