Transformers: Dark of the Moon [Original Soundtrack] [lp]

In keeping with Transformers tradition, the soundtrack for Dark of the Moon, the third installment in the franchise, is split into two collections, one for the songs and one for the score. The 11-track "song" version (also following tradition) is populated by all of the usual suspects (My Chemical Romance, Linkin Park, Staind, Paramore, Taking Back Sunday), all of whom seem to exist solely to provide director Michael Bay with the appropriate decibels with which to unleash his near-constant barrages of CG carnage. New to the Transformers realm is trend-bucking, progressive metal outfit Mastodon, who offer up a surprisingly dirty, authentic, swampy rendition of ZZ Top's "Just Got Paid," which serves as a nice tonic amidst the constantly pained, angst-fueled cacophony that comes before it. ~ James Christopher Monger