10 Movie Soundtracks That Are Also Great Rock Albums
Sometimes, the music makes the movie.
Rock 'n' roll has gone hand in hand with popular cinema for decades. In some cases, music has actually been the driving force of films - from The Beatles Yellow Submarine to Prince's Purple Rain, and everything in between.
In many films, music sets the tone, and music sets the tempo. It's often a song that movie lovers will associate with a particular film or sequence. A song that triggers memories of that original film experience. So when it comes to great soundtracks, who did it best?
While a lot of it will boil down to personal preference, there are some soundtrack albums that are universally recognized as being great. They transcend the many sub genres of rock 'n' roll, and not only make an impact on the films they're in - shaping their scenes as much as the acting and the direction - but the fans of those movies as well.
These are the soundtracks that, even once the film is little more than a distant memory, can transport you straight back to an iconic moment and ignite the same feelings. Auditory recognition works just as strongly as visual, and these collections prove that cinema as just as memorable for what you hear as what you can see.
10. End Of Days
End of Days was Arnold Schwarzenegger's attempt to do something a little darker, using the millennium theme. Released in 1999, it featured Gabriel Byrne as the devil, ready to reclaim the world, since, the film's promotional campaign reminded us, 666 was just 999 flipped upside down. Arnold, of course, stood in his way.
Deep for an action flick. Well, sort of, but the soundtrack got as much talk as the movie itself. It marked Schwarenegger re-teaming with Guns 'N' Roses, who had not put out an original song in years, and nothing at all since a cover of The Rolling Stones' Sympathy for the Devil as part of 1994's Interview with the Vampire.
For End of Days, the Axl Rose-led band contributed its first new song, Oh My God, featured on the soundtrack and in the film - a harsh, driving industrial influenced track that was actually pretty decent, if a little dated today.
From there, the soundtrack included cuts by the big rock and metal acts of the time: Korn, Limp Bizkit, Powerman 5000, Rob Zombie, plus an appearance from Eminem. As much as it's a product of its time and a 90s Nu Metal showcase, as a soundtrack, it was and is pretty good. Creed not withstanding.