The World's End (soundtrack)

The World's End (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) is the soundtrack to the 2013 film of the same name directed by Edgar Wright. The soundtrack was released on 5 August 2013 in the United Kingdom and 20 August in the United States.[1] Published by ABKCO Records, the album featured several rock numbers of various subgenres such as alternative, indie, psychedelic as well as electronica, Madchester and Britpop ranging from the time period of late-1980s and early 1990s to reflect the character's adolescence.[2][3]

Background

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The album consisted numerous songs that have been selected from the time of the character's adolescence and also from Wright's;[4][5] as most of them had been chosen while writing the film. He also compiled the playlist containing the selected songs for the crew to listen, which Pegg described as a "blast" with him and Wright delving into the music collection.[6]

…it was like 200 tracks long and it was mostly 1988 to 1993, which is the period where I was in college. They were all like touchstones of a particular time and a lot of the songs I remember being a gateway to more alternative music; it was the period where I stopped listening to pop music and oldies. It really informed me to write the movie.

— Edgar Wright, on compiling the film's music in an interview to IndieWire[7]

Wright recalled that in his early days, he used to discover the songs in chart lists in NME, UK Top 40 and The Chart Show to listen to the indie rock numbers. He recalled that a number of songs in the film "struck hard" during their adolescence, while some of the tracks are remembered: "Loaded" by Primal Scream, "I'm Free" by the Soup Dragons, "Step On" by the Happy Mondays, while the rest were "deserved to be rediscovered". In the film, Gary (Pegg) had a mixtape of the selections as "his character is still living by those rules. It's like he decided to take 'Loaded' and 'I'm Free' to heart and thinks the party's never going to end".[5]

During this process, The Doors' version of "Alabama Song" was quite expensive, according to Nick Angel (the music supervisor) who licensed most of the tracks. Wright had to change two of the tracks to make room for the song. He recalled that he wanted to have "Stormy Weather" by Pixies but dropped down as the song was too expensive getting it.[7]

As with the previous instalments in the Three Flavours Cornetto trilogy: Shaun of the Dead (2004) and Hot Fuzz (2007), Wright listened to horror and action scores, suiting the mood of the film, whereas in case of The World's End, he listened to the selected tracks that suited as the instrumentals and served a "structural importance" to the film.[7] The film marked the maiden collaboration of Steven Price,[8] who was known for scoring Attack the Block (2011) with Wright, who would later work with him in Baby Driver (2017) and Last Night in Soho (2021).[9]

Reception

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Heather Phares of AllMusic reviewed "World's End isn't just more entertaining than your average soundtrack, it's also a lot more fun than most compilations of '90s music, making it a worthwhile listen for those who haven't seen the movie but love the sounds of that time."[10] Ryan Leas of Stereogum wrote "The World’s End deploys all its aged pop gems for a purpose. They help further what turns out to be a sober meditation on approaching middle age and facing change (or lack thereof), on how your high school friends and town always seem frozen in the year you left them, and how disorienting it can be to return to them to realize that isn’t the case at all."[11]

Soundtrack

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The World's End: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack
Soundtrack album by
Various Artists
Released5 August 2013 (2013-08-05)
GenreAlternative rock, indie rock, Madchester, alternative dance, Britpop, psychedelic rock, electronica
Length74:59
LabelABKCO Records
Edgar Wright film soundtrack chronology
Scott Pilgrim vs. The World
(2010)
The World's End: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack
(2013)
Baby Driver
(2017)

The soundtrack to the film consisting of songs and dialogue snippets, was released by ABKCO Records on 5 August 2013 in the United Kingdom, and 20 August 2013 in the United States.[12] While the initial release had 18 tracks, the deluxe edition of the soundtrack, which unveiled on 19 August 2013 had ten additional tracks that were not part of the original release.[1]

