Guardians of the Galaxy

FANTASTIC PURCHASE! (Or, as Groot would say: "I AM GROOT!")If you loved Guardians of the Galaxy in the theater then this is the album to purchase!The Deluxe Soundtrack is a two disc set that contains both the soundtrack (aka "Awesome Mix Tape vol 1") as well as Tyler Bates dramatic score. Rather than settle for one album or the other you can own both in one fell swoop for a terrific price.Disc 1: Awesome Mix Tape Vol 1I don't need to say anymore. This is the album that most movie-goers are going to be familiar with. Songs like "Hooked on a Feeling", "Spirit in the Sky", and "Cherry Bomb" lit up theaters as part of the trailers and are joined by other great hits like "Come and Get Your Love" and "Escape". It's a great collection of songs from the 70's that proves that Peter Quill's mother had great taste in music. Never before has a soundtrack album been integrated so perfectly into a film!Disc 2: The Score by Tyler Bates.Remember "300", "Sucker Punch", and "Watchmen"? That was Tyler Bates. It's a solid score that bounces from dark and brooding to tonally light and comical and back again. Tracks like "Black Tears" bring the Guardians theme to the forefront in a way that makes you wish you were back in the theater again, with a big tub of popcorn watching the crew of the Milano tear it up on the big screen. It's a subtle score in places but I've found that I listen to it as much as the Mix Tape!My only regret is that this wasn't available as an MP3 album and I had to wait a few extra days to get it in the mail.

The soundtrack of "Guardians of the Galaxy" is one of my favorites in a long time, and the 2-Disc Deluxe Version is the one the buy.*****DISC 1 - Awesome Mix Vol. 1Disc One is the songs from the movie. All but one of them are featured in the film ("Spirit in the Sky" is not in the movie, although it was used in one of the trailers). Not only is the music good, but as you know if you've seen the film, the mixtape serves a significant narrative purpose. The songs here are presented as much more than just background music - these songs are important to the main character. My understanding is that the director even played the songs on set to help the cast understand the tone he was going for.Favorite Tracks[01] Hooked on a Feeling[03] Spirit in the Sky[08] Come and Get Your Love[12] Ain't No Mountain High Enough*****DISC 2 - Original Score by Tyler BatesThe original score for the film is certainly overshadowed by the songs in the movie. But Tyler Bates is very a talented composer, and he delivers an emotional underscore here that serves the story well. It's not as compelling to listen to on it's own as disc one of this album, but there are some interesting tracks that I've found myself revisiting.Favorite Tracks[12] Sanctuary[20] Sacrifice[22] The Ballad of the Nova Corps.[26] Groot Cocoon

When I saw this movie, I was totally overwhelmed by the soundtrack. It so rocked the movie. Every song complimented the story and added to every facet of the movie. I bought both the score and the soundtrack and they are both just excellent. Seldom has music contributed so much to the soul of a movie like this soundtrack did. I think it definitely contributed to the success it achieved. A perfect match. Highly recommended.

This is the perfect GotG CD for me. I get to groot (pardon me, groove) to the Awesome Mix when I want to listen to something fun and happy, then listen to the symphonic soundtrack when I need something to listen to while I work that sounds just as awesome but won't distract me as much as, say, David Bowie or the Jackson 5. I recommend this for anyone who loved ALL the music in the movie!

James Gunn and Tyler Bates are as thick as thieves, and Bates has scored everything Gunn has done since Gunn wrote the screenplay for the Dawn Of The Dead remake. Gunn's directorial efforts for features is limited though as he had only done two feature films before Guardians Of The Galaxy, which made him the perfect director in Marvel's eyes. Like Branagh on Thor before him, Gunn was able to bring his composer onboard. Marvel didn't overturn him and force him to use Brian Tyler. So, it was going to be interesting to see what Bates would be able to cook up with his biggest musical canvas to date (yes, bigger than Watchmen or 300). The big pull for Guardians Of The Galaxy thus far in its marketing is the unique use of Blue Suede's "Hooked On A Feeling", and pitching them as a band of renegade misfits. Tyler Bates on the other hand has actually scored a more than decent score to help bring the Guardians to life for the first time. The score tries hard to break the generic Marvel superhero mold and succeeds in areas while staying safe in others.Here we have another group of heroes who will band together, each bring something to the table and unite to fight some evil force. Bates does an admirable job at bringing a sense of adventure and orchestral force to craft the narrative. In fact this score is quite structurally impressive as it carries us through the story. It has a simple theme and variation approach. The theme for the Guardians won't blow you away, but it holds together in that it's not overbearing yet still gets you excited. This score took a while for me to warm up to as the first act is actually quite generic. Simple pulsating strings and percolating trumpets started to wear thin on me, but around the halfway mark Bates started to bring in the good stuff. I found "The Kyln Escape" to be a great action track that kicked the score in the direction it needed to go. Bates finally ditches the pulsing and pounding strings on a loop for some more structured tracks. The final act builds to some great moments as you feel the music really try to find a unique sound. In some cases it does. The music for Groot in "Groot Spores" and "Groot Coccoon" are mesmerizing. It has that sense of wonderment and magic that you really want in a score like this. Bates does a great job wrapping the adventure up too. You feel the layers of the orchestra moving instead of just one big sound. The use of chorus helps bring some gravitas to the big finale moments. The conclusion of the score is of that classic adventure feel, with a little playfulness and soothing wind-down.Guardians Of The Galaxy is a great summer adventure score done with that classic approach in mind. It has the thrills, the fun, the heroism and romanticism all weaved through it. It unfortunately lacks anything that makes it unique and memorable as a whole. When you hear those Groot moments or the quirk of the Collector you will cry out, "why can't we have more of that!". I was hoping for unique soundscapes, amazement and wonderment. The neon green and purple of the poster makes it seem like a first-class space adventure. And for something like that I was hoping for little more sci-fi instead of traditional orchestra all the way through. The moments of wonder that Bates did manage to get in are really stunning, they just come and go too quickly. In the end the score has plenty of merits to make it stand on its own, but at times you could swap this with Silvestri's The Avengers or Tyler's Iron Man 3 and have a hard time telling the difference. This is a really good orchestral score that needed a little extra flavor, but it's a safe bet for some adventurous orchestral fun.Kaya Savas for filmmusicmedia.com