The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift
Brian Tyler
" Tyler unleashes the Fast and the Furious rhythms "Written by Thomas Glorieux - Review of the regular release
The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift was the first score Brian Tyler did for the popular franchise The Fast and the Furious. BT did the first one for the Rob Cohen smash hit, David Arnold was hired for the weaker sequel. Now with the leads gone (though the end of the 3rd re-introduced Vin Diesel to the franchise), Toyko Drift was ready for another sound too. And that's exactly what you get, at least in the terms for the franchise. For Brian Tyler fans, they are hearing the action ideas we've come to expect from him, albeit in a less appealing setting. Plus, his rhythmic action ideas are only enhanced here by endless electric guitars, percussion and loud beats that make it definitely for the fans a ride to consider.
It starts with an action idea that we heard before in The Hunted. "Togue" by that flows into "The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift", unleashing a massive sound for electric guitar, percussion and loud excessive beats. By far the orchestral rhythm is appetizing for the fans of the franchise, and for Brian Tyler fans alike. But for people who are getting tired of his action sound, there is nothing remotely new here. That something new changes once we hear tracks like "Saucin'", "Mustang Nismo" and "Megaton", cues that unleash excessive hard rock and electronic effects. Cues that might please one, irritate another. In fact, Tyler's not afraid to throw some sfx and cool sound designs in the mix to create a pimped environment which just happens to fit the whole scenery of illegal street racing. Check out "Hot Fuji" for the best possible effect.
Luckily the breathers of the score are the lovely guitar rhythm of "Neela Drifts" and "Neela", the relaxing "This is my Mexico" and the Thelma & Louise electric sound-a-like guitar moments in "Welcome to Tokyo". And the many tracks in the middle amount up to nothing solid after that, often unleashing some sound design moments that add very little to the whole experience. Meaning in short, tracks 15 to 27 are by that commendable to pass.
And finally we have the familiar pieces that mostly surround the races, they are from the same book that Tyler used on other efforts, the only difference is the enhanced electronic sounds he ads to them. "DK vs. Han", "Downtown Tokyo Chase" and "Two Guns" to name but a few. I'm not saying these aren't totally enjoyable. I'm saying they will add nothing original to your play list. For my money, "Downtown Tokyo Chase" is the biggest fun of them all while "Symphonic Togue" turns out to deliver a fully symphonic action tour de force, re creating the second track but deleting the guitars and the electronic toys for good measure.
In truth, The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift delivers the expected and the unexpected. But strangely it's in the unexpected that Tokyo Drift fails. Especially the second part is one long exercise of uninteresting cues that add nothing to the experience. The action tracks deliver the most entertaining pieces, but are also extremely predictable if it wasn't for the fact they were emphasized by the electronics. In truth. Stick with a couple of tracks and I promise you, you have heard everything you need to hear.
Track Listing
1. Touge (0.46)
2. The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift (7.05)
3. Saucin' (4.28)
4. Neela Drifts (3.27)
5. Preparation (1.10)
6. N2O (0.49)
7. Mustang Nismo (2.21)
8. Underground (1.33)
9. Hot Fuji (1.55)
10. This is My Mexico (1.23)
11. Welcome to Tokyo * (1.54)
12. DK vs. Han (3.32)
13. Downtown Tokyo Chase (2.23) Excellent track
14. Aftermath (1.22)
15. Empty Garage (1.01)
16. DK's Revenge (1.09)
17. Journey Backwards (0.58)
18. Sumo (1.37)
19. Shaun's Crazy Idea (2.44)
20. Dejection (1.12)
21. Kamata (1.32)
22. Two Guns (1.29)
23. I Gotta Do This (1.14)
24. Megaton (2.16)
25. Neela Confronts DK (1.47)
26. Winner … Gets … Me (1.21)
27. War Theory (1.54)
28. I Don't Need You To Save Me (0.57)
29. Neela (1.44)
30. Symphonic Touge (6.50)
* Written by Slash & Brian Tyler
Total Length: 63.53
It starts with an action idea that we heard before in The Hunted. "Togue" by that flows into "The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift", unleashing a massive sound for electric guitar, percussion and loud excessive beats. By far the orchestral rhythm is appetizing for the fans of the franchise, and for Brian Tyler fans alike. But for people who are getting tired of his action sound, there is nothing remotely new here. That something new changes once we hear tracks like "Saucin'", "Mustang Nismo" and "Megaton", cues that unleash excessive hard rock and electronic effects. Cues that might please one, irritate another. In fact, Tyler's not afraid to throw some sfx and cool sound designs in the mix to create a pimped environment which just happens to fit the whole scenery of illegal street racing. Check out "Hot Fuji" for the best possible effect.
Luckily the breathers of the score are the lovely guitar rhythm of "Neela Drifts" and "Neela", the relaxing "This is my Mexico" and the Thelma & Louise electric sound-a-like guitar moments in "Welcome to Tokyo". And the many tracks in the middle amount up to nothing solid after that, often unleashing some sound design moments that add very little to the whole experience. Meaning in short, tracks 15 to 27 are by that commendable to pass.
And finally we have the familiar pieces that mostly surround the races, they are from the same book that Tyler used on other efforts, the only difference is the enhanced electronic sounds he ads to them. "DK vs. Han", "Downtown Tokyo Chase" and "Two Guns" to name but a few. I'm not saying these aren't totally enjoyable. I'm saying they will add nothing original to your play list. For my money, "Downtown Tokyo Chase" is the biggest fun of them all while "Symphonic Togue" turns out to deliver a fully symphonic action tour de force, re creating the second track but deleting the guitars and the electronic toys for good measure.
In truth, The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift delivers the expected and the unexpected. But strangely it's in the unexpected that Tokyo Drift fails. Especially the second part is one long exercise of uninteresting cues that add nothing to the experience. The action tracks deliver the most entertaining pieces, but are also extremely predictable if it wasn't for the fact they were emphasized by the electronics. In truth. Stick with a couple of tracks and I promise you, you have heard everything you need to hear.
Track Listing
1. Touge (0.46)
2. The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift (7.05)
3. Saucin' (4.28)
4. Neela Drifts (3.27)
5. Preparation (1.10)
6. N2O (0.49)
7. Mustang Nismo (2.21)
8. Underground (1.33)
9. Hot Fuji (1.55)
10. This is My Mexico (1.23)
11. Welcome to Tokyo * (1.54)
12. DK vs. Han (3.32)
13. Downtown Tokyo Chase (2.23) Excellent track
14. Aftermath (1.22)
15. Empty Garage (1.01)
16. DK's Revenge (1.09)
17. Journey Backwards (0.58)
18. Sumo (1.37)
19. Shaun's Crazy Idea (2.44)
20. Dejection (1.12)
21. Kamata (1.32)
22. Two Guns (1.29)
23. I Gotta Do This (1.14)
24. Megaton (2.16)
25. Neela Confronts DK (1.47)
26. Winner … Gets … Me (1.21)
27. War Theory (1.54)
28. I Don't Need You To Save Me (0.57)
29. Neela (1.44)
30. Symphonic Touge (6.50)
* Written by Slash & Brian Tyler
Total Length: 63.53