John Carpenter – Assault On Precinct 13

Yep, this release on Death Waltz is a total rip off. Especially for the $80+ price it goes for now for a USED copy. PLEASE, for anyone reading this, do yourself a favor and purchase the AFFORDABLE 12” EP of “Assault On Precinct 13” on Sacred Bones (2016). There’s no need to purchase the full LP on Death Waltz which is 85% high hat sounds throughout the ENTIRE record. I read in a John Carpenter interview that he was surprised they wanted to release this as a full soundtrack since there is next to zero music content. And that’s coming from the man himself! I’m assuming most people want the Precinct 13 soundtrack for the classic main title. The 12” EP on Sacred Bones sounds nearly IDENTICAL to the original but with better fidelity. Go on YouTube and play both versions back to back. Compare for yourself. Sounds like the same synths and everything. Sound quality is excellent, full and rich. Absolutely no need to pay big bucks for this rip off pressing on Death Waltz with fake song titles. The 12” on Sacred Bones is all you need. You won’t regret it.

The music here is superb. Carpenter’s apparently semi-improvised theme, recorded in a single day, is killer. As an LP, it’s short (Playing at 45rpm) & centres on three main motifs. The way it plays with these in different settings is like a good dub album. Enjoyable.

A few points about the Death Waltz Vanilla pressing -

The graphics are beautiful. Heavy gatefold that makes that great sound when you open it (vinyl lovers will know it!). But - they got the gatefold graphics upside down, and one page of the booklet is printed in the wrong order!

Finally - it’s a fairly noisy press. I know this is a 2013 release and an audience has solidified for these kinds of releases, but I wish they would concentrate on getting the vinyl crisp. That’s far more preferable to a poster I’ll never use & a booklet I’ll read once (nice as they are).

The recent Carpenter reissues on Silva Screen have no spot varnish cover/poster etc. - but they sound great! No surface noise, more dynamic. That’s the important bit.

Remarkable music!

Be careful, I had to buy the disc twice to find a copy without manufacture defect.
The first had strong noise on both face during the 5 first seconds. Ask to the seller before buying !
Second copy I bought was perfect.
Too bad there is no 70's original version...
But, if you get a good copy the sound is very good, and carpenter, at the top !

What? This is one of Carpenter's best! It works precisely because the same material repeats in variations. Also, the tone of the synths and drum machines are absolutely perfect. I have many of Carpenter's soundtracks on vinyl and find this to be the one I spin the most.

In my opinion the worst John Carpenter's OST........why a full lp if a four tracker was enough?.Boring as hell

Am I the only one thinking the sound is really poor on this copy ?

There are 16 track listings. However when i listen to it there is really only stand out track that seems to be rehashed. Buy something else like the Death Waltz release no. 15 (DW015) Room 237.