Jeff Mills Cinemix of Metropolis Metropolis

Roulette, Airtime, and Axis Records present a Cinemix event: a projection of Fritz Lang’s 1927 dystopian film Metropolis accompanied by an original soundtrack composed and performed live by American producer Jeff Mills. Fritz Lang’s 1927 dystopian masterpiece Metropolis envisions a futuristic megacity divided between an oppressed labor force below and a decadent elite above — an uneasy order that begins to fracture when a robot incites the workers to revolt. Jeff Mills began reworking the film’s score in 2000, foregrounding its enduring themes of collective unity. He revisited the composition in 2010 with a deeper focus on character perspectives, and again in 2023 with a third release on Axis Records. This latest version, shaped and refined over time, turns toward the viewpoint of the machines, offering a layered interpretation attuned to the tensions of the present — a landmark film reanimated through Mills’ visionary sound. In Mills’ own words: “Almost 100 years ago, Fritz Lang’s Metropolis debuted in a time of exuberance, promise and ingenuity but also underlying whispers of discontent, fear mongering and disillusion. Though Metropolis is a fictional story that takes place around the year 2000, a time that those who watched it in 1927 could only dream about, there is a good amount of truth and unfortunately, reasons why there are still lessons to be learned from it. More of an admonition, Metropolis continues to flash a cautious yellow to those who have and those who do not. Remorsefully, it appears that the older the film becomes, the more it becomes relevant. And in the sharpened times will live in now, I can’t think of a better story to be reminded of” – Jeff Mills