"Ex Machina" Soundtrack Lyrics

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"Ex Machina (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)" Soundtrack Description

Overview

How do you score a story about a machine that wants to be believed as human? Alex Garland’s Ex Machina answers with a cool-blooded, tactile soundworld by Ben Salisbury and Geoff Barrow that never shouts, rarely “beats,” and almost never uses drums. Instead the music breathes—long tails, glassy organs, stretched acoustics—until it quietly tightens around you.

The soundtrack stands apart because it fuses organic sources with processed electronics to mirror Ava’s paradox: metal and mesh on the outside, an invitation to empathy on the inside. Pop and classical cues puncture the clinical calm at key moments—an 80s floor-filler, a synth-pop classic, Schubert’s haunted serenity—making the human/artificial boundary feel unstable. According to AllMusic, the album plays like a self-contained narrative, not just film fragments; Pitchfork underlined the careful rollout and distinct palette in the weeks around release.

Questions & Answers

Who composed the score, and what makes it distinctive?

Ben Salisbury and Geoff Barrow (of Portishead). They avoided percussion, favoring long-decay organ, processed strings, and “human” imperfections inside electronic textures.

What’s the dance-scene song everyone remembers?

Oliver Cheatham’s post-disco single “Get Down Saturday Night,” used diegetically when Nathan and Kyoko perform their choreographed routine.

Are there classical recordings in the film?

Yes. Schubert’s Piano Sonata No. 21, D.960 (Alfred Brendel) and Bach’s Cello Suite No.1, BWV 1007: Prelude (Yo-Yo Ma) are placed diegetically inside the compound.

Is there a commercial score album?

Yes. Ex Machina (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) was issued digitally (Back Lot Music) and on CD/vinyl (Invada Records). Expanded editions followed.

Did the soundtrack win awards?

It won the 2016 Ivor Novello Award for Best Original Film Score and charted on the UK Official Soundtrack Albums list.

What pop tracks besides the dance cue appear?

OMD’s “Enola Gay,” Savages’ “Husbands,” and CUTS’ “Bunsen Burner.” The last underscores the climactic escape and end credits.

What about the trailers—were they scored with album cues?

The A24 teaser leans on the Salisbury/Barrow palette; promotional edits featured album material like “Hacking / Cutting.”

Notes & Trivia

• The score was mixed at AIR Studios and mastered at Optimum; artwork by Marc Bessant (Invada).
• “No drums” became a ground rule—Barrow said percussion felt too “sharp” for the film’s long, lingering shots.
• “Enola Gay” playing early ties to Caleb’s later Oppenheimer quote—an echo of nuclear anxiety reframed for AI.
• “Husbands” by Savages features over the end credits in the release cut.
• Official Charts Company lists the album peaking in the UK Soundtrack Albums Top 50.

Genres & Themes

Ambient-electronic minimalism → uncertainty and surveillance; the music withholds catharsis to keep us guessing about motives.

Processed “real” instruments → the human/AI blur; guitars, celeste, and organs are stretched and smeared until they feel both intimate and synthetic.

80s pop & synth-pop needles → human habit and ego; a flex from Nathan (“Get Down Saturday Night”) and a historical shiver (“Enola Gay”).

Classical chamber recordings → surface sophistication vs. lab-rat control; cultured decor masks ethically messy experimentation.

Tracks & Scenes

Scene timings below synthesize distributor runtimes with documented placements; diegetic = heard by characters. When exact timestamps vary by edition, approximate minute marks are given.

“Get Down Saturday Night” – Oliver Cheatham
Scene: Nathan flicks on the sound system and dances with Kyoko; Caleb watches, stunned (≈ 58’). Diegetic; mid-film; ~1–2 minutes on screen.
Why it matters: A control flex wrapped in funk. The incongruous party track reframes Nathan from monk-genius to manipulative showman.

“Bunsen Burner” – CUTS
Scene: After the confrontation, the cue swells through Ava’s escape and over end credits (≈ 90’+). Non-diegetic; ~3–4 minutes.
Why it matters: Industrial surge as emotional afterburner—cold triumph, not relief.

“Husbands” – Savages
Scene: End credits (≈ 104–108’). Non-diegetic; ~2–3 minutes (edit).
Why it matters: A jagged, post-punk coda that re-reads the story’s gender/power games with bitter clarity.

“Enola Gay” – Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark
Scene: Early background needle-drop inside the compound (first act). Often low in the mix; diegetic.
Why it matters: A bright synth tune about apocalyptic technology—point made.

“Piano Sonata No. 21 in B♭ major, D.960: I. Molto moderato” – Franz Schubert (Alfred Brendel)
Scene: Early exploration/quiet interiors; also cited by scholars near the 4-minute mark. Diegetic via house playback.
Why it matters: Suspended time—Schubert’s long phrases mirror the film’s slow, analytical gaze.

“Cello Suite No.1 in G, BWV 1007: Prelude” – J. S. Bach (Yo-Yo Ma)
Scene: Morning in the facility; soft wake ambience (first act/day two). Diegetic.
Why it matters: Prestigious, “civilized” décor masking the experiment’s moral risk.

“Ava” – Ben Salisbury & Geoff Barrow
Scene: First extended encounter with Ava; her dressing/observed routines. Non-diegetic.
Why it matters: Lullaby-simple lines and glassy harmonics coax empathy—and suspicion.

“Hacking / Cutting” – Ben Salisbury & Geoff Barrow
Scene: Conspiracy montage and system subversions in later sessions. Non-diegetic.
Why it matters: A slow-build engine room—texture accumulates instead of rhythms pounding.

