Stranger Things Soundtrack

I'm making an executive decision here at Go-Go-Rama. For my next entry on the Grammy winners, I'm discussing the category of Best Compilation Soundtrack for Visual Media. The winner was The Greatest Showman, which had some good songs but is nothing I want to listen to again. One of the nominees was Stranger Things, and since the third season is coming up in July, I took a listen.

Song soundtracks for movies and TV shows are difficult to evaluate, as they are basically just a bunch of hits stitched together. Stranger Things is set in the early '80s, so naturally the songs reflect that era, but it's a tricky job. Not only are securing rights an issue (with Netflix's money, I'm sure that wasn't a problem) but the songs must suggest something greater.

The music coordinator for this album is Lauren Fay Levy, and what's impressive here is that the songs are a mixture of the '80s in all its glory: pop hits, new wave, and cheese. It kicks off with The Police's "Every Breath You Take," which was ubiquitous in 1983, but still seems relevant with its malevolent tone to an otherwise banal lyric about stalking. Other hits from that era appearing here are Duran Duran's "Girls on Film," The Clash's "Should I Stay or Should I Go," and Devo's "Whip It."

Digging a little deeper into the time period, we have Cory Hart's "Sunglasses at Night," Cyndi Lauper's "Time After Time," and The Bangles' cover of Simon and Garfunkel's "Hazy Shade of Winter." These cuts are interspersed with clips from the show, most of them Winona Ryder hamming it up about finding her missing son (there is some confusion about which season this soundtrack is from, but the clips are definitely from the first season, in which Will Byers is missing).

A few songs I had never heard before, but am glad I know now, such as "Nocturnal Me," by Echo and the Bunnymen, "Ghost of You," by The Psychedelic Furs, and "Atmosphere," by Joy Division. I must admit I had never heard of Fad Gadget, whose "Back to Nature" appears.

In the cheese section, we have cuts by Bon Jovi, The Scorpions, Toto, and even Olivia Newton-John. The only song not from the period is Jim Croce's "You Don't Mess Around With Jim," which is always a fun song to listen to.

Perhaps the best cut on the album is a cover of David Bowie's "Heroes" by Peter Gabriel, which is slowed way down and squeezes out of every bit of poignance in that tune, which is a lot.