Track Listing

1. Meet Me On The Equinox - Death Cab For Cutie
2. Friends - Various Artists
3. Hearing Damage - Yorke, Thom
4. Possibility - Various Artists
5. White Demon Love Song, A - Killers
6. Satellite Heart - Marina, Anya
7. I Belong To You - Muse
8. Rosyln - Bon Iver & St. Vincent
9. Done All Wrong - Black Rebel Motorcycle Club
10. Monsters - Various Artists
11. Violet Hour, The - Various Artists
12. Shooting The Moon - OK Go
13. Slow Life - Grizzly Bear & Victoria Legrand
14. No Sound But The Wind - Editors
15. New Moon (The Meadow) - Various Artists

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #139 in Music
• Released on: 2009-10-19
• Number of discs: 1
• Format: Soundtrack

Review
With these eyes having never seen Twilight, or indeed the sequel this disc supports, ears can absorb what’s on offer without bias. The senses will not collude to conjure memories of particular scenes, of how a moment was made perfect by the synergy of music and movement. But most who pick this soundtrack up will be familiar with the cinematic adaptations of Stephenie Meyer’s novels, and one hopes that their enjoyment of vampire flicks of teen romance will turn them on to some mightily fine musicians as a result.

A fine cast, featuring critically acclaimed heavyweights like Thom Yorke, Bon Iver (who collaborates with the equally celebrated St Vincent), Death Cab for Cutie and Grizzly Bear (appearing with Victoria Legrand, of fine Baltimore dream-pop duo Beach House), has been assembled, and for the most part their contributions are entirely exclusive to this release.

Death Cab, a mainstream concern since the release of 2005’s major label debut Plans, provide the compilation’s lead single, with Meet Me on the Equinox released in September and its video, dripping with clips of the New Moon movie, made available the following month. It’s right that it’s up first and done away with, though, as much of what follows is better.

Justin Vernon – aka Bon Iver – lends his superbly spectral vocals to the achingly gorgeous Roslyn, a song that’s only elevated in its ethereal elegance by the understated backing of Annie Clark, aka St Vincent. Presumably it appears in the film at a moment when thoughts are far from sinking fangs into flesh. Similarly delightful of acoustic reverie – unexpectedly so given their past form – is Black Rebel Motorcycle Club’s gently plucked Done All Wrong.

Muse don’t do subtle all that often, and their I Belong to You (a mix exclusive to this release) is among the livelier numbers on offer, albeit some way from the epic bombast of their regular output. Grizzly Bear’s Legrand team-up, Slow Life, is wonderfully sombre of tone, the spaces left silent in the mix every bit as vital to the overall impression left as its shimmering flourishes of baroque pop. But it’s Thom Yorke’s Hearing Damage that lingers in the mind longest – oppressive of rumbling beat, cold to the touch, yet exposing a heart more vulnerable than any other arrangement here.

Kids, get exploring these acts. This is your foot in the door. --Mike Diver

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Customer Reviews

Waxing moon
The best thing you can say about any movie's soundtrack is that it can stand on its own, and that no matter what you think of the movie, the soundtrack is chock full of amazing music.

And the soundtrack to "New Moon" is one of those -- apparently the people behind it have gone completely indie in their tastes. Whether you love or hate the teen-vampire-infatuation flick, it's undeniable that the soundtrack is bursting with brilliant bands -- angular rock'n'roll and lush echoing pop, some of it well-known (Muse, Thom Yorke) and some relative obscure (Grizzly Bear, Lykke Li).

"Meet me on the equinox/Meet me halfway/The sun is perched at its highest peak/In the middle of the day... " Ben Gibbard sings distantly as the gentle guitars swirl around him. A storm of drums builds up every time he laments that "everything, everything ends," as his pronouncements about an unknown lover become eerier and more surreal ("A window/An open tomb/The sun crawls across your bedroom/A halo/A waning moon/Your last breath moving through you").

There's a pretty good showing of solid rock'n'roll following Death Cab For Cutie's memorable introduction -- Band of Skulls provides the buzzing, blunt-edged rocker "Friends," Hurricane Bells erupts in a buzzing storm of fuzzy bass and sharp beats with "Monsters," and Sea Wolf's "The Violet Hour" is a swirling little pop-rocker that seems to trickle down the reverberating guitar.

Then there's Thom Yorke, whose buzzy-edged electronic "Hearing Damage" is a furtive, dark little rush of sinister beauty. And of course, Muse is included in the stomping, mournful rocker "I Belong To You (New Moon Remix)."

Some of these bands are also going unexpectedly low-key to suit the mood, even if they're usually much louder. The Killers turn out the dramatic layered lament of "A White Demon Love Song," while Black Rebel Motorcycle unfurl a twangy lo-fi ballad "Done All Wrong." OK GO abandon their usual sound in favor of the trippy psychedelic-edged "Shooting The Moon," and the Editors dip into a dramatic, hauntingly sad piano-rock sound with "No Sound But The Wind" ("Help me to carry the fire/it will light our way forever..."

But some brilliant indie pop also makes the cut. Lykke Li's "Possibility" is a shimmering, icy little melody, while Anya Marina sticks to acoustic guitar riddled with organ in the whispery "Satellite Heart." The absolute highlights of the album: Bon Iver and St. Vincent collaborate on the otherworldly, hymnlike "Roslyn," and Grizzly Bear's exquisite "Slow Life" is a slow haunting build to a celestial climax.

For the record, I'm not a fan of "New Moon" or Stephenie Meyers' Twilight series in general. But I felt a prickle go down my spine when I saw the songs listed for the soundtrack -- they've crammed it with one brilliant band after another, ranging from hard rock'n'roll to soft, sweet ballads. In fact, the only one that failed to move me was Alexandre Desplat's outro -- frankly, it was four minutes of boredom for me.

Otherwise, the playlist sets a wonderful mood -- think a mingling of bittersweet romanticism and outright melancholy, with lots of slowly winding piano, buzzing guitar, acoustics and ghostly veils of electronica and organ. The singers' voices range from dramatic laments (Matt Bellamy) to quirky murmurs (Anya Marina), and their lyrics tend to reflect two themes: loss ("How much pain has cracked your soul?/How much love would make you whole?") and love ("Even though you're only one I see/I've got to set you free...").

Even those who are not (and probably never will be) fans of the Twilight phenomenon should immerse themselves in the "New Moon Soundtrack." Taken on its own merits, it's still a haunting string of beautiful songs.

Wow
Amazing soundtrack to a fantastic film. The songs are very well chosen and are great to listen to. I would recommend this to any fans of the film. :) great!

New Moon. The original Motion Picture Soundtrack .
An amazing soundtrack. Whether youre a Twihard fan or not.. you will appreciate the music excellence from these fantastic artisis.A very different soundtrack to that of Twilight. This is serious music. Well worth a listen.