The Director's Cut

Fantomas is the supergroup made up of Mike Patton (Mr Bungle, Faith No More), Buzz Osbourne (Melvins), Dave Lombardo (ex-Slayer, Gripp, Inc) and Trevor Dunn ( Mr Bungle). This CD is composed of music from motion picture soundtracks, as interpreted by Fantomas. 15 tracks. 2001 release.

Film music and the artier end of the rock spectrum have enjoyed a slightly bent connection since the early '80s, when the noir-savvy California new wavers of Wall of Voodoo made clear Ennio Morricone's influence on their work. Fantomas's second album, The Director's Cut, is in that somewhat playful spirit. The all-star ensemble--ex-Faith No More frontman Mike Patton with members of Slayer, the Melvins, and Patton's Mr. Bungle--adapts disturbing (or at least spooky) themes by Bernard Herrmann, Henry Mancini, Morricone, and others. The bruising but often campy (there is no track 13) result works more often than you'd expect; Nino Rota's Godfather and Harry Lubin's (TV) One Step Beyond excerpts are put through more than effective paces. It's clear that, despite the occasional (inadvertent?) Iron Maiden homage, Patton and friends have no interest in keeping a straight face on this. That's fine, but Patton's goofy lyrical interjections on several of these tunes turns them into not-very-funny cartoons. Still, it's the rare sympathetic listener who won't be driven to check out obscure flicks like Der Golem and The Devil Rides Out. --Rickey Wright