Queen of the Damned (2002)

Queen of the Damned marks Jonathan Davis' first foray into film scoring. Composer Richard Gibbs first met Davis, lead singer for the heavy music band KoRn, through an agent at the company that represented both artists, and together they created the score for the film, as well as the music that awakens Lestat and, ultimately, Akasha.

"The music in the novel is Goth music from the eighties," explains Jorge Saralegui. "Our goal was to find a way to have more contemporary music that had that Goth element. We found out that Jonathan Davis from the band KoRn was very interested in spreading his wings and doing a score. And he teamed up with a really talented guy, Richard Gibbs, and they came up with music that begins with KoRn's sense of metal as its basis, but then he added a more atmospheric, mysterious element to it that results in a more sophisticated sound. And it captured both the visceral aspects of being a vampire and also a kind of perverse sexiness that vampirism has."

The two composers set to work before the film was even cast. In addition to providing the orchestral score, Davis and Gibbs wrote all of the rock songs that Lestat performs with his band. "We wrote some of the songs when we were in town, and the others when we were out on the road," Davis recalls. "Richard and I did a couple of songs going about fifty-eight to eighty-five miles an hour down the road, bouncing around in the back of the bus at two o'clock in the morning down the Jersey Turnpike."

While attempting to write music through Lestat's eyes, Davis reflected on the life of a vampire. "I would think about what you would be like if you had been alive for seven or eight hundred years. You'd have no friends, you'd be very lonely, and you'd think life really sucks. You'd have nobody to love because everybody that you know eventually dies. I thought it would be a really, really lonely existence."

While Davis provides Lestat's vocals in the film, the rock songs he co-wrote with Gibbs are performed on the soundtrack by a virtual who's-who of contemporary rock artists.

Marilyn Manson performs the song Redeemer. "I've known Jonathan for a long time," says Manson, "and it was great to work with him. He and I have similar interests and use our voices to show that. I'm not a vampire but I play one in this song.

Static-X's Wayne Static sings Not Meant for Me. "I was very honored to be asked to record for the soundtrack," says Static, "because I'm a huge KoRn fan, a huge Jonathan Davis fan. It was fun to interpret something he wrote. Plus, I'm a Goth at heart — growing up I was into that dark imagery."

Orgy's Jay Gordon sings Slept So Long, and was impressed by the way Davis interpreted Lestat in his songwriting. "Jonathan does capture every bit of the mood and translates the feeling of the character through the music."

Additionally, Disturbed's David Draiman sings Forsaken and Linkin Park's Chester Bennington covers System. The album also features previously released cuts from Tricky, The Deftones, Papa Roach and Godhead, and is scheduled for release on February 19th.

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