'The Mandalorian' Season 2 Vol. 1 Soundtrack Available Now, Vol. 2 Arrives Next Month

Today, Walt Disney Records announced that a digital version of The Mandalorian Season 2 Vol. 1 soundtrack is available for purchase, featuring composer Ludwig Göransson's music from episodes 9 through 12 of the acclaimed Star Wars Disney+ series. The second volume of the soundtrack, which will feature music from episodes 13 through 16, is set to be released in December. Take a listen to some of the newly-released tracks below.

During the first season of The Mandalorian, Göransson released eight full-length albums, devoting one album to each individual episode, which included recurring themes throughout the season. But for season 2, he and Walt Disney Records are mixing things up a little bit. This season, they're going to release the soundtrack in two volumes "containing new musical themes, sounds and ideas," and the first volume is available to purchase right now. Visit this link to find it at your listening place of choice (Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube, etc).

The music in this series is one of its standout elements, with Göransson taking some interesting swings and introducing some brand new flavors to the aural soundscape of the Star Wars franchise. The influence of classic Hollywood Westerns on Mando's main theme cannot be overstated, but it's far from just a Western square stuffed into a round Star Wars peg. Instead, the composer has been able to elevate the narrative material by providing sweeping orchestral backdrops and electronic sounds that push the limits of what fans expect from a Star Wars property. Listen to the track "Ship o haj, Mandalorians!" at the link above to hear what I mean – you would never hear anything like that in a George Lucas or J.J. Abrams Star Wars project.

Göransson won an Emmy earlier this year for the work he did on The Mandalorian season 1 – specifically for the season 1 finale, "Chapter 8: Redemption." He also won an Oscar for composing the score for Ryan Coogler's Black Panther, a Grammy for co-writing and producing Childish Gambino's "This is America," and he composed the score for Dan Harmon's meta-sitcom Community, Christopher Nolan's Tenet, and many other film and TV projects. You can read our interviews with him here and here.

The Mandalorian season 2 "finds the Mandalorian and the Child continuing their journey, facing enemies and rallying allies, as they make their way through a dangerous galaxy in the tumultuous era after the collapse of the Galactic Empire."The Mandalorian Season 2 Vol. 2 will be available for purchase on December 18, 2020.