Review: Jonny Greenwood’s Soundtrack to ‘Spencer’

Jonny Greenwood is primarily known as the guitarist of Radiohead, but he also has a superb discography of film scores. Based on the sublime Phantom Thread (Nonesuch, 2018), and the alluring anxiety of The Master (Nonesuch, 2012), in many ways Greenwood was the perfect composer for Spencer (Mercury KX, 2021). These brilliant compositions do a fantastic job of conveying Princess Diana, as portrayed by Kristen Stewart, at her psychological edge. 

The most immediately notable aspect of Spencer is the mix of baroque and jazz music. These elements are on full display in “Arrival,” a stunning piece that ranks among Greenwood’s best. Menacing pipe organs lead to a string ensemble, but the composition does not stay in this space long. The strings take a secondary role as piano, bass, and trumpet shift into thrilling jazz improvisation. “New Currency” has a similar dynamic, with strings that yield center-stage to a beautiful combination of bass and harpsichord. The melodic center of the track is a trumpet with a wispy tone fit for the mist of a noir film. 

Greenwood masterfully captures Diana’s turbulent state of mind on “The Pearls.” Like the royal dinner on screen, “The Pearls” has a stately opening – the string quartet is gorgeous. Eventually, the strings impressively transition from light sophistication to a sinister storm. The string quartet is crucial to the twisted opulence of Spencer, and “Ancient and Modern” is a fine example of how mesmerizing Greenwood’s arrangements can be. The quartet loops into a dazzling hypnotic echo.  

Spencer is full of dark grace, but Greenwood does not shy away from force. “Calling The Whipper In” has a sprawling string tremolo met with bass, trumpet, and harpsichord in an eerie call and response. A frantic, knotty rhythm section clashes with the grandeur of radiant strings on “Delusion / Miracle.” In “Frozen Three,” strings scratched to their abrasive limit are followed by sporadic piano and trumpet improvisation. Regardless of whether Greenwood is leaning towards abstraction or melody, the result is always compelling. 

In Phantom Thread, Greenwood wrote what was arguably his catchiest work to date in pieces such as “House of Woodcock”, and the motif of Spencer continues that trend. “Spencer” carries a forlorn elegance, much like Diana in the film, and its circular structure invites repeat listens. The theme sounds magnificent throughout the score, and is particularly haunting in the organ arrangements of “Press Call” and “Partita In Five For Two Organs”. The bar was set extremely high after the remarkable Phantom Thread, but the excellence of Spencer shows that Greenwood was more than up to the task.

The soundtrack to Spencer is now available on Mercury KX. If you would like to support our site while purchasing the album, it is available in our Amazon affiliate store.