When it comes to soundtracks featuring heavy music there have been some absolute classics over the years. There are some today that I still regularly listen to and as I sit down to write this review I just realised that they came out 20 years ago.
There was the Spawn soundtrack which strangely saw rock artists team up with electronic artists and somehow it worked and gave us some absolute classic tracks – including one that featured Australia’s very own Silverchair.
Then there was the Queen Of The Damned Soundtrack – with songs written by Jonathon Davis and featuring the likes of Chester Bennington and Marilyn Manson it is a soundtrack that every heavy music fan needs to have their collection, despite the fact the film was not much to write home about.
Now we have a new soundtrack that deserves to be mentioned alongside those two classics – the soundtrack for the brand new horror thriller The Retaliators. This is just one of those soundtracks that I have found myself keeping on repeat for the last couple of weeks. It is a who-is-who of the modern day heavy music scene and there is no weak tracks to be found at all.
Not only are there no weak tracks but this album also contains what are certainly two of the best tracks of 2022. Wolf Totem which sees The Hu team up with Jacoby Shaddix from Papa Roach and the result is a brilliant piece of Mongolian metal meeting head-first with modern day alternative rock. With its squealing tribal instruments and thought provoking lyrics this is a track that we will be listening to for years to come.
The other instant classic on this album is the title track put together by members of Motley Crue, Asking Alexandria, Ice Nine Kills and From Ashes To New. This track nails the film in song-form. It is hard-hitting, takes you by the throat and makes you want to experience it over and over again. It is utterly sensational track and there is little wonder that it has been picked up by Australian radio stations for air-play.
Other tracks that are clear standouts are the country-inspired Blame It On The Double which finds Jason Hook, Corey Marks and Theory Of A Deadman’s Tyler Connolly blasting out a track that is guaranteed to become a fave at bars right across Nashville. Then there is the piece of pop-punk brilliance of Blow a collabaroation between Eva Under Fire and Spencer Charnas of Ice Nine Kills.
There are so many stunning collaborations here and they all seem to work – Asking Alexandria work with Within Temptation and then there is From Ashes To New and In Flames hitting the studio together… these are all tracks that one day will be considered rarities so they are must haves to have in your collection.
It isn’t just the collaborations of this album that makes it something special there are also some stand alone tracks that are absolute gems. The Ending by Papa Roach is sensational as is This Is Mongol by The Hu… seriously you could list every track as something brilliant with this album though.
There is no easier way to say it… if you like good heavy music you need to have The Retaliators soundtrack on your shelf.
5/5 Stars
