The Mandalorian: Chapter 2 (Original Score)

Album review

Having established the general parameters of where he planned to take fans with this new story, composer Ludwig Goransson pushes the sonic boundaries of the Star Wars universe even further with the score for The Mandalorian: Chapter 2. While variations on the Mandalorian theme popped up throughout ("Walking on Mud," "The Next Journey"), Goransson matched the moods of the episode's barren, deep-space planet with both expansive soundscapes and mysterious, tension-building atmospherics. The blood-pumping action set piece of "Jawas Attack" offers a thrilling car chase energy, while the magical "To the Jawas" sparkles and excites, fleshing out the rascally scavengers in a way that the original trilogy never managed. Goransson's "outside-the-box" moments on this episode arrive with the enigmatic "The Egg," and its immediate follow-up "The Mudhorn" is a wildly visceral piece that features stabbing synth noise and building drums that once again echo his work on Black Panther. By focusing on supporting characters like the Jawas and new creatures like the Mudhorn, The Mandalorian continues to flesh out the Star Wars universe one episode at a time, free from the restraints of the films and benefitting from the space and time to fully commit to these fresh stories and sounds.

© Neil Z. Yeung /TiVo