American Psycho

Performer: Original Score/Original Soundtrack
Distributor: E1 Distribution (USA)

Notes: Original score composed and performed by John Cale. The soundtrack to Mary Harron's film adaptation of Bret Easton Ellis' controversial novel American Psycho subverts some of the '80s definitive pop singles, including Huey Lewis & the News' "Hip to Be Square." Excerpts of John Cale's score and Christian Bale's monologues are interspersed with dance-pop like Dope's "You Spin Me Around," New Order's "True Faith," MARRS's "Pump Up the Volume," and Information Society's "I Wanna Know (What You're Thinking)." Coldcut's detached yet brutal "American Psycho" adds another layer of wit and incisiveness to this worthwhile collection of film music. ~ Heather Phares "Something horrible is happening inside of me and I don't know why ... I feel lethal -- on the verge of frenzy," the serial killer Patrick Bateman calmly intones above M.J. Mynarski's gentle piano on the soundtrack from the movie American Psycho. Unfortunately, besides three short monologues from Bateman (played by Christian Bale) interspersed throughout the album, that's as much as you're going to get of the beautiful compositions co-written by Mynarski and John Cale. Instead, the record leans toward the tradition of recent horror flicks like Scream 3 and I Know What You Did Last Summer, where, owing to some undisclosed agreement by the filmmakers, the deranged straight white male's mind seems best cinematically illustrated by loud, ham-fisted goth rock. There's been some hoopla surrounding the violent nature of American Psycho, but the soundtrack is not without its own drama. Just before the disc's release, Huey Lewis demanded that his "Hip to Be Square" be pulled from the album -- he was offended by the film's subject matter. "Hip to Be Square" won't be missed, but it probably would've served as an okay filler track in this collection of cold '80s cuts and remakes, which range from a smooth touchup on David Bowie's "Something in the Air" to the funktified beats of "Pump Up the Volume" by M/A/R/R/S. The industrial metal band Dope, who did a surprisingly good job on their last album with N.W.A's "Fuck Tha Police," score even better with their sharp guitar cover of Dead or Alive's "You Spin Me Round." Likewise, Massive Attack's Underdog does a superb reworking of The Cure's "Watching Me Fall," and there's a very nice remix job on Eric B. & Rakim's hip-hop classic "Paid in Full." The Tom Tom Club provides the beat-savvy groove "Who Feelin' It," while New Order's "True Faith" holds up as fresh as anything out today. What's conspicuously absent is a Whitney Houston track. In a bonus monologue at the end of the disc, the killer, Bateman, goes on at great length describing to a prostitute the importance of Houston's debut album and the significance of the lyrics to "The Greatest Love of All." ~ Derrick Mathis Bret Easton Ellis' controversial black comedy has made its much anticipated transition to moving pictures, detailing the horrific exploits of psychopathic villain Patrick Bateman. In tandem with the movies' commercial debut is the release of its eclectic soundtrack. With the plot staged in the 1980's, AMERICAN PSYCHO has its fair share of indigenous tracks, including "True Faith" by New Order and a remix of "What's On Your Mind" by Information Society. Never at a loss for the ability to shed skin and reinvent himself, David Bowie's "Something In The Air" was specially remixed for this collection. Techno-metal mavens Dope remake the cheesy '80s staple "You Spin Me Round (Like A Record)" (originally recorded by Dead Or Alive) and make it sound unabashedly ominous. Unforgettable club anthems "Pump Up The Volume" by M/A/R/R/S and "Paid In Full" by Erik B. & Rakim fill out the collection, with the latter's original version as well as a hard rock remix performed by The Racket.

NME (Magazine) (4/29/00, p.34) - 7 out of 10 - "...This isn't a Patrick Bateman mix tape....there's New Order and the Cure...where there might have been Whitney [and] Phil Collins....Monologue-splicing reminiscent of NATURAL BORN KILLERS. Features ace Whitney deconstruction."

Click Here for Shipping Options and Policies

Shipping or Dimension weight in pounds: 0.25