This came in from inside the whole VAMPIRE production. So we can all rest easy that JC's VAMPIRES is his and it looks like the original cut is what we'll get! So rock on and kick a can, cause Carpenter's back in style...
I thought I might be able to help answer a few of the questions about John Carpenter's Vampires.
1. There is only one version of the movie--John's final cut. This is the same version seen at any distributor's screenings, festival screenings, and the release in France. It received its R rating from the MPAA before it was delivered to Largo in December.
2. The music for the film is all composed and performed by John Carpenter with the exception of one song used in the motel party scene, "Teaser" by a blues band called Stone. On some tracks a live orchestra was used in addition to John's playing, and on some tracks we used live percussion by Bucket Baker. A band called the Texas Toad Lickers performed a few of the tracks. The members of the Toad Lickers are John Carpenter, Steve Cropper, Donald "Duck" Dunne, Jeff Baxter, Rick Shlosser, Joe Robb and Bruce Robb.
3. The trailer uses a cue from the soundtrack called "Stake and Burn" for the firest half, and a Marilyn Manson remix called "All the Ugly People" for the second-half montage. While it probably wouldn't work in the film itself, it seemed kind of cool in the context of building momentum and intensity in the montage. ( An earlier trailer was commissioned by Largo Entertainment, and with any luck will never see the light of day. It had techno-"toy" music, and could gag a maggot. It was never approved by us, and to my knowledge isn't being used by any of the distributors.)
4. The people at Columbia have been enthusiastic and supportive. There has never been any talk of changing the music on the film.
5. The soundtrack album will be released by Milan Records, distributed by BMG internationally. It will only include tracks from the movie and will not be an "inspired by" production.
Thanks for the great review, and thanks for caring about the integrity of the work. We appreciate it.
Best regards,
Insider person at Carpenter's side...
