For a second time in his career of film scoring, James Horner was selected to score a movie after Jerry Goldsmith had set the tone with the first movie. The first time was when he followed Jerry Goldsmith's score for Star Trek: The Motion Picture with his score for Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan. The second time, he followed up Jerry Goldsmith's Alien score with this one, and just as with Star Trek II, James Horner came out with a score that won universal appeal. Aliens was one of Horner's more popular score from the 80's since it was also one of the most popular movies of the 80's.
In this case, and I'm sure most will agree with me, use of his orchestra and piano crashes fits the mood and style of the movie perfectly. It is a musical representation of the aliens themselves. There is also a more miltaristic feel to the soundtrack since the group of heroes also include a squad of Colonial Marines. To represent them, Horner uses a tight military style drum in brief instances throughout the music. And of course his score for the alien vs. marines battle scenes are the most popular selections. They are still used in movie previews today. It is a very powerful score, however, I don't recommend turning up the volume too loudly on some pieces, just when you think it's going to stay quiet, the music just comes up and scares the living daylights out of listeners.
Total time: 41:04
1: Main Title (5:10)
2: Going After Newt (3:08)
3: Sub-Level 3 (6:11)
4: Ripley's Rescue (3:13)
5: Atmosphere Station (3:05)
6: Futile Escape (8:13)
7: Dark Discovery (2:00)
8: Bishop's Countdown (2:47)
9: Resolution and Hyperspace (6:10)