The Sound of Metal opens with the bittersweet soundtrack to Ruben’s (Riz Ahmed) life. Music is his passion and livelihood as the drummer in a punk-metal band. It also marks out his morning rituals, it brightens his many road trips, and it’s a means of connecting with his girlfriend and bandmate Lou (Olivia Cooke).

Sound is the way Ruben expresses himself – on every level. So, when Ruben begins to lose his hearing, his whole life is smothered.