Expedition 33 Soundtrack – A French Fantasy in 154 Movements
“The score, by Lorien Testard, is otherwise excellent, with a surprising diversity and breadth of music, including character leitmotifs and unique songs for certain monsters or battles.”
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A Soundtrack That Caught the World Off Guard
When Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 was first revealed, it instantly turned heads with its painterly visuals and poetic premise. But no one could’ve predicted that the soundtrack - composed by a previously unknown artist - would become one of 2025’s most celebrated musical moments. Now topping charts, flooding fan playlists, and racking up millions of streams, the Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 soundtrack isn’t just good - it’s historic.
Crafted by Lorien Testard , a French composer discovered through SoundCloud, the Expedition 33 OST spans over 8 hours of original music , spread across 154 tracks . It’s cinematic, haunting, sometimes playful, and often devastating. With influences ranging from Joe Hisaishi to French neoromanticism, the soundtrack taps into an emotional language rarely felt in video games today. And fans have noticed.
Within weeks of launch, the Clair Obscur OST claimed the #1 spot on Billboard’s Classical and Crossover charts, alongside a #13 placement in Soundtrack Albums - a feat usually reserved for mega-franchises. And with streaming numbers soaring across Spotify and YouTube, demand is already growing for a Clair Obscur vinyl release.
But what makes this music resonate so deeply? Why are players comparing it to the best JRPG soundtracks of the decade? And how did a new IP - with a first-time composer - create something that feels so timeless?
This article explores the heart of the Expedition 33 music journey - from composition and fan reception to soundtrack structure, standout themes, and future vinyl possibilities. Whether you’re a vinyl collector, game music nerd, or just someone who felt something in the strings of “Une vie à rêver,” welcome. You’re in the right place.
The Composer Behind the Magic – Lorien Testard’s Unlikely Rise
Behind the 154-track opus of the Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 soundtrack is a name few expected to see at the top of 2025’s game music conversation: Lorien Testard . Until recently, he was a relative unknown - posting compositions on SoundCloud, working outside the video game industry. Today, he's the composer behind one of the most streamed, most talked-about game scores of the year.
Testard was discovered by the development team at Sandfall Interactive early in the project’s life. What drew them in? Emotion. His demos showed a flair for orchestration, melody, and cinematic scope that felt tailor-made for Expedition 33’s dreamlike world. He wasn’t just creating music - he was painting with it.
That visual metaphor is more than poetic. One of the recurring themes Testard references in interviews is the idea of music that paints : melodies and textures designed to evoke emotion with the same nuance a brush might deliver on canvas. This mindset is baked into every piece of the Expedition 33 OST, which flows between sweeping orchestral suites, intimate piano pieces, and choral tracks that sound as if they belong in an opera house rather than a boss fight.
His inspirations are as varied as they are emotional. Many fans and critics have drawn comparisons to Joe Hisaishi’s work on Studio Ghibli films, particularly in Testard’s ability to balance childlike wonder with melancholy. Others point to his use of French neoromantic phrasing , especially in pieces like “Une vie à peindre” and “Alicia.” These aren’t just musical cues - they’re emotional markers that echo through gameplay.
And he’s not working alone. Much of the heart in the Clair Obscur soundtrack comes from vocalist Alice Duport-Percier , whose performances infuse multiple tracks with a deep, raw humanity. Their collaboration gives the OST a signature voice - one that’s been praised for its sincerity and lack of overproduction. In an industry often dominated by big names and returning franchises, Lorien Testard’s and Alice Duport-Percier story is proof that the next great game composer can come from anywhere. You just have to listen.
A Symphony in 154 Pieces - How the Soundtrack is Structured
At over eight hours in total length, the Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 soundtrack isn’t just large - it’s epic. Comprising 154 tracks , this OST doesn’t just accompany gameplay; it mirrors the emotional arc of the narrative, weaving its own story in parallel to the one you play.
From the very first piano notes to the last echoes of orchestral grandeur, every section of the Expedition 33 OST has a purpose. The structure isn’t haphazard - there’s a deliberate sense of flow. You’ll move through themes of innocence, grief, resolve, and wonder , often hearing motifs return in different emotional forms as the story progresses. Like the great JRPG soundtracks of the past, this one understands the value of leitmotif - of reintroducing musical phrases to deepen meaning and memory.
