Review: Various artists “Californication Season 4” Television Soundtrack

Now in its fourth season on Showtime, “Californication” is a sensation. The show, which stars David Duchovny as Hank Moody, has a close connection to music – this season, his teenage daughter Becca (played by Madeleine Martin) joins an all-girl rock band called Queens of Dogtown. The “Californication Season 4” Television Soundtrack features several tunes from Queens of Dogtown, along with other music from a variety of bands that “play a part in bringing to life many of the storylines of the new season).

The soundtrack features a lot of songs you are bound to be familiar with covered by artists you may be less familiar with…Eagles of Death Metal do a power rock rendition of the Stealers Wheel’s classic, “Stuck In The Middle With You”, even renaming it “Stuck In The Metal”. It’s actually a lot less metal than you might think. Better Than Ezra revamp “So Alive”, the breakout hit for alt rock godfathers, Love and Rockets. Queens of Dogtown do several cover tunes, including “Would?” (Alice In Chains), “Last Caress” (Misfits) and “I Remember You” (Skid Row). “Would?” just sounds wrong with anyone but Layne Staley singing it, but their removal of the power from Skid Row’s smash power ballad is surprisingly effective. Two songs buried in here that stood out were Cracker’s midtempo gem, “Turn On, Tune In, Drop Out With Me” and the gentle acoustic piece “If I Go, I'm Goin”, beautifully sung by Gregory Alan Isakov.

Some of the originals are just silly (the Shooter Jennings contribution, “F**k You (I’m Famous)” or boring (“Second Life Replay” by The Soundtrack of Our Lives). The soundtrack ends on a pathetic note with a dreadful version of “Home Sweet Home” by Tommy Lee and a chorus of others who probably want to remain anonymous.

The “Californication Season 4” soundtrack is a must for fans of cover tunes. Personally, I’m not finding a whole lot here that I’ll be coming back to anytime soon.

iPOD-worthy: 8, 9, 12

More info here. The soundtrack is out today on CD or in digital format.

Kneejerk: Saw 3D Soundtrack – Good Charlotte

Welcome to the latest edition of KNEEJERK, where we preview some new releases and give our short, "kneejerk" reaction...


Various artists “Saw 3D Soundtrack”

What type of music comes to mind when you watch the wildly popular slasher flick, “Saw”? We don’t have the eerie orchestral stabs of Psycho, or the chirp chirp –pa pa pa sound of Friday the 13th, or the frantic and haunting piano of Halloween...we have blistering hard rock. Whatever you think of this tired movie series, “Saw 3D Soundtrack” may as well be a “Now: That’s What I Call Hard Rock” CD. The “Saw 3D Soundtrack” is packed with great artists, some of whom we have previously reviewed on BMF like Krokus and Kopek (why Kopek is not huge by now I have no idea). Others on this record even better known to modern rock fans include Saliva, Hinder, and Saving Abel. There is even a smattering of progressive bands like Karnivool and techno-rock bands like Nitzer Ebb. The key question – are these tracks just sloppy seconds by these artists or do they synergize and make for a good soundtrack from start to finish? I’d have to argue for the latter – this powerhouse of a soundtrack is more consistent than most, with the worst “songs” (virtually just abrasive noise) tacked onto the end as almost an afterthought. Best tracks are Hinder’s “Waking Up The Devil”, My Darkest Day’s “The World Belongs To Me”, Default’s “Turn It On”, Adelita’s Way’s “Scream”, and of course Kopek’s “Love Is Dead”. Tracks by Saliva and Boom Boom Satellites were disappointing.


Good Charlotte "Cardiology"

I’ve always enjoyed this Maryland band, ever since their breakthrough hit “Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous” from 2002’s “The Young and the Hopeless” tore up the charts. Good Charlotte is classified by some as emo, pop punk, or what have you…but it is safe to say they specialize in radio-friendly pop rock with an edge. “Cardiology” is the band’s fifth effort and is supposed to sound like Blink-182. Well, why not just sound like Good Charlotte? The record gets off to a reasonable, albeit predictable, start with staples like “Let The Music Play” and “Counting The Days”. The middle of the record is quite lame with cliché by-the-book tunes like “Sex On The Radio” and “Last Night”, and an occasion misstep into dance rock territory with head scratching songs like “Like It’s Her Birthday”. Saving the record somewhat is the inspirational power ballad “Standing Ovation”, the jovial acoustic strumming in “1979”, and pop rocker “There She Goes”. Lyrically, the album is surprisingly empty and dull. “Cardiology” is good – but not heart stopping good. For a band that is heading into their second decade, a little more growth than this is expected.

Rare CD: Soundtrack "The Wraith"

"THE WRAITH CD - 1986 - BEST AOR SOUNDTRACK EVER rare
THIS CD TITLED "THE WRAITH ORIGINAL SOUNDTRACK" WAS ORIGINALLY RELEASED IN 1986 BY SCOTTI BROTHERS - THIS IS THE RECENT DIGITAL REMASTER.

THE CD/CASE/INSERTS ARE IN VERY GOOD CONDITION!!

HERE IT IS - THE BEST AOR / MELODIC ROCK SOUNDTRACK EVER!! GETTING HARDER AND HARDER TO FIND - PICK THIS GEM UP NOW!!

