Classic Soundtracks

Collaborations: Helmet & House Of Pain- Just Another Victim

I’ve been on a bit of a Helmet kick as of late. While going through their catalog, I made the obligatory stop at the Judgement Night Soundtrack and the collaboration they did with House Of Pain on the song “Just Another Victim.” Listening back to the song it’s still a banger. The whole soundtrack is a classic and still holds up quite well. Especially this song as well as the Slayer and Ice-T collab. Helmet’s style of dropped tuned guitars mixed with hip hop definitely ushered in a movement and this song is a testament to it being done right and well!

Helmet & House Of Pain- Just Another Victim:

https://youtube.com/watch?v=HyT3gslqHT4%3Fsi%3DqgDD-aR3–SkTBUB

Helmet & Everlast- Just Another Victim (LIVE):

https://youtube.com/watch?v=WMLvASM8egI%3Fsi%3DUaOvtDnr7iA0Jxv9

Classic Soundtracks: Dee Snider’s Strangeland

Back in 1998 Twisted Sister frontman, Dee Snider’s horror film Strangeland was released. I don’t remember much about the movie but, I do remember the soundtrack quite well. The soundtrack features songs from Sevendust, Megadeth, Pantera, Anthrax, Coal Chamber, Marilyn Manson, Soulfly, System Of A Down and Snot! That’s quite a banging collection of bands and songs. The song that I will always remember most from this soundtrack is “Absent” by Snot. This would be the last recorded song by the band before singer Lynn Strait’s tragic car accident. There is a different version of “Absent” found on the Strait Up tribute album. This soundtrack is one of those that came out at a time when soundtracks still meant something. If you haven’t heard this soundtrack before, it’s definitely worth your time!

Strangeland Soundtrack:

Classic Soundtracks: Reality Bites

Remember the 1994 movie Reality Bites? It starred Winona Ryder, Ethan Hawke, Janeane Garafalo, Steve Zahn and Ben Stiller (who also directed the fiim). The film was one of those at the time that tried to capture the Generation X movement and highlight the issues of each individual. It’s one of those movies that over time has achieved cult status and has started to be studied in a way as to the correlation between differing eras and how times change so rapidly these days, not to mention the capitalistic/corporate nature of our world and how it’s all but taken the individual aspects of culture and commerce away. But enough of me going off on a tangent about that (I will save that for another day and topic). The soundtrack to this film though is one that stands out. Not only in the songs/bands picked, how they were used in the film. There is a bit of an interesting history to the soundtrack as well. RCA met with the film’s music supervisor Karyn Rachtman, and Stiller, three weeks into filming, to discuss the soundtrack album. They finalized a deal and the label opened its roster to the director, who picked only one band: Me Phi Me. RCA aggressively marketed the album and had five tracks on rotation on radio and MTV. The video for Crowded House’s “Locked Out” was updated to include footage from the film. In addition, the video for “Spin the Bottle” by the Juliana Hatfield Three was directed by Stiller and featured clips from the film as well. The soundtrack sold 1.2 million units and reached #13 on the Billboard 200. The album also earned a No. 1 single with Lisa Loeb’s “Stay (I Missed You)”. In the US the album went 2X Platinum as well. What’s most interesting about this soundtrack is that it tells a story just like an album would. That is something quite rare in soundtracks these days. The 90’s really had a knack for putting together the right soundtracks and it took the film to a whole level, just like in Reality Bites. By the way, if you haven’t seen this movie, I recommend it. It’s a great watch especially when you look at the world today and realize how doomed we all are!


Reality Bites Soundtrack:

Classic Soundtrack: Romeo + Juliet (1996)
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The 1996 version of Romeo and Juliet, you know the one with Leonardo DiCaprio and Claire Danes, has one hell of a great soundtrack. It features a bunch of great bands like Radiohead, Garbage, The Cardigans, and Butthole Surfers. The Radiohead song “Exit Music (For A Film)” is featured in the film as the credits play but, was not included on the soundtrack. Instead “Talk Show Host” is. This soundtrack was a huge success and a few of the songs like “Lovefool” by The Cardigans, helped to propel the sales. The soundtrack reached number 2 on the Billboard charts and would go on to sell over 3 million copies in the US alone.


