There’s plenty to look forward to with Amazon Prime’s The Lord of The Rings prequel series, and starting with an early soundtrack release is more than what we could’ve asked for. Bear McCreary’s work on Starz’s Outlander has always been one of our favorite things, and learning that he’d be doing The Rings of Power’s original soundtrack heightened our excitement.
A show of epic proportions like The Rings of Power would need an epic theme to kick gears into motion, and the intensity McCreary captures in “The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power” is indeed otherworldly. We know we’re going to place with possibilities and myths through the track’s roaring sounds and the muted hymns in the background. And that alone deserves a round of applause.
Comprised of 37 tracks that amount to 2 hours and 29 minutes, this is an original score that could brilliantly last through an entire road trip or perhaps a study session. As one of the longest soundtracks released in recent years, it’s an incredible thing Amazon released it early, allowing us to get an idea of what the show would be like before we had seen it.
There’s plenty to unpack with a soundtrack of this length and tracks that are this immersive. Each track is somehow more striking than the other, deliberately loud and quiet where it matters, and utterly indescribable. Thereby, there’s no denying that a fantasy soundtrack of this caliber is a rarity. There are plenty of shows with incredible scores that follow, but we haven’t seen anything like McCreary’s work in The Rings of Power soundtrack yet.
Some of my personal favorites so far (and subject to change) include the theme, “Valinor,” “Elrond Half-elven,” “Bronwyn and Arondir,” “The Boat,” and “White Leaves.” While there are some similarities in various numbers, McCreary does something fascinating by hooking you from the first sound, ensuring that you’ll stay to listen.
Further Recommended Original Scores: The Witcher Season 2 by Joseph Trapanese
Listen to The Rings of Power original soundtrack below and let us know which tracks are your favorites in the comments.