Buffy the Vampire Slayer - Once More, With Feeling

1. Overture/Going Through The Motions: The overture is a cute little piece, made up of tunes from other songs. On Going Through The Motions, Sarah Michelle Gellar displays her adequate vocal talents in this well-written song of suicidal despair. 9/10

2. I've Got A Theory/Bunnies/If We're Together: This song contains much humour as the Scooby Gang wildly theorize about what is causing the strange singing curse. The Bunnies segment is absolutely hysterical. Buffy's section has beautiful, life-affirming, ironic lyrics. 9/10

3. The Mustard: Mildly amusing, short song about successful laundry. (Sung by Buffy writer/director David Fury) 7/10

4. Under Your Spell- Possibly the best song on here. Amber Benson's voice is beautiful and sweet, the lyrics are haunting and wonderfully expressive of Tara's deep feelings for Willow.
10/10

5. I'll Never Tell- Funnily performed and written, this is a warm and affectionate song behind all the bickering. It is reminiscent of duet's from the classic movies of the 50's and it works well. 8/10

6. The Parking Ticket- Short, sweet song about the pain of getting parking tickets, sung by Buffy Co-Exec Producer Marti Noxon. Kind of a satire of epic, sweeping ballads? 8/10

7. Rest In Peace- Great rock song, with awesome lyrics, finally letting us know some of what Spike really thinks about Buffy. It is enhanced by James Marsters' expressive voice. 8/10

8. Dawn's Lament- Showcases Michelle Trachtenberg's cute voice and Dawn's desperate feelings. 8/10

9. Dawn's Ballet- Nice piece of music, but it doesn't really work too well without the action onscreen. 7/10

10. What You Feel- Smooth jazz song, with impressive vocals and funny and disturbing lyrics. 8/10

11. Standing- Beautiful song. Anthony Stewart Head's voice is so full of pain and anguish, and the lyrics are wonderfully evocative. 9.5/10

12. Under Your Spell/ Standing (Reprise)- Amber Benson and Anthony Stewart Head's voices blend very well to produce this heartbreaking farewell to two very different types of love.
9/10

13. Walk Through The Fire- Melodic, epic song, combining all the characters, all struggling against personal demons, their senses of wrong and right, and the horrifying urge to sing. Particularly impressive are Amber Benson and Nick Brendon, who, although is not a great singer, he is a real trooper and gives his all. The lyrics of this song are cleverly metaphorical.
9.5/10

14. Something to Sing About- This is a stunning song. Sarah Michelle Gellar truly impresses. It really shows the huge amount of effort she is putting in, and the results it gets. The lyrics are poignant, full of despair, and eventually heartbreaking as Buffy reveals the horrible truth of where she was to her friends. 10/10

15. What You Feel- Reprise- Nice reprise, amusing lyrics. "That's what it's all about." 9/10

16. Where Do We Go From Here?- Very moving song. Haunting lyrics and vocals, enough to make the hair on the back of your neck stand up on end. 9.5/10

17. Coda- In the episode, this song comes complete with shocking impact and a stunning final shot. It is slightly less powerful on CD, but is still a nice wrap-up to this very emotional episode. 9/10

18. End Credits (Broom Dance/ Grr Arrgh)- Funny, definitely listenable jazz bop. 8/10

19. Main Title- Cute little variation on the regular theme tune. Is it me or does this sound a little bit Christmassy?
8/10

20. Suite From Restless- Atmospheric arrangement, in particular the African theming and soft singing linger in the mind. 8/10

21. Suite From Hush- Amazingly creepy music. Brilliantly evokes the terrifying silent episode Hush. Few will ever forget the sight of the Gentleman slowly gliding down the street, with the haunting music sending a shiver through your body. 8/10

22. Sacrifice- Who didn't cry when they first heard this? The lasting images of Buffy swandiving into the portal, of Dawn weeping at the top of the tower, of the gang's discovery of the body, of the horribly final sight of Bufyf's gravestone. This music is touching, painful, beautiful, and entirely unforgettable. 10/10

23. Something To Sing About- Okay, so this is Joss' wife, Kai Cole, singing Buffy's big number. It's not a great listen, (her voice is okay, but nothing special, and don't say "well, you could say the same thing about SMG", because the situation is different) and the backing is lacking (rhymes!), and though I know (and again!) that is because this is a demo, it is still not particularly interesting. 6/10

So overall, this CD is a worthy addition to any Buffy-lover's collection, and possibly any person who enjoys (mostly) good music. It compliments, and slightly adds too, what I believe to be the best episode of Buffy of all time, and yes, DEFINITELY one of the best hours of television of all time.

