As Fendrix told Waxwork, “I wanted to have a lot of instruments that involved air and mechanics to match this kind of bizarre bionic thing going on.” He explained this was behind his decision to incorporate a lot of woodwinds because he really likes “instruments that breathe for themselves — which seems apt for the biomechanics of the film — so pipe organs, uilleann pipes (which are like Irish bagpipes), a lot of synthesized breath and voice stuff.” This helped build a textural sound to the score and became the perfect audio companion to Bella’s increasing awareness of the world around her.
Fendrix began working on the score with only Lanthimos’ script and conversations with the director to go by, an even more impressive feat considering just how amazing the overall sound came to be. He told Waxwork that he was “struck by how childlike all of the characters were.” While Bella is the most obvious, “They’re all in their own ways very immature and very naive, and it’s very, very endearing,” Fendrix explained. “For that reason I didn’t want the music to be too grand or mature or poised. I wanted that real volatility and childishness to reflect the characters.” Anyone who has seen the film or listened to the score online can attest that the musician more than achieved his goal. And now, with this score added to cinephiles’ growing record collections, we can all have dance parties in our living rooms where we let the music flow through our bodies in whatever way feels right.
You can pre-order at Waxwork Records by visiting their website here.