Media and Music: The Sounds of Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater Return

As if 2020 wasn’t crazy enough, the cult-classic video game “Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater” is returning to the limelight with a highly anticipated remastered version releasing this September — 21 years after the original. Now that the game is old enough to buy itself a drink, it’s time we raise our glass to the iconic soundtrack that accompanied it.

Written by Adithya Srinivas

Photo courtesy of Neversoft

The late 1990s and early 2000s were a weird time for pop culture. As the world transitioned into a new decade and millennium, the resulting cultural aesthetic was an unholy mash-up of all the questionable parts of the ‘90s and an unhealthy obsession with futuristic sci-fi design (after all, the year numbers start with a two now, so it must be the future!!!). Despite all of the odd and ill-advised trends to come out of the time, skate culture was in a golden age and gave rise to  arguably the most era-defining celebrity of the time: skateboarding superstar and American cultural icon Tony Hawk. He is the unquestionable face of the sport he helped pioneer and popularize, but while Hawk’s ability to land some truly amazing tricks is what vaulted him to stardom, his popularity was only truly cemented after the 1999 release of the classic video game “Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater.”

To provide perspective on how comically successful the original “Pro Skater” was, Hawk has earned more money on royalties from its release than from his entire skating career and accompanying endorsement deals combined. By 2005, seven additional sequels and spinoffs had released to ride the wave of popularity generated by the original. And like all wildly successful sports video games, each “Pro Skater” featured its own unique soundtrack, filled with the angsty 2000s punk rock that defined the “sk8er” aesthetic. But at 14 tracks and just over 35 minutes long, the original “Pro Skater” soundtrack feels more like a mash-up album than a cohesive project, and boy, is it a classic.

Look no further than the names on the artists’ list: punk icons Dead Kennedys, the funk-metal  pioneers Primus, and ska-punk band Goldfinger. Dead Kennedys featured with “Police Truck,” the politically charged opening track to their 1987 album Give Me Convenience or Give Me Death. The high octane cut is characterized by chugging heavy-metal backing guitars contrasted with surf-rock inspired lead guitar riffs. Primus added the two-faced and eccentric “Jerry Was A Racecar Driver,” a song with vocals reminiscent of their famous “South Park” opening theme sung over an odd and plucky guitar lead, intertwined with passages of breakneck metal. Goldfinger’s contribution was what went on to be their most popular song ever: “Superman,” a trumpet-led, lighthearted cut that would have felt right at home during a dance number for a live-action “Scooby-Doo” movie, or playing over the PA system at a waterpark.

The other artists who made an appearance are a group of “wait, who’s that?” bands with fairly similar formulas. The Ernies, The Vandals, and The Suicide Machine each appear on the tracklist with “Here & Now,” “Euro-Barge,” and “New Girl,” respectively. All of the songs are frantic rock tracks with record scratch sound bytes, rapped lyrical passages, and distorted effects that typified the rock genre in the early 2000s. The bands Suicidal Tendencies (“Cyco Vision”), Unsane (“Committed”), and Speedealer all offer some hardcore songs to the game with whiplash speed and volume cranked to 11, with Speedealer holding the distinct claim to being the only artists with two songs included: “Screamer” and “Nothing to Me.” Perhaps the most surprising inclusion is “Ain’t Got Time to Waste,” a hip-hop track from British trip-hop producer and vocalist Aim, featuring New Jersey rapper YZ. Both artists put in memorable vocal performances, and the track’s smooth and buttery classic hip-hop vibes are a breath of fresh air from the relentless energy of its accompanying tracks.

Many of the songs on “Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater” aren’t the most flattering to the ear, but maybe it’s for good reason. Early 2000s rock spawned the much maligned and systemically cyber-bullied Nickelback and many bands just like them, and is a part of music history that simply didn’t age well. But who cares? What makes this ragtag group of songs so iconic is the piece of media they are attached to, and if anything, that makes this video game a perfect time capsule for the era it came from. Original fans of the game would instantly recognize any of these songs, and the news that they will all be featured on the upcoming remaster has everyone excited. So go ahead, laugh at the horribly outdated sounds of “Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater” — it won’t stop long time fans from grabbing a beer and jamming out while destroying virtual skate parks.