How Formula E’s Remastered Sonic Identity Found the Drama in Electric

Tom> Lost Track Productions had previously provided soundtracks for a number of brand launches with the CMO of Formula E (including McLaren F1 and Team Sky Pro Cycling), and so we got together early on to discuss this exciting new challenge. Formula E wanted to rethink their sonic impression from the ground up, forge a new identity, and showcase the brilliance and drama of this new racing series. The brief stretched across new theme music, series music for live broadcasts, and a suite of sound design. 

Lost Track Productions led the project, as well as composing and delivering the music, and teamed with Alex at Machine to create, record and deliver the world class sound effects assets. 

Alex> Machine has a longstanding relationship with Tom and Lost Track. We’ve worked together on a number of projects over the years and were grateful to be brought on board to

help realise the sound design elements of the rebrand. Being involved early on and going through thorough research, testing, development and client briefing, you go on the journey together and come to the realisations together - that’s the fun part. The sounds are evolving at the same time as the music and they are informing each other as it becomes something new. 

Tom> Alex and I attended a private testing session with the GEN3 cars by NIO 333 Formula E Racing Team and Mahindra Racing, and with sound recordist Kiff McManus, (of Top Gear fame), where we heard the brand new sounds of the cars in context. They are loud, kinetic, exciting, and instantly identifiable - incredible to experience inperson, but the sound of electric doesn’t always translate fully over TV. 

So referring back to the brief, how could we work the DNA of these cars into everything? I worked these elements into the music, as builds and risers, and Alex structured many of the core broadcast FX around the powerful sounds of the GEN3 car. The clients wanted these sound recordings to form a family sound. 

An interesting challenge was how we add drama to the race start. On the start grid, due to the nature of electric propulsion, Formula E cars sit in silence until lights out, and silence is the last thing you want as attention climaxes! Alex was tasked with developing a completely unique sound to fill in this gap. Impact, excitement, an electric atmosphere. As we build to lights off, the whirring and electric revving starts and grows, intensity continuously rising to a fever pitch. There’s a subtle excitement but you might not notice it - meaning we’ve done the job properly. 

Alex> Getting a chance to mic up and listen to the engine and the elemental force it gave off was crucial. In the time we had at the testing, we captured the car and engine from as many angles and positions as possible, from trackside to multiple radio mics attached to the chassis and drivetrain. Having these many combinations back in the critical environment of the studio and really listening, the technology of the GEN3 truly revealed itself - it had a clear voice, tone and timbre. The uniqueness and power came through in an unexpected way to what you may think an electric engine sounds like. There was a whole lower midrange powerful jet-like tone and wind force that you don’t usually hear from an electric motor. 

Capturing this was exciting for everyone, it then became a job of showcasing these visceral elements the best we could in the more overt moments like the logo, while also weaving them into the more functional in-race graphic elements, so that the DNA of the engine ran through and unified the entire suite of sounds.

Tom> For the client, title music was crucially important. The question was: ‘How to best embody a contemporary, exciting and futuristic sound, whilst delivering on the classic sports titles emotions and Formula E’s brand values?’

Following market research and internal discussions, we started workshopping musical styles, genres and energy levels. After a number of creative workshops, initial demos were played to the client, who instantly reacted to one theme, and that stuck from the first presentation to the theme you hear today. The blend of hooky, rhythmic and dramatic orchestral writing, with a propulsive modern electronic drive was the sweet spot. 

Sonically, there is a busy landscape - we have to weave our sounds between commentary, live sound and occasionally music. This led to our three design pillars. Purpose, excitement, and focus. Alex worked hard to make sure sounds were communicators of meaning, and added excitement, but didn’t distract unnecessarily. There were different tiers of importance, so that important moments in the race (such as a safety car or yellow flag) landed with the audience with more weight than, say, a sidebar whoosh. 

Alex> The creative team had decided that the heart of the brand’s visual and sonic identity should be drawn from their design concept of electric acceleration, brought to life by an energetic regenerating power loop. This concept encapsulated the future of Formula E - the idea of a clean, sustainable, futuristic source of energy. Our task was to realise this concept aurally, which informed the smaller, more practical elements of the brief. 

