0724383719020. New condition. CD. Trainspotting concerns the adventures of a group of young nearly criminal drug-addicted Scottish friends. The novel written by Irvine Welsh became one of the most popular books in the British indie scene in the early 90s and was adapted to film in 1996 by the makers of Shallow Grave. Appropriately an all-star collection of British pop and techno stars -- everyone from Blur Pulp and Elastica to Leftfield Primal Scream and Underworld -- contributed to the soundtrack which also features a couple of oldies by veteran punk godfathers like Lou Reed ( Perfect Day ) and Iggy Pop ( Lust for Life Nightclubbing ). The entire soundtrack holds together surprisingly well as the techno tracks balance with the pop singles. Every song whether it s Pulp s deceptively bouncy Mile End or Brian Eno s lush Deep Blue Day is quite melancholy creating an effectively bleak but oddly romantic atmosphere for the entire record. With the exception of the oldies every song is rare or especially recorded for the soundtrack and nearly every one is superb. Primal Scream s title track sees them returning to the dub/dance experiments of Screamadelica with grace while Damon Albarn s first solo song Closet Romantic is as good as any of Blur s waltzes. But the finest new song is Pulp s Mile End with its jaunty neo-dancehall melody and rhythms and Jarvis Cocker s evocative haunting lyrics. That song more than anything else on the soundtrack captures the feeling of the film. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine Rovi