House Notes V1: On The Impact of The Crow Soundtrack

I published an interview with Mike Lewis from For Love Not Lisa this week. One of the things that stood out to me about that interview was his band’s inclusion onto The Crow Soundtrack. 

It cannot be overstated how important The Crow Soundtrack was when I was coming up. The movie was good, even great, but that damn soundtrack had everything and parallels the movie perfectly. For some of us it was a gateway into the world of other music. For others it was a bridge from 80s goth into full 90s modern alternative. 

I have found that many soundtracks offer filler music following 1-2 singles. But The Crow Soundtrack is solid from beginning to end and filled my 12-year-old head with images of burning,  intense rainstorms, and makeup. I began painting my nails black after that movie, wearing lipstick and eyeliner, dyed my hair black, all those cliché things.   

For example:

“Burn” - The Cure – Quite possibly my favorite Cure song and, dare I say it, the bands best? Love the scraping flute work sounding eerily like a Crow itself, driving drumbeats and Robert Smith’s croon.

“Big Empty” – Stone Temple Pilots – Core was a great record but felt like Seattle lite. Purple was the band finding their sound, and this song had the big sing along hook. I vaguely remember Brandon Lee opening the door to a church with birds flying through the screen with Weiland and that chrous. Just a perfect scene.

“Dead Souls” – Nine Inch Nails – My naïve and NIN loving self-had zero idea that this was a cover of a Joy Division classic, but it is, and it is tremendous. Top 5 cover songs of all time.

“Ghostrider” – Rollins Band -  Henry Rollins at his most Henry Rollins. A cover of Suicide’s 1977 release made full by Rollins. Plus, a song about my favorite comic book character, no notes.

“The Badge” – Pantera – Released right before their landmark Far Beyond Driven and a cover of Poison Idea’s 1990 release, shows Pantera at their punkiest. I would argue the Pantera version gives their version a little more tug.

“Time Baby III” – Medicine – Such a solidly written song, and the only one played live in the actual movie. The Cocteau Twins Elizabeth Fraser guests on the song as well. I will let you in on a little secret – we interviewed Medicine’s Brad Laner and will have that interview and more on the song in September.

Honorable Mentions:

Helmet – “Milquetoast”

Rage Against the Machine – “Darkness”

Just the whole damn album really….

The Crow: City of Angels Soundtrack is not far behind this one, but the movie was butt…..