|  | |  | |
Various Artists
Daredevil: The Album (Wind-Up Records)
By: Vinnie Apicella
 The blockbuster action flick for February gets a twenty-song soundtrack of equal value featuring a bevy of today's biggest Rock artists serving up the perfect compliment to a little crime fighting drama. With the exception of Evanescence, a female fronted electronimation newbie that's getting an extra ounce of pressure from their Wind Up guardian, we're running through a who's who of top flight Modern Rock talent ranging from million sellers to middle of the roaders seeking their next big break -- and not a bad place to start your search. Fuel, The Calling, and Saliva cut right to the chase, which I believe inspires a great many moment in the pic; All three on the lighter side of the moment, very earthy, melodic and slightly less adventuresome when the scene sets for the necessary closed door moments between flights and fists. Canada's Nickelback, who not long before struck pure gold with their chart topping "Silver Side Up" gets the groove going with "Learn The Hard Way" that'd make for a pan shot through a crowded bar scene or our hero himself preparing for another evening's window sill stroll; Much of the material's tilted toward established artists of the Rock and Pop scene with a handful of underground crossovers -- Evanescence, as previously mentioned who if you've never heard, is similar to Tapping The Vein, thick on the sensual female vox with a haunting mix of melody and mosh riffs; Former '90s ghosts Chevelle seems primed for a comeback, "Until You're Reformed" being their, again, haunting contribution, a slow and ominous presence backed by an explosive chorus -- clich? to any former followers of the previous Angst-Rock '90s revolution that knew when to say when. And yes, here's where a little emotional variety might go a long way. Not every song, granted, there's different artists but the many Hard Rocker types are all cut from the same Nu-school cloth -- Drowning Pool, Chevelle, POD, Finger Eleven -- there's a well picked variety of music going on that's refreshingly clear and sets a distinguishable enough scene shift where we're not cracked over the head time and again by the freewheeling weapon of choice by hero or adversary. I'll go on record as saying the Hoobastank song stinks. They've gone from exciting band with potential to weekly stage players for Sunnyside's Nursing community; Sorry guys, Saliva's third on the list man. Sleeper hit definitely goes to an otherwise unassuming Palo Alto who do a very charged up, uptempo "Fade Out / In" loose-collared Pop with a catch the wind chorus and the punky Autopilot Off's "Raise Your Rifles" that's inconsistent with the tone or apparent theme of the movie but it Rocks; Hell if I didn't have the inlay open in front of me here, I'd probably have forgotten what movie this was to begin with. The soundtrack shuts down with another Wind Up original, 12 Stones, who've logged more than a few miles in the appliance store video music sections; another newborn melodic Rock legend that's heavy on the lessons of their youth and big on the emo kick -- ala Saliva, Soil, and Earshot. The overall mix is a step beneath prudish but the song selection never strays far from the framework of the modern day action/drama superhero thriller love story that suddenly made Spidey the big screen sensation.
|
|
| |  |
Copyright © 1997-2024, In Music We Trust, Inc. All Rights Reserved. |
 |
|