The Soundtrack:

Classic Soundtracks: Ransom

BILLY CORGAN - Rats - YouTube

The 1996 movie Ransom, has something very cool about it that a lot of people don’t know. Ready for this, there are seven songs written for the film that Billy Corgan wrote and performed on. Originally, Howard Shore wrote and recorded a full score for the film but Director Ron Howard rejected it and went with notable composer James Horner instead, who collaborated with Billy Corgan. As a result, there are 7 tracks written, produced and performed by Corgan that all appear on Ransom’s soundtrack; namely “Lizards,” “Rats,” “Rats With Tails,” “Spiders,” “Squirrels,” “Worms 1” and “Worms With Vocals.” The end result are these 7 songs that are pretty spectacular and badass. This is definitely worth checking out!

 

Classic Soundtracks: The Wedding Singer

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The Wedding Singer is one of those movies that no matter when it’s on, it’s always a fun movie to watch. It’s aged well and the jokes are still funny. One other thing about the movie that has always been great is the music. The 80’s had some really good music and some that was well, lets just say, it was crap. One of the fun parts of The Wedding Singer was the ability for them to poke some fun at the music of the time. Either way, the soundtrack to the movie is a classic and it’s perfect for your 80’s themed parties or when you just want to have a good time. Songs by David Bowie, New Order, The Psychedelic Furs, Depeche Mode, The Smiths, and Billy Idol are just a few of the greats that appear on the soundtrack. Plus the two songs that Adam Sandler sing in the film are included and both of those are actually quite well done, especially “Somebody Kill Me.”

 
The Wedding Singer Soundtrack:

 
Adam Sandler- Somebody Kill Me:

 

Classic Soundtracks: Forrest Gump

71wbWzAqIAL._SL1500_.jpgOne of the best things about movies set during specific times is the music that is chosen. I’ve always felt that if you can nail the look of the time, than you had best make sure you get the sounds right as well. It’s sort of funny to think about but, also not surprising that one of the best soundtracks ever also came out in 1994. I’m telling you, 1994 was beyond a magical year. The soundtrack I’m speaking of is for Forrest Gump. As you know, the film takes place across a few decades and the music chosen to represent those years is absolutely perfect. You’ve got selections from Elvis Presley, The Four Tops, Creedence Clearwater Revivial, Aretha Franklin, Bob Dylan, Buffalo Springfield, The Doors, Jefferson Airplane, The Supremes, Bob Segar & The Silver Bullet Band, Harry Nielsson, etc. This soundtrack really is exquisite. Even the rest of the songs in the film not included on the soundtrack were great. Songs by Fleetwood Mac, The Jimi Hendrix Experience, Canned Heat and Jackson Browne really bring it all together. Even the score for the film by Alan Silvestri was perfect. The soundtrack to Forrest Gump is one of those that will always be recognized and rightfully so.

 

Forrest Gump Soundtrack:

 

Classic Soundtracks: Demon Knight

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Remember way back, when Tales From The Crypt was on? I know I do. It was such a fun show full of humor, horror and violence. The show was a pretty big success and of course out of that came a couple Tales From The Crypt movies. The first (and best one) was Demon Knight. The movie starred Billy Zane, William Sadler, Jada Pinkett and Thomas Haden Church. The real gem of the movie though was the soundtrack, which consisted of bands like Pantera, Machine Head, Megadeth, Rollins Band, Filter, Ministry and The Melvins to name a few. The choice to make the soundtrack mostly heavy music really gave the movie the right mood. Plus a soundtrack and movie like this in 1995, you knew you were gonna get something worthwhile.

 

Demon Knight Soundtrack:

Classic Soundtracks: Spun

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Way back in 2001 after the break up of The Smashing Pumpkins, Billy Corgan and Jimmy Chamberlain formed a new band called Zwan. There was two sides to the band and the more acoustic based side was called The Djali Zwan.  Then in 2002, Billy was approached by visionary director Jonas Akerlund to create the music for his upcoming film Spun. A slew of original songs were written by Billy, as well as different approaches to a variety of other songs like a very stripped down version of Iron Maiden’s “The Number Of The Beast.” The film would go on to become a sort of cult movie but, the soundtrack is one of those sought after items for many fans of Corgan’s. These songs have taken on a life of their own and really helped to give a vibe to the film.

 

Spun Soundtrack:

 

Classic Soundtracks: Private Parts

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The year is 1997 and the auto-biographical film Private Parts about Howard Stern is drawing in audiences. While the film went on to be a success, there was another element of the whole thing that often gets overlooked and that is the soundtrack.

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