14 Movie Scores That Are Brilliant Albums In Their Own Right

Music doesn't always make a film, but it certainly has the ability to elevate the medium in profound ways. Some of the best original scores for movies are just as brilliant with the visuals they accompany as they are without. When you need to focus, sometimes the best soundtrack isn't a killer album but instead, a killer soundtrack.

We took it upon ourselves to put together a list of some of our favorite original scores to listen to in isolation, removed from the material they were originally composed for. These are scores that stand up as incredible albums regardless of their original intent, from foreboding horror-inspired ambience to soaring orchestral grandiosity.

Composer: Carter Burwell

There’s a reason the Coen brothers have worked with Carter Burwell so often, employing his delicate composition to brilliant effect time and time again. But Burwell’s score for Fargo might be his absolute best.

The melodies on display are often chilling in the best way possible, highlighting that divide between good and evil just like the film does. At times menacing and sorrowful while offering a sliver of hope, his Fargo score thankfully saw itself repurposed for Noah Hawley’s fantastic TV series of the same name, further proving just how effective its music is all these years later.

Composer: Angelo Badalamenti

Outside of his own music, David Lynch is known for his impeccable sound design and beautiful collaborations with Angelo Badalamenti. While Blue Velvet and Mulholland Drive both have some outstanding musical moments and might be more highly regarded films, Fire Walk With Me is their creative peak as a duo. There’s some nauseatingly good stuff here, retreading the work from the rest of Twin Peaks without relying too heavily on it.

Diving deeper and going darker, Badalamenti crafted one of the best scores of the decade, it’s just that no one noticed at the time.

Composer: Disasterpeace

There’s a long lineage of synth-driven scores for horror movies, and there’s no better recent example than Disasterpeace’s incredible work for David Robert Mitchell’s It Follows. With the legendary Fez score also under his belt, Disasterpeace has built himself up to be one of the most exciting composers around. As haunting as it is, his It Follows score is his finest work. It says a lot that Mitchell has already teamed-up with the producer once again for his next film.

Composer: Tsutomu Ōhashi

Katushiro Otomo's 1988 masterstroke Akira is one of the most striking animated films of all time. Its signature, neon-soaked style has inspired countless musicians, from producers on Soundcloud and Bandcamp to Kanye West. The visuals are breathtaking in their depiction of a city in chaos, and they’re complemented beautifully by Tsutomu Ōhashi’s vivid score.

Switching between gorgeous ambience and lively rhythms, Ōhashi’s score brings the setting of Neo-Tokyo to life. Just as carefully crafted as the colorful environments, the score still stands up today because of how varied and distinct it is. While the audio is inseparable from the image and vice versa, the score benefits from a closer listen, deserving just as much attention as what it was originally made to accompany.

Composer: Jo Yeong-wook

Park Chan-wook’s 2003 masterpiece Oldboy is a remarkably intense film, so it only makes sense that the film’s music is equally so. Despite being one of the most traditional sounding scores on this list, Jo Yeong-wook’s music brings considerable heft to the neo-noir thriller’s winding story. “The Last Waltz” is definitely the highlight here, and there’s no denying that the film’s climax wouldn’t be as powerful if it weren’t for the music that accompanies it.

Composer: Air

Despite the score showing up in the film a little differently than how it sounds on the album version, Air’s The Virgin Suicides is still essential listening. Chopping up portions of Air’s score and looping it, Sofia Coppola utilized the music so well that in remains one of the best examples of non-diegetic sound in modern cinema. Transforming the score, Air’s work can be appreciated just as much with the film as it can be without. 

Composer: Kenji Kawai

1995's Ghost in the Shell is legendary for a number of reasons, but perhaps one of the most talked about reasons is Kenji Kawai's stunning music. Just as the film had inspired countless action films and cyber thrillers, the score has had a lasting impact of countless musicians. Echoes of the music can be found in producers of all kinds, especially the likes of Hudson Mohawke and Oneohtrix Point Never. Mixing traditional Japanese sounds with alien noises perfect for the film's setting, Kawai's score is critical to the film's brilliance.

Composers: Arcade Fire and Owen Pallett

There’s nothing too immediate about Will Butler and Owen Pallett’s score for Spike Jonze’s distinctive sci-fi romance Her, but that’s one of its strongest aspects. The ambient music accompanies the tale of a lonely man looking to connect with someone or something so desperately. It’s an emotional score that’s easy to work or wallow to. It’s some of the most tender work either artist has ever recorded, stripped back and beautiful.

Composers: Ennio Morricone, John Carpenter, Alan Howarth, and Larry Hopkins

John Carpenter’s best films are just as famous for their music as they are for his direction. The Thing is one of the few films he’s directed in which he didn’t handle the majority of the score, but it’s evident he still played a huge part in shaping its sound. Pushing legendary Italian composer Ennio Morricone into new territory, the music of The Thing gets a lot of mileage out of very little. Morricone’s signature strings are still there, but so are Carpenter’s menacing synths. The resulting music is some of the most tense ever composed for a film.

Composer: Sinoia Caves

Say what you want about Beyond the Black Rainbow, but there's no denying it's got one hell of an aesthetic. It's a divisive film, but its look and music make for a striking combination. Sinoia Caves' score very much sets the scene, building on the retro futurism without crafting something too dry and tired. The music is cinematic in a way few other retro-inspired scores are, setting it apart and warranting a listen regardless of how one might perceive the often difficult film.

Composers: Nino Rota, Carmine Coppola, Marty Symes

​Considering the runtime of The Godfather, it may seem surprising that its soundtrack is under 32 minutes long. But this Francis Ford Coppola classic is nothing if not purposeful, and the same can be said about its soundtrack. Featuring only one vocal track as performed by Al Martino, who plays the insufferable Johnny Fontane, The Godfather soundtrack is ominous yet elegant, with each song perfectly setting the tone for their respective scenes. With "The Godfather Finale" as not only the soundtrack's final song, but also as one of the most iconic and strikingly mesmerizing scores of all time, Nino Rota takes listeners on a journey and demonstrates just how powerful a soundtrack can be.  

Composers: Cliff Martinez

While Drive's soundtrack is excellent on its own, with its unbearably cool '80s-inspired synthpop sound, it's almost impossible to separate it from the film itself. Though two of the most recognizable songs from the OST—Kavinsky's "Nightcall" and College's "A Real Hero" featuring Electric Youth—are not original recordings, the remainder of the soundtrack is just as evocative.

Tasked by director Nicolas Winding Refn to imitate the sound of Johnny Jewel's bands, Chromatics and Glass Candy (Refn originally wanted Jewel for the score, but the studio hired Martinez instead), Martinez manages to keep in line with that aesthetic while crafting the perfect music for nighttime cruising. 

Composers: Jonny Greenwood

Paul Thomas Anderson's 2007 masterpiece There Will Be Blood is terrific for many reasons, but its soundtrack made the viewing experience that much better. Making his Hollywood film score debut with There Will Be Blood, Radiohead's musical polymath Jonny Greenwood crafts some lush, dramatic, and beautifully ominous orchestral tracks that perfectly juxtaposes with PTA's subtle, patient pacing. Greenwood's music is as much of a star as any cast member, and alone, stands as some of his best work to date.

Composer: Prince

We would be remiss not to include Prince's Purple Rain. Though the film itself—a kitschy musical drama starring The Purple One—hasn't necessarily been reviewed favorably, its soundtrack has stood the test of time, often lauded as one of the best soundtracks of all time. Purple Rain is a classic and one of Prince's most popular albums for a reason, and it's one of those rare occasions where the soundtrack might work better without the film it was created for.