Portishead’s Geoff Barrow and composer Ben Salisbury have helmed the score for Ex Machina, the forthcoming British sci-fi thriller about artificial intelligence. The soundtrack will be released on April 7th, but the entire 20-track effort is streaming below.
The directorial debut of writer Alex Garland (28 Days Later), Ex Machina tells the story of a young programmer (played by Domhall Gleeson) who “is selected to participate in a breakthrough experiment in artificial intelligence by evaluating the human qualities of a breathtaking female A.I..” Echoing this dichotomy of human vs. robot, the accompanying score is “a mix of organic and electronic sounds,” according to Salisbury, and makes use of “dark synth work, manipulated brass samples, optical-disc keyboard, celeste” and PaulStretch software.
In a review for the film, Consequence of Sound staff writer Justin Gerber took note of Barrow and Salisbury’s ability to conjure effective atmospherics: “While there are moments in which the music increases in volume during pivotal scenes that call for it, Barrow and Salisbury best deliver in their minimalist approach when creating beats of a steady pulse under a soulless red light, and in a climax that is based around their music box-esque composition.” He added, “It would be lazy to compare them to the team of Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross, but I’ll go ahead and do that anyway. Both pairs should have continued success in creating solid scores in cinema.”
Ex Machina Soundtrack Tracklist:
01. The Turing Test
02. Watching
03. Ava
04. Falling
05. I Am Become Death
06. Hacking/Cutting
07. The Test Worked
08. Skin
09. Out
10. Bunsen Burner
11. The Lab *
12. Masks
13. Ava Undresses Demo Version 1 *
14. Session 2 *
15. Mary Experiment *
16. Ava Turns to CCTV *
17. Climbing the Waterfall *
18. Ava Undresses Demo Version 2 *
19. Reversing The Test *
10. A Beginning *
* = Bonus Tracks
Following its premiere at South By Southwest last month, Ex Machina will hit theaters nationwide on April 10th. In addition to Gleeson, the film stars Alicia Vikander, Oscar Isaac, and Sonoya Mizuno.
Revisit its trailer below:
