Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 – Soundtrack Review

Lorien Testard and Alice Duport-Percier have delivered a score that is absolutely out of this world for Clair Obscur: Expedition 33; with a wide variety of orchestral and vocal styles, a number of impeccably epic bossfighting cues and a sublimely French-themed album aesthetic, it’s one of the best scores for a videogame that I’ve heard in a long time.

Operatic is the word that I would use to describe Lorien Testard’s score for Clair Obscur: Expedition 33. The compositional style that the composer employs throughout the eight hour album for the titular game here is absolutely awash with these gorgeously serene French-styled vocals (sometimes sung in the language itself, sometimes in an invented language that simply sounds like it), courtesy of talented vocalist Alice Duport-Percier, and that combined with an exquisite use of instrumentation (that leaps, twirls and indeed punches its way through thunderous battle highs and gently atmospheric lows) made this score such a highlight of 2025 that I had to review it, eight hour length and all. That said though, due to its length I’m going to be talking about my personal highlights rather than every track, so if you have any favourites of your own that I don’t discuss, please do mention them in the comments! Without further ado then, let’s get started with the album’s opening track and main theme, “Alicia”; a gentle serenity opens the cue, with light piano notes, strings and melancholic vocals by Duport-Percier echoing quietly before Alicia’s theme debuts at just before the minute mark. It’s a rather solemn and indeed reflective piece overall, and it certainly makes itself known here as the uniquely styled instrumentation and vocals of Expedition 33 hold the theme proudly high.

Another character theme then debuts with “Gustave”, this time a gentler piano and string-focused motif that plays in rather tranquil form through its four minute introduction here. “Lumière” then brings Duport-Percier back into the fold for a lighter, more upbeat new theme to represent the titular island city, where the first part of the game takes place. Its style and progression is also quite similar to that of Gustave’s, linking the two thematically (which given the events of the game, makes perfect sense). A playful rendition of the Lumière theme on accordion then twirls through in “Promenade dans Lumière” followed by a similarly accordion-focused playthrough of Alicia’s theme in the subsequent “Le Grand Café De Lumière”. Another new theme then debuts in “Continuer à t’aimer”, this time a rather gentle piece on strings; this appearance is more musical foreshadowing than anything else however, given the thunderous orchestral and vocal battle that this new motif – for antagonist Renoir and the Dessendre Family – goes on to initiate in this score, but more on that later. A sense of great vocal melancholy – courtesy of Duport-Percier – then arrives with “The Departure” accompanied by wistful piano notes, brass and strings all playing the Lumière theme in a regretful manner.

As Expedition 33 departs Lumière in the story, the first in a series of grouped environment tracks arrives with “Cloud Of Anxiety”, kicking off the Spring Meadows location in the game. Eerily high-pitched, serene strings are the focal point of this rather ambient piece, with said instrumentation then continuing into “Spring Meadows – Cello Motifs” where the theme for Renoir Dessendre is introduced. It’s a forlorn and rather regretful motif overall – fitting really for the character himself – and a curious debut before it more fully enters the musical fray later on in the album. A crack of action thunder then arrives for “Get Up! For Lumière!” as the Lumière theme throbs aggressively on intense brass, chanting vocals, anxious strings and dramatic drums. Another character motif then debuts with “Lune”, this time a gentle piece on some rather tranquil woodwinds and light vocals to represent the titular member of Expedition 33. Intense action orchestra then practically soars for the grandiose “Taking Down The Paintress” for the World Map, with Duport-Percier’s now high-pitched and rather anxious vocals held emphatically high, before “In Lumière’s Name” then reprises the accordion for a decidedly French-styled action setpiece with thudding drums and rapid strings.

As we arrive at Flying Waters, “Submerged Lights” sets a rather ethereal tone with plinking percussion and echoing electronics, with the subsequent “Electric Tides” also following stylistically suit. “Goblu” then delves into atmosphere with gentle vocals setting a floating, peaceful tone alongside light percussion, with the fast-paced “Rain From The Ground” afterward then evoking a disco-styled feel with playful electronic beats, frenetic strings and brass. A deep sense of longing and mournfulness then occupies the beautifully serene “Un 33 Décembre à Paris”, with Duport-Percier’s lovely vocal work once again in centre stage accompanied by wistful piano notes. One big credit I will give this score actually given all the tonal changes of the past few cues, is the fact that there are so many different musical styles and tones at work here, and yet none of them feel out of place or at odds with one another. It all fits so seamlessly together, making for an utterly enthralling musical world for Expedition 33 as a result, and that’s no easy feat. The next section of location music is then for the Ancient Sanctuary, and its introduced by “Path On The Roots” as gorgeously ethereal vocals set a particularly morose mood before things pick up in the more sprightly, percussion-heavy “Bonzaie Clairing”, with “Gestral Summer Party” and “Megabot#33” amplifying this optimism tenfold with a focus on funky, party-styled electronics and percussive beats.

