True Blood Soundtrack | Volume 4 | Rating: 8/11 | Reviewed by: Rodney Schmidt |
Released: May 28, 2013
Have you ever wondered who played that catchy song you just heard on True Blood? Well, wonder no more, True Blood Volume 4 is out with all the strange and wonderful songs you heard and wanted to download from season five. Remakes, classics, and new ones are all packed on this record. Be a lover of the show or be a lover of music, this record has potential to entertain the music enthusiasts and vampire lust in all of us.
Mainstream act the Alabama Shakes have graced this record with a great sounding song titled “Pocket Change.” For those whom did not catch the song during last season of True Blood, the sound is like a classic ho-down honky-tonk style rock-and-roll song from the south with a splash of soul that comes from the Alabama Shakes. The song is fun and makes you want to stand up and clap your hands as the drum beat shuffles on and the Hammond organ rings throughout the chorus. Fans of the Alabama Shakes will definitely have to pick this record up now if they want to enjoy this unreleased track before it comes out later this year.
The album also includes a great song from the New Zealand post-punk rockers the Naked and Famous titled “The Sun.” For those that are not sure who the Naked and Famous are, check out the song “Young Blood” and you will instantly recall their hit single. Their style of pop music is burning bright right now as the scene of dance-pop-rock controls the music scene. They manage to change directions in this song by turning off the lights with a dark sounding track that is befitting to the show’s blood-lusting atmosphere. The song is very vampire-esque; lines like “Here it comes / The unavoidable sun weighs my head, and what the hell have I done,” an utmost chilling question for any vampire to ask themselves when finishing off their prey in regret. The song is very industrial sounding with a soft drum machine, techno sounding synthesizer work, and an always strange fade in / fade out vocal technique that makes the track seem very psychedelic.
To be honest, I have never heard any of the other True Blood records before, so I cannot say if this one was better than the last, but I think this record is actually worth the purchase. It’s got some classics that music collectors will be shocked to hear. Shockers like folk-rock band My Morning Jacket playing the always classic song “TURN, TURN, TURN (TO EVERYTHING THERE IS A SEASON).” This song is a well known song from the 1960’s that was put together by Pete Seeger and famously performed by the Byrds. My Morning Jacket does the song some serious justice and really doesn’t deviate from the original song’s fun hippie sounding vibe.
This album is also for those who are looking to add something new to their music collection as you discover bands like Warpaint from Los Angeles, California. Warpaint are only a few years old and judging by the sound of their song “Undertow,” featured on this record, the band is bound for some attention in the upcoming years. Think of Bethany from Best Coast meets Cold War Kids and that’s what you get from Warpaint. Their mellow bar-chord intros and soothing vocals create an immediate contact high from their music. “Undertow” also has this 1990’s alternative rock sound that most of the female bands were doing like Garbage and the Cranberries. Think, less smoker’s voice and more soft spoken.
With there being so many varied songs on this record I have no way of truly describing this soundtrack. It has classic rock n’ roll jams, it has a soulful choir number from Nina Simone as she sings “Whatever I am, You Made Me,” and it has big acts like Iggy Pop (performing with Bethany Cosentino of Best Coast), the Flaming Lips, and even Los Lobos covering the famous song “We’ll Meet Again” with an almost Frankenstein slash Danzig sounding track. It’s like an encyclopedia of genres packed into one disc full of entertainment. The only thing you won’t find on this record is a boring moment.