Let me start by saying that I have, and from time to time, still enjoy watching WWE Sports Entertainment. During the phase when I watched it the most I picked up a few of the CDs that were released. Although all of them were released under the WWF title, not WWE, so I will remember them as such.Forceable Entry contains nineteen tracks that were the themes for various wrestlers, or the opening credit music. Some of the songs are originals recorded specifically for this collection, others are remixes of well known songs, and all of these are done by some of the biggest groups in Rock or Metal at the time.
The album opens with Drowning Pool's The Game, which was Triple H's Theme, before he got a much better one performed by Motorhead. This is an okay song, but it never really did much for me. In fact it helped me boo Triple H that much more.
A cover of ZZ Top's Legs totally makes sense as a theme for Stacy Kiebler, and the version given by Kid Rock is top notch. It's very faithful to the original, and has a it's own unique flavour and finger print.
I've never really been a fan of Creed, and I'm not even sure why Young Grow Old was included on this disc. Then after a quick interent search I see it was the theme for the 2002 Backlash. Which makes sense, since that's when this album came out. This song is okay, if you are into Creed, but I don't really care all that much about it.
Disturbed is another band that I can go either way on. They were okay, and filled a void in the time in which they came out, but they were always too angry for me. However, that works for theme music for someone like Stone Cold Steve Austin. The song Glass Shatters isn't my cup of tea, but serves the purpose it is intended for.
I have no clue why someone thought it would be a good idea to use Limp Bizkit's Rollin' as The Undertaker's theme. And, I really have no clue what's up with the Dead Man Remix, and how it differs from the original, but wow did I loathe it. Not only do I think this song is shit, but it really upset me I had to hear it every time Taker came out. I want to crank up Austin's theme and then release all that anger on Fred Durst with a steel chair every time I hear this song.
I know it's cliche in one sense, but I think having Our Lady Peace (a Canadian group) perform the theme for Chris Benoit (a Canadian wrestler) was totally cool. The song Whatever is actually a really good track, and although I'm sure that these days there's some major distance with this song and it's relation to Benoit, it shouldn't be overlooked. "There's no holding me back / I'm not driven by fear / I'm just driven by anger / And you're under attack / I'm just climbing up slowly / I'm the one and only / The tease, the way you lie / The stumble in your mind / The fear, the hope inside / They hit here / Hit here / But whatever you need / 'Ever you got / 'Ever you want / I'll take back again / Whatever you need / 'Ever you got / 'Ever you want". It's prefect for a wrestler's introduction.
Edge, had a wicked theme when he came out. He was blessed with Rob Zombie's Never Gonna Stop, sadly it's some completely crappy remix called The Black Cat Crossing Mix, that's on this CD. I can't stand listening to this version. It sounds like someone opted to just strip out the song's substance and leave behind only the catch phrases.
The band Breaking Point had shown early promiss with their debut 2001 album Coming Of Age, which is how they landed the theme for Rob Van Dam, with the song One Of A Kind. Also from their 2001 album. This is honestly a decent track, although depending on personal tastes you may or may not enjoy it.
I couldn't help but laugh my ass off when Marilyn Manson ended up allowing Smackdown (Thursday Night's WWF show at the time) to use The Beautiful People for the show's theme. Sure it was remixed to make TV friendly, but my surprise came more from the fact that for the longest time he didn't want to be associated with that community. He had gone as far as askingThe Headbanger to stop wearing his t-shirts into the ring. Then one day, he has the lead off music for the night. Also this version is not as good as the original.
I couldn't stand the RAW (Monday night show) theme for the longest time. I thought the song Across The Nation was nothing more that quick throw away music from a second rate band, The Union Underground. I still think the same thing, but I enjoy the track a lot more now than I did when I was watching the show.
Sevendust's theme for Chris Jericho, was well done. Break the Walls Down, was a perfectly written and played theme that captured the wrestler's mentality quite well. I actually enjoy the song more now, then I did back then. "Come on, (Jerichooo) / You know I got ya, yeah / One, Break the wall down (Ahhhhhh) / Break down the walls / For those about to rock and what ya want / Baby you know you're judas and I'm your priest / Baby what I got is not from the least / Bring it through the stage in the rage of a beast / Step in the arena and break the wall down / Step in the arena and break the wall down". I know it reads a bit lame and standard, but it does what it's supposed to do, and that's pump you up.