A playful, plinking tone is set for the Gestral Village location in “Gestral Market”, with light percussion also hinting toward the Lumière theme. “Gestral Merchant” then kicks up the pace with a rapid action setpiece as echoing vocals, dramatic beats and an electric guitar thunder along before Alicia’s theme reprises in a slow and quite jazzy manner on upbeat brass in “Alicia (Gestrals)”. The Dessendre Family motif then receives similar treatment in the Gestral Village version of “Continuer à t’aimer” with an accordion in tow, before a wonderful mixing of styles arrives for bossfighting cue “Golgra” where the jazzy brass of earlier jams enthusiastically together with heavy metal-styled electric guitar work and dramatic drums. Duport-Percier then returns for the thematic debut for “Sciel” with morose strings, operatic vocals and gentle piano notes, before “The Whale Next To The Cliff” offers an enjoyably serene piano and ambience-focused introduction for the Stone Wave Cliffs location. Renoir’s theme returns on regretful vocals for “Loin d’Elle”, with an utterly Standout Cue then arriving with “Une vie à t’aimer”; this eleven minute bossfighting setpiece is nothing short of breathtaking, beginning with hints toward Renoir’s theme before absolute vocal and orchestral thunder breaks out with Duport-Percier returning together with additional vocalist Victor Borba, and the Dessendre Family theme then just rocks on said vocals, action-oriented orchestra and an absolutely phenomenal-sounding electric guitar.

With the sheer power of the prior battling track fading away, a new theme is introduced with “Verso”; a quiet and rather forlorn piano-focused piece overall, it feels quite classical. The Forgotten Battlefield game location is then up next, with mournful orchestral atmosphere occupying the first few cues of this group until “Divided Swords” and “Dualliste” kick things back into action gear with the former focused on anxious vocals chanting opposite tense brass and drums, and the latter leaning more into medieval-sounding action with frenetic strings and Duport-Percier’s now rather in-your-face vocals. The beautiful “Lost Voice” then delivers one hell of an emotional gut punch with hints toward another character theme that appears later in the score – Aline Dessendre’s theme – as Duport-Percier’s soaring vocals score yet another impeccably styled goal. Monoco’s Station is then the next set of location setpieces, with the ambient “Maelle’s First Snow” starting things off and “Follow The Steps Of Monoco” reprising the sorrowful vocals of Aline’s theme. Some excellent brass work then follows with “Grandis Refuge”, with a solemnly jazzy tone echoing alongside pensive vocals before the brass then turns upbeat in “Monoco” for an impeccably jazzy and rather fun action cue.

A curiously optimistic rendition of Aline’s theme dances alongside light percussion in “I’d Rather Play Péntanque!”, the first of the playfully tropical-sounding Gestral Beach location cues. “Numbers The Hours” for the Yellow Forest a few tracks later however then switches things up completely in tone, with Duport-Percier’s vocals thundering tensely through for a fast-paced strings-heavy action setpiece. After a few further atmospheric tracks with quiet piano and twinkling percussion abound, we return to the World Map with a pair of phenomenal action cues; “Of Virtuosity And Heart” keeps the pace heroically high as victorious brass, crashes of drums and grandiose vocals utterly soar, and “Gustave’s Legacy” then focuses on Aline’s theme initially before determined vocals and drums deliver a spellbindingly gallant performance that practically makes you want to fist-pump the air in triumph. Alicia’s theme then returns in sublimely French style for the serene “Lumière s’éteint” before we return to further location-based ambience, with solemn piano occupying the ones for Old Lumière alongside reprisals of the Lumière theme. Renoir’s theme then returns in curiously ghostly form alongside twinkles of percussion in “Tout ce que je suis, pour toi” before “Rouge d’Iris” thunders back into intense action territory as imposing brass and Duport-Percier’s soaring vocals join forces once again alongside aggressive electronic surges.

