Human Traffic Soundtrack: Written and directed by Justin Kerrigan, Human Traffic is a 1999 British-Irish independent coming-of-age comedy-drama film and a cult favorite of Wales’s “Cool Cymru” era. The film follows five friends on a drug-fuelled weekend of clubbing and partying in Cardiff, using social commentary and archive footage to capture the mood of Britain’s late-1990s dance and rave culture.
Human Traffic premiered in the United Kingdom on June 4, 1999, and in Ireland on June 18, 1999. Made on a shoestring budget that grew to roughly £2.2 million, it went on to earn £2.5 million at the UK box office, picked up 11 international awards and a BAFTA nomination, and has remained a touchstone of British rave cinema ever since.
Quick Facts
| Title | Essential Selection Presents Music From the Motion Picture Human Traffic |
| Film Release Date | June 4, 1999 (UK); June 18, 1999 (Ireland) |
| Director / Writer | Justin Kerrigan |
| Incidental Score | Matthew Herbert & Robert Mello |
| Soundtrack Label | FFRR / London Records |
| Genre | House, Hip Hop, Breakbeat (2-CD dance compilation) |
| Starring | John Simm, Lorraine Pilkington, Shaun Parkes, Danny Dyer, Nicola Reynolds |
| Where to Watch | Prime Video, Apple TV+ |
Who Composed the Human Traffic Soundtrack?
Human Traffic doesn’t have a single film composer in the traditional sense — it’s a needle-drop soundtrack built almost entirely from real club and dance tracks of the era, reflecting director Justin Kerrigan’s goal of recreating the “vibe, the venues and the mood” of 1990s British club culture rather than writing an original score around it. The one piece of original music is the “Human Traffic Theme,” composed by Matthew Herbert and Robert Mello, who wrote the film’s incidental music and were nominated for a BAFTA for their work.
Kerrigan brought in Pete Tong, the influential BBC Radio 1 DJ, as the film’s musical adviser; Tong also appears on-screen (heard on the car radio early in the film) and personally mixed the entire second disc of the soundtrack album. The result is a genuine snapshot of the house, techno, drum and bass, and hip hop that filled British clubs at the time, released as a two-CD set titled Essential Selection Presents Music From the Motion Picture Human Traffic on FFRR/London Records.
Every Song on the Human Traffic Soundtrack
CD 1 mixes dialogue snippets from the film with tracks from artists including Fatboy Slim, Public Enemy, Orbital, and Dillinja:
| Song | Artist |
| “The Weekend Has Landed” | Film dialogue |
| “It Ain’t Gonna Be Me” | C.J. Bolland |
| “Build It Up, Tear It Down” | Fatboy Slim |
| “Moff’s Lyrical Miracle Madness (Human Traffic Theme)” | Film dialogue |
| “Cookies” | Jacknife Lee |
| “Scared” | Lucid |
| “Spliff Politics” | Film dialogue |
| “Bucket Wipe” | Position Normal |
| “Hip Hop (Intro)” | Film dialogue |
| “My Last Request” | Grim |
| “Hip Hop (Outro)” | Film dialogue |
| “You’re Gonna Get Yours” | Public Enemy |
| “Dirt” | Death in Vegas |
| “Jungle (Intro)” | Film dialogue |
| “Never Believe” | Dillinja |
| “The Mood Club” | First Born |
| “What Was I Talking About?” | Film dialogue |
| “Ogive” | William Orbit |
| “All Day” | Interfearence |
| “King Tito’s Gloves” | Deadly Avenger |
| “Comedown Sermon” | Film dialogue |
| “Belfast” | Orbital |
| “Human Traffic Theme” | Matthew Herbert & Robert Mello |
CD 2 is mixed continuously by Pete Tong, moving through house and trance cuts from Armand Van Helden, Underworld, Carl Cox, and Primal Scream:
| Song | Artist |
| “Star Wars Theory” | Film dialogue |
| “Flowerz” | Armand Van Helden feat. Roland Clark |
| “Under the Water” (Brother Brown Club Mix) | Brother Brown feat. Frank’ee |
| “Atlanta” | Pete Heller |
| “Push It” | Quake |
| “5:55” | Durango |
| “My Fellow Boppers” | Thee Maddkatt Courtship |
| “The Age of Love” (Jam & Spoon “Watch Out for Stella” Mix) | Age of Love |
| “Café Del Mar ’98” (Nalin & Kane Mix) | Energy 52 |
| “Diving Faces” | Liquid Child |
| “Out of the Blue” | System F |
| “The Latin Theme” (Dave Angel Mix) | Carl Cox |
| “Kittens” | Underworld |
| “Dark Air” | Quake |
| “The Tingler” | C.J. Bolland |
| “We’re All in This Together (Plus Score Music)” | Film dialogue |
| “Come Together” (Andrew Weatherall Remix) | Primal Scream |
Cast of Human Traffic
- John Simm as Jip
- Lorraine Pilkington as Lulu
- Shaun Parkes as Koop
- Danny Dyer as Moff (his film debut)
- Nicola Reynolds as Nina
- Andrew Lincoln as Felix
The film is also known for its cameos from real figures of the club scene: DJ Pete Tong appears as himself on the radio, techno DJ Carl Cox plays club manager “Pablo Hassan,” comedian Jo Brand narrates a hallucination sequence, and former drug smuggler turned author Howard Marks narrates the “Spliff Politics” segment. Archive footage of comedian Bill Hicks also appears, with characters in the film calling him a “visionary.”
Where to Stream Human Traffic
The soundtrack is available on Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon Music, and SoundCloud. The film can be rented or purchased on Prime Video and Apple TV+.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who composed the Human Traffic soundtrack?
Human Traffic doesn’t use a traditional film score. It’s built from licensed house, techno, drum and bass, and hip hop tracks, with only the “Human Traffic Theme” composed originally, by Matthew Herbert and Robert Mello. BBC Radio 1 DJ Pete Tong served as the film’s musical adviser and mixed the entire second CD of the soundtrack album.
How many songs are on the Human Traffic soundtrack?
The soundtrack is a two-CD set with 23 tracks on CD1 (including film dialogue interludes) and 17 continuously mixed tracks on CD2, for a total running time of over two and a half hours.
Who directed Human Traffic and when was it released?
Human Traffic was written and directed by Justin Kerrigan. It premiered in the UK on June 4, 1999, and in Ireland on June 18, 1999.
Who stars in Human Traffic?
The film stars John Simm, Lorraine Pilkington, Shaun Parkes, Danny Dyer (in his film debut), and Nicola Reynolds, with a cameo from Andrew Lincoln and appearances from real DJs and club-scene figures including Pete Tong and Carl Cox.
Is Human Traffic based on a true story?
It isn’t a true story in the biographical sense, but writer-director Justin Kerrigan drew heavily on his own experiences with Cardiff’s club and drug culture in the 1990s to write the film.
Related reading: Browse more movie soundtracks, or see our guides to Prime Video and Apple TV+ for where to watch titles like this one.