ARTISTS: Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross
ALBUM TITLE: The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
RECORD LABEL: The Null Corporation
RELEASE DATE: December 9, 2011

By Justin Polak
Co-founder, Ambassador to the Mushroom Kingdom

Before I say anything, I would like to point out that I know next to nothing about The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. I know people who have read the book and seen the original film, but I still know sparse details about the plot. The reason why I am pointing this out is because listening to this soundtrack was a completely fresh experience for me. In other words, I can’t guess where any track would be placed in the upcoming film, or conjure up any other similar preconceptions. To me, this was purely a musical experience.

However, I am familiar with Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross. I did review The Social Network Soundtrack last year, and Nine Inch Nails is one of my favorite bands. I was very happy with how the soundtrack to The Social Network came out, so I have been anticipating The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo soundtrack immensely.

The opening track is the cover of Led Zeppelin’s, “Immigrant Song” with vocals from Karen O of the Yeah Yeah Yeahs while the closing track is How to Destroy Angel’s cover of Bryan Ferry’s, “Is Your Love Strong Enough?” These tracks make great bookends to the rest of the nearly three hour behemoth of a soundtrack. If anything, I consider those two tracks more like extras, since the other 37 tracks are obviously the film’s score, and sound completely different from them. Don’t get me wrong — they are great covers, especially if you dig a NIN-like sound, but the real star is the literal soundtrack.

Never in my whole life have I been so uncomfortable and stressed while listening to music. This sentiment is a good thing. In general, the score is emotionally heavy, and has a wide range of soundscapes. At the end of my Social Network soundtrack review, I used a video game analogy by saying it was like an expansion pack to NIN’s Ghosts I-IV. To continue the analogy, the music of TGWTDT is like playing a brand new game with new mechanics, but you still can tell who developed it.

Since the comparison to the Oscar winning Social Network soundtrack is inevitable, I might as well board that train of thought. First, TGWTDT is much more organic, and that’s not just because of its much greater length or decent amount of live instruments. The constant flow from ambient and dissonant sounds to heart racing beats keep the listeners attention, especially since nothing seems repetitive.  If anything, the only track that sounds Social Network-like is “She Reminds Me Of You” at the start. Awhile back, I read a short interview with Trent claiming he was going to do something totally different with this soundtrack. While anyone who is familiar with his work can spot his signature style, I say that he accomplished his goal of not only making it distinctive from the Social Network soundtrack, but different from anything he has been involved with before.

I also got a very creepy vibe from TGWTDT. Again, this isn’t a complaint. Based on what little I know about the film, I am sure it fits in perfectly. Ages ago, I remember being creeped out by a couple of tracks from the soundtrack to Quake, a 1996 video game that Reznor composed the music for. Looking back, the tracks in question sound like happy, upbeat tunes compared to what is found here.

However, the entire soundtrack doesn’t try to give the listener an eerie sensation. “What If We Could?” is a tragic, heartbreaking piano centered track that showcases that when Trent wants to, he knows exactly what keys to hit when trying to convey intense emotion. This has quickly risen to the top of my favorite piano pieces ever.

“Pinned And Mounted” is when the soundtrack first got my full attention. While this is a typical song that uses many layers of music to slowly build up to something structured and flowing, that doesn’t make it any less impressive. As the various layers pile on, it seems that more and more anxious feelings pour out of your speakers.

Going into more of a menacing territory, there’s “A Thousand Details,” a particular track that is pure badass. A driving beat eventually joins up with powerful drums, various electronic ticks, and smooth bass. I know I am way off on how this fits into the movie, but I kind of want to get into a car chase and play this track at the same time.

As much as I am into those other tracks, one of my favorite tracks off this soundtrack is quite easily “The Seconds Drag.” Without actually hearing it, this might sound stupid and predictable, but a ticking sound is present throughout the majority of the track. Various chimes and what sounds like long stretches wine glasses singing make for something that truly sounds haunting.

“Oraculum,” the longest song on TGWTDT, and “Great Bird Of Prey” work together beautifully even though they don’t transition into each other like some other tracks do. They are both lively in their own way, as well as being two of the more interesting listens when it comes to this project. As a matter of fact, the end of the soundtrack picks up more in general. I don’t necessarily mean that there is more traditional structured music, but it seems that most of the tracks become more and more complex.

There are many more tracks I can spend time kissing ass on, but I don’t want to have this review wear out its welcome. I guess the only people who wouldn’t enjoy something like this are people expecting more traditional music. Outside of the opening and closing covers, the rest of the soundtrack is exactly like how the Social Network soundtrack played out — simply music that is used in the film.

After hearing The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, the only similarity I can make with Trent and Atticus’ last soundtrack is that it has sufficiently hyped me up for the film itself. Only this time I am happier with the music. Just save some time and give them another Oscar.

RATING: 9/10

Front page image/interior photo from latimes.com.