Mica Levi: Jackie OST review: understated score for Mrs JFK’s biopic

Having proven her worth as a creator of extraordinary film soundtracks on Jonathan Glazer's Under the Skin, Mica Levi turns her attention to something a little less off-the-wall. The sometime Micachu & The Shapes frontwoman's score for Pablo Larraín's Jackie Kennedy biopic is a largely understated affair, using traditional orchestration to illustrate the former first lady's life before and after her husband's assassination. Levi's penchant for the offbeat is audible in subtle increments, like the woozily unsettling string motif used on the intro and on Lee Harvey Oswald. Graveyard draws on a stately military drum beat to eerie effect, while there is playfulness in the woodwind of Children and Vanity, providing some much-needed lightness amidst the morbidity. Fans hoping for something a little more eccentric may be disappointed, but Levi has nonetheless filled the brief. Micachu.biz