Pitchfork

We've been swooning over Matthew Herbert's concept-heavy albums (like last year's Scale) for a while now, but the British producer has not limited his output to just records. He has also been quietly recording film music for a decade now. !K7 will release a 17-track compilation of these pieces in April, simply titled Score.

Score collects Herbert's soundtrack work from seven films and one ballet piece, much of which was arranged by frequent collaborator Pete Wraight. The compilation includes his work with Blanca Li (the choreographer of Daft Punk's "Around the World" video) and Etienne Chatiliez, who Herbert is currently recording with at Abbey Road's Studio One for a new film. That project is, according to a press release, "a musical called Agathe Clery, about a white racist who turns black." Dave Chappelle could not be reached for comment.

True to his dedication to avoid "the use of pre-set keyboard sounds, drum machines, or secondary musical sources," the sounds Herbert sampled for these pieces relate conceptually to the films for which they were recorded. Thus, in his rejected demos for Manolete (a bullfighting flick), he "used the sound of blood and hair, dust and cloth, and even the bull itself to generate percussion." And in his score for "Set Boundaries", "a live performance piece about borders," "all the percussion [was] made out of bullets from RAF Tornado shells that were used in Iraq, and from Israeli bullets. I just wanted to reinforce the idea that national boundaries are defended with ruthless violence." Man, talk about commitment.

Tracklist:

01 Funeral (from Vida y Color, 2005)
02 End (from Vida y Color, 2005)
03 Rivoli Shuffle (from Le Défi, 2002)
04 The Apartment (from Le Défi, 2002)
05 Singing in the Rain (from Le Défi, 2002)
06 Cafe de Flore (Trio Reprise) (from Le Défi, 2002)
07 Gang of Boys (from Vida y Color, 2005)
08 Blood and Hair (rejected music from Manolete, 2007)
09 Bull and Cloth (rejected music from Manolete, 2007)
10 Rendezvous (score for "Set Boundaries" by Raphael Bonachela Dance Company, 2006)
11 Indiscretion (alternate version from Indiscretion, short film, 2005)
12 Forest Montage (from The Intended, 2002)
13 Broken Piano (from The Intended, 2002)
14 Tristesse (from La Confiance Règne, 2004)
15 Running From the Credits (from La Confiance Règne, 2004)
16 Nicotine (from Nicotine, short film, 1996)
17 Closing Theme (from The Intended, 2002)