I'm not a fan of Nu Metal, Hip Hop Metal, or anything that resembles that concept. Don't get me wrong, there are some bands that did this idea well, Faith No More, Rage Against The Machine (that pains me to acknowledge), and Korn. However, Saliva was not one of those groups that did it well. They did it like Limp Bizkit, and as far as I'm concerned that is shit. I will say that Turn The Tables, the Dudley Boyz theme does what it needs to do, but it does nothing for me.
My favourite tag team back in the day was the Matt and Jeff Hardy, and the fact that Monster Magnet did their theme was totally cool. The song Live For The Moment, doesn't even sound like it should be a theme. It's not typically catchy, or styled like many of the other songs on here. In fact I had to go looking to see if this was just an album track pinched from a previous album. After a quick look I couldn't find it anywhere, which means this was actually just a really good song that wasaa theme. I mean this is an excellent song, and I love cranking it.
Stereomud's End Of Everything sounds pretty much the same as the Sevendust track. It's a pretty standard sound for Metal in 2002. This was Raven's theme, and I had to go double check who the hell that was, I totally forgot. Now, as run of the mill as this song is, the chorus is a bit catchy and is the only thing that makes the song enjoyable.
Then it's on to the theme from the 2002 King Of The Ring. Neurotica's Ride Of Your Life is a good fast paced number, but it's like all the other songs on this album I call typical.
If I were to use this album as a guide for what was going on in music in 2002, there wasn't too much to get overly excited about. Everything sounds like Pantera, Marilyn Manson and Limp Bizkit where thrown into a blender and the goop was poured into a cookie cutter mold for the general masses.
I'll be honest I've grown fond of Cypress Hill over the years. I originally couldn't stand them, because they were rap, but now I see them for what they really are. They are street poets that love heavy instruments, and understand how to work a sample. I find Just Another Victim a great tune, even if it's like all of their other songs, and it works as a great theme for Tazz.
Why they felt a need to give Mr. McMahon his own theme I will never truly understand. However, going beyond that, we get Dope performing No Chance. This is the perfect theme for Vince. It's brash, arrogant, and totally reeking of bad attitude. The downside is that this is a ring entrance song, and it's meant to loop over and over, and therefore it sounds pretty damn repettitive.
If Matt and Jeff Hardy are my favourite tag team, then it only makes sense that Lita was my favourite wrestler at the time. Her theme music was cool, I love a sitar sound, and it suited her to some degree, however I wasn't a big fan of the vocalist. His voice just didn't seem to fit the sound right. It would be like Raine from Our Lady Piece singing on a Tea Party song. The song Lovefurypassionenergy is decent enough, but not my thing.
Now, if you bought this CD anywhere except for in Canada or at an FYE store the album ends after the Lita theme. If you are cool enough to be a Canadian you were blessed by an awesome song from a home country band. Finger Eleven's Slow Chemical was used as Kane's theme. This is my favourite song on this album. It's everthing that Kane is, big, scary, combustable, and full of a never ending rage. "The wonder of the world is gone I know for sure / All the wonder that I want I found in her / As the hole becomes apart I strike to burn / And no flame returns / Every intuition fails to find it's way / One more table turned around I'm back again / Finding I'm a lost and found when she's not around / When she's not around I feel it coming down / Give me what I could never ask for / Connect me and you could be my chemical NOW / Give me the drug you know I'm after / Connect me and you could be my chemical". It's also my understanding that when the band was asked to contribute a song, the vocalist was the only member of the band that didn't watch wrestling and had now clue who he was writing for, or something along those lines. Either way this was a much better way to end the album, and is still one of my favourite Finger Eleven songs.
If you find yourself looking for a CD that represents what 2002 was like musically, if you liked heavy music, this is worth picking up. If you enjoy wrestling and are a fan of the themes, this is worth picking up. If you are into finding some rare choice tracks, from a few really cool bands, this is still a good album to pick up. If you want an album full of awesome music, this might not be the album for you. There are only six songs on this album I would suggest, Legs, Whatever, Live For The Moment, Ride Of Your Life, Just Another Victim, and Slow Chemical, of those only Slow Chemical and Live For The Moment have ever gotten regular play on my Mp3 player. My son on the other hand has almost worn out this CD of mine, and is a big fan of it.
7/10 - content
7/10 - production
6/10 - personal bias
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