BuySoundtrax records releases a collection of the most beloved science fiction themes with Science Fiction's Finest: Volume One. This 36-song collection features music from film and TV series including Star Trek, Doctor Who, Dune and even the recently released Battle: Los Angeles...

When will record labels wake up to the fact that no one really wants a compilation of TV / movie themes that aren't actually the original versions. Covers invariably come off sounding poor in comparison. While I understand that the expense of putting together an album of the original versions of these themes would probably cost more than the label would ever be able to recoup, faithfully reproductions would at least be welcomed a little warmer.

Of the 36 tracks on this collection only a handful actually sound even remotely close to the originals. The rest... well, range from pretty poor to almost unlistenable.

Nothing sells sci-fi to geeks than beautiful women dressed in sci-fi costumes! Am I right? Every nerd dreams of sexy sci-fi babes... oh wait, no, that was the '60s wasn't it? Sadly the designer of the booklet for this collection wasn't aware that times have changed and so we get a rather old fashioned, and rather sexist, CD booklet that contains several pictures of a rather plain looking woman dressed in various short sci-fi uniforms.

The fact that this is being marketed as "Volume One" is a little worrying. I'm scratching my head to think of what could possibly be included in "Volume Two" and who on this planet would want yet another collection of covers that weren't important enough to be included on this first volume. But then there are notable themes that are absent here: Babylon 5; Battlestar Galactica; Star Wars... and that's just for starters.

I would avoid this at all costs.

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Darren Rea