Cliff Martinez (born February 5, 1954) is an American musician and composer. Early in his career, Martinez was known as a drummer notably with the

Red Hot Chili Peppers Red Hot Chili Peppers are an American rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1983, comprising vocalist Anthony Kiedis, bassist Flea, drummer Chad Smith, and guitarist John Frusciante. Their music incorporates elements of alternative rock, funk ...

and

Captain Beefheart Don Van Vliet (; born Don Glen Vliet; January 15, 1941 – December 17, 2010) was an American singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and visual artist best known by the stage name Captain Beefheart. Conducting a rotating ensemble known as Th ...

. Since the 1990s, he has worked primarily as a

film score A film score is original music written specifically to accompany a film. The score comprises a number of orchestral, instrumental, or choral pieces called cues, which are timed to begin and end at specific points during the film in order to e ...

composer, writing music for ''

Spring Breakers ''Spring Breakers'' is a 2012 American comedy crime film written and directed by Harmony Korine and starring James Franco, Vanessa Hudgens, Selena Gomez, Ashley Benson and Rachel Korine. Gomez, Hudgens, Benson and Korine portray four college ...

'', '' The Foreigner'', and multiple films by

Steven Soderbergh Steven Andrew Soderbergh (; born January 14, 1963) is an American film director, producer, screenwriter, cinematographer and editor. A pioneer of modern independent cinema, Soderbergh is an acclaimed and prolific filmmaker. Soderbergh's direct ...

(''

Sex, Lies, and Videotape ''Sex, Lies, and Videotape'' (often written in all lowercase as ''sex, lies, and videotape'') is a 1989 American independent drama film written and directed by Steven Soderbergh. The plot tells the story of a troubled man who videotapes women dis ...

'', '' Solaris'', '' Contagion'', and ''

Traffic Traffic comprises pedestrians, vehicles, ridden or herded animals, trains, and other conveyances that use public ways (roads) for travel and transportation. Traffic laws govern and regulate traffic, while rules of the road include traffic ...

'') and

Nicolas Winding Refn Nicolas Winding Refn (; born 29 September 1970), also known as Jang, is a Danish film director, screenwriter, and producer. He is known for his collaborations with Mads Mikkelsen, Tom Hardy and Ryan Gosling. He gained great success early in h ...

(''

Drive Drive or The Drive may refer to: Motoring * Driving, the act of controlling a vehicle * Road trip, a journey on roads Roadways Roadways called "drives" may include: * Driveway, a private road for local access to structures, abbreviated "drive" * ...

'', ''

Only God Forgives ''Only God Forgives'' is a 2013 action film written and directed by Nicolas Winding Refn and starring Ryan Gosling, Kristin Scott Thomas, and Vithaya Pansringarm. The film was shot on location in Bangkok, Thailand, and, as with the director's ea ...

,'' ''

The Neon Demon ''The Neon Demon'' is a 2016 psychological horror film directed by Nicolas Winding Refn, co-written by Mary Laws, Polly Stenham, and Refn, and starring Elle Fanning. The plot follows an aspiring model in Los Angeles whose beauty and youth gener ...

'' and the miniseries '' Too Old to Die Young''). On April 14, 2012, Martinez was inducted into the

Rock and Roll Hall of Fame The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (RRHOF), sometimes simply referred to as the Rock Hall, is a museum and hall of fame located in downtown Cleveland, Ohio, United States, on the shore of Lake Erie. The museum documents the history of rock music and ...

as a member of the Red Hot Chili Peppers.

Early life

Martinez was born in the

Bronx, New York The Bronx () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the state of New York. It is south of Westchester County; north and east of the New York City borough of Manhattan, across the Harlem River; and north of the New ...

. His grandfather migrated from a small village in Spain to the United States. Raised in

Columbus, Ohio Columbus () is the state capital and the most populous city in the U.S. state of Ohio. With a 2020 census population of 905,748, it is the 14th-most populous city in the U.S., the second-most populous city in the Midwest, after Chicago, an ...

, his first job composing was for the popular television show '' Pee Wee's Playhouse''. At the time, however, he was more interested in rock bands, and played drums in a variety of them, mostly in a temporary capacity.

Red Hot Chili Peppers (1983–1986)

After several years drumming for such acts as

The Dickies The Dickies are an American punk rock band formed in the San Fernando Valley, Los Angeles, in 1977. One of the longest tenured punk rock bands, they have been in continuous existence for over 40 years. They have consistently balanced catchy mel ...

