Mansell was the lead singer and guitarist of the British band Pop Will Eat Itself. After the disbanding of PWEI in 1996, Mansell broke into the world of film scoring when his friend, director Darren Aronofsky, hired him to score his debut film, π (Pi).

Mansell's score for π was followed up by his score for Aronofsky's next film, Requiem for a Dream (see Requiem for a Dream (soundtrack)), and the score became a cult hit.

Mansell has garnered a cult following for his soundtrack work, so much that Smokin' Aces director Joe Carnahan admits to receiving "blatant threats" when the soundtrack was released without much of Mansell's score for the film.

Kronos Quartet is a string quartet founded by violinist David Harrington in 1973 in Seattle, Washington.

Kronos has teamed up with artists from around the world, including Bollywood playback singer Asha Bhosle;[11] Mexican-American painter Gronk; the American soprano Dawn Upshaw; jazz composer/performer Pat Metheny; Mexican rockers Café Tacuba; and the Romanian gypsy band Taraf de Haidouks.

Kronos has performed live with the likes of the late poet Allen Ginsberg, Astor Piazzolla, the Modern Jazz Quartet, Tom Waits, David Bowie, and Björk, and has appeared on recordings with such diverse artists as singer-songwriters Dave Matthews Band, Nelly Furtado, Rokia Traore, Joan Armatrading, Brazilian electronica artist Amon Tobin, Texas yodeler Don Walser, Faith No More, Tiger Lillies and David Grisman.

Mansell's score has become a cult hit. The music is notable for its use of sharp, often staccato 'un-vibrato-ed' string instruments to create a cold and discomforting sound from instruments frequently used for their warmth and softness (an effect pioneered in film soundtracks by Bernard Hermann). Reportedly Kronos Quartet asked for a very reasonable fee which, according to Aronofsky, suited him well; Aronofsky also stated that the music inspired him during the editing process
Read more on Last.fm. User-contributed text is available under the Creative Commons By-SA License; additional terms may apply.