Earlier this week, Mondo, the company that prints insanely limited and cool screen printed posters, VHS re-issues, toys, apparel and more, has announced a new box set, collecting the scores from seven films in the A NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET horror franchise. Like something of a dream rather than a nightmare, the 8xLP set is called Box of Souls and will be available for purchase as of October 25th. While Mondo is notorious for selling out of their limited products faster than you can say "One, two, Freddy's coming for you," the box set is still available for purchase as of the posting of this article. Don't sleep on it, though.
The box set includes Charles Bernstein’s music for the original 1984 movie, as well as work by Angelo Badalamenti (A NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET 3: THE DREAM WARRIORS) and others. James Plotkin lent his skillful remastering techniques the records, which are pressed on 180 gram black vinyl. Also included in the set are prints of original artwork for each film score by ink slinger Mike Saputo.
You can check out some of Saputo's artwork plus a full list of the records included in the box set below:
A Nightmare on Elm Street Box of Souls:
Charles Bernstein: A Nightmare on Elm Street
Christopher Young: A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy’s Revenge
Angelo Badalamenti: A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors
Craig Safan: A Nightmare on Elm Street 4: The Dream Master
Jay Ferguson: A Nightmare on Elm Street 5: The Dream Child
Brian May: Freddy’s Dead: The Final Nightmare
J. Peter Robinson: Wes Craven’s New Nightmare
A NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET is one of the most successful and beloved horror franchises in history and we are thrilled and honored to be releasing the entire series as a vinyl box set featuring 8 LPs from the original series, all remastered for vinyl by James Plotkin with incredible original artwork from Mike Saputo and a 12-page booklet featuring extensive liner notes and interviews with key composers and cast members.
The music of Elm Street is a huge part of the series, each film having its own unique sound and feel. Charles Bernstein created the original score, and Freddy’s main theme that was used throughout the series. His score to the first film is nothing short of a landmark horror score and utterly defines American horror in the '80s – super downbeat, eerie and metallic. Christopher Young (HELLRAISER) supplied the score to FREDDY'S REVENGE, and takes the themes down a more orchestral route, layering sounds upon sounds to create a truly scary listen. Angelo Badalamenti (TWIN PEAKS) composed the score DREAM WARRIORS. Here he crafts moody textures and a woodwind section to create a dreamlike score that fits the theme of PART 3 perfectly. Craig Safan was bought on to compose THE DREAM MASTER, and with the help of a synth-clavier synthesizer he created one of the craziest horror scores of the '80s. Yeah, sure, it's scary and creepy, but it's also a ton of fun and totally unique. For THE DREAM CHILD, Jay Ferguson delivers a synth-heavy score with nods to fairground music and layers of church organs and weird choral samples. For THE FINAL NIGHTMARE, Australian composer Brian May mixes electronic and orchestrations to stunning effect and for the final film in the series. In NEW NIGHTMARE J. Peter Robinson gives us a super lush orchestrated nightmare that harkens back to Bernstein’s original.
The nightmarishly cool box set is no doubt a dream come true for any Freddy fan, and you can get your razor-fingered mits on one by clicking here. The box set costs $250 USD.