Lydia Lunch Lydia Lunch (born Lydia Anne Koch; June 2, 1959)Martin Charles Strong. ''The Great Indie Discography''. 2003, page 85 is an American singer, poet, writer, actress and self-empowerment speaker. Her career began during the 1970s New York City no ...

and

The Weirdos The Weirdos are an American punk rock band from Los Angeles, California. They formed in 1975, split-up in 1981, re-grouped in 1986 and have remained semi-active ever since. Critic Mark Deming calls them "quite simply, one of the best and brigh ...

, in late 1983, he and

Jack Sherman Jack Morris Sherman (January 18, 1956 – August 18, 2020) was an American guitarist, best known as the second guitarist for the Red Hot Chili Peppers, between Hillel Slovak's departure and return. He played on the band's debut album, and ...

were drafted in to join the

for the recording of their eponymous first album after

Jack Irons Jack Steven Irons (born July 18, 1962) is an American drummer. He is the founding drummer of the rock band Red Hot Chili Peppers and is a former member of Pearl Jam and Eleven. Alongside his work with Red Hot Chili Peppers and Pearl Jam, Irons ...

and

Hillel Slovak Hillel Slovak ( he, הלל סלובק; April 13, 1962 – June 25, 1988) was an Israeli-American musician best known as the founding guitarist of the Los Angeles rock band Red Hot Chili Peppers, with whom he recorded two albums. His guitar wo ...

left the band to concentrate on their other project at the time, What Is This? Martinez again played on the recording of the band's second album ''Freaky Styley'' and its subsequent tour. In 2012 Martinez was inducted into the

as a member of the Red Hot Chili Peppers. Martinez performed with the band for the first time in 26 years when he joined them along with former drummer

on their song, " Give It Away" during the ceremony.

Film composing

Eventually, Martinez' interests shifted and he focused his attention toward film scoring. A tape Martinez had put together using new technologies made its rounds, leading him to score an episode of ''Pee-Wee's Playhouse''. The same recording also ended up in

's hands and Martinez was hired to score the famed director's first theatrical release, 1989's ''

''. Martinez's longstanding relationship with Soderbergh has continued through the years and they have worked together on ten theatrical releases including ''

Kafka Franz Kafka (3 July 1883 – 3 June 1924) was a German-speaking Bohemian novelist and short-story writer, widely regarded as one of the major figures of 20th-century literature. His work fuses elements of realism and the fantastic. It typi ...

'', ''

The Limey ''The Limey'' is a 1999 American crime film directed by Steven Soderbergh and written by Lem Dobbs. The film features Terence Stamp, Lesley Ann Warren, Luis Guzmán, Barry Newman, Nicky Katt, and Peter Fonda. The plot concerns an English career ...

'', ''

'', '' Solaris'' and 2011's '' Contagion'', as well the Cinemax series ''

The Knick ''The Knick'' is an American medical period drama television series on Cinemax created by Jack Amiel and Michael Begler and directed by Steven Soderbergh. The series follows Dr. John W. Thackery (Clive Owen) and the staff at a fictionalized ve ...

''. His nontraditional scores tend towards being stark and sparse, utilizing a modern tonal palette to paint the backdrop for films that are often dark, psychological stories like '' Pump Up the Volume'' (1990), ''

'' (1999) ''

Wonderland Wonderland may refer to: Places Municipalities * Wonderland, California, a ghost town in Plumas County * Wonderland, Ohio, a ghost town in Columbus, Ohio, U.S. Roads, streets, and trails * Wonderland Avenue, a roadway in Laurel Canyon, Los A ...

'' (2003), '' Wicker Park'' (2004) and ''

'' (2011). Martinez has been nominated for a Grammy Award (Steven Soderbergh's ''Traffic''), a Cesar Award (Xavier Giannoli's '' À L'origine''), and a Broadcast Film Critics Award (''Drive''). He earned a Robert Award (Danish Academy Award) for his work on ''

''. Martinez's use of audio manipulations, particularly for percussive sounds, has been evolving through the years and is evident by the hammered dulcimer of ''Kafka'' (1991), the gray-areas between sound design and score for ''Traffic'' (2000), the steel drums and textures of ''Solaris'' (2002), what Martinez called "rhythmi-tizing pitched, ambient textures" of '' Narc'' (2002), and "using percussion performances to trigger and shape the rhythmic and tonal characteristics of those ambient textures," as he described his score for 2011's ''

The Lincoln Lawyer ''The Lincoln Lawyer'' is a 2005 novel, the 16th by American crime writer Michael Connelly. It introduces Los Angeles attorney Mickey Haller, half-brother of Connelly's mainstay character Detective Hieronymus "Harry" Bosch. It was adapted as ...

''. Martinez served as a juror for the 2012 Sundance Film Festival and served on the International Feature nominating committee for 2011 Film Independent Spirit Awards. Martinez's recent films include Robert Redford's '' The Company You Keep'', Nicholas Jarecki's ''

Arbitrage In economics and finance, arbitrage (, ) is the practice of taking advantage of a difference in prices in two or more markets; striking a combination of matching deals to capitalise on the difference, the profit being the difference between t ...

