Transformers: Age of Extinction – The Score is a two-part soundtrack album for the 2014 film of the same name. The score was written by Steve Jablonsky, with help from fellow composer Hans Zimmer and additional music by alternative rock band Imagine Dragons. An Extended play was released on June 30, 2014, that served as a teaser for the score, which was released on July 3, 2014. Both albums were released through the film's distributor Paramount Pictures.
Background[]
As with the previous three films of the franchise, Steve Jablonsky handled the film's score, and it is his sixth collaboration with director Michael Bay. Jablonsky and Bay worked on the score from December 2013 to June 2014, one month before the film's release, which exhausted Jablonsky. The two focused on creating themes for the film's new characters, although the two mutually decided to incorporate some of the themes of the first trilogy.
Jablonsky also collaborated with fellow composer Hans Zimmer and alternative pop band Imagine Dragons in the score, as well as the film's theme song, "Battle Cry". Bay wanted to work with Imagine Dragons after being "drawn to the emotion of ’Demons’ and ’Radioactive’ the first time [he] heard those songs, and [he] knew [he] wanted that same energy and heart for this movie." About his collaboration with the band Jablonsky said, "It immediately hit me more than some of the previous ones [I] had done...it was a much closer collaboration than I’ve had in the past," compared to his previous collaborations with bands Linkin Park and Goo Goo Dolls. Imagine Dragons had finished touring for two years their debut album, Night Visions (2012), and wanted to work on their next studio album, before Bay called them to work on the film's score. The band felt that working on the film could increase their music's exposure worldwide. Imagine Dragons was brought to Los Angeles for the collaboration; Jablonsky also traveled to the band's studio in Las Vegas, Nevada to record with the band. The band's lead singer Dan Reynolds recorded vocals, while drummer Daniel Platzman played the viola. Composer Joseph Trapanese also provided additional music for the film.
On June 30, 2014, Jablonsky released an extended play featuring four tracks as a teaser for the official score, which features variations of the four themes. On July 3, 2014, three days after the EP's release, the official score was released on iTunes, although Jablonsky stated that physical copies will "[take] a bit longer."
On October 7, 2014, the score was released on CD by record label La-La Land Records. It is a limited edition of 3000 units.
On November 20, 2014 Steve Jablonsky commented via Facebook that the score would no longer be sold on iTunes after it had reached its limit of 15,000 units before re-use fees would have to be paid. Jablonsky personally expressed his own disappointment in the turn of events, hoping there would be a way to eventually re-release the score, along with the score to Transformers: Dark of the Moon, which also had been removed on iTunes several months prior when it also reached the 15,000 unit limit.
Soundtracks[]
The soundtrack includes two international tracks; “Moonlight Reflected on the Er-Quan Spring” by Lei Qiang and “Daybreak” by Han Geng. However, the list does not mention “Who Control” also by Han Geng. Imagine Dragons not only has performed “Battle Cry” for the movie but has also contributed a second unreleased song titled “All For You”.
Some of the songs are already released, but most songs are yet to be heard. No word yet regarding the release date of the Soundtrack Album.
| No. | Title | Written | Performed | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Heartbreaker | Paul Silva, Joe Galdo and Ian Miles Becker (as Ian Becker) | Salva | |
| 2 | Nasty Girl | T.J. Miller | T.J. Miller | |
| 3 | Dat Slap | Rodney Young | Rodnae Da Boss featuring Fiend AKA International Jones | |
| 4 | First Light | Racing Glaciers | Racing Glaciers | |
| 5 | Moonlight Reflected on the Er-Quan Spring | Lei Qiang | Lei Qiang | |
| 6 | U Can't Touch This | Alonzo Miller, Rick James and M.C. Hammer (as Stanley Kirk Burrell) | M.C. Hammer | |
| 7 | Daybreak | Skot Suyama, Evangeline Wong and Alto Tsai | Geng Han (as Han Geng) | |
| 8 | All For You | Imagine Dragons | Imagine Dragons | |
| 9 | Battle Cry | Imagine Dragons | Imagine Dragons | |
| Total length: 00:00 | ||||
Track listing[]
The EP[]
All tracks written by Steve Jablonsky
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hunted | 5:57 |
| 2 | Tessa | 5:45 |
| 3 | Autobots Reunite | 2:57 |
| 4 | Lockdown | 4:54 |
| Total length: 19:33 | ||
The Score[]
All tracks written by Steve Jablonsky
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Decision | 4:20 |
| 2 | Best Thing That Ever Happened | 2:06 |
| 3 | I'm an Autobot | 5:06 |
| 4 | Optimus is Alive | 2:17 |
| 5 | Cemetery Wind | 5:53 |
| 6 | His Name is Shane and He Drives | 5:17 |
| 7 | Hacking the Drone | 2:05 |
| 8 | Transformium | 3:24 |
| 9 | Galvatron is Online | 1:56 |
| 10 | Your Creators Want You Back | 3:26 |
| 11 | The Final Knight | 4:07 |
| 12 | Punch Hold Slide Repeat | 2:12 |
| 13 | The Presence of Megatron | 2:51 |
| 14 | Galvatron is Active | 4:13 |
| 15 | Have Faith Prime | 1:29 |
| 16 | Hong Kong Chase | 1:43 |
| 17 | The Legend Exists | 1:16 |
| 18 | Dinobot Charge | 6:37 |
| 19 | That's a Big Magnet | 2:51 |
| 20 | Drive Backwards | 2:05 |
| 21 | Honor to the End | 5:18 |
| 22 | Leave Planet Earth Alone | 3:47 |
| 23 | The Knight Ship | 3:21 |
| Total length: 77:42 | ||
External links[]
Video[]