The CD actually has some additional tracks not shown in the list above, with two orchestral suites from Hush and Restless and an extract from another episode, plus a demo track sung by Joss Whedon and his wife - and for that alone this might be an essential purchase for many fans. In fact Joss Whedon has a good voice - better than any of the male voices that appear on the album proper, and despite his self-mocking comments in the album booklet he's not a bad piano player either. It's definitely interesting and makes you curious to hear the rest of his demo tracks.

If you haven't seen the accompanying Buffy episode (not yet shown on terrestrial TV in the UK) then this soundtrack probably isn't for you - it's musically varied and more than a little random when taken in isolation, but it works really well as the accompanying soundtrack to the pictures. So who should buy this? Well, anyone who has enjoyed the episode in question and got the songs stuck in their heads (which happens when you watch it too many times - not that I'd know, of course...) - it's a sublimely brilliant piece of television - and anyone who counts themself as a Buffy fan or is interested to get their hands on the bonus tracks.

1. Overture/Going Through The Motions - The overture, courtesy of Buffy composer Chris Beck, is wonderful music (reminiscent of Disney, perhaps?) that leads into Sarah Michelle Gellar's first song. Buffy is hunting in the graveyard and suddenly bursts into song - a magical tune, good vocals (not excellent but, hey, she tries!), and a great intro to what's to come.

2.I've Got A Theory/Bunnies/If We're Together - The Scoobies join forces on this wonderful three-track medley kinda thing. Emma Caulfield is hilarious during her 'Bunnies' solo, while 'Theory' is rib-tickling and 'Together' is sweet.

3.The Mustard - An in-joke, as the singer is Buffy producer David Fury. Short but funny...

4.Under Your Spell - The famed Tara song, an ode to Willow. Amber's vocals are amazing, much better than most female chart stars, while the song could easily be a radio-friendly hit. Gorgeous.

5.I'll Never Tell - This scrumptiously funny Anya/Xander duet is packed full of one-liners, and is a song that reflects the weirdness of the relationship. There's also a yummy little instrumental thing in the middle (where Anya 'dances crazy').

6.The Parking Ticket - Another in-joke, this time Marti Noxon (Buff producer) being the singer. Good voice, actually, and a fun song.

7.Rest In Peace - James Marsters' solo. Good lyrics, cool music, but (although James has a great voice) not all parts of the song fit Marsters' vocal range.

8.Dawn's Lament - Michelle Trachtenberg isn't a great singer so thankfully this is quite short.

9.Dawn's Ballet - A wonderfully twisted ballet-style instrumental score courtesy of Chris Beck.

10.What You Feel - Enter Sweet, the villain of the piece. Hinton Battle is a Broadway star, so this jazzy number is a class act.

11.Standing - A little bland music-wise, yet Anthony Stewart Head's vocals make it worthwhile.

12.Under Your Spell/Standing (Reprise) - God, Amber and Anthony should sooooooo do a duet. Lovely harmonies...

13.Walk Through The Fire - The dramatic piece of the musical, a chance for everyone (even Alyson Hannigan) to sing a coupla lines. Coolness...

14.Something To Sing About - Not one of my favourites but SMG does a good job and the revelation about Buffy's being in heaven is devastating.

15.What You Feel (Reprise) - More Hinton Battle, more greatness...

16.Where Do We Go From Here? - Yummy! A group effort, and a bittersweet ballad.

17.Coda - As Buffy and Spike kiss, the curtains close.

18.End Credits - A jazzed-up instrumental version of Where Do We Go From Here?

19.Main Title - Should really be at the start of the CD, this is a new version of the theme tune - less rocked-up, more Disneyesque.

20.Suite from Restless - Wonderfully weird music, atmospheric and creepy.

21.Suite from Hush - My fave Buffy episode and some of my fave Buffy music. Chris Beck's Danny-Elfman-like score for this episode is not to be listened to late at night - heart-stoppingly terrifying.

22.Sacrifice - An emotionally powerful score from The Gift episode. As Buffy dies to save her sister, this music plays in the background - hear it on this CD, and cry all over again.

23.Something To Sing About - This version of Buffy's track is a demo version sung by Joss Whedon's wife Kai Cole, as Joss plays accompanying piano. A little rough around the edges (as this is more like a live performance) but Kai has a cool voice. A nice bonus track...