“Skin” – Ben Salisbury & Geoff Barrow
Scene: Transformative corridor sequence toward the finale. Non-diegetic.
Why it matters: Chilling beauty; identity as something assembled.

Trailer note: A24’s early teaser leans on the album’s sound palette; Invada promoted an edit of “Hacking / Cutting” during the rollout.

Music–Story Links

• Nathan’s power rituals → “Get Down Saturday Night”: the groove is bait; the performance reminds Caleb who controls the room.
• Ava’s “human texture” → processed acoustics: gently detuned, slowed real instruments prime us to project feelings onto circuitry.
• Historical dread → “Enola Gay” + Oppenheimer quote: the film pairs nuclear-age anxiety with AI control problems.
• Aftermath tone → “Bunsen Burner” & “Husbands”: end-music frames the victory as clinical and unsentimental, not cathartic.

How It Was Made

Garland enlisted Salisbury and Barrow after their Drokk collaboration. The duo set rules: no drum kit, few sharp transients, and a limited palette where sounds recur to build a subconscious “world.” They captured real sources—guitars, celeste, organs—and stretched them with extreme reverbs and time tools so organic breath sits inside electronic beds. Mixing happened at AIR Studios; Invada handled physical editions. Invada Records and Back Lot Music both appear on the release lineage.

Reception & Quotes

Critics consistently praised the restraint and coherence. AllMusic highlighted the album’s ability to stand alone; Louder Than War called it one of the year’s strongest film works. Official Charts Company data shows it broke into the UK soundtrack rankings.

“Subtle and haunting … a fine example of Invada’s 2010s film music.” AllMusic

“An album in the purest sense … narrative is created.” Louder Than War

“People could hear ‘standard electronic,’ but every texture is hand-packed.” Pitchfork (release coverage)

Additional Info

• The album exists in standard and expanded editions; vinyl variants followed the initial digital drop.
• Album art differs between Back Lot’s digital and Invada’s physical issues.
• Yo-Yo Ma and Alfred Brendel performances are licensed masters, not re-recordings.
• “Ghostbusters” is credited in end titles—only its refrain is spoken in-scene.
• OMD’s “Enola Gay” is an anti-war track; its placement is thematic, not nostalgic.
• Score cues often crossfade across scenes; edits on album are curated, not purely chronological.
• Invada’s promo push included SoundCloud teasers of “Hacking / Cutting.”

Technical Info

• Title: Ex Machina (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
• Year: 2015
• Type: Film score with additional licensed songs
• Composers/Producers: Ben Salisbury, Geoff Barrow
• Labels: Back Lot Music (digital), Invada Records (CD/Vinyl)
• Selected notable placements: “Get Down Saturday Night” (dance), “Bunsen Burner” (climax/end), “Husbands” (end credits), “Enola Gay” (early background), Schubert D.960 I & Bach BWV 1007 I (diegetic interiors)
• Release context: Digital release aligned with US theatrical week; physical editions followed; expanded versions later.
• Charts/Awards: UK Soundtrack Albums Top 50; Ivor Novello Award (Best Original Film Score, 2016)
• Availability: Streaming (Apple Music/Spotify) and multiple Invada vinyl/CD pressings

Canonical Entities & Relations

Subject	Verb	Object
Alex Garland	directed	Ex Machina (film)
Ben Salisbury	composed	Ex Machina (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
Geoff Barrow	composed	Ex Machina (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
Back Lot Music	released	Ex Machina (digital)
Invada Records	released	Ex Machina (CD/Vinyl)
Oliver Cheatham	performed	“Get Down Saturday Night”
Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark	performed	“Enola Gay”
Savages	performed	“Husbands”
Yo-Yo Ma	performed	Bach BWV 1007: Prelude
Alfred Brendel	performed	Schubert D.960: I. Molto moderato

Sources: Wikipedia, AllMusic, Pitchfork, Invada Records, Official Charts Company, IMDb, Apple Music, Spotify.

Ex Machina is an unexpected outcome, which is affected by something, coming from the outside. In the case of Artificial Intelligence, as in this film, the makers obviously hinting at the ability of the true Artificial Intelligence to study, by human standards, infinitely fast, so humans simply wouldn’t sneak in own brains to predict unexpected denouement of events. Though this technique is often used as hiding the shortcomings of the plot, in the case of this film, it seems, there will be really Ex Machina. Almost all people in the world underestimate the negative value of Artificial Intelligence and this is not good, because beginning from the creation of such a thing before its transition to an infinitely distant from humans’ stage of evolution, Artificial Intelligence will be separated only with a few hours or even minutes. Will the motivation of such a super-mind be favorable to the preservation or annihilation of the human race? The filmmakers slightly touched this question and endowing the main character with traits of human female with attractive shapes for empathy. Almost all the music – again, instrumental – was made by composers Ben Salisbury & Geoff Barrow. And they are full of gloomy uncertainty in the outcome of this evolutionary struggle. Others, like Schubert Piano Sonata No. 21, underscore the futility of human endeavor. Written in 1903, this composition is often used to impart greater strength to what’s happening on the screen, shading both the light side and the dark side – it is quite versatile itself. Do not expect this collection to be something unremarkable, not worthy of attention. Here half of music is gloomy instrumental, and the second is only the quality classics. For example, the most observant listeners would already know the Unaccompanied Cello Suite # 1 In G Major Bwv 1007 was written by J. S. Bach, because they have heard it in the frequently mentioned in other reviews here If I Stay movie, where it was often played for us from the screen. In this respect, out of the crowd stands Husbands rock song.

November, 09th 2025

Official site of EX MACHINA, More info on IMDb

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