Chuck a rusty blade over your shoulder and you’ll probably hit at least two people who have ripped off John Carpenter in recent times. The undisputed king of horror movie soundtracks has hit a late-career prolific streak, and Lost Themes III again shows how immersive and powerful his music can be, even when bereft of blood-drenched visual accompaniment. His increasingly intuitive comrades - son Cody Carpenter and godson Daniel Davies - help bring these devilishly simple musical ideas to life; the old master’s trademark blend of suppurating synths, macabre guitars and pulsing drum machines sounds as evocative and unnerving as it ever did. Cemetery and Dripping Blood are particularly stunning. It’s the sound of genius, lurking in the shadows.
John Carpenter’s Lost Themes III: horror master unearths fresh synthwave chills for us
Halloween director and synthwave inspiration John Carpenter serves up immersive chills on new album Lost Themes III: Alive After Death
(Image: © Sacred Bones)
You can trust Louder Our experienced team has worked for some of the biggest brands in music. From testing headphones to reviewing albums, our experts aim to create reviews you can trust. Find out more about how we review.
More about metal hammer
“We go very deep into the struggles of starting the band, the impact of the tape-trading community back then, and loads of stories and interesting moments that led to the band being where we are today”: A Kreator biography is coming in 2025
“It was a do-or-die moment”: Arch Enemy “didn’t have high hopes” for War Eternal album after Angela Gossow left
