The Matrix (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) accompanies the 1999 science-fiction action film The Matrix, directed by Lana and Lilly Wachowski. The soundtrack music and score for the film were released in two distinct official album formats. The film’s original score was composed by Don Davis, known for his work on Jurassic Park III, The Matrix Reloaded, and The Matrix Revolutions. Davis’ music blends orchestral scoring with dissonant rhythmic textures to support the film’s philosophical tone and high-impact action scenes.
The Original Motion Picture Soundtrack, released on March 30, 1999 via Warner Bros. Records/Maverick, contains 13 tracks of licensed songs by artists featured in the film, including Rob D’s Clubbed to Death (Kurayamino Mix), Marilyn Manson’s Rock Is Dead, and Rage Against the Machine’s Wake Up. This album runs approximately 62 minutes and is available on major platforms.
The Original Motion Picture Score, released on May 4, 1999 via Varèse Sarabande, contains 10 tracks of Don Davis’s original instrumental score, running about 30 minutes in its standard edition. This score presents the key orchestral themes written for the film, including “Main Title / Trinity Infinity,” “The Hotel Ambush,” and “Ontological Shock.” More extensive editions and expanded versions have been released in later years with additional cues, but the original 1999 score album comprises 10 tracks.
Davis’s score underscores Neo’s journey, the philosophical conflict between reality and illusion, and the film’s numerous action set pieces, combining traditional orchestral forces with rhythmic and harmonic elements that evoke the cyberpunk setting. The licensed song album and the score album serve different purposes: the soundtrack album focuses on curated songs heard in and inspired by the film, while the score album presents only Davis’s original instrumental material.
Composer: Don Davis
Release Date: March 30, 1999 (Soundtrack) / May 04, 1999 (Score)
Label: Warner Bros. Records / Maverick / Varèse Sarabande
Tracks: 13 (Soundtrack) / 10 (Original Score)
The Matrix: Tracklist
- Marilyn Manson – Rock Is Dead
- Propellerheads – Spybreak! (Short One)
- Ministry – Bad Blood
- Rob Dougan – Clubbed to Death (Kurayamino Variation)
- Meat Beat Manifesto – Prime Audio Soup
- Lunatic Calm – Leave You Far Behind
- The Prodigy – Mindfields
- Rob Zombie – Dragula (Si Non Oscillas, Noli Tintinnare Mix)
- Deftones – My Own Summer (Shove It)
- Hive – Ultrasonic Sound
- Monster Magnet – Look to Your Orb for the Warning
- Rammstein – Du Hast
- Rage Against the Machine – Wake Up
Score Soundtrack
- Don Davis – Main Title / Trinity Infinity (from “The Matrix”)
- Don Davis – Unable To Speak
- Don Davis – The Power Plant
- Don Davis – Welcome To The Real World
- Don Davis – The Hotel Ambush
- Don Davis – Exit Mr. Hat
- Don Davis – A Virus
- Don Davis – Bullet-Time
- Don Davis – Ontological Shock
- Don Davis – Anything Is Possible
