Season two of the hit television medical drama
Grey's Anatomy focused much more on the relationships of its characters rather than everyone just trying to make it through each unpredictable day as doctors at a Seattle hospital. This change of pace is reflected in the subsequent second volume of the show's
soundtrack. Just like the
indie rock and
adult alternative tunes that appeared on the first
Grey's Anatomy soundtrack (appealing to the legions who bought the
Garden State album as well),
Grey's Anatomy, Vol. 2 has music that reflects the characters' daily doctoral stress as well as their forays into love. Each week brought another relationship quandary to be sorted out amid all the gauze and open-heart surgeries, and songs like the
electro-sleaze of
Ursula 1000's
"Kaboom!" and the trashy
garage rock of
the Chalets'
"Sexy Mistake" are perfect complementary sounds. The warm piano-
pop tunage of
the Fray's
"How to Save a Life" is practically begging to be a background piece and works well here, while the
Beck-like
"War on Sound" from Sweden's
Moonbabies, the dark contrasting
pop of
Get Set Go's
"I Hate Everyone," and
Kate Havnevik's delicate
"Grace" (written especially for the season's finale) wade through the show's roller coaster ride of feelings. The best thing about this
soundtrack is that, just like its first volume, the songs are all strong in their own right, an unsurprising fact since this compilation was overseen by music supervisor
Alexandra Patsavas, who presides over the show's music, too. Consequently, the album works as delightfully as any mixtape a hip music-lover might make for an unaware friend, instead of a superfluous device to cash in on the show's popularity. ~ Corey Apar