Caldera Records presents Guy Farley’s score for the motion picture There’s Always Hope, directed by Tim Lewiston. The drama tells the story of Hope and her parents who split up after her father – Jonathan, played by Colm Meaney – discovers his wife has had an affair with a colleague, smarmy Luke. In her youthful naivety, Hope refuses to accept the termination of her parents’ relationship and makes it her mission to fix it. She does so by joining her father in his holiday home in Portugal to which he has fled...

Ah, wonderful Guy Farley delivers another emotional roller coaster score. Over the years we've reviewed quite a few of his soundtracks and hand on heart, I have to admit that he's personally my favourite composer working today. His work has so many elements of composers from my childhood (John Williams, John Barry and Howard Shore being the three that immediately stand out) that it's always a joy to listen to what Farley will deliver next.

On There's Always Hope there's an underlying '70s jazz vibe on several themes, reminiscent of Barry's early cinematic work. But whilst Farley crafts the score to focus on a nostalgic emotional core, he also reworks it to sound fresh and modern, giving just a superficial outwards appearance of harking back to the past. Farley, himself credits the music of Michel Legrand as being inspirational on some of the music on There's Always Hope.

While not as thematically repetitive as his work on Maria di Nazaret, There's Always Hope has strong themes that are revisited over the course of the album. Thankfully Caldera Records present this in such a way that these segments of music are never placed too close together. How does Farley hide the fact he's revisiting the same theme? Simple, he changes instruments... and honestly that works, unless you're paying close attention or you're a soundtrack nerd like me. A simple shift in instrument really does change the emotional impact on the theme. For those who don't believe in magic... Farley's work here is proof it exists.

I loved the use of flute in this score, which works wonderfully when paired with piano on tracks like 'I Drove Her Away'. The score is book ended with a new recording of the classic 'Windmills of Your Mind'.

Another beautifully composed score from the great Farley, superbly presented by the team at Caldera Records.

9

Darren Rea