Tron:Ares (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) is the soundtrack album to the 2025 film of the same name,with twenty-four tracks featuring music by American industrial rock band Nine Inch Nails. The music was written,arranged,produced,mixed,programmed,and performed by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross and is their first film score where they are credited under their band's moniker,instead of their individual names.
After Tron:Legacy (2010) composers Daft Punk disbanded,film producer Sean Bailey arranged for Reznor and Ross to succeed them for the next Tron film,following the duo's work for Disney scoring the Pixar film Soul (2020). Departing from Daft Punk's use of an orchestra for Legacy,Nine Inch Nails did not use any orchestral material,aiming for a sound that was "precise and unpleasant at times",and was composed in such a way that it could be enjoyed as a conventional album by the band. The album features contributions by Boys Noize,Judeline,and Hudson Mohawke.
The album was released on September 19,2025 by Interscope Records,Walt Disney Records,and The Null Corporation,under exclusive license to Interscope. Critics commented on the context of the music in the film proper,the recorded songs,and the parallels to music in Tron (1982) composer Wendy Carlos's discography.
Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross were chosen to score the third entry in the Tron film series following electronic musician Wendy Carlos's score to Tron (1982) and French house duo Daft Punk's score to Tron: Legacy (2010).[2] Daft Punk had disbanded since scoring Legacy, and at the behest of Ares producer Sean Bailey, Reznor and Ross were approached by Tom MacDougall, president of Walt Disney Music, to work on Tron: Ares shortly after completing work on the soundtrack to the Pixar film Soul (2020).[2] The duo had not before taken their band's name for a film score in their repertoire spanning over a dozen films,[3] and Disney's request about them being credited as their band was unexpected to them.[2]
The soundtrack to Tron: Ares is made up of electronic music,[4] just as was the music of Wendy Carlos for the original film and Daft Punk for Legacy.[5] Reznor said that he was pressured not only by the expectation of succeeding Carlos and Daft Punk, but also the implications of taking the band name—he quipped that "I wake up at four in the morning slightly more often than I used to, sometimes, getting this film done".[2] While Daft Punk used an orchestra for their score to Legacy, Reznor and Ross did not utilize "one second" of orchestral music.[2] They described the sound as "precise and unpleasant at times", though not feeling it was "an atonal, punishing" score.[2] With the inclusion of original songs alongside the composed score, Reznor said that a listener could listen to the soundtrack just as they would a conventional Nine Inch Nails album.[2] The record features contributions by Boys Noize, Judeline, and Hudson Mohawke.[6][1]
Release
Nine Inch Nails's soundtrack for Tron: Ares was released by The Null Corporation and Walt Disney Records, under exclusive license to Interscope Records on September 19, 2025, consisting of 24 tracks.[7][8][6]Polydor Records released the album in the United Kingdom on the same date.[9] It was released as Halo 36 in the band's album numbering system, and as Null 22 according to the duo's film score release system.[5] The single "As Alive as You Need Me to Be" was released on July 17, 2025, after the title was teased on T-shirts sold at the band's Peel It Back Tour. It was produced with the band's collaborator Boys Noize.[8] From September 15 for a limited time, the Nine Inch Nails score was played on the Tron Lightcycle Run ride at Walt Disney World, stylized with red colors in promotion for Ares.[10]
The artistry was the subject of critical commentary. Rolling Stone characterized the album as 80s inspired, synth-based, minimalistic, and industrial rock, inspired by the David Bowie album Low (1977). They said the artistry on songs like "Building Better Worlds" and "Empathetic Trust" reflected the "dystopian creepiness" of the film's premise of AI beings being introduced to humanity for the first time.[13]Sputnikmusic also wrote of the album's 80s influence, commenting on the relative inactivity of the band in recent times—given Reznor and Ross's success in film scores—and the application of the brand to this score.[14]AllMusic wrote that the techno-synth sensibilities brought to mind a cybernetically enhanced John Carpenter and followed well from Daft Punk's score, with the themes of desire and tension bringing a humanistic physicality to the album.[12]Consequence framed their appraisal around the legacy of Carlos's and Daft Punk's prior scores, considered key aspects of the franchise;[4]Pitchfork echoed this sentiment on the legacy of the franchise's music applied to this installment.[5]Consequence praised the artistic range of the instrumental score tracks, the emotion, and posited that even if the film faded into general irrelevance like the prior installments, Nine Inch Nails had made a score that would endure just as the priors did.[4]Stereogum wrote that while they refused to watch the film—objecting to star Jared Leto—they trusted the score worked well. They wrote that the score being credited to the band for the first time was reasonable as the score sounded much closer to Nine Inch Nails than Reznor and Ross's repertoire of scores. They said Ares had the same 80s club music aesthetic as the band and Boys Noize's tour of the time, Peel It Back.[6]
The song "Who Wants to Live Forever?", featuring Spanish singer Judeline(pictured), received praise for its mellowness.
Critics commented on the recorded songs for the album. Rolling Stone said "As Alive as You Need Me to Be" was "black gold" akin to old-school works by the band, and wrote highly of the lyrics and artistry;[13] AllMusic lauded the lead single as the clear standout and a "jolt" of an addition to other singles in the band's catalogue;[12]Sputnikmusic characterized it as