I doubt I need to introduce either John Carpenter, or his 1978 masterpiece, "Halloween" to most people, or the influence he had on Horror, both from a film, and a soundtrack perspective. The best way to sum up everything Carpenter did with his 1978 classic is, well, revolutionary. Now, after 40 years, he has returned with his son and godson to produce and compose the soundtrack of the film of the same name (despite it being a direct sequel to the original).

I fully understand the influence the original Halloween soundtrack had and the opinions of the people who think it's the best horror soundtrack ever made, but honestly, I never actually found it very enjoyable as a standalone listen. Some might say that shouldn't be relevant, as the soundtrack should always go with the movie, and I see where they come from, but if you're releasing the soundtrack separately, make sure it's a good listen without the movie. The classic soundtrack just didn't do it for me, mostly because there are only like 4-5 songs and 11 tracks, so a lot of the tracklist is made out of the same songs repeating. Seriously, the amount of times you'll hear the main theme is like 3 or 4 times as much as there is a track called "Halloween Theme". That, ladies and gentleman, is why I absolutely love the soundtrack to the 2018 movie, "Halloween"

I was a bit afraid that the soundtrack is just going to be a carbon-copy of the original, but that's not the case like, at all. The soundtrack is really original and completely different. Of course, you're going to hear the main theme and "The Shape Lurks" a few times, but other than that, it's wholly original. There are songs here with more complex synth work (such as promotional single "The Shape Returns"), and times where you don't even know if the next track started yet, because it's so quiet, which adds a fuck ton to the atmosphere if you're listening in a dark room (examples: "The Grind", "Michael Kills Again"). The incorporation of a grindhouse feel of distorted guitars (that one guitar note is so incredibly orgasmic) like in "Michael Kills Again" or "Wrought Iron Fence". In the 20th track, "The Shape Burns", we even get a little homage to the 1982 sequel's a bit disco-esque, synth version of the main theme, and the conclud

er, "Halloween Triumphant" does a perfect job at closing both the record, and the movie, with it's 7 and a half minutes.
The only thing I didn't like was "Laurie Sees The Shape". I thought it's atmosphere would be somewhere between frightening panic, and intense emotion, but in the end, it was just a tasteless filler, nothing more. Actually, "Allyson Discovered" would have been perfect for the role that track (in my opinion) should have had. Other than that, I whole heartedly think this perfectly does what the original did (enhance the movie's atmosphere), and even more, as it's an amazing listen as a standalone record. Thus, I know you ain't gonna like me saying that, but I like this one a lot better than the original.