The first season of the hit drama series Shōgun concluded this week (April 23), but how can fans listen to the show’s soundtrack?
Shōgun depicted Japan in the year 1600, and some have labelled the series as the “new Game of Thrones”. In it, Lord Yoshii Toranaga (Hiroyuki Sanada) is fighting for his life as his enemies unite against him, when a mysterious European ship is found marooned in a nearby village, where the character of John Blackthorne (Jarvis) is introduced.
Based on the 1975 novel of the same name by James Clavell, the show was overseen by the husband-and-wife creative team of Rachel Kondo and Justin Marks, the latter of whom was a co-writer of Top Gun: Maverick. The ten-episode series was broadcast on Hulu and FX in the US, while UK viewers were able to watch it via Disney+.
Who made the Shōgun soundtrack?
The soundtrack was composed by the trio of Atticus Ross, his brother Leopold Ross and Nick Chuba.
Atticus is known for his collaborations with Nine Inch Nails’ Trent Reznor, including The Social Network, Gone Girl, Soul and Bones And All. He has also previously worked with Leopold on films including Blackhat and Death Note. Chuba, meanwhile, has worked as an engineer with the Ross brothers before, and has contributed to the scores of Waves and TV series Watchmen.
The trio worked on the music for Shōgun for over two years, with the assistance of Japanese arranger Taro Ishida, incorporating traditional Japanese instruments into the sonic palette.
What is the tracklisting?
The track listing for the full soundtrack album for Shōgun is:
1. ‘Erasmus’
2. ‘Main Title (Shōgun)’
3. ‘Osaka Castle’
4. ‘The Council Will Answer to Me’
5. ‘Tanto’
6. ‘Crimson Sky’
7. ‘Three Hearts’
8. ‘The Pull of Death ‘
9. ‘Willow World’
10. ‘This Is War’
11. ‘A Dream Within a Dream’
12. ‘Land of Tears’
13. ‘Shinobi’
14. ‘Why Tell a Dead Man the Future’
15. ‘The Bureaucrat’
16. ‘Two Hearts’
Where can I listen to the soundtrack?
The Shōgun soundtrack is available to stream on all major platforms, including Spotify and Apple Music.
The full score is also available to listen to on YouTube below:
What other formats is it on?
In addition to streaming, the Shōgun soundtrack is available to purchase on crimson red 140gm vinyl, via Mutant. You can get yours here.
Released on April 25, the release will include exclusive artwork by the illustrator Yuko Shimizu, alongside an eight-page booklet with a forward by Leopold Ross.
Speaking about the record, Mutant co-founder Spencer Hickman said: “The score perfectly blends the epic and powerful with the understated and sombre, featuring an otherworldly quality that creates an underlying sense of tension and unease. The result is a score that is both familiar and strange, neither entirely Japanese nor Western, perfectly capturing the feeling of being in an unfamiliar land.”
