Customer Reviews

Trainspotting #2: Music From The Motion Picture, Vol. #2

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

"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."

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. Notable is the inclusion of the other Underworld song, "Dark & Long (Dark Train Mix)," which was used during Ewan MacGregor's sobering up scene, and was for some reason absent from the first soundtrack CD. The other tracks on this album that were in the film (exclusing the first track, Ewan's "Choose Life" narrative) were Ice MC's "Think About the Way," and Heaven 17's "Temptation." Mixes of songs from the first CD include a Darren Price remix of Underworld's "Born Slippy," which is still a pretty good mix, but might have been better suited for a single release merely because of the extemporaneous nature of this second CD altogether. There's also the full-length version of Leftfield's "A Final Hit," which is actually a welcome track, a remix of "Nightclubbing," as well as Iggy Pop's "Passenger," and David Bowie's "Golden Years," neither of which were in the film anywhere, nor are they listed in the end credits soundtrack listing. Sleeper and Primal Scream had songs on the first CD, so here they each have two new tracks, and because they probably couldn't get another New Order song to fit in the feeling of "Transpotting," they got Joy Division. While I love "Atmosphere," I fail to see the reason or logic behind its inclusion on this CD. But then again, this second CD was just meant to capitalize on the success of the first CD anyway, so...whatever. If you like this, get it and listen to it. I'd only listen to half of the songs here, but that's me.

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 you like it. Had I listened to it before purchasing it I may not have brought it. It's not a bad album though, but some songs are too long and repetitive and I'm not much into techno.. I guess that's why I liked the first one so much, it didn't have as much techno. Well, this one is really cool too. They are the best soundtracks to relax and go to bed with. I highly recommend the first one before getting this one though. You won't have any regrets.

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, etc. the main reason i bought this cd was b/c i am a major trainspotting fan. if you thought the movie was great (and with ewan mcgregor it could be no less) then try the book - it's brilliant. therefore, if you liked the first cd, this one is not as good, but still worth it for some choice songs.

If you're one of the few who hasn't seen Trainspotting, just know going in that its depictions of drug usage, sex and violence don't hold anything back.

Neither does this soundtrack. This is one of the best collections of music ever assembled.

The soundtrack for this film is split into two volumes. Not all music is in the film, but pretty much everything picked will keep you listening for some time.

Buy it!

Great songs in a variety of moods...a must-have if you were into the film and its soundtrack. Some tunes weren't in the film but rather almost were, or are cited as relevant to the characters. The only beef I have is with the artwork: as with the first soundtrack, Kevin McKidd is nonexistent! wtf? It seems they replaced him with the girl Diane who was NOT a part of the "gang". Annoying.

If you do consider your self one, than this is it. You got the book, the movie, the CD. All that is left is this. Even if you don't its got a lot of good song.

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.

You can listen to the whole thing all the way through and maybe even enjoy it. You won't get any sense of continuity or relation to the film, however. I liked the inclusion of Habanera from Carmen... and "Temptation" from Fun Boy Three, but overall I could have spent this money better elsewhere. (Maybe the opera Carmen would have been a better investment!)

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. I could listen to it ALL over and over again. This one though, I kind of got annoyed by two or three songs. Others were good, but didn't have the ability to catch my ear like the songs on the fisrt did. Still, it has far more great songs than it does good songs. I do recomend it, but do get the first one.

I've watched the movie, I've listened to both soundtracks, I've even read the book. This soundtrack fits perfectly. Most 2nd movie soundtracks usually seem to me to be a money-making effort, but the music on this cd is very fitting with the movie and fun to listen to.