1. Where's the Fire (Tim Feehan)
2. Those Were the Days (Honeymoon Suite)
3. Hearts Vs. Heads (Stan Bush)
4. Hold on Blue Eyes (Lamarca)
5. Young Love, Hot Love (Jill Michaels)
6. Secret Loser (Ozzy Osbourne)
7. Never Surrender (Lion)
8. Bad Mistake (James House)
9. Wake Up Call (Ian Hunter)
10. Matter of the Heart (Bonnie Tyler)"

Sold for $76.00 on ebay.

Review: "Hung" [TV Soundtrack]

Desperate times call for desperate measures and Ray Drecker's situation couldn't be much tougher. The former high school sports legend turned middle-aged high school basketball coach is divorced and struggling to provide for his kids when his already run-down house catches fire. Looking to take on a second job, Ray decides to exploit his best asset in a last-ditch attempt to change his fortunes. Created by Dmitry Lipkin (creator of 'The Riches') and Colette Burson, HUNG uses dark humor to tell the story of a man fighting to survive personal setbacks that have been compounded by a troubled economy. Read more about the show here.

The original soundtrack to this HBO show features a diverse list of artists, but the general theme is soulful rock. There are a couple of exceptions thrown in, putting this soundtrack into the familiar trap of being an inconsistent listen. For example, the dated 80s sound of the Psychedelic Furs song, "Love My Way", the quirky cover of Woody Guthrie's "This Land Is Your Land" by L.A.R.P. , and the obnoxious Mickey Avalon rap "My Dick". "Love My Way" is a terrific song, but sounds grossly out of place here. "My Dick" also sticks out like a sore thumb (lol) - it is a serious miscalculation by those who put this compilation together.

The strengths include some awesome gems by the retro sounding Black Keys, country legend Loretta Lynn, and the amazing funk rock of Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings. Grant-Lee Phillips shines as always on "Strangest Thing" and Morcheeba gives an emotive vocal on the sultry "Everybody Loves A Loser". Additional highlights include the haunting beauty of Joseph Arthur's "Walk Away", Craig Wedren's well done cover of Queen's "Play The Game", and the insightful acoustic ballad "You Gotta Suffer A Lot To Be Happy" by Sunny and Sharé Love You. A few missteps, but largely an enjoyable collection of tunes.

Track listing is as follows:
1. I'll Be Your Man- The Black Keys
2. Have Mercy- Loretta Lynn
3. Walk Away- Joseph Arthur
4. How Long Do I Have To Wait For You?- Sharon Jones And The Dap Kings
5. Strangest Thing- Grant-Lee Phillips
6. Play The Game- Craig Wedren
7. My Dick- Mickey Avalon
8. Everybody Loves A Loser- Morcheeba
9. I Feel Just Like A Child- Devendra Banhart
10. Change Is- Ryan Bingham
11. You Gotta Suffer A Lot To Be Happy- Sunny And Sharé Love You
12. Love My Way- Psychedelic Furs
13. This Land Is Your Land- L.A.R.P.

iPOD-worthy: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 11

The "Hung" Soundtrack is out June 22.

Review: Various Artists "Friday Night Lights Vol. 2"

"Friday Night Lights Volume 2" features some of the biggest break out artists of the past year, as you'll notice from the track listing below. The music on the soundtrack to the hit television show is rather eclectic, and not at all what I expected given that this show centers on football. There are a handful of sport appropriate (rah rah) anthem type songs, such as the thumping opener, "Percussion Gun" by White Rabbits, but what predominates "Friday Night Lights Volume 2" is more of a coffeehouse, easy Sunday morning set of songs. You'd almost think this was one of the "Grey's Anatomy" soundtracks. Which isn't necessarily a bad thing - just don't take this CD to a pep rally - it sounds more like what one would play after losing a game rather than getting psyched to win one.

"Friday Night Lights Vol. 2" is a good way to check out these "rising stars" and since most of the music is organic and easy, the record makes for a fairly consistent listen. In other words, it plays well as a whole record and does not fall into the soundtrack trap of being all over the map in terms of artists with wildly dissimilar styles. Unfortunately, I found too many of the songs to be nondescript and dull, like a boring halftime show that never seems to end. Highlights include the quiet build of "Killed Myself When I Was Young" by A.A. Bondy and "Fire", a stunning piano ballad by Augustana, one of my favorite bands (if you do have an Augustana record yet, what are you waiting for?). But my favorite player on this team was "Something Good This Way Comes" by Jakob Dylan. With its simplistic beauty, sweet melody, and vivid imagery, it is one of his best tunes since his early Wallflower days.

"Friday Night Lights Volume 2" is out today (digitally) and hits stores May 18.

Track Listing
1. PERCUSSION GUN - WHITE RABBITS
2. SWAY - HEARTLESS BASTARDS
3. KILLED MYSELF WHEN I WAS YOUNG - A.A. BONDY
4. FIRE - AUGUSTANA
5. SOMETHING GOOD THIS WAY COMES - JAKOB DYLAN
6. I KNOW WHAT I AM - BAND OF SKULLS
7. THE MEANEST MAN IN THE WORLD - JOHN DOE
8. IF IT’S THE BEACHES - THE AVETT BROTHERS
9. WHAT YOU HIDE - AM
10. COME THOU FOUNT OF EVERY BLESSING - SUFJAN STEVENS
11. THIS IS THE THING - FINK
12. FNL MAIN TITLE - SNUFFY WALDEN

iPOD-worthy: 3, 4, 5

Get it.