Steven Soderbergh’s disgust with the movie industry led him into television. “The Knick,” his much-talked-about new series for Cinemax, is a drama set in a turn-of-the-20th-century hospital. The detailing and research into medical implements, costumes and the streets of Old New York are meticulous. Hoping to avoid nostalgia, however, Soderbergh avoided the expected ragtime parlor piano soundtrack in favor of something out of time.
Released on CD, The Knick: The Original Television Soundtrack gathers the music composed for the series by Cliff Martinez. It’s not what one would expect from a member of the Red Hot Chili Peppers but a little like those ‘80s movie soundtracks by Tangerine Dream with gently pulsing synthesizers guiding the imagination down gas-lit corridors. Martinez provides an intriguing sonic counterpoint to the period production.
