The Fireside

Lastly, for the time being, I shall somewhat-wrap up talking about Middle-earth music. I am following the development of the Amazon Middle-earth series with great interest. It's far too early to tell if it will be any good,, as everything at this stage is in the 'pre' phases: pre-production etc. We don't even have a premiere date, cast, trailer etc. But this leaves time and room for thinking and speculation. First and foremost, I must say that I greatly adore Howard Shore's Middle-earth music (most notably, the Complete Recordings releases of The Lord of the Rings  soundtracks). This post is being written under the assumption that Howard will be not a part of the project, however much I wish him to be. He's poured so much into Middle-earth at this point, I'm unsure what else has to offer, even if he wanted to! One never knows... So, due to my love of film and TV soundtracks, fantasy, and music and all that, I've been listening to a few composers over the...

Quite recently, The Two Towers  Complete Recordings got released for the first time on vinyl, and (re)released on CD, as well as various download/streaming services. The Return of the King  is now up for pre-order in the complete recordings format (vinyl and CD), which will complete The Lord of the Rings  Complete Recordings campaign. But what about after that? Back when The Fellowship of the Ring  was announced for vinyl release, I did a similar post to this one. Perhaps there could be more Howard Shore Middle-earth music and soundtracks appearing on vinyl; announced closer to the release date for The Return of the King . Whatever they may (not) have planned, I'm going to have a look at what else could  come out on vinyl. THE LORD OF THE RINGS - A trilogy box. It may seem like a silly idea, but it would be neat if for the CD+blu-ray audio and vinyl lp releases of the Complete Recordings if there was an offer or something to get an empty box or slipcase...

With September coming up shortly, that means there will be new iDevices coming out, as well as another version of iOS. Here\s what to expect in iOS 12: Performance Faster and more responsive The things you do every day are faster than ever — across more devices. iOS has been overhauled for improved performance on devices as far back as iPhone 5s and iPad Air. Smoother animations Animations are smoother across the system. So when you do things like bring up Control Center, swipe while multitasking or scroll in apps, it’s more fluid and responsive. Up to 40% faster app launch * Apps launch faster in day-to-day use. And when you're pushing your iOS device to the limit, multitasking between lots of apps, they launch up to 2x faster. * Up to 50% faster keyboard display * The keyboard appears faster and typing is more responsive. Up to 70% faster swipe to Camera * Swiping to Camera from the Lock screen happens faster so you never miss...

Today, The Two Towers  soundtrack is out in its definitive, complete recordings format. The complete recordings series were initially released on CD (with a DVD-Audio disc in the set) from 2005 - 2007. However, at some point, the sets became discontinued. Earlier this year with The Fellowship of the Ring , the sets were re-issued on CD (with a blu-ray audio disc replacing the DVD-audio disc), and debuting on limited-edition numbered vinyls, and on various digital services, as well. While the vinyl sets are strictly limited and numbered, the CD+blu-ray audio set isn't limited, though they may sell out. Also, who knows when (or if) they may be discontinued again..... Here are links to The Two Towers , however you may like to listen to it. Please note, you may have to change your 'country' or change the Amazon type (.CA, .CO.UK, etc.) - limited edition numbered units of 8000 on vinyl (as of writing this, they are still in stock and not yet sold out, so act quick!):  https:...

I knew  checking Amazon each and every single day would pay off! Completing the trilogy of vinyl releases, here is The Return of the King . As of this writing, Amazon has The Two Towers  still up for pre-order, so make sure you grab that if interested! The Return of the King  is arriving on vinyl on September 21.  (as of this writing). Expect a CD+blu-ray audio set to arrive that same day - though at the moment it's not listed. However, while the CD set may be initially sold out, it's not 'limited edition' like these vinyls. Finally, expect The Return of the King  to arrive on all digital / streaming formats close that date, as well. But wait - it's already there (from the initial CD sets from 2005 - 2007). Not sure if they'll 'upgrade' the sound quality (it doesn't need it) or change the image slightly. Either way, I'll keep you posted! The Two Towers , as a reminder, comes out in a few days. Maybe after this there will be The Hobbit  sound...