There are several brilliant soundtrack composers who wouldn’t be what (and where) they are today if they hadn’t toiled in rock bands in their 20s and 30s.
Clint Mansell (Pop Will Eat Itself), Trent Reznor (Nine Inch Nails) and Cliff Martinez (Red Hot Chilli Peppers) are the front-runners.
Martinez soundtracks the historical medical drama series The Knick, and while its director Steven Soderbergh has gone for a hyper-authentic set design, the music is slithery EDM, droning guitar lines, minimalistic synths, and use of cristal Baschet (chromatically tuned glass rods).
Covering everything is a druggy sensibility that references not only the cut and thrust of the operating theatre but also the out-of-hours activities of some of the show’s characters.
A cut above, no band aid required, etc.