'', Harmony Korine's ''

'' (co-composed with

Skrillex Sonny John Moore (born January 15, 1988), known professionally as Skrillex, is an American DJ and music producer. Growing up in Northeast Los Angeles and Northern California, he joined the post-hardcore band From First to Last as the lead si ...

), and Nicolas Winding Refn's ''

'' and ''

''.

Video game composing

Martinez composed the main menu music titled "Galaxy Theme" for ''

Spore In biology, a spore is a unit of sexual or asexual reproduction that may be adapted for dispersal and for survival, often for extended periods of time, in unfavourable conditions. Spores form part of the life cycles of many plants, algae, ...

'' in 2008.Spore Credits at http://www.mobygames.com/game/windows/spore_/credits In 2014, Martinez also composed the title score for ''

Far Cry 4 ''Far Cry 4'' is a 2014 first-person shooter game developed by Ubisoft Montreal and published by Ubisoft. It is the successor to the 2012 video game ''Far Cry 3'', and the fourth main installment in the '' Far Cry'' series. Set in the fiction ...

''.

Advertising

In 2013, Martinez scored the "Fly Beyond"

Grey Goose The waterfowl genus ''Anser'' includes the grey geese and the white geese. It belongs to the true geese and swan subfamily (Anserinae). The genus has a Holarctic distribution, with at least one species breeding in any open, wet habitats in the ...

vodka commercial.'Only God Forgives' director Nicolas Winding Refn's next projects: Commercial, horror
/ref> Martinez also composed two songs, "Vibe" and "Kotopulse", for the 2014

Lincoln Motor Company Lincoln Motor Company, or simply Lincoln, is the luxury vehicle division of American automobile manufacturer Ford. Marketed among the top luxury vehicle brands in the United States, Lincoln was positioned closely against its General Motors ...

advertising campaign featuring

Matthew McConaughey Matthew David McConaughey ( ; born November 4, 1969) is an American actor. He had his breakout role with a supporting performance in the coming-of-age comedy '' Dazed and Confused'' (1993). After a number of supporting roles, his first succes ...

.LincolnMotorCompany on Twitter
/ref>

Discography

The Weirdos

* '' Weird World'' (compilation)

Lydia Lunch

* '' 13.13'' (1982) * ''

Stinkfist "Stinkfist" is a song by the American metal band Tool. It is their first industry single and first music video release from their second major label album ''Ænima''. Interpretation The song title, the lyrics and the perceived subject matter ...

'' (1986)

Captain Beefheart

* ''

Ice Cream for Crow ''Ice Cream for Crow'' is the twelfth and final studio album by Captain Beefheart and the Magic Band, released in September 1982. After it was recorded, Don Van Vliet retired from music to devote himself to a career as a painter. It spent two weeks ...

'' (1982)

Red Hot Chili Peppers

* ''

The Red Hot Chili Peppers Red Hot Chili Peppers are an American rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1983, comprising vocalist Anthony Kiedis, bassist Flea, drummer Chad Smith, and guitarist John Frusciante. Their music incorporates elements of alternative rock, funk, ...

'' (1984) * ''

Freaky Styley ''Freaky Styley'' is the second studio album by American rock band Red Hot Chili Peppers, released August 16, 1985 on EMI America. ''Freaky Styley'' marks founding guitarist Hillel Slovak's studio album debut, following his return to the band ea ...

'' (1985) * ''

The Abbey Road E.P. ''The Abbey Road E.P.'' is an EP by Red Hot Chili Peppers, released in the UK in May 1988 through EMI America as a way of introducing UK fans to the band's back catalog as they were touring the UK that year. Out of the five tracks included on thi ...

'' – (1988) * ''

What Hits!? ''What Hits!?'' is a greatest hits album by American rock band Red Hot Chili Peppers released on September 29, 1992 by EMI. The album contains tracks from the band's first four albums as well as "Under the Bridge" from their fifth album, 1991 ...

'' – (1992) * '' Out in L.A.'' – (1994) * '' Under the Covers: Essential Red Hot Chili Peppers'' – (1998)

The Dickies

* '' Killer Klowns From Outer Space'' (1988) * '' The Second Coming'' (1989) * '' Locked N' Loaded Live in London'' (1991) * '' Idjit Savant'' (1994)

As composer

Film

Television

Video games

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Martinez, Cliff 1954 births Hispanic and Latino American musicians American film score composers American rock drummers BAFTA winners (people) Living people American male film score composers Red Hot Chili Peppers members The Magic Band members Video game composers 20th-century American drummers American male drummers American people of Spanish descent