Blanck Mass

Blanck Mass – the project of musician Benjamin John Power – announces Ted K OST, out March 18th (digital) and June 10th (vinyl) via Sacred Bones, and shares “Montana (Main Theme).” This February, the story of the infamous Unabomber Ted Kaczynski will receive its theatrical debut in a new Tony Stone directed film, Ted K. Stone’s choice to have the renowned electronic artist Blanck Mass score the film creates an obvious tension perfect for the controversial and complex subject matter. The score matches the scope and intensity of the picture, and firmly establishes this extraordinary artist at the forefront of the latest wave of experimental soundscape wizards.

Recording during lockdown at his studio in Edinburgh, Scotland, Power was in the perfect setting for a musical piece intended to capture the isolation central to Kaczynski’s story. Power was also working with a director in a time zone 10 hours behind and thus many sessions required working in the middle of the night, which added a fitting intensity to the composition process. “I wanted it to feel like an epic,” says Power. He drew on the legends Sergio Leone and Ennio Morricone for inspiration in encapsulating the energy of the perceived good vs. evil. The gentle madness of sound achieved is exquisite and slowly builds in intensity and desperation as the score moves along. Power is able to perfectly capture the complexity, the terror and the deep emotionality of the film while presenting an often breathtakingly beautiful and always masterful album that stands on its own as a work of art.

Since 2011’s self-titled debut album, electronic musician Benjamin John Power, aka Blanck Mass hasn’t paused to take a breather, releasing four further studio albums: the critically acclaimed Dumb Flesh, World Eater, Animated Violence Mild, and In Ferneaux. There has been a string of EPs and singles, collaborations with other artists, countless remixes; a heavy touring schedule, and also as a producer for other musical acts. 2020 saw the first Blanck Mass movie score, for the soundtrack to Nick Rowland’s acclaimed cinematic debut Calm with Horses. In 2021, Blanck Mass won the prestigious Ivor Novello Award for best original film score.

An artist who will not succumb to “constraints of genre” or pigeon-hole his sound, Power chooses instead to navigate his way through myriad musical characterizations. As comfortable writing three minute punk songs as he is composing 12 minute orchestral movements, the common thread is a healthy relationship with the darker side of reality.