Battleship Potemkin (album)

Battleship Potemkin
Soundtrack album by Tennant/Lowe
Released	5 September 2005
Recorded	2003–2004
Genre	Electronica, orchestral
Length	68:29
Label	Parlophone & EMI Classics
Producer	Pet Shop Boys, Sven Helbig
Pet Shop Boys chronology
Back to Mine (2005) Battleship Potemkin (2005) Fundamental (2006)

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
Drowned in Sound	favourable [1]
Virgin.net	[2]

Battleship Potemkin is a 2005 album of electronic and orchestral music written by Neil Tennant and Chris Lowe of Pet Shop Boys, to accompany the 1925 silent film Battleship Potemkin by Sergei Eisenstein. It is performed by Tennant, Lowe and the Dresdner Sinfoniker, conducted by Jonathan Stockhammer, with orchestrations by Torsten Rasch. ^[3] The album was released under the composers' names, Tennant/Lowe, as is customary with classical releases. ^[4] The album is produced by the Pet Shop Boys and Sven Helbig.

Background and composition

In April 2003, Philip Dodd, director of the Institute of Contemporary Arts in London, approached Neil Tennant and Chris Lowe and suggested that they might write a new score for the film and perform it as a free concert in Trafalgar Square as part of a series of events organised by the Mayor of London, Ken Livingstone. ^{[5] [6]}

They wrote the music in the order it would be heard, using a DVD of the film as a guide. From the beginning they resolved to combine electronic music and strings. The lyrics of the three vocal pieces within it were largely inspired by the film's original subtitles, though one – "After All (The Odessa Staircase)" – was also prompted by the role of Trafalgar Square as a home of political dissent in London. ^{[7] [8] [9]}

Tennant and Lowe decided to ask Torsten Rasch to orchestrate the work after hearing his song cycle Mein Herz brennt, based on the music of the rock group Rammstein. ^[5] Torsten Rasch's orchestrations were recorded by the Dresdner Sinfoniker, conducted by Jonathan Stockhammer, in Berlin during July 2004. ^[9]

Performances

The first performance of the score on Sunday, 12 September 2004 in Trafalgar Square was one of the season's top events^{[ citation needed ]} and drew a crowd of approximately 25,000. ^[10]

In September 2005, Pet Shop Boys and the Dresdner Sinfoniker took the concerts to Germany and performed in Frankfurt, Bonn, Berlin, and Hamburg to promote the release of the album. A performance took place on 1 May 2006 at the Swan Hunter’s Shipyard in North Tyneside with the Northern Sinfonia. Pet Shop Boys performed the score with the BBC Concert Orchestra at the Barbican, London, on 11 January 2008. ^[11]

A performance of the film score in Red Square, Moscow, was discussed ^[9] but did not take place. In an interview for the BBC in September 2005, Neil Tennant mentioned that they had approached the governments of Iran and China about performing the film score live, but both countries declined the proposal. ^[12]

Tour dates

• 2004
  • 12 September - Trafalgar Square, London, England.
• 2005
  • 2 September - Alte Oper, Frankfurt, Germany.
  • 3 September - Museumsmeile, Bonn, Germany.
  • 4 September - Museumsmeile, Berlin, Germany.
  • 5 September - Stadtpark, Hamburg, Germany.
• 2006
  • 1 May - Swan Hunters Shipyard, Newcastle upon Tyne, England.
  • 20 July - Prager Strasse, Dresden, Germany.
  • 29 July - Gardens of the Royal Palace of La Granja, Segovia, Spain.
• 2008
  • 11 January - Barbican Theatre, London.

Live performance reviews

• BBC Collective, Trafalgar Square
• The Independent, Trafalgar Square

Release

The album was released on 5 September 2005, a year after the first performance. ^[13] A 7-inch mix of the song "No Time For Tears" was officially released as a b-side on the DVD format of the single, "Minimal". An orchestral mix of the song is included on the Fundamental: Further Listening 2005-2007 reissue. ^[14] The Battleship Potemkin album was not released in the United States until 2011. ^[15]

The song "Comrades" was frequently used in the BBC documentary Andrew Marr's History of Modern Britain , episode 4, featuring Margaret Thatcher's career as prime minister.^{[ citation needed ]}

Track listing

1. "'Comrades!'" – 3:52
2. "Men and Maggots" – 4:57
3. "Our Daily Bread" – 0:52
4. "Drama in the Harbour" – 9:00
5. "Nyet" – 6:14
6. "To the Shore" – 3:12
7. "Odessa" – 6:50
8. "No Time for Tears" – 4:32
9. "To the Battleship" – 4:34
10. "After All (The Odessa Staircase)" – 7:23
11. "Stormy Meetings" – 1:31
12. "Night Falls" – 5:55
13. "Full Steam Ahead" – 1:50
14. "The Squadron" – 4:24
15. "For Freedom" – 3:17

Personnel

Pet Shop Boys

• Neil Tennant
• Chris Lowe

Guest musicians

• Pete Gleadall - programming
• Torsten Rasch - orchestrations
• Jonathan Stockhammer - conductor
• The Dresdner Sinfoniker - orchestra on all tracks except 2, 3, 11, 12 & 13
• Dave Clayton - additional programming and keyboards
• Markus Schwind - trumpet

Chart performance

Chart (2005)	Peak position
German Albums Chart	54
UK Albums Chart	97

References

1. "Pet Shop Boys: Battleship Potemkin". Drowned in Sound . 30 September 2005. Archived from the original on 5 October 2012. Retrieved 29 September 2011.
2. "Pet Shop Boys: Battleship Potemkin". Virgin.net. 5 September 2005. Archived from the original on 25 November 2005.
3. "Battleship Potemkin". petshopboys.co.uk. 12 September 2024. Retrieved 24 October 2024.
4. "History: September 2005". petshopboys.co.uk. Retrieved 24 October 2024.
5. Sawyer, Miranda (4 September 2004). "'I refuse to be restricted by background - or fear'". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 23 October 2024.
6. "Pet Shop Boys unveil soundtrack". BBC News. 13 September 2004. Retrieved 24 October 2024.
7. "Pet Shop Boys plan free film gig". BBC News. 28 June 2004. Retrieved 24 October 2024.
8. Tennant, Neil (30 June 2004). "Roll up for the revolution". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 23 October 2024.
9. Pet Shop Boys. (April 2005) "Battleship Potemkin". Literally, issue 28, p. 1.
10. Cummings, Tim (13 September 2004). "Pet Shop Boys / Battleship Potemkin, Trafalgar Square: An electronic revolution on board Battleship Potemkin". The Independent. London. Retrieved 23 October 2024.
11. "Theatre & Film: Battleship Potemkin". petshopboys.co.uk. Retrieved 24 October 2024.
12. "Pet Shop Boys want to take 'Battleship Potemkin' to China". NME. 16 September 2005. Retrieved 24 October 2024.
13. "Pet Shop Boys to release 'Battleship Potemkin' soundtrack". NME. 21 July 2005. Retrieved 24 October 2024.
14. "Pet Shop Boys - Fundamental / Further Listening 2005–2007". Discogs. Retrieved 27 August 2017.
15. "Concrete and Potemkin released in USA". petshopboys.co.uk. 17 May 2011. Retrieved 24 October 2024.