The Matrix Soundtrack Record Store Day Review
The Matrix is one of the most influential and groundbreaking films in film history. For some reason the film’s score is one I always forget about or push to the side when choosing what to listen to. And I really shouldn't. For the second drop of 2021s Record Store Day , Varese Sarabande released a stunning 3 LP complete soundtrack of the Matrix by Don Davis. Pressed onto Green Glitter vinyl. This complete score features over 90 minutes of music.
Looking at the presentation Varese Sarabande puts together a release that is quite different than their typical offering. Featuring all new artwork in a trifold design. This matches their recent CD release of the complete soundtrack. So if you are not into vinyl, or would like a companion piece to the record set the new CD set makes for an excellent alternative. The fully extended jacket features all new artwork with Trinity disappearing into the Matrix in a phone booth. The track listing appears at the bottom of the fold out design.
The triple gatefold features an interview with composer Don Davis as well as the list of contributing musicians. This is always a nice touch as I enjoy having something to read as I listen. I also like seeing the contributing artists. I suspect for many musicians in an orchestra they are often overshadows by the composer and don’t really get any attention. It’s just nice to see who was all involved.
The Artwork
One of my criticisms in the past about this label’s previous releases was the bare bones nature of the releases. It’s rare to even get a gatefold, let alone new artwork or any kind of special record effects.
I do think this artwork will be very polarizing. They chose a very different aesthetic than fans are used to seeing for the film. I'm actually still not sure how I feel about it. It definitely has a wow factor but I don't know if I love this aesthetic. Either way it's very skillfully done with a lot of gorgeous detail. It even features Matrix code in the corners which is just a nice touch.
The biggest downside to this trifold design choice is there is no title on the spine. Presumably this can get lost in some collections. I think a nice slip case would really contribute to this presentation. To circumvent this issue they did provide a nice obi strip, knowing many collectors will keep that with the record inside an outer sleeve. But there are some collectors/record buyers who do not use outer sleeves and may or may not keep the obi strip.
Now for the records themselves, 3 glitter-infused vinyl. I honestly did not understand this artistic choice until my wife pointed out, maybe its because of the glittery person on the cover. I didn't even spot Trinity at first. Now seeing that and realizing it represents someone disappearing into the Matrix it’s a logical artist choice.
This is however a questionable audiophile choice. A release of this nature would definitely appeal to hard core collectors and score completists who want all of the music from the film. This group typically values fidelity above novelty. Glitter records have a reputation for surface noise, skipping and in some cases even being hard on your turntable’s stylus. With many collectors knowing this it is therefore going to be a top of mind concern when considering this pressing.
How Did It Sound?
Not bad. There was some initial surface noise, particularly on the first few spins. Part of that is improper cleaning. We all know a clean record is a happy record. One of the biggest disadvantages of glitter records is it is visually difficult to see if it is cleaned properly as the dust blends into the glitter in the record. On a black record it’s very easy to tell when you need to clean further. In my listening I realized I simply did not clean it well enough the first few listens.
There was still the occasional surface noise during quiet packages or transitions between tracks, however in general it sounded pretty good. As for the mastering and pressing, the album sounded spectacular. This soundtrack can be a tough listen because there is such a range in the dynamic range of the music that you go from gentle ambient sound, to chest pumping percussion and expression brass.
I'm not sure of your regular listening habits, but often I have things at a low to medium volume to playing in the background. This deserves a sit down listen at full volume just to feel the impact of the score.
The Music
Revisiting the music, and especially the expanded version I forgot how diverse the music is. It's all very cohesive and flows fairly naturally as you're listening and disappears into the film, but listening to tracks in isolation is an interesting experience. You could play a few tracks separately from each other to someone and they wouldn't know they're from the same film. The score plays at its best when you listen to it all together.
This can be an emotionally draining score to listen to. It bounces around so much tonally. There are passages of action, sheer terror, and mystery, it can be dark and moody or energetic and heroic. It switches on a dime so it’s difficult to get into a particular “vibe” when listening and doesn’t give you time to settle into a particular emotional space.
It works perfectly in the film but as a listening experience you have to be in a very particular mood to be in to listen to it.
The music bounces through so many emotional states that it doesn't make for a cohesive emotional listening experience. I realized that's why I often don't to return to the score as much as I should. I often listen based on mood. Maybe I'll want moody, or heroic. This has both so it ends up getting eliminated based on certain mood listening because it bounces around. The cascading between intense and ambient can becoming emotional draining or overwhelming when you’re listening.
The music is so complex and layered. There are clearly musical techniques being employed that quite frankly are beyond my knowledge. I recommend watching Decoding the Music of The Matrix which breaks down the score completely.
Suffice to say There is a level of deliberate musical choice in the composition that is as complex as the film itself. There are lots of films where the music simply plays to the emotional beats of the film. They lack the complex construction the Matrix has layered throughout the film and knowing what is put into the music makes it an even more enjoyable listening experience.
Summary
In the end this is must-have record for Matrix fans and score collectors. I would consider this to be the flagship release of Record Store Day 2021 and suspect this will become a sought after item in the aftermarket in the future. If you have fidelity concerns I recommend picking up the The Matrix The Complete Score CD release which features the same music.