LOS ANGELES (KOCH Records) - Artists Addiction Soundtracks/KOCH Records has kicked off the 2004 Halloween season on a chilling note with the release of the original motion picture soundtrack to the much-anticipated Twisted Pictures' horror film Saw, which opens at theaters nationwide on October 29th. The CD is a truly unique and inventive soundscape that eerily captures the horror flick's disturbing surrealism.
The film is expected to turn the horror film genre on its head. Saw is designed to shock the viewer with its primeval combination of gritty realism and stark surreal fantasy. Released through Lions Gate Films and starring Danny Glover (Lethal Weapon, The Royal Tenenbaums), Carey Elwes (Shadow of the Vampire, Kiss the Girls, Bram Stoker's Dracula), Monica Potter (Along Came A Spider) and Dina Meyer (Starship Troopers, Birds of Prey), the movie stunned audiences at the 2004 Sundance Film Festival, which harkened it as a "landscape of indelible horror." Rue Morgue Magazine attested that the film "will make your skin crawl right off your bones."
Saw was scored by Charlie Clouser (former keyboardist/programmer/drummer for the likes of Nine Inch Nails, Marilyn Manson, White Zombie). Although this is the first film he has scored, his work can be found on such high-profile soundtracks as The Matrix, Scream, Lost Highway, and Howard Stern's Private Parts. Clouser was chosen to score the film after a meeting with Saw director James Wan, who wanted a composer who could enhance the sensibility of his style. "He was so enthusiastic about the film," says Wan (who also contributes liner notes to the soundtrack). "He had so many great ideas; I knew he was the one to go with."
Utilizing unconventional instrumentation and musical assistance from Helmet's Page Hamilton and NIN's Danny Lohner among others, Clouser created a score both ingenious and unorthodox, akin to Jerry Goldsmith's 1968 groundbreaking score to Planet of the Apes. Saw music coordinator Jonathan Platt confirms, "The only word that comes to mind after spending a good amount of time with Charlie is BRILLIANT." Clouser currently scores the music for the hit television series Las Vegas.
Additional music, amplifying the implacable atmosphere of Saw, is provided by Front Line Assembly, Enemy (featuring Troy Van Leeuwen of A Perfect Circle), Cleopatra Records artists Pitbull Daycare and Psycho Pomps, and soundtrack stalwarts Fear Factory, whose "Bite The Hand That Bleeds" not only serves as the first single for Saw, but also is featured as the film's closing credits theme.
Platt explains the choice, "I played the song for Saw producer Gregg Hoffman, and he loved it and decided to use it for the end title theme. This is a very dark movie, and the song really works well with the film's tone. The mood, music, and textures of the song accentuate this movie."
Fear Factory frontman Burton C. Bell, excited to be involved with the project, offers his thoughts, "This is definitely the kind of movie I would go see, because it's really dark, along the lines of Se7en, Silence of the Lambs and Cube, but more visceral and graphic. Though not the first movie we've ever had a song in [previous credits include Hideaway (1995), Mortal Kombat (1995), Carrie 2 (1999), and Texas Chainsaw Massacre (2003)], it's one I am most anticipating."
Fear Factory is promoting Saw along their autumn 2004 tour trail and a video for the track is airing soon. The band had previously worked with Platt for the soundtrack to the 2004 sci-fi anime film Galerians: Rion, which featured a remix of the single "Archetype."
Artists Addiction Soundtracks/Song Stew Music formed in early 2004 . The principles have previously been involved with soundtracks for such projects as the WB hit series Charmed and USA's The Dead Zone. The label established a working relationship with Lion's Gate through the latter project and became enthralled with working on Saw after an initial preview screening. Platt concludes, "We are excited about releasing Saw as our inaugural film soundtrack, as the movie and music are both very intense, disturbing and mind blowing. We're sure they will become cult favorites for years to come."