A great example of this is the series of “Une vie à…” compositions:
“Une vie à peindre” introduces the main emotional palette of the game—delicate strings, piano arpeggios, and subtle swelling crescendos.
“Une vie à rêver” (A life to dream) feels like a cousin to Final Fantasy X’s “To Zanarkand”—gentle but loaded with weight.
“Une vie à t’aimer” (A life to love you) brings it all together with vocal layers and orchestration that border on operatic.
Each track not only supports the game’s pacing but feels fully developed on its own. That’s rare. Many game scores rely on looping, ambient fragments. Not here. These are fully composed, narrative-driven pieces that could stand on any film score playlist.
And then there are the battle themes - some of the most dynamic moments on the soundtrack. Tracks like “Spring Meadows - Battling Breeze” and “Stone Wave Cliffs – Warding Blades” pulse with intensity, mixing driving percussion with unexpected melodic turns. Even here, Testard avoids clichés. Instead of hitting you with the same action motif on repeat, he shapes the flow of combat -starting sparse, rising in dissonance, then falling into momentary silence.
You’ll also find plenty of ambient interludes and character vignettes , where specific instruments and rhythms represent personalities—accordion-led themes for mimes, woodwinds for wanderers, and harp for dreamlike transitions. Every area, every moment, feels like it’s been scored with care.
And that’s what makes this Clair Obscur soundtrack so unusual. It’s not just big for the sake of being big. It’s detailed. Intimate. Personal. Like a musical diary from a world on the edge of oblivion.
It’s no surprise that some players are already calling it one of the best JRPG soundtracks of the decade.
Sound in Service of Story - The OST’s Role in Gameplay
One of the most powerful aspects of the Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 soundtrack is how deeply it intertwines with the game’s narrative structure. This isn’t just background noise—it’s emotional glue. Every character moment, every shift in atmosphere, every twist in the story is echoed, amplified, or softened by Lorien Testard’s score.
From the outset, the Expedition 33 OST builds world and character not with bombast, but with intimacy. The game’s protagonist, Lumière , has a signature vocal motif - “Dim dim dam dada” - that appears like a whisper in different forms across the soundtrack. Sometimes it’s buried under strings; other times it’s gently hummed by vocalist Alice Duport-Percier . It’s a musical tether to the character’s identity, reemerging at pivotal emotional beats to remind the player who they’re fighting for.
This use of leitmotif is a hallmark of the best JRPG soundtracks. Like Chrono Trigger or NieR: Automata, Clair Obscur understands that music can quietly reinforce meaning through repetition. You don’t always notice it - but you feel it.
The environmental music also plays a crucial role in shaping the world’s tone. Forests breathe with soft harp glissandos. Urban ruins hum with low strings and distant echoes. There’s a sense of place embedded in every track - players on Reddit and GameFAQs often mention how they lingered in areas just to let a piece finish. This is music that slows you down, intentionally.
One especially emotional moment is underscored by the track “Alicia” , a mournful, vocal-led composition that plays during a major reveal. The vocal performance here is raw, unpolished in the best way - like a lullaby sung through tears. Fans have described it as “devastating,” “unexpected,” and “better than most film scores in the last five years.”
All of this contributes to a larger truth: in Clair Obscur, the music isn’t just reactive - it’s expressive. It tells you what characters can’t say, what dialogue won’t explain. It paints between the lines. In a year packed with beautiful RPGs, few use their soundtrack as holistically - or as poetically - as this
Critical & Fan Reception – From Reddit to Billboard
Within days of release, the OST found itself at the top of Billboard’s Classical Albums and Crossover Albums charts, outpacing scores from long-established franchises. It even cracked the Soundtrack Albums Top 20 , an almost unheard-of feat for a new intellectual property. And it didn’t stop there. Composer Lorien Testard and vocalist Alice Duport-Percier quickly racked up over a million monthly listeners on Spotify , with select tracks hitting streaming milestones normally reserved for AAA titles and Netflix soundtracks.
