Some people might find the inclusion of a hard-hitting Heavy Metal song into the world of Middle-earth a bit confusing. But Tolkien’s works and fantasy as a genre have long influenced Metal music. And in return Heavy Metal has been the favored genre of many a fantasy fan. And so, it is not at all confusing, but really more of a fitting full-circle moment for composer Bear McCreary to bring Heavy Metal into the soundtrack for The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power season two with the powerful “The Last Ballad of Damrod.” Damrod, of course, is a new enemy in The Rings of Power season two, a troll like we’ve never seen before.
You can listen to the Hill-troll’s anthem below.
From the powerful blowing horns one might associate with orcs right into Heavy Metal screaming, we admit we are pretty obsessed. We’ll definitely be head-banging to this Metal beat all throughout The Rings of Power season two. We can’t make out all the lyrics, but we’ll be sure to report back when we do. But obviously, this jam isn’t really about the words, but about the feeling of intense darkness and chaos it evokes. Just how “The Last Ballad of Damrod” fits into The Rings of Power season two, we’ll have to wait and see. But it sure does seem like a tune that goes very well with a battle scene.
For “The Last Ballad of Damrod,” McCreary assembled an all-star Heavy Metal team including, Heavy Metal vocalist Jens Kidman of MESHUGGAH and drummer Gene Hoglan of Dethklok fame and more. And yep, this certainly sounds like the bad-ass anthem of a Lord of the Rings troll, especially one as mighty as Damrod. As McCreary says, “Kidman screams the way an expert violinist plays.”
For more on the making of this incredible part of The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power season two soundtrack, you can check out the video above. For more on how metal and Middle-earth go together, head to the Twitter thread below.
Now we just really want Adar and Sauron to start a Metal band in Mordor sometime during The Rings of Power season two. Yes?/Yes? The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power premieres on August 29. Meanwhile, The Rings of Power’s season two soundtrack (metal song inclusive) will be released on August 23.
