REVIEW: Soundtrack, End of Days (Geffen)
- Mike Pfeiffer
Despite all the hype and superstars, critics slammed End of Days for being another excessive yet lifeless Hollywood action movie, only this time a bit of horror was thrown in. What the movie lacked was a plausible plot, and it might have got by with that, if it had a decent script. But I'm digressing here; what I really want to tell you about is the soundtrack.
Is it as overblown as the movie? Well, maybe. It does have some of the biggest names in today's hardest rockin', hip hoppin' music. Korn, Limp Bizkit, Eminem and Rob Zombie are all present and accounted for. "Camel Song" by Korn starts it off with a very "korny" track that should please fans. "So Long" by Everlast is one of the surprises, a gritty song about violence that rings true. A new band, Professional Murder Music, play "Slow" which isn't slow and doesn't come close to matching the menace of their name. Limp Bizkit's "Crushed" has a poppy rhythm and catchy rhyme that doesn't quite fit the dark theme of the soundtrack, but Fred Durst's rap and DJ Lethal's beats are impressive enough to let it pass.
Guns N' Roses feature a new track "Oh My God," and while they haven't been heard from years they prove they can still rock hard. The most appropriate End of Days track is the killer remix of Rob Zombie's "Superbeast." The bass is thumping and Rob Zombie's vocals are spewing forth all the evil he can conjure. Eminem does what he does best on "Bad Influence" a vilely repetitious, but enjoyable rap about what a bad mutha (watch yer mouth) he is. Stroke, the other unknown band, with "I Wish I Had" play a strange mix of British pop and alternative metal that again works well. "Sugar Kane," the oddly placed Sonic Youth track from a few years ago fits in perfectly. And the final track, "Wrong Way" by Creed, is your typical brooding hard rock track that bores me to death.
Other than a couple letdowns, the End of Days soundtrack succeeds with quality songs and even a few surprises, making it worth the price of admission.