Hints toward the Dessendre Family theme leap and dance in melancholy through battling setpiece “Poéme d’Amour” for Siréne, one of the four Axon bosses. After a series of gentler, atmosphere-focused setpieces for Visages, another of the Axons, “Portait Imparfait” then concludes his section with a thunderous action focus on Duport-Percier’s vocals. A theme for Clea, another member of the Dessendre Family, is then introduced in “Clea” on darker, more ominous-sounding vocals and morose piano notes. Aline’s solemn motif reprises for the gentle “Naissance Des Cendres” for The Reacher – another Axon – before being properly introduced in its own dedicated theme cue “Aline” on wistful vocals and piano. Eight minute bossfighting sequence “Paintress” then fires on all orchestral and Duport-Percier cylinders, roaring intensely for one of the more standout action cues on the album with Aline’s (now revealed as the Paintress) theme aggressively front and centre. Of similar length, the fantastic “We Lost” then returns to both the Dessendre Family theme and vocalist Victor Borba for another unrelenting and indeed bombastic action track. A series of intriguing music box dedications to the score’s major themes – Verso, Alicia, and Lumière to name a standout few – then occupies the next few tracks, with some “Lumière Opera” piano focuses on the Dessendre Family, Lumière and Alicia themes also following.

With the end of the album approaching, “Our Painted Hatred” introduces a new theme – “Our Painted Family” – that thunders aggressively on Duport-Percier’s now wary vocals, imposing percussion and blasts of brass. A dedicated theme cue for “Renoir” then rather mournfully introduces itself on pensive piano notes and regretful vocals, before eleven minute Standout Cue “Une vie à peindre” arrives. This is it, the bossfight track where everything comes together, and it doesn’t disappoint; the Dessendre Family, Aline and Our Painted Family themes return in more thunderously action-focused form than ever before, with Borba and Duport-Percier’s vocals, an electric guitar, utterly unrelenting orchestra and a breathtakingly epic style overall cementing this as the absolute star of the show for Expedition 33, and given all the amazing tracks we’ve heard already, that really is saying something. Renoir and Alicia’s themes then go orchestrally and vocally head-to-head in “Our Drafts Collides” for another spellbinding and enjoyably lengthy battle cue, with “Clair Obscur” then giving the Lumière theme one last gentle look on tranquil strings and vocals. Alicia’s theme is a sorrowful focus of eleven minute “Une vie à rever” with a rather operatic choir in centre stage, with “Aux Lendemains non Écrits” continuing this quietly morose tone before “Maelle” closes the score with one last Duport-Percier-focused look at Alicia’s – now revealed as also Maelle’s – theme.

Overall, Lorien Testard’s score for Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 is absolutely phenomenal. From beginning to end, this sublimely French-themed album dazzles with a seriously impressive spread of orchestral styles, ranging from deeply emotional operatic vocals and serenely melancholic strings to upbeat jazz work, disco-infused electronic action, and heavy metal, electric guitar-styled boss battles. And that’s just the highlights of the musical variation on display here, with the most impressive thing being that it all works; no style feels out of place or at odds with another, and altogether they all work seamlessly to create this fantastic musical world. Contributing significantly to it as well is vocalist Alice Duport-Percier, whose talents absolutely shine here, elevating the score spectacularly as a result; look no further than main theme “Alicia” for an impeccable example of this, and the way Duport-Percier carries it and many other of the score’s themes through solemn lows and epic highs is just spellbinding to listen to. Speaking of themes, front and centre is of course the wonderful Alicia, but also of major note are Aline (“Paintress”), Renoir (“Renoir”), Lumière (“Lumière”) and the Dessendre Family themes (“Continuer à t’aimer”), all of which contribute to the immense thematic tapestry that is Testard’s Expedition 33. Personally, my Standout moments are the bossfighting tracks (“Une vie à t’aimer”, “Une vie à peindre” and “Our Drafts Collides” to name a tremendous trio) that are absolutely out of this world.

All-in, I’m blown away by how stylistically varied Expedition 33 is, and the meticulousness of Testard’s orchestral work (especially considering that this is his first major score) together with Duport-Percier’s genuinely spellbinding vocals. From the gentler ambience-focused tracks all the way up to the thunderous action setpieces, it’s all incredibly well done, and “Une vie à peindre” particularly is one of my favourite tracks of 2025 as a result. The last time a game score moved me this much was Gareth Coker’s Ori And The Blind Forest, and to this day that remains one of my favourite game albums of all time. Sure, Expedition 33 is a long one at eight hours and that might seem a little daunting, but I’d much rather have it all and edit it down to a nice playlist length than be left wanting for missing cues. And speaking of – you can find my curated playlist below!

In short then; Perfect Score award. It’s thoroughly deserved.

Score: 10/10

Standout Cues: Alicia, Une vie à t’aimer, Gustave’s Legacy, Une vie à peindre