Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross to Release Score for Ken Burns’ ‘The Vietnam War’

On Sept. 15, the Academy Award-winning team of Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross will release the score to The Vietnam War, a 10-part documentary that will premiere on PBS two days later. The series was produced by Ken Burns, Lynn Novick and Sarah Botstein, with Burns and Novick as co-directors. You can watch a trailer for it above.

"We are incredibly honored to be a part of this project," Reznor and Ross said in a statement on Nine Inch Nails' website. "With The Vietnam War, Ken, Lynn and Sarah have created something of vital importance. To bear witness to this process was immensely inspiring. The sheer scale of the project combined with the magnitude of the subject matter was initially daunting for us, but the commitment, care and reverence they displayed made the experience deeply satisfying on many levels."

Their score consists of 90 minutes of music spread across 17 tracks on two CDs or three LPs. The entire project has been in the works for 10 years, and the filmmakers spent several years collaborating with the musicians, showing them the interview footage and rough cuts, and providing guidance on the emotions they wanted the duo to stir up with their compositions.

Also available will be a two-CD soundtrack comprised of 38 classic rock and soul songs from that era that are in the series, including "Turn! Turn! Turn! (To Everything There Is a Season" by the Byrds, "Psychedelic Shack" by the Temptations, "Masters of War" by the Staple Singers, "Ohio" by Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young and Ray Charles' rendition of "America the Beautiful."

"The Vietnam War era produced some of the greatest, most impactful music ever recorded," Burns and Novick said. "We are grateful that so many artists from the period wanted to be part of the film and now the soundtrack. We were equally fortunate to have had the tremendous honor to work with Trent and Atticus. Their original score beautifully complements the music from the time. And we are absolutely thrilled that our audiences will now have the chance to own the original score along with some of the best music from the film."

Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross, 'The Vietnam War' Track Listing

Disc One

1. "Less Likely"
2. "Four Enclosed Walls"
3. "The Forever Rain"
4. "Remnants"
5. "Other Ways to Get to the Same Place"
6. "Torn Polaroid"
7. "Before Dawn"
8. "What Comes Back"
9. "Justified Response"
10. "Counting Ticks"

Disc Two

1. "A World Away"
2. "The Right Things"
3. "Passing the Point"
4. "Strangers in Lockstep"
5. "Before and After Faith"
6. "The Same Dream"
7. "Haunted"

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