Christopher Young composed the score for Drag Me to Hell, reuniting with Raimi after The Gift (2000) and Spider-Man 3 (2007). Raimi stated that emphasis was on using the soundtrack to create a world that didn't exist, a world of the "supernatural".[1] For Young, this was an opportunity to return to his Evil Dead roots as well, which led to his voluntary involvement. When he saw the first cut, he was immediately connected with it owing to his return to the horror world and how it is about the devil, as Young previously did three films before that. In particular, Raimi also encouraged Young to experiment with the score.[2][3]
The violin was the principal instrument in the score as it was historically attached to the Devil both in music and literature. Hence, he could not bring anything unique, though Young tried to imagine that the violin is being played with ten fingers. He noted that whoever plays the violin had to be responsible for initiating the pitch with either their bow or fingers on hand, while pressing the strings to obtain the pitch on the other. He then told Raimi to use both hands for playing the violin and not use the bow, thereby having the idea of stretching and expanding the violin through both hands which normal violinists could not do, which Raimi loved. Hence most of the violin material in the score could never be played by one person, but instead multiple tracking of one guy playing different tracks on top of the other. Besides the violin, the score also featured choir and pipe organ.[2][3]
Elements of Young's previous work on Flowers in the Attic. (1987) is incorporated in the film through the utilization of the childlike soprano vocals recurrently appear in the score.[4][5]
Release
The soundtrack was released digitally on June 2, 2009, and in physical formats on August 18, 2009 through Lakeshore Records.[6][7] A vinyl edition of the album was released by Waxwork Records in 2018.[8][9]
Reception
William Ruhlmann of AllMusic wrote that "[Young] conforms to the demands of the plot, often revving up his music to coincide with something particularly grisly on screen, with a tendency to create chaotic crescendos [...] but the score also contains delicate keyboard-based themes."[6] Calling it as one of the best scores of 2009, Jonathan Broxton of Movie Music UK wrote "It’s just that you so rarely hear scores like this these days; scores which are unafraid to unleash huge orchestral forces, which contain such wonderfully inventive and intricate instrumental and choral performances, which have this much intelligent design, and which are so entertaining on a purely visceral level."[10] Thomas Klefner of Maintitles wrote "While this is top drawer writing for the horror genre this overall style of music has never been my cup of tea and it was difficult for me to get my teeth into it. The horror fan will have no trouble listening to it over and over."[11]
Christian Clemmensen of Filmtracks wrote "the 52 minutes of music from Drag Me to Hell is inherently extremely unpredictable, suffering the trademarks of any adept horror score [...] to say that [Young] overachieved once again in a horror assignment is becoming the normal statement about such endeavors. This time, however, the overachievement is monumentally hell-raising."[12] Sean Wilson of Mfiles wrote "a score designed to leave one drained but exhilarated – much like the film it accompanies".[13] He further added, "Christopher Young's score is a coup for robust, old-fashioned, intelligence, crafted with care and attention. The theme is guaranteed to become a staple in the canon of classic horror movie themes in the years to come, but rather than lazily relying on that, Young conjures up a tour de force from start to finish."[13]
Christopher Monfette of IGN wrote "stunningly appropriate and well-conceived score."[14]Dana Stevens of Slate described it a "string-heavy, Psycho-esque score".[15] Michael Gingold of Fangoria wrote "[Christopher Young] delivers a properly eerie/bombastic score."[16] Richard von Busack of Metro Silicon Valley wrote "Christopher Young's inspired, crescendo-heavy soundtrack gets you juiced, with its shredded-violin references to [Camille] Saint-Saëns' Dance Macabre."[17]
Track listing
Drag Me to Hell (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
↑"Fangoria 2010 Chainsaw Award Winners". Horror Movie Reviews, Horror Podcasts and More!. Archived from the original on February 2, 2017. Retrieved January 25, 2017.
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