The Matrix is soon probably going to be looked upon as a classic series of films. The intriguing plots and the kung fu action making them gripping from start to finish. The first film made kung fu a cool thing in the western world and it brought Keanu Reeves back into the A list acting group.
Surprisingly it was not (by the producers) thought that it was going to be a hit (This is revealed in "The Making of The Matrix" documentary on the Matrix DVD) and as such they hired the then lesser known Don Davis to score the film which produced a simple wavering theme and some breathless action cues.
This time round the producers have released both the songs and the score together in a 2 CD set meaning film score fans have to buy the songs to get the score. Although with this film and this release that isn't as bad as it sounds. Ok so most of the songs are quite bad but there are a few tracks on the first CD that are not so bad..
The Linkin Park track is uninspired and full of bad electronics created with a simple deck system. The only thing of note about it is its opening few bars where it tries to imitate Don Davis's opening to the main titles with a slow piano roll and a few of the same metal chimes.
Rob Dougan's "Furious Angel" track is surprisigly bad considering the rest of his work on the second CD. With little orchestration and a relatively uninspired electronic section that simply repeats endleesly until it has become thoroughly tedious.
Oakenfold's work, just like his reworks of the Bond theme for Die Another Day are enjoyable yet still finish lacking something. They are largely predictable pieces and always seem to lack any improvisation and development as they play through which always annoys me as what you start with in the opening bars ends up being what you get.
The second CD is where Davis's score, this time immense in scope and sound can be found. The CD is short to allow room for the special features on the CD but that doesn't matter at all. Davis's score is huge and recreates the frenetic action of his first score and mixes in much more powerful and coherent underscore. He switches from pure orchestral to electronic accompanyment effortlessly and collaborates with both Rob Dougan and Juno Reactor to create some very loud and very fast action music. Rob Dougan reutilises his "Clubbed to Death" theme from the first film and molds it into a highly functional and exciting orchestral/electronic action cue in the "Chateau" track. "Burly Brawl" takes an even more frantic pace and combines Davis's orchestra (with a scaled down role from Dougan's piece) to make a brilliant track woth a few stunning performances of the "Matrix" theme where Davis has used to original brass motif and added some powerful choral backing which follows the theme oscillating high and low with the brass then kicking back into the driving action music.
The "Matrix Reloaded" Suite then makes a stunning end to the album featuring music from the entire film smoothly edited together it runs to an impressive 17 minutes 35. Throughout there are many huge statements of the theme and the piece is purely orchestral and is Davis's moment of triunph and glory. This is far better than the brooding incoherent underscore of the previous film and the theme is considerably expanded with the choral backing. Any missgivings about the first CD just evaporate after a listen to the 2nd CD.
With the music for the sequel being so good and improved i only hope the film is as good. This album is well worth the price unless you are buying it solely for the songs which stand as mediocre at best. The score itself is a huge improvement and will almost certainly bring Davis firmly into the centre of attention in the film scoring world.
CD 1 ** CD 2 ****
1. Session - Linkin Park (2:23)
2. This is the New Shit - Marilyn Manson (4:20)
3. Reload - Rob Zombie (4:25)
4. Furious Angels - Rob Dougan (instrumental) (5:29)
5. Lucky You - Deftones (4:08)
6. The Passportal - Team Sleep (2:55)
7. Sleeping Awake - P.O.D. (3:23)
8. Bruises - Unloco (2:36)
9. Calm Like a Bomb - Rage Against the Machine (4:58)
10. Dread Rock - Oakenfold (4:40)
11. Zion - Fluke (4:33)
12. When the World Ends - Dave Matthews (Oakenfold remix) (5:26)
CD 2 (41:31)
1. Main Title - Don Davis (1:30)
2. Trinity Dream - Don Davis (1:56)
3. Teahouse - Juno Reactor/Gocoo (1:04)
4. Chateau - Rob Dougan (3:23)
5. Mona Lisa Overdrive - Juno Reactor/Don Davis (10:08)
6. Burly Brawl - Don Davis/Juno Reactor (5:52)
7. "Matrix Reloaded" Suite - Don Davis (17:35)
