We're fittingly in the dead of winter in New Zealand as hit fantasy TV show Game of Thrones returns to screens, unlike those in the northern hemisphere who are basking in Meereen-like sun.
Spotify employed the help of the show's music supervisor, Evyen J Klean, to create playlists for 32 of the show's most notable characters, and the streaming service has now announced which ones are most popular with Kiwis.
Surprisingly, it wasn't titans of the show Jon Snow, Daenerys Targaryen or Tyrion Lannister who came out on top; rather the hapless Samwell Tarly, perhaps as a credit to the old Kiwi love of the underdog.
The unlikely Night's Watch veteran has a playlist filled with indie darlings including Bon Iver, Band of Horses and Iron & Wine, which seems an appropriate soundtrack for him to study to in the Citadel library.
The most popular Game of Thrones character playlists on Spotify in New Zealand are as follows:
- Samwell
- Jon Snow
- Sansa Stark
- Theon Greyjoy
- Brienne of Tarth
- Bran Stark
- Melisandre
- Daenerys Targaryen
- Lord Varys
- Robb Stark
The Night King, leader of the White Walkers, is featured heavily in promotional art for the seventh season and is the only character to be credited as the author of his own playlist - entitled 'Winter is Here'.
It's almost exclusively metal, with each track's title thematically related to the character such as Metallica's 'Master of Puppets', Anthrax's 'Now it's Dark', Pantera's 'Cowboys from Hell' and Testament's 'The Pale King'.
Fierce wildling Tormund Giantsbane has a playlist that rivals the metal of the Night King's, featuring the likes of Slayer, DragonForce, Mastodon and Iron Maiden.
However, the darkest, heaviest playlists are those of Ramsay Snow - which includes tracks by the likes of Necrophiliac, Megaslaughter and Turchure - and Khal Drogo, which features Death, Morbid Angel and Deicide.
Elsewhere, Lord Varys has multiple Aphex Twin and Flying Lotus numbers, Brienne of Tarth favours the Cranberries and Alanis Morissette, Jorah Mormont is a Johnny Cash man and Melisandre the Red Woman digs Nine Inch Nails and Marilyn Manson.
Game of Thrones season seven premieres around the world, including in New Zealand, on Monday (NZ time).
Newshub.
