HBO has announced the release of THE GAME OF THRONES MIXTAPE. HBO has teamed up with some of the music industry’s top artists for the second installment of Catch the Throne: The Mixtape, for the Emmy® – and Golden Globe – winning series Game of Thrones. Building on the success of Volume 1 – with over 2.5MM streams to date – that attracted hip-hop and reggaeton fans alike, Volume 2 will feature Method Man, Snoop Dogg and Yandel, and will transcend genres by adding Grammy-nominated metal bands Mastodon, Anthrax and Killswitch Engage to the mixtape lineup. The mixtape will be released in anticipation of the season 5 debut of Game of Thrones airing April 12th on HBO.
Produced by Launch Point Records, the 15-song mixtape features diverse artists representing Game of Thrones families, leveraging themes and highlights from season 4. Showcasing the importance of music in Game of Thrones, each song on the mixtape samples music from the show’s season 4 soundtrack. This year’s mixtape also weaves in the overarching theme of fire and ice, providing listeners with an exciting line-up of heavy metal and hip-hop artists.
As huge fans of the series, artists were eager to participate. “Off the top, I love Game of Thrones – I even gave my expert analysis of this season on my GGN show. It’s like the rap game, it’s gangster, about family, loyalty and trying to get to the top,” stated Snoop Dogg. “I had to get involved. Give the fans a little bit of how I see it.”
Lucinda Martinez, SVP of Multicultural Marketing at HBO stated, “Catch the Throne: The Mixtape garnered much praise and piqued interest of artists wanting to partake in its sequel. We’re excited to seize the opportunity to channel the fandom of these artists into volume 2 and give audiences another opportunity to experience original music inspired by the show. We are particularly excited to integrate heavy metal into the mixtape this time around to continue our celebration of this groundbreaking series.” Scott Ian, founding member of Anthrax, stated “As fans of Game of Thrones, we are extremely excited to collaborate on this project. Recording a song about the Lannister family allows us to connect more with our fans and Game of Thrones fans in a way we would have never imagined.”
Catch the Throne: The Mixtape Vol. 2 will be released next month, free of charge. Listeners are encouraged to share using the hashtag #CatchTheThrone.
As previously announced, Mastodon have announced they will reissue all of their Reprise Records titles on vinyl in the coming months. The first album in the series will be 2006’s Blood Mountain, which is available right now on a mix of solid yellow and transparent green vinyl. Upon its release, Guitar World called Blood Mountain “pulverizing,” with an “utter restlessness that grips you tighter with each cut.” It also placed at No. 9 on Rolling Stone’s Top 50 Albums of 2007. The next installment will be on June 2nd, featuring 2009’s Crack the Skye, pressed on baby blue vinyl. Earning Mastodon unanimous critical praise, the album led to Rolling Stone calling them “the greatest metal band of their generation – no one else comes close,” while Revolver praised Crack the Skye as the work of “a band at the peak of its musical and conceptual powers.” We’ll remind you of the other titles as we approach the countdown.
Not enough Mastodon? As an added bonus, Mastodon will release a Limited Edition 12″ vinyl picture disc in celebration of Record Store Day on April 18th, which features original artwork by Mastodon guitarist, Brent Hinds. The disc is comprised of a new song titled “Atlanta,” featuring guest vocals Gibby Haynes from Butthole Surfers, originally only digitally available as part of the Adult Swim Singles Series. The ‘B-Side” is an unreleased instrumental version of “Atlanta,” and is exclusive to this very limited RSD pressing.
Don’t Miss Mastodon on the road as they co-headline with their friends Clutch during THE MISSING LINK TOUR, which kicks off on April 16th in St. Paul, MN, with support provided by Big Business. Sweden’s Graveyard will then take over the main support slot starting in Los Angeles on April 29th for the remaining dates, closing out the tour in Columbus, OH on May 24th. Tickets are on sale now. Please visit www.mastodonrocks.com for more info.