But accolades aside, what truly defines this release is the emotional connection players and listeners are building with the music. Reddit threads in r/gamemusic and r/JRPG are full of passionate praise, with users calling it:
“The most beautiful and unexpected soundtrack of the year.”, “A spiritual successor to Ghibli scores, with the emotional weight of NieR.”, “So good it distracted me from playing. I just stood still and listened.”
On YouTube, producers and composers reacted to the tracks in real time, praising the orchestration, production quality, and the raw emotionality of songs like “Alicia” and “Une vie à rêver.” In a widely shared clip, one vocal coach referred to Duport-Percier’s performance as “achingly human” and “utterly unpolished in the best possible way.”
Professional reviews mirrored the enthusiasm. RPGFan called it “a standout achievement in emotional scoring,” while PushSquare highlighted how the soundtrack elevated Expedition 33 from indie curiosity to instant cult classic.
But not all feedback was glowing - and that’s important to acknowledge.
Some players on GameFAQs and ResetEra felt the OST leaned too heavily into atmosphere. A few described sections of the score as “beautiful but forgettable,” likening it more to ambient film music than something with clear, memorable hooks. Others noted that, with 154 tracks, the soundtrack occasionally blurs into itself—lacking the punchy themes found in more traditional action RPGs.
Even among its biggest fans, there’s agreement that this is not a soundtrack filled with bangers. Instead, it’s a slow burn , demanding your attention and patience. You won’t walk away humming melodies after one listen—but give it time, and it reveals its emotional depth piece by piece.
And perhaps that’s exactly what Clair Obscur is about: music that doesn’t shout at you, but whispers. And in 2025’s loudest year of releases, that might just be its greatest strength.
Vinyl Release, Streaming, and What’s Next
If there’s one question nearly every fan of the Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 soundtrack is asking right now, it’s this: “When can I get it on vinyl?”. Fortunately, we have an answer - and it’s a good one.
Shortly after the game’s release, composer Lorien Testard took to social media to confirm what many collectors had been hoping: an official Expedition 33 vinyl release is in the works . Not long after, Laced Records , the boutique label known for pressing premium vinyl editions of soundtracks like DOOM, Persona, and Final Fantasy Tactics, also confirmed their involvement.
While details on formats, tracklists, and release dates are still under wraps, both Testard and Laced Records have made it clear: this Clair Obscur vinyl project is real - and it’s coming.
In the meantime, fans can enjoy the Clair Obscur OST across all major streaming platforms:
📱 Spotify
Each platform supports high-quality streaming of the full tracklist, including standout pieces like “Alicia,” “Une vie à peindre,” and “Combat d’émeraude.”
But for many fans - and for vinyl lovers - streaming is just the beginning. The tactile, analog warmth of a beautifully pressed LP is the ultimate way to experience a soundtrack this emotional. And soon, thanks to Laced Records and Lorien Testard, we’ll be able to drop the needle on one of 2025’s most moving musical journeys.
Why everyone love Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 soundtrack?
The Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 soundtrack is an 8-hour, 154-track original score composed by Lorien Testard , blending orchestral, ambient, and vocal elements. It’s a rich, emotional score that supports the game’s painterly world and narrative themes.
Who composed the Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 music?
The Expedition 33 OST was composed by Lorien Testard , a self-taught musician discovered through SoundCloud. His collaboration with vocalist Alice Duport-Percier brings raw emotion to the soundtrack
Why is the Clair Obscur soundtrack so popular?
The soundtrack’s popularity stems from its emotional storytelling, orchestral beauty, and cinematic scope. It topped Billboard’s Classical and Crossover charts , with fans and critics calling it one of the best JRPG soundtracks of 2025 .
Where can I listen to the Expedition 33 OST?
The full Expedition 33 soundtrack is available on all major streaming platforms, including Spotify , Apple Music , and YouTube Music , featuring standout tracks like “Alicia” and “Une vie à rêver.”
Is there a Clair Obscur vinyl soundtrack?
Yes! Composer Lorien Testard and Laced Records have confirmed that a Clair Obscur vinyl soundtrack is officially in production. While no release date has been announced, news is expected soon, and collectors are advised to follow Laced for updates.