Standard

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No.TitleWriter(s)Artist(s)Length
1."Loaded" (single edit)Primal Scream4:21
2."There's No Other Way"Blur3:19
3."I Put This On a Tape for You" (dialogue)Simon Pegg and Paddy Considine0:09
4."I'm Free"The Soup Dragons3:50
5."So Young"Suede3:37
6."Do You Remember the First Time?"PulpPulp4:22
7."Welcome" (dialogue)
  • Simon Pegg
  • Edgar Wright
Simon Pegg0:04
8."What You Do to Me"Norman BlakeTeenage Fanclub1:57
9."Fools Gold" (single edit)The Stone Roses4:15
10."Get a Life"
Soul II Soul3:36
11."We Have Changed" (dialogue)
  • Simon Pegg
  • Edgar Wright
Nick Frost0:07
12."Alabama Song (Whisky Bar)"The Doors3:16
13."Wear Your Love Like Heaven"
  • Rex "The Red King" Brough
  • Kevin Clark
  • B.B. Cunningham
  • Gary Mewan
  • Don Weekes
Definition of Sound3:43
14."I Hate This Town" (dialogue)
  • Simon Pegg
  • Edgar Wright
Nick Frost0:04
15."20 Seconds to Comply" (World's End Bomb Squad mix re-edit)Richard BrownSilver Bullet4:35
16."This Corrosion" (single edit)Andrew EldritchThe Sisters of Mercy4:21
17."Happy Hour"The Housemartins2:21
18."Let's Boo Boo" (dialogue)
  • Simon Pegg
  • Edgar Wright
Simon Pegg and Paddy Considine0:24
Total length:48:33

Deluxe edition

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No.TitleWriter(s)Artist(s)Length
1."Loaded" (single edit)
  • Robert Young
  • Bobby Gillespie
  • Andrew Innes
Primal Scream4:21
2."There's No Other Way"
  • Damon Albarn
  • Alex James
  • Dave Rowntree
  • Graham Coxon
Blur3:19
3."I Put This On a Tape for You" (dialogue)
  • Simon Pegg
  • Edgar Wright
Simon Pegg and Paddy Considine0:09
4."I'm Free"
  • Mick Jagger
  • Keith Richards
The Soup Dragons3:50
5."Step On"Happy Mondays5:14
6."Was The Music Too Loud?" (dialogue)
  • Simon Pegg
  • Edgar Wright
Steve Oram and Simon Pegg0:04
7."So Young"
  • Brett Anderson
  • Bernard Butler
Suede3:37
8."Old Red Eyes Is Back"
  • Paul Heaton
  • Dave Rotheray
The Beautiful South3:32
9."A Humble Taproom" (dialogue)
  • Simon Pegg
  • Edgar Wright
Simon Pegg and Nick Frost0:15
10."Come Home" (Flood mix)James3:53
11."Do You Remember the First Time?"PulpPulp4:22
12."Welcome" (dialogue)
  • Simon Pegg
  • Edgar Wright
Simon Pegg0:04
13."What You Do to Me"Norman BlakeTeenage Fanclub1:57
14."Fools Gold" (single edit)
  • Ian Brown
  • John Squire
The Stone Roses4:15
15."Get a Life"
  • Beresford "Jazzie B" Romeo
  • Hayden "Aitch B" Brown
Soul II Soul3:36
16."We Have Changed" (dialogue)
  • Simon Pegg
  • Edgar Wright
Nick Frost0:07
17."This Is How It Feels"Inspiral CarpetsInspiral Carpets3:10
18."Alabama Song (Whisky Bar)"
  • Kurt Weill
  • Bertolt Brecht
The Doors3:16
19."Wear Your Love Like Heaven"
  • Rex "The Red King" Brough
  • Kevin Clark
  • B.B. Cunningham
  • Gary Mewan
  • Don Weekes
Definition of Sound3:43
20."This Is What the Kids Want" (dialogue)
  • Simon Pegg
  • Edgar Wright
Simon Pegg and Martin Freeman0:07
21."Step Back in Time"Kylie Minogue3:04
22."Join Our Club"Saint Etienne3:15
23."Here's Where the Story Ends"
The Sundays3:52
24."I Hate This Town" (dialogue)
  • Simon Pegg
  • Edgar Wright
Nick Frost0:04
25."20 Seconds to Comply" (World's End Bomb Squad mix re-edit)Richard BrownSilver Bullet4:35
26."This Corrosion" (single edit)Andrew EldritchThe Sisters of Mercy4:21
27."Happy Hour"
  • Paul Heaton
  • Stanley Cullimore
The Housemartins2:21
28."Let's Boo Boo" (dialogue)
  • Simon Pegg
  • Edgar Wright
Simon Pegg and Paddy Considine0:24

Additional music

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In addition to the following the tracks, the film also featured music not included in the album:[1]

Chart performance

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Chart (2013) Peak
position
UK Compilation Albums (OCC)[13] 52
UK Soundtrack Albums (OCC)[14] 7
US Top Soundtracks (Billboard)[15] 18

