Roadrunner Records has announced the release of “The Last Ballad of Damrod,” the first original song from the upcoming soundtrack for The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power Season Two. Set to debut on August 8, 2024, the track is composed by Emmy Award winner Bear McCreary and features vocals from Jens Kidman, the frontman of the Swedish extreme-metal band Meshuggah.
The song, inspired by the menacing Hill-troll Damrod, is characterized by Kidman’s intense vocal performance, bringing McCreary’s composition to life with a powerful, terrifying edge. “When I first saw Damrod, I knew Jens Kidman was the perfect choice for this track,” McCreary said. “Jens’s blistering performance has stamped a fierce mark on ‘The Last Ballad of Damrod.’ Collaborating with Roadrunner Records, a label home to bands I admire like Gojira and Slipknot, has been thrilling. Alongside Gene Hoglan’s drumming, this track introduces my exploration of Tolkien’s darker themes and sets the stage for the rest of the epic score.”
The full The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power Season Two soundtrack, composed by McCreary, will be released globally on August 23, coinciding with the series’ return on Prime Video. The soundtrack will be available on all major streaming platforms. In addition, Amazon Music will release weekly soundtrack albums for each episode, available exclusively on their service.
For the second season, McCreary has expanded on the symphonic and folkloric elements of the first season’s score, incorporating new themes and sounds such as Bulgarian women’s choir, Hardanger fiddle, and eerie whispers for the Barrow-wights.
Season Two of The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power will premiere on Prime Video on August 29, 2024, in over 240 countries and territories, and in multiple languages. The series explores the heroic legends of Middle-earth’s Second Age, set thousands of years before J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings. It depicts the rise and fall of great powers, the forging of kingdoms, and the epic battles against the greatest villain from Tolkien’s universe.
The first season of The Rings of Power was a monumental success, amassing over 100 million viewers globally and generating more than 32 billion minutes of streaming. It marked Prime Video’s biggest premiere, attracting over 25 million viewers on its first day and topping Nielsen’s streaming charts. The series’ finale created a significant cultural impact, with related hashtags trending in 27 countries.
The second season is produced by showrunners and executive producers J.D. Payne and Patrick McKay, alongside executive producers Lindsey Weber, Callum Greene, Justin Doble, Jason Cahill, and Gennifer Hutchison. The production team also includes co-executive producer and director Charlotte Brandstrom, producers Kate Hazell and Helen Shang, co-producers Clare Buxton, Andrew Lee, Glenise Mullins, and Matthew Penry-Davey, with additional direction by Sanaa Hamri and Louise Hooper.
