Your browser is out-of-date!

Update your browser to view this website correctly. Update my browser now

×

Killer Tracks Marks 25 Years in Production Music

Killer Tracks’ team in 1989

Production music company Killer Tracks in Santa Monica turns 25 this year, and is celebrating its anniversary with new releases, including tracks from the Japanese punk rock movement, a follow up to The Mutants—Rhythm and Punk Review. The company has also teamed with SaraoMusic in Barcelona, a new music library covering such genres as electro ambient, Balkan, Gypsy swing, pop, dubstep, Latin and lo-fi.

In addition, Killer Tracks recently hosted a recording session in Hungary with a 140-piece orchestra and choir for End of Days, a new release with an epic, apocalyptic theme.

Killer Tracks’ team in 2014

Now a wholly-owned subsidiary of Universal Music Publishing, Killer Tracks launched in 1989 with a collection of 30 original music CDs. The company advanced a business referred to then as “stock music” by introducing top flight composers and musicians, employing cutting edge production techniques, and delivering a sound that rivaled popular commercial recordings. Today, the Killer Tracks catalog encompasses a collection equivalent to more than 2,300 CDs, with more than 100 new releases added each year. Artists and producers whose work is featured in the catalog range from Chuck D, Rev Theory, Lamont Dozier, Jim Brickman and Ennio Morricone, to edgy up-and-comers like Shiny Toy Guns, Rare Monk, and Misun.

Anna Maria Hall, Killer Tracks’ vice president/head of music licensing, says that the production music business has undergone momentous change over the past quarter century, and that she and her staff have responded. “People today are absorbing content through a lot of new channels; they’re no longer limited to big broadcasters,” Hall observes. “It’s an era of narrow-casting, and that is creating new opportunities and niche markets. Satisfying the needs of the market requires diverse music and the ability to support it on a global basis.”

“We’re very pleased, not only with the success of these projects, but with the quality of the creative product,” says Carl Peel, vice president/head of music production. “Chris Constantinou and Paul Frazer did an excellent job in pulling these artists together and making great songs that people were excited about.”

Killer Tracks founder Sam Trust

Teresa Carbonell, general manager of the new venture with SaraoMusic, says that their focus is on “hand-crafted” music produced by local composers and musicians. “Our aim is to create music that is authentic, beautiful and emotionally engaging,” she says. “When you listen to our music, you hear a depth of sound in every note. The emotion of each performance comes through in the final product.”

“Killer Tracks has grown immensely and compliments the other industry leading businesses within the Universal Music Publishing Group,” says Gary Gross, Worldwide President, Universal Publishing Production Music Group. “It starts with creating great music—I can’t overestimate the importance of that. We’ve never sacrificed quality. We’ve also hired great people, hardworking, dedicated people who work together as a team, with the goal of exceeding their client’s expectations each and every time.”

“We’ve been a notch above since the very beginning,” recalls senior account executive James Frangipane, who was one of company founder Sam Trust’s first hires in 1989. “While others were putting out stock music, we were all about compositional integrity, musicianship and customer service. Even the artwork was great. It caught on. People were impressed; they still are.”

“We’re investing millions of dollars into our Website to fully enhance the user experience though faster downloads and efficient searches to ensure that the music search experience for our clients is the best in the industry,” says Hall. “We have all this great music and we want to be sure that our clients can find what they need. This company has a legacy, not only of great music, but also of great service. We do whatever we can to accommodate our clients, understand their needs and act as their partner. We carry that passion with us every day.”

For more information, visit www.killertracks.com.

Close