We're only a few artist announcements deep and already a vision for "The Hunger Games" soundtrack is becoming clear: Go big or stay far, far away from the arena.
Starting out with one of today's most popular young songstresses, Taylor Swift, was a surefire way to begin the story of this soundtrack series with a bang. Her "Safe and Sound" (with The Civil Wars) quickly climbed iTunes charts and sparked rampant speculation about its likely placement in the film.
"All I can imagine is the scene with Prim and Katniss, who is consoling her sister," tweets @PO_Desdemona. "The song is good."
"I do see [Katniss] with Rue, but it's just the overall down and blue feeling," writes one of our commenters about the song. "There is a big sense of protecting ones close to you and this song's lyrics and music captures both the down trodden vibe and love vibe the characters, especially Katniss, feel."
"It describes Peeta and Katniss perfectly," tweets @karaannz.
"Taylor Swift's song describes all three books in one song," @evindaygriffin pipes in. "It just makes me excited to see the movie."
We already knew that Jennifer Lawrence would be featured singing "Rue's Lullaby," but since Swift's big announcement, Win Butler, The Decemberists and Regine Chassagne of The Arcade Fire have been declared additional contributors to the soundtrack album. Where Swift reaches pop and country audiences, these two groups tap into the folk and indie rock regime, keeping the artist pool diverse and hip at the outset.
In other words, if Lionsgate is aiming to take a page out of the "Twilight" soundtrack series' successful playbook, they're off to a solid start. All four "Twilight" albums have featured a mix of popular and up-and-coming artists doing songs composed exclusively for the series and all have gone on to be acclaimed bestsellers.
If the trend continues, we can expect the "Hunger Games" soundtrack team to roll out with some more recognizable names and a few we haven't heard much from yet, some or all of whom will have put forth something exclusive for the album.
As for who that might include, here are a few we have on our wish list. Vote and give us your thoughts in the comments.
Amanda Bell is a young adult book-to-film enthusiast and has made a name for herself as a fan-friendly, informative and dependable source. In addition to being the District 14 columnist for NextMovie, she runs the popular Twilight Examiner column. Keep tabs on her on Twitter.
