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Empire's Music Playlist Of 2011
The tracks that defined our year

It’s been a heck of year for music and the movies. There’s been terrific soundtracks (Drive, Hanna, Arrietty), earlobe-tickling TV scores (Game Of Thrones, Breaking Bad), and then, just when it couldn’t get a whole lot better, David Lynch weighed in with a debut studio album that turned the Empire office hi-fi into a deer. Happy times. To celebrate we shook our iPods until this playlist for 2011 fell out.

WORDS PHIL DE SEMLYEN
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Drive / The Lincoln Lawyer

Track: ‘Nightcall’
Artist: Kavinsky

So good it appeared in not one, but two movies. Cliff Martinez was the common dominator as composer for both Drive and The Lincoln Lawyer, and for our money French synth-poppers Kavinsky’s track was the stand-out on both. Look out for the bit where they win bonus marks by getting the movie’s title into the lyrics. That’s Drive, not The Lincoln Lawyer.

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Your Comments

1 Nice choices...
...but I had hoped for something from the vastly underrated (and Gosling-starring) Crazy Stupid Love, though - particularly the eerie, sad yet uplifting 'Blood' by The Middle East. A very eclectic and solid soundtrack. More

Posted by iainjames on Monday January 2, 2012, 22:42

2 Great selection, but...
You forgot the absolute best song used in a movie in 2011: The Knack - My Sharona! Who wasn't coming out of Super 8, humming that fantastic song? You know you were! More

Posted by genlock on Thursday December 29, 2011, 13:27

3 Drine!
planning on getting the soundtrack so i can put it in my car, roll down the windows and hang around all-night liqeur stores looking menacing... More

Posted by Swedle on Wednesday December 28, 2011, 18:43

4
I have been feeling more and more anxious about the fact that i don't remember this year very well.. i had to dig my imdb ratings to get some hold of the year 2011. I need to start a sad and lonely blog just to remember! In a matter of 2011 movie/tv soundtracks, this is Empire's opinion as staff, i believe. My choices would be Thor - sons of Odin, HP 7.2 - Lily's theme, Statues and Courtyard Apocalypse, Rango - The Sunset Shot (and Stuck in a guacamole and other owl dialogues, also hilarious It's Metaphor's 0.29), Rango Suite. Potc 4 is somewhat awful, but Zimmer/R&G is brilliant. The Three Musketeer's tango based tracks ( Do you know who I am, Concealed weapons tango, and very heroic Round Two) And adding AC revelations trailer music: Woodkid -Iron. Yes, Game of thrones Intro rocks! Don't hate me! i haven't watched enough films from this year.. More

Posted by Butl3r on Wednesday December 28, 2011, 17:07

5
Lots of the songs on this list are also on my playlist. Though I really miss 'Magneto' from the X-Men: First Class track and at least one song from the Thor soundtrack. And I'm agreeing with others that Tron: Legacy's Derezzed shou'ld've had a spot on this list. More

Posted by thisiscarlijn on Wednesday December 28, 2011, 12:47

6 Attack the Block
"Blap, blap, blap"!? Ouch. You've just shown your old age. Anyone under 25 could correct you there. The phrase is in fact "BRAP BRAP BRAP" - an onomatopoeia for a gunshot used by 'yoofs'. More

Posted by madcreator12 on Monday December 26, 2011, 12:34

7 The Skin In Which I Live
I'm with Faris - The Skin I Live In was my favourite of the year, muchly looking forward to buying that soundtrack. Hauntingly, hypnotically beautiful. More

Posted by MovieMogul on Sunday December 25, 2011, 16:31

8 about today the national
I agree with the dirty funky monkey. More

Posted by osh man on Saturday December 24, 2011, 17:40

9 Panic Switch
If we're having Zeppo from the 'Sucker Punch' trailer then I feel 'Panic Switch' should be thrown in for its contribution to the second half of the trailer - great tune by the Silversun Pickups (1:15 onward, though not necessarily in the right order!). More

Posted by elyoda on Saturday December 24, 2011, 15:49

10 Some Daft Punk love...
Good list... I'd probably say that Tron: Legacy probably deserves a mention somewhere (probably for Derezzed... though there are numerous great songs from the soundtrack)... Daft Punk did an excellent job with that film I would say. More

Posted by Annihilate Now! on Saturday December 24, 2011, 14:24

11 Some Daft Punk love...
Good list... I'd probably say that Tron: Legacy probably deserves a mention somewhere (probably for Derezzed... though there are numerous great songs from the soundtrack)... Daft Punk did an excellent job with that film I would say. More

Posted by Annihilate Now! on Saturday December 24, 2011, 12:12

12 Hanna
after seeing the brilliant film and hearing the chemical brothers masterpiece of a soundtrack i had to go out and buy it as soon as i left the cinema More

Posted by aamoran10 on Saturday December 24, 2011, 00:06

13
Pretty sad that when I read "get that snitch" i think of Harry Potter... More

Posted by sifter132 on Friday December 23, 2011, 21:27

14 under your spell
wheres under your spell from drive???? More

Posted by bluedub on Friday December 23, 2011, 17:24

15 The National - About Today...
What?! No love for The National's About Today played to perfection at the end of Warrior. (very good film by the way). More

Posted by Dirtyfunkymonkey on Friday December 23, 2011, 14:36

16 Thank you Empire
For giving Drive its deserved 5 stars in this months mag. More

Posted by burtbondy on Friday December 23, 2011, 12:38

17 no love for Tangled?
"I've got a dream" made me giggle and heralded an unexpected but welcome return to form for the house of mouse More

Posted by Dr Science on Friday December 23, 2011, 11:32

18 It's all about...........
............. Drive! That track by College is haunting and fits in so perfectly! I get goosebumps when I hear it! Drive for me is a faultless film! More

Posted by guysalisbury on Friday December 23, 2011, 10:35

19 Good choices here...
...but what about Hans Zimmers' Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows???! More

Posted by Radical_Duck on Friday December 23, 2011, 09:37

20 No Sean Spillane?
I'd say Sean Spillane's soundtrack for The Woman should have been featured. Specifically Distracted. More

Posted by batmagnet on Friday December 23, 2011, 01:10

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