Trainspotting #2, Vol. #2 [Import, Soundtrack]

 

 

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"If truth be telt," as Begy would say, give or take a few songs from each CD, one Trainspotting soundtrack would suffice. I for one find this soundtrack to be vastly better than the "orange" (first) Trainspotting soundtrack. Although Trainspotting #2 has its pros and cons, its pros greatly outweigh its cons, resulting in my giving it a 5-star review. OK, let's get to the best bits first (titles are in 3 classes [best, worst, ordinary] followed by track-order). "The Passenger" by Iggy Pop is a catchy little ditty which, though not included in the film, definitely merited inclusion/is even worthy to replace Pop's "Lust for Life" as Trainspotting's theme song; "Dark & Long" [Dark Train Mix] by Underworld is the song that's playing when the lead character, Renton, is having bizarre nightmares in the teenage bedroom of his parents' house. It is one of Underworld's many electronic epics and I can't praise it enough; "Golden Years" by David Bowie is a classic and was included on this album because it was the original track that Diane was to sing to Renton as he was coming off heroin in the aforementioned bedroom. Fair enough;"A Final Hit" [full-length version] is just a "prolonged" version - only by a minute or so - of the edit which is on the orange soundtrack. Still great;"Temptation" by Heaven 17 is the song playing in/outside the club when Renton is accosting Diane;"Our Lips Are Sealed" by Fun Boy Three is a great tune à la New Order, and the reason it is included is because it was going to be used in the film but the correct spot for it could not be found (the director and producer felt that they related strongly to the group of friends in the story);"Atmosphere" by Joy Division was only included on the album because director Danny Boyle is from Manchester. It's very dark yet melodic, like most Joy Division songs;"Inner City Life" by Goldie is a great song in itself but its inclusion on this soundtrack is questionable: it was only included on the album because author Irvine Welsh stated that "It's what the characters would be listening to now";Born Slippy Nuxx [Darren Price Mix] by Underworld is possibly the best (re)mix of this song, and I've heard many, including the brilliant Deep Pan mix. Now to the two not-so-good tracks - sod it, they're just plain awful: "Choose Life" by PF Project is Renton's "Choose life" monologue superimposed on incredibly long, tedious, cheesy techno music; "Nightbclubbing" [Baby Doc Remix] is ineffably awful: just think of what would happen if you played incredibly amateur techno music with the lyrics and music from "Nightclubbing" at the end, albeit in an almost unrecognizable incarnation. The remaining tracks on the album, which I would rate half-decent are: "Habanera from Carmen", the classical music playing while Renton is citing the list of items needed to withdraw from heroin; "Statuesque" by Sleeper can best be described as "chick rock which really rocks", I believe it was used very briefly in the film; "Think About the Way" by Ice MC is the dance music playing when Renton moves to London. It's quite good; "Come Together" by Primal Scream is the epitome of 90's rock and, according to the liner notes, its admission in the album is the same as "Our Lips are Sealed" by Fun Boy Three. I'll consummate my review with an apposite quote from the late Frank Zappa: "Rock journalists are people who can't write, writing about people who can't play, for people who can't read."

I enjoy this album very much, however I don't like it near as much as the first one.

The remixes aren't as good as the original tunes and there are a handful of tunes tossed in that seem out of place here. Habanera? Golden Years by Bowie? Huh?

The tracks on this CD are expecially great when running on the treadmill!

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2.0 out of 5 stars Like most second volumes...
This one loses the momentum of the first. What needed to be said and sung was said and sung on the first soundtrack. This one is not bad. Just not relevant. Read more

Published on Oct 2 2000 by EriKa

3.0 out of 5 stars Only half of a soundtrack, the rest is filler...
This is not much of a soundtrack when one has to consider that most of the songs on this album were not used in the film, or if they were they were different mixes. Read more

Published on July 20 2000 by Ilker Yucel

3.0 out of 5 stars First one is better...
Like everybody else is commenting, go out and buy the first one. After listening to the first one you'll be very tempted to buy this one, but try to borrow it first and see if... Read more

Published on Feb 5 2000 by Elaine

3.0 out of 5 stars The first was better; this is still good.
The green version does not even compare to the original. I think what I liked most about the first was that I enjoyed every song on it. Read more

Published on Sep 14 1999 by Marc A. Coignard

5.0 out of 5 stars you OWE this to yourself, best collection of hard-pop/techno
Amazing, Brilliant, and better than it's predecessor. There was so much good music crammed into the super-successful movie "Trainspotting", That one CD alone just... Read more

Published on Aug 12 1999 by Dror Shem Tov

4.0 out of 5 stars decent, no rip-off
the first soundtrack got me buying a LOT of music (Underworld, Bowie [from the Iggy Pop tunes], New Order and Joy Division).. Read more

Published on July 26 1999 by vertical_pig

4.0 out of 5 stars #1 was better
this cd is worth buying, but does not live up to the ultimate greatness of the first soundtrack cd. there are some really good songs here - numbers 1, 2, 5, 7, 8, 9 is so retro,... Read more

Published on Jun 9 1999

4.0 out of 5 stars I LOVE TRAINSPOTTING!
I've watched the movie, I've listened to both soundtracks, I've even read the book. This soundtrack fits perfectly. Read more

Published on Sep 28 1998

5.0 out of 5 stars Not as good as the first, but still great
It has songs you can listen to over and over again. They seem to tie in with the film perfectly, even if there is only one that was actually in the movie.

Published on Aug 23 1998

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