Score

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The World's End (Original Motion Picture Score)
Film score by
Released20 August 2013
GenreFilm score
Length63:14
LabelBack Lot Music
ProducerSteven Price
Steven Price chronology
Attack the Block
(2011)
The World's End
(2013)
Gravity
(2013)

All tracks are written by Steven Price

No.TitleLength
1."They Called Me the King"0:54
2."The Cross Hands"4:50
3."Has It Got Messy Yet?"2:09
4."Hello Trevor"1:32
5."The Trusty Servant"2:18
6."The Two Headed Dog"2:46
7."We're Way Past Leaving Now"0:50
8."The Mermaid"3:12
9."To the Beehive"1:47
10."I Hate This Town"1:17
11."Break It Up"3:21
12."The Smokehouse"4:09
13."I'm Disappointed In You"2:05
14."The King's Head"1:27
15."Put the Pint Down"4:00
16."The World's End"3:17
17."Cosmic Intervention"7:14
18."You Had To Go and Spoil It"3:21
19."The Morning After"4:10
20."There's Only One Gary King" (Osymyso's Inibri-8 Megamix)4:24
21."There's Only One Gary King" (Osymyso's Inibri-8 Megamix) (Instrumental)4:11
Total length:63:14

References

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  1. ^ a b c Drumm, Diana (9 July 2013). "'The World's End' Soundtrack Features Blur, Pulp, The Stone Roses, Kylie Minogue & More". IndieWire. Archived from the original on 5 July 2023. Retrieved 5 July 2023.
  2. ^ "Exclusive Track By Track: Edgar Wright Discusses 'The World's End' Soundtrack & His Musical Choices". The Playlist. Archived from the original on 5 July 2023. Retrieved 5 July 2023.
  3. ^ W. Harris, Michael (9 September 2013). "Getting Loaded at The World's End: Compiled Soundtrack in The World's End". The Temp Track. Archived from the original on 24 February 2015. Retrieved 5 July 2023.
  4. ^ "Edgar Wright On The Music Of The World's End". Empire. 2013. Archived from the original on 23 August 2017. Retrieved 5 July 2023.
  5. ^ a b Franklin, Oliver (17 July 2013). "Edgar Wright interview on The World's End, pubs & Ant Man". GQ. Archived from the original on 21 July 2013. Retrieved 22 July 2013.
  6. ^ "Simon Pegg Talks THE WORLD'S END, the Film's Soundtrack, Writing with Edgar Wright, and More". Collider. 17 May 2013. Archived from the original on 7 June 2013. Retrieved 5 July 2023.
  7. ^ a b c Taylor, Drew (21 August 2013). "Interview: Edgar Wright Talks 'The World's End,' Completing The Cornetto Trilogy, 'Ant-Man' & Much More". IndieWire. Archived from the original on 5 July 2023. Retrieved 5 July 2023.
  8. ^ Girkout, Alexa (3 October 2013). "How Do You Score Outer Space? Silence and 'Overwhelming' Sound, Says 'Gravity' Composer". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on 17 October 2021. Retrieved 5 July 2023.
  9. ^ "Cultural Life: Edgar Wright, director". The Independent. 18 December 2013. Archived from the original on 6 January 2014. Retrieved 5 July 2023.
  10. ^ Phares, Heather. "The World's End: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack review". AllMusic. Rovi Corporation. Archived from the original on 5 October 2013. Retrieved 25 August 2013.
  11. ^ "The Best Soundtrack Moments Of 2013". Stereogum. 26 December 2013. Archived from the original on 7 December 2021. Retrieved 5 July 2023.
  12. ^ "The Edgar Wright Mixtape". Tribeca. 19 August 2013. Archived from the original on 5 July 2023. Retrieved 5 July 2023.
  13. ^ "Official Soundtrack Albums Chart Top 100 - 4 to 10 August". Official Charts Company. 4 August 2013. Archived from the original on 5 July 2023. Retrieved 5 July 2023.
  14. ^ "Official Compilation Albums Chart Top 50 - 4 to 10 August". Official Charts Company. 4 August 2013. Archived from the original on 7 September 2020. Retrieved 5 July 2023.
  15. ^ "Soundtracks: Week of September 14, 2013". Billboard. 14 September 2013. Archived from the original on 30 March 2018. Retrieved 5 July 2023.