Reviews
'A powerfully restrained score that forgoes spaghetti-western cliches in favour of subtle interplay between piano, violin and cello. Ellis's strings are scratchy and subdued, while Cave's melancholic, lilting piano themes supply the required emotional heft, no more so than on the elegiac 'Song for Jesse'. Whatever the film's quality, this sparely beautiful record deserves an audience.'
The Observer
'Works beautifully as an instrumental piece in its own right. This album employs a full string section, yet it remains spare and understated throughout, with shadowy cello notes and trembling violins surging and falling against limpid, carefully picked out piano keys to create a vivid sensation of wide open space combined with an intensely felt state of mind. The mood is stately and emotional, dark and mournful, with the mythology of the West a subtle presence rather than a dominating cliche.'
Metro (****)
'An effective and distinctive signature sound they've developed, with well-placed piano, aching strings and looping throbs which keep you tense and, sometimes, wanting more. It's very beautiful in parts, has subtlee nods to the classic Wild West sound'
Record Collector (****)
'This unsettling score of impending doom and ever present sense of betrayal is a literally literary spellbinding and beguiling voyage that will chill you to the marrow while giving merciful release to your ravaged mind'
Maverick (****)
'Lush and dramatic instrumentation to Andrew Dominik's savage tale of the wild west. Pleasingly many tracks here could stand alone, including 'Cowgirl ' in which violinist Elli's bowing is as expressive as anything he ever did with The Dirty Three.'
TNT (****)
'A lot gentler and prettier than you might expect, given both the film's subject matter and a knowledge of the pair's CVs. Repetitive piano phrases, circling violin lines, a very occasional guitar, no words at all. Nothing fancy, but nothing wasted.'
Sunday Times (****)