In the outlandish dark comedy Super, James Gunn has created what is perhaps the definitive take on self-reflexive superheroes. When sad-sack loser Frank sees his ex-addict wife willingly snatched by a seductive drug dealer, he finds himself bereft and wholly unable to cope. But soon he decides to fight back under the guise of a DIY superhero called Crimson Bolt. With a hand-made suit, a wrench, and a crazed sidekick named Boltie, the Crimson Bolt beats his way through the mean streets of crime in hopes of saving his wife. The rules were written a long time ago: You are not supposed to molest children, cut lines or key cars; if you do, prepare to face the wrath of the Crimson Bolt...

Anyone seeing the cover of this CD could be mistaken for being under the impression that what they're getting for their money is Tyler Bates's score. What you actually get is just over 16 minutes of Bates's music and around 30 minutes of pop tracks by various artists.

So already I'm suspecting that I'm not going to be a huge fan of this release. And, surprise, surprise, after listening to it several times I can conclude that it's not one I'd want to listen to again. Even Bates's music is a little tired and dull. This collection of, on the whole, bland middle of the road artist tracks makes for a rather poor compilations album. I'm sure they work well in the movie, but not when listened to in isolation.

Cheap Trick's 'If You Want My Love' has a segment that sounds a little too close to The Beatles's 'While My Guitar Gently Weeps' and the only reason that this single stood out for me is that I bought several Cheap Trick albums in the '80s. The rest of the tracks just melt into one.

The full track listings are:

01 - 'Calling All Destroyers' - Tsar
02 - 'Two Perfect Moments' - Tyler Bates
03 - 'It Hurts Too Much' - Eric Carmen
04 - 'I Do' - Lo-def Dollz
05 - 'The Prayer' - Tyler Bates
06 - 'If You Want My Love' - Cheap Trick
07 - 'God Knows My Name '11' - Moneybrother
08 - 'Finger Of God' - Tyler Bates
09 - 'Holy Avenger's Advice' - Tyler Bates
10 - 'Nobody Knows You Anymore' - Terra Naomi
11 - 'What It Was' - Aceyalone
12 - 'The Second Prayer' - Tyler Bates
13 - 'Born Under a Bad Sign' - Moneybrother
14 - 'Let Your Body Decide' - The Ark
15 - 'Libby Goes Down' - Tyler Bates
16 - 'Aftermath And Resolution' - Tyler Bates
17. 'Sometimes Good Guys Don't Wear White' - The Nomads

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Darren Rea