"Must... destroy... all other... soundtracks..." Courtesy of Everythingtarantino.com

Blood on the Tracks

By Matt Kallman

Various Artists
Kill Bill, Vol. 1
[Maverick, Oct. 2003]

Courtesy of Allmusic.com

No wonder the record industry is reeling. Coupled with the release of the fourth film by Quentin Tarantino-- the brutally stunning "Kill Bill Vol. 1"-- comes, well, the fourth soundtrack by Quentin Tarantino: a predominately instrumental whirlwind, sequenced exquisitely to lull listeners into a trance, blind them with 60's camp midway, and punish them by track 22 with krautrock and noisemakers. This is simultaneously the most illogical and obligatory mix possible for the genre-bending film it was designed to support. Consider it a crutch holding up the film's bruised, broken, and seemingly infinite kung-fu combatants.

"Kill Bill" the film is a bit of a departure for Tarantino, as his formerly (and at times flawlessly) equal balance of style and substance has been tipped heavily in favor of the former; the everlasting dialogue has been converted into backflips and swordplay to create a visual tour de force. The soundtrack, in turn, is a successful reflection of the stylistic direction. Slashed, save for two brief moments, are the recorded discourses that were a Tarantino soundtrack staple ("Royale with Cheese" sure used to be a party-starter). What blasts in to take its place is an array of soundscapes, from the polish of Zamfir, to the downright weirdness of Bernard Herrmann. Kudos to Tarantino and co. for digging through the crates and dusting off some out of print gems.

Nancy Sinatra's Sonny and Cher cover "Bang Bang (My Baby Shot Me Down)" sucks listeners in immediately. Her voice seems to be cooed-in from the Grand Canyon, only backed by some ghostly guitar meandering. Charlie Feathers then chirps in with a Sun-era stomper, late-60's cut "That Certain Female." These nuggets alone are worth the purchase price, but they merely captivate the audience for the bizarre barrage of heavy-hitters to follow.

"I am too young to know any of these songs... now you must die!" Courtesy of Everythingtarantino.com

Trying to group the rest of the record in some cohesive fashion proves to be the ultimate exercise in futility. Film composer Luis Bacalov turns in the hauntingly gorgeous "Grand Duel," as east meets west in the flute/string/harmonica clash. "Woo Hoo" from the surfy, all-grrl Japanese outfit the 5.6.7.8.'s is a dancefloor banger. Notorious Asian action aficionado RZA, from the Wu-Tang Clan, dumps off a handful of original material as well, taking the over-the-top attitude of Bobby Digital, yet making it work through the emotionally gritty samples his music has been lacking since the early-90s. Noticing a trend, or better yet, a lack thereof? There is no method to this soundtrack's madness. Perhaps there is sense in the aforementioned moody sequencing, yet there is no explanation for the most oddball track found on the album: a 1977, 10-minute reworking of the Animals' hit "Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood" by the Euro-disco outfit Santa Esmeralda. How this came to back the visuals of some of the finest kung-fu battles in recent film is a downright mystery.

Nonetheless, it may be this mystery that strangely makes the soundtrack so intriguing. "Kill Bill" the film bounces off the walls from scene to scene, and the music behind it relentlessly follows it blow by blow. The fact that a lot of these tunes are near impossible to find elsewhere makes it stand up on its own as well. Listeners are in for a dizzying marathon with these recordings, and luckily, "Vol. 2" will be available to knock them out again just as they recover in February.

November 21, 2003