Our first task was to test this möbius strip of energy (the ‘torque loop’) and offer up different treatments to the team. To create the band of energy, we used the recordings of the engine. We processed and tuned the recordings, giving them movement and dynamic, and then multiplied them until we had a rich stream of pulsating, regenerating energy that worked alongside the graphics tests. With this foundation, other aspects of the brief became more straightforward and derivatives of this core sound would make it into the live broadcast wipes and the sonic logo. 

Tom> The Formula E team was clear that their fans wanted the sounds of the cars to be honest and not enhanced, so we didn’t touch the live sounds of the cars for the race. We aimed to embed the DNA of the GEN3 car - the sonic character of Formula E - into our key sounds so that the family sound of electric acceleration becomes forever associated with Formula E. 

Alex> In terms of technical challenges, I think one of the most interesting processes was creating the sound design for the grid start - a soundscape played at the race itself and on the live broadcast. We stretched the engine sounds out until they essentially gave us notes. Then, using synthesis and harmonisers, we reinforced certain frequencies and tuned all the strands to create an evolving, whirring, full-range chord. 

Each engine was slowly tuned up until it reached its highest point, and then regenerated from the bottom, creating a Shepard tone effect - but from engine notes. We then created a long, looping version of the sound bed at different intensities. These were then loaded into a virtual instrument for the broadcast engineer to trigger and ‘play’ along to the grid start during

the live broadcast, like a real instrument that would soundtrack the intensity and excitement of the grid start. 

When triggered, a chorus of electric engines and whines fires up - as the tension builds on the track the sound becomes more and more intense. At the peak, the elements unify and become one note, holding tension until - BOOM - the green light… GO! 

Tom> From brief to final delivery, the project took around five months. Because the client had foresight to get Lost Track Productions involved at an early stage, we had ample time to meet with different departments, explore routes, test and discuss, before committing. It’s just as important that the client feels happy with their decision, as well as making the right one. And taking the time to do it right is crucial in this aspect. 

From day one, we always had the first race in mind - Mexico City in January. Working around this meant we had time to be flexible around a changing schedule and each department’s unique technical requirements. There was a big ramp toward the end of the project where everyone really pulled together, and the feeling of achievement of delivering such a large project was very satisfying at the end. 

We delivered more than 150 unique sounds, and over 40 minutes of live orchestral and electronic music. That’s like writing and recording an album! 

Alex> Machine’s part of the process took around two months, with a large chunk of it being research - trying out every sound and making sure we left no stone unturned! The biggest challenge was the fast turnaround of assets; with graphics being finalised close to the first live test in Valencia, assets needed to be loaded and tested and tweaked on a super tight schedule. This is the reality of working with a live, breathing sport - a far cry from a usual comfy post production schedule! 

Tom> We booked Abbey Road for the orchestral recording, and packed in London’s finest 55 musicians including eight horns, eight trombones, two-cimbasso, with their senior engineering talent and a film crew… The session was a memorable one, the musicians loved the theme and everyone left humming it. Visiting the races to understand the hype was so exciting in person.

Alex> Having the opportunity to mic up the cars with the legend Kip McManus (Top Gear) and testing and generating the sounds. It’s always fun seeing how far you could push the most accepted sound or subvert it completely. The testing really provides some great happy accidents!

Tom> This was a personal highlight for me, intersecting some of my favourite things - sport, music and cutting edge technology. I’m already a fan of the series and loved working with Formula E to revitalise their sonic branding. 

Alex> Final thought - massive learning curve. The project was so multifaceted, from branding, testing mics on cars, and functional on-screen sounds, to soundscapes for live. It was a feat to make all of these elements fit together and feel like they were from the same family. Also a milestone for the studio in terms of the scope of the project - this was a chance for us to branch into another area of sound; an awesome opportunity and something we hope to do more of in the future. It’s amazing that our work is out there enhancing (hopefully) the race experience for the passionate fans. Very appreciative of Tom trusting us and getting us on board!