Gordy Haab’s punchy, energetic main theme for Star Wars: Galactic Racer is the highlight of his high octane score for the game and happily it features in spades, leading bombastic John Williams-styled orchestra through an entertaining hour of triumphantly marching action flair.
I am and always have been a sucker for a good main theme, and that’s what drew me to Gordy Haab’s score for 2026 videogame Star Wars: Galactic Racer. I’ve admired the composer’s work for years, particularly in the Star Wars field – Fallen Order, Squadrons, Battlefront to name a few – Haab has a knack and a talent for grandiose orchestral flair styled with the compositional mannerisms of John Williams, with each and every one of the above game scores sounding like they could belong in one of the main films, and so whenever he’s announced as composer for a new Star Wars game I always make a point of checking out the music. Galactic Racer drew my ear more than usual though, for exactly what I said above – it’s delightful main theme; “The Soul Of Racing” opens with brassy bombast building with tremendous excitement and flair, practically blasting an energetic and enjoyably catchy motif for the titular new racing game – which sees players take control of chaotic podracers across a variety of planetary races – before then settling with a strings segment that swells with hope. Marching drums then usher the main theme back into centre stage for the track’s final minute, with heroic orchestra rallying behind at fever pitch to crescendo the motif to its finish in an absolutely spellbinding manner. All-in, I love how memorable this theme is – I was humming it after one listen, and after many more it still makes me smile. It’s just so unapologetically triumphant, and very apt for an upbeat racing game.
A grand burst of brass opens Standout Cue “This Is The Galactic League”, with a few quiet hints toward the main theme echoing. As the cue continues the pace then starts to quicken, with further brassy interspersions of said motif darting across banging drums and growing in confidence, building from frenetic tension to sheer orchestral heroism over the course of five fantastic minutes, and making for a fist-pumpingly epic action take on the main theme overall. After slower, strings-led and rather mysterious ambience in “Journey To Jakku” the rapid pace resumes for “Star Destroyer Speedway” as frantic strings pair with dramatic surges of colourful brass, swirling and building until a deafeningly anxious crescendo is finally reached. The score then slows to quieter, uneasy strings work again for the almost eerie “Rivers Of Sentinel”, though it doesn’t take long for the orchestral tension to return as a ferocious pace leaps through action setpiece “Acid Dash” with surging strings and crashing percussion thudding against worrisome brassy cameos from the main theme throughout the track. The similarly-styled “Geothermal Jungle” then adds moodily chanting vocals to its brass and strings-led orchestral wheelhouse, with some spectacularly heroic renditions of the main theme making it a definite highlight.
The lengthy “Full Throttle, Shade!” opens rather ominously, with some Raiders Of The Lost Ark-styled, mystery-inducing instruments echoing through the first two minutes. From here though brass practically explodes into the fray alongside thunderous drums and strings, with the resulting anxious action flaring with short, sporadic renditions of the main theme all the way to cue’s end. Twinkling ethereality is then tonally central for “Menacing Ball Of Ice” with eerie vocals also echoing, before said vocals then transition into thunderous action for the rapidly paced “Andobi Edge”, leading a desperate charge alongside blasts of increasingly shrill brass. After another ferocious flair of brassy action in “Rhodochrosite Run” and a triumphant march of the main theme through the short “The Greatest Spectacle”, “Galactic Gauntlet” showcases the middle section of said theme through several spectacularly heroic renditions on blasting orchestra. With the album nearing its end, the six minute “Faster And Stronger” then reprises the main theme in full for a grittier, more determined and enjoyably lengthy appearance battling against increasingly aggressive strings and drums, before final cue “Memories Of Podracing” aptly harkens back to the marching triumph of John Williams’ “The Flag Parade” from The Phantom Menace together with emphatic swirls of the main theme building in both volume and intensity throughout.
Overall, Gordy Haab’s triumphant score for Star Wars: Galactic Racer never lets up with its sheer orchestral energy, making it a pretty perfect fit for a chaotic podracing game. The composer has the John Williams-styled Star Wars sound nailed at this point, and his orchestrations are an absolute joy to listen to as a result – you need look no further than the fantastic action music showcased throughout this hour long album to hear it, with ferocious setpieces like “Galactic Gauntlet” and “Rhodochrosite Run” being excellent examples. The composer even throws in a few marching hints towards Williams’ own music for podracing too (“The Flag Parade” from The Phantom Menace) in cues like “Memories Of Podracing”. In addition to the solid orchestral talent on show here as well, what really elevates Galactic Racer above other Star Wars game soundtracks that Haab has composed is the delightfully punchy main theme; showcased through its unapologetically heroic introductory cue “The Soul Of Racing” as well as weaved throughout the score, this happily memorable motif really is the star of the show with my personal favourite appearances being through the standout “This Is The Galactic League” as well as in bombastic action form through “Geothermal Jungle” and “Faster and Stronger”.
All-in, come for Star Wars – but stay for Haab’s phenomenal Galactic Racer theme.
Score: 8/10
Standout Cues: The Soul Of Racing, This Is The Galactic League
Buy Gordy Haab’s score for Star Wars: Galactic Racer on the Amazon Store!
(note this is a sponsored link)
Follow me on Twitter for the latest soundtrack and review-based news!
Leave a Reply