The Transformers - The Movie - Original Motion Picture Soundtrack [Soundtrack]

If you were a kid of the 80s like me, you'd have to be living under a rock in a far distant land not to at least know what the Transformers phenomenon was. And that's exactly what it was, A PHENOMENON. Transformers were to the mid-80s what Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles were to the early 90s and Pokemon to the late 90s: a kid's dream come true. There was the great cartoon that started the whole craze, but kids remembered Transformers the most by the impressive line of toys. I had quite a few of them, and so did most every kid I knew. The franchise slowed down a bit towards the mid 90s, but as far as I know, they are still making Transformers cartoons today.

Of course, at the height of Transformers' popularity came a full-length big-screen movie, which was excellent for its time, though it also caused the series to take a slight downturn due to the scene where Optimus Prime dies (ALL fans can agree that this greatly changed the series). But one aspect that made the movie so memorable was its outstanding music soundtrack. Armed with a score that was created by Vince DiCola (also worked on Rocky IV) and a slew of pop rock and pop metal songs by various people, the Transformers movie soundtrack ended up being an outstanding movie soundtrack that often goes overlooked in the context of soundtracks from the period. Here's an analysis of the tracks:

Tracks 1 & 4 are both Stan Bush songs. 'The Touch' is a good opener, while 'Dare' is more of an uplifting power pop song with an infectious chorus (but then again, has Stan Bush ever made a song that isn't catchy?). Both are pretty good pop songs. 'Instruments Of Destruction' is a sinister pop metal song performed by N.R.G. Never heard of these guys, but they sounded pretty good for the time, and it's too bad that they never took off. My favorite tracks are the two by a band called "Spectre General" (the actual name of this canadian band is Kick Axe, though for some reason their name was changed on here even though the band never agreed to it! Strange.) 'Nothin's Gonna Stand In Our Way' is a pounding rocker, and 'Hunger' is probably one of Kick Axe's best anthemic headbanger songs, despite the fact that it was never released on any of their albums. Then there's 3 cool Vince DiCola instrumentals taken from different scenes of the movie. 'Autobot/Decepticon Battle' and 'Escape' are both very fast-paced and energetic, while 'Death Of Optimus Prime' is melancholic and sad (just like it's supposed to be). After that is the awesome version of the Transformer's title theme performed by a band called Lion (I'm not sure if they're supposed to be an early incarnation of the band White Lion or not, it's hard to tell). However, the most bizzaire surprise on the soundtrack is the very last song called 'Dare To Be Stupid' performed by none other than Weird Al Yankovich! It's a hilarious and awesome parody of Devo's 'Dare To Be Different'. It's not something you'd expect to hear, but somehow it fits.

In the end, the Transformers Movie soundtrack is well put together, and serves as an excellent platter of good pop rock and pop metal songs to anyone who remembers them. My only complaint, besides the Kick Axe moniker "Spectre General", and the reason why I only gave it 4 stars is because there were several instrumental pieces in the movie that aren't present, especially the 'Unicron Theme'. Still, you can't go wrong with this soundtrack, and it's highly recommended to all fans of the movie.

Other similar soundtracks:
-Robotech Perfect Soundtrack Album
-Rocky IV Movie Soundtrack
-Top Gun movie Soundtrack
-Project A-Ko Original Soundtrack

Also, if you liked the two "Spectre General" songs, you'll also like:
-'Vices' by Kick Axe
-'Welcome To The Club' by Kick Axe