Godzilla: King of the Monsters Original Motion Picture Soundtrack Available May 24

WaterTower Music, in conjunction with Sparks & Shadows, is excited to
announce the May 24 release of the soundtrack to the highly anticipated
next chapter in Warner Bros. Pictures’ and Legendary Pictures’ cinematic
Monsterverse, Godzilla: King of the Monsters. An epic
action adventure that pits Godzilla against some of the most popular
monsters in pop culture history, the film hits theaters worldwide
beginning May 31, 2019.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here:
https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20190426005398/en/

Godzilla: King of the Monsters Original Motion Picture Soundtrack, featuring original score by Bear McCreary, available May 24, 2019. (Graphic: Business Wire)

Godzilla: King of the Monsters Original Motion
Picture Soundtrack features new music composed for the motion
picture by Emmy® and BAFTA Award winner Bear McCreary (10
Cloverfield Lane, TV’s The Walking Dead). The 26-track album
includes the song “Godzilla (Feat. Serj Tankian),” the composer’s
interpretation of Blue Öyster Cult’s classic anthem created in
collaboration with Serj Tankian (System of a Down) and musicians
Brendon Small, Bryan Beller and Gene Hoglan, who form the rhythm section
of Dethklok from TV’s Metalocalypse.

LISTEN:
“Godzilla (Feat. Serj Tankian)” by Bear McCreary

LISTEN:
“Old Rivals” by Bear McCreary

McCreary’s diverse score is as formidable as the characters colliding on
the big screen in the upcoming film. In his first creative meeting with
the composer, Godzilla: King of the Monsters director
Michael Dougherty used the term “Monster Opera” when describing the
magnitude and importance of the score to the storytelling. McCreary rose
to meet the enormous challenge, and delivered on a grand-scale,
beginning with a full symphonic orchestra and choir and infused with
concussive sounds from a variety of artists. Incorporated into the score
are the hypnotic chants of Japanese Buddhist monks; a powerful
percussion ensemble; culturally diverse soloists from around the world;
and the heroic guttural vocalizations of a Tokyo-based taiko ensemble,
who perform traditional kakegoe with their voices instead of playing
their drums. Also woven into the soundscape is an original text composed
by McCreary, which was translated into ancient Babylonian and performed
by the choir throughout the score.

The composer’s meticulous approach is apparent in his creation of
character themes for the iconic monsters colliding on the big screen for
the first time in the modern age in the new film, from all-new themes
for Godzilla’s classic foes Ghidorah and Rodan to new interpretations of
the beloved themes for Mothra and the mighty King of the Monsters,
filtered through his own musical lens: “For Godzilla, I chose to
incorporate and adapt the legendary Akira Ifukube’s iconic theme, and
for Mothra, Yuji Koseki’s immortal 'Mothra’s Song,' both being classic
themes from the franchise’s origins,” McCreary explained. “I hoped to
form a connection between Ifukube’s uniquely brilliant style and the
aesthetics of modern blockbusters.”

McCreary also composed all-new themes for the family at the center of
the epic, world-spanning adventure, as well as the mysterious
crypto-zoological agency Monarch.

Bear McCreary discussed the epic collaboration behind the song “Godzilla
(Feat. Serj Tankian),” noting that the track is “perhaps the
most audacious piece of music I have ever produced, jammed to the
breaking point with orchestra, choir, taiko chanting, taiko drumming,
heavy metal rhythm section, Gene Hoglan’s blistering double-kick drums,
and Serj’s distinct vocals. It is complete musical madness!”

Director Michael Dougherty has long been a fan, adding: “I’ll never
forget the moment I first heard Bear’s music in the epic reboot of Battlestar
Galactica. It was bold, elegant and decisively different than the
typical space opera scores of the day, evoking something ancient and
deeply powerful. The cue was called ‘The Shape of Things to Come,’” he
continued. “And even then, I knew how meaningful the title was because I
was determined to collaborate with him. And while it only took about 15
years, I couldn’t be happier that our first effort together is for Godzilla:
King of the Monsters. Bear has crafted something truly special
that honors the history of the legendary kaiju but also adds new layers
and a rich mythic spirit to Godzilla’s legacy. Long live the King.”

