by Rob Theakston
Savage! Super Soul Soundtrack finds Don Julian abandoning his doo wop roots with the Larks to construct a score for this limited-run cult blaxploitation release. While one could easily assume he was emulating the career moves of several other successful R&B producers (Isaac Hayes, Curtis Mayfield, and Willie Hutch had already started to make a name for themselves scoring blaxploitation films), Julian was taking a more traditional approach to scoring than his colleagues. Savage! most definitely finds its strength in small segues and incidentals, rather than properly arranged songs. However, this should not deter you from listening by any means. There's an art in gaining maximum impact from a minimal amount of instruments and timbres, and Julian does it effortlessly.