Freddy Vs Jason
Original Soundtrack
Roadrunner
Soundtracks are always tricky things to do right, and it seems that usually more thinking goes into the marketing tactics surrounding them than into the music itself. That said, I do own a few soundtracks that I actually enjoy, and in most cases they’re from films like The Crow, where the music was really integral to the movie itself and succeeded in setting the mood. Rarely, it seems, does it actually work this way in practice, and the large majority of soundtracks are just pure and utter marketing drivel.
In the case of the Freddy Vs Jason original soundtrack, there’s no doubt that the music reflects the mood of the movie: it’s a metallic torture fest brought to you courtesy of Roadrunner Records, whose rosters are stocked with both heavy metal mainstays as well as the current crop of soon-to-be-forgotten hopefuls. Most of the music here consists of track after track of angst-ridden screams, blood-soaked guitar riffs and thundering drums – so yes, it certainly does reflect the message of the movie. But the problem, in this case, is that the “message” in a movie like Freddy Vs Jason doesn’t exactly leave you with high expectations from the associated soundtrack. Although the on-screen duel between two of slasherdom’s most often resurrected villains was relatively enjoyable kitsch, the story was a little on the thin side, more focused on providing two hours of blood, guts and sharp things protruding through teenagers. And the music here reflects this, as well as it can. But where the movie was at least borderline entertaining, the soundtrack largely falls flat.
There are a few standout tracks provided by In Flames, From Autumn To Ashes and (surprisingly) Ill Nino, but three out of twenty isn’t exactly an impressive percentage, given that the rest of the effort is dominated by some of the worst modern metal I’ve ever heard in one place at one time. Offerings from Mushroomhead, Slipknot, Powerman 5000, Seether, The Muderdolls and Devil Driver are just so downright bad that they’re embarrassing, even for the bands’ normally low standards. They make the mediocre content from the likes of Killswitch Engage, Spineshank, Nothingface and Sevendust almost seem like gold nuggets in the sea of crap-stained severed limbs that makes up the majority of the album. Even an entry from Sepultura, featuring guest vocals by Mike Patton, fails to impress.
Overall, a disappointing collection of some of the worst of what modern metal has to offer (and notably heavy with the Roadrunner roster bands, which make up the majority of the worst stuff). But what did you really expect from the soundtrack to Freddy Vs Jason? It delivers the blows, but falls short in terms of plot and consistency. Nuff said, fanboys.
Roadrunner Records: http://www.roadrunnerrecords.com/