The
Godzilla: King of the Monsters Original Motion Picture
Soundtrack is now available for preorder and will
be available for streaming and for purchase digitally May 24, on CD June
7, and a vinyl configuration will be available soon. The track list is
as follows:

Following the global success of Godzilla and Kong: Skull Island
comes the next chapter in Warner Bros. Pictures’ and Legendary Pictures’
cinematic Monsterverse: Godzilla: King of the Monsters.

The new story follows the heroic efforts of the crypto-zoological agency
Monarch as its members face off against a battery of god-sized monsters,
including the mighty Godzilla, who collides with Mothra, Rodan, and his
ultimate nemesis, the three-headed Ghidorah. When these ancient
super-species—thought to be mere myths—rise again, they all vie for
supremacy, leaving humanity’s very existence hanging in the balance.

Directed by Michael Dougherty, Godzilla: King of the Monsters
stars Kyle Chandler, Vera Farmiga and Millie Bobby Brown, with Ken
Watanabe and Ziyi Zhang. Dougherty directed from a script he wrote with
Zach Shields, story by Max Borenstein and Michael Dougherty & Zach
Shields, based on the characters “Godzilla,” “King Ghidorah,” “Mothra”
and “Rodan” owned and created by Toho Co., Ltd. The film was produced by
Mary Parent, Alex Garcia, Thomas Tull, Jon Jashni and Brian Rogers, with
Zach Shields, Barry Waldman, Hiro Matsuoka, Keiji Ota, Dan Lin, Roy Lee,
Yoshimitsu Banno and Kenji Okuhira serving as executive producers, and
Ali Mendes and Jay Ashenfelter co-producing for Legendary.

A presentation of Warner Bros. Pictures and Legendary Pictures, in
association with Toho Co., Ltd., a film by Michael Dougherty, Godzilla:
King of the Monsters hits theaters beginning May 31, 2019. It
will be distributed in 3D and 2D and IMAX by Warner Bros. Pictures,
except in Japan, where it will be distributed by Toho; and in China,
where it will be distributed by Legendary East.

About Bear McCreary

Emmy® and BAFTA award-winning composer Bear McCreary first launched into
pop culture with his groundbreaking score to the hit series Battlestar
Galactica, lauded by Variety as “the most innovative music on TV.” Io9.com ranked
McCreary one of the Ten Best Science Fiction Composers of All Time.
McCreary has twice been voted ASCAP Composer of the Year – Television by
his peers. Other recent projects include the Universal / Blumhouse smash Happy
Death Day; Sony PlayStation’s award-winning game God
of War; Metro Goldwyn Mayer Pictures’ long-awaited remake of Child’s
Play, starring Mark Hamill and Aubrey Plaza; and the upcoming drama
feature The Professor and the Madman, starring Mel Gibson
and Sean Penn.

McCreary frequently performs in concert throughout North America and
Europe, including the Getty Center, the Hagen Philharmonic and Ballet in
Germany, the Television Academy and the Golden State Pops Orchestra. In
July 2014, Maestro Gustavo Dudamel conducted a suite of McCreary’s music
with the L.A. Philharmonic and L.A. Master Chorale at the Hollywood Bowl.

About WaterTower Music:

WaterTower Music, the in-house music label for Warner Bros., has been
releasing recorded music since 2001 and has released over 200 titles,
including the soundtracks and scores to Aquaman, Crazy Rich Asians,
Wonder Woman, Interstellar, Game of Thrones, Westworld, Riverdale, The
Hobbit Trilogy, The LEGO^® Movie, The
Dark Knight Rises, Hairspray, Sex and the City, Elf and The
Notebook, among others.

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