Brad Fiedel to many people is associated with the electronic music of the Terminator films - metallic, ruthless, impersonal and relentless. He seems so at home and accomplished in this medium that it is easy to assume that this style of music is typical of his output. However, Fiedel has been around for a considerable time and has certainly served his apprenticeship on "human" movies with more traditional orchestration requirements as a quick look through his CV will demonstrate.
His soundtrack for Terminator 2 (or T2) took ideas and the main theme from the original film and updated them in a similar way to the on-screen action and special effects. The soundtrack is "industrial" in many sense of the word. In terms of sound construction, we have lots of "heavy metal" sounds like an anvil being struck with a hammer, and a particular sound, similar to a reverse cymbal effect, which sounds like a knife being sharpened. Then we have the percussion driven rhythms, mechanical and relentless like the robots in their determined pursuit. Finally we have pattern changes in the music which seem to suggest "changing gear", e.g. the T1000 in "search mode" spots a something suggesting his prey is nearby and so moves into "follow mode", then in sight of his quarry he breaks from a walk into a run. But the soundtrack isn't all like this. There is the main theme itself, heroic with a touch of sadness. There is the brief moment of relaxation backed by an acoustic guitar. Then there is the nightmare scene, where the music takes a back seat to the visuals, content to suggest the wind of slow-motion explosions and the screams as the flames roar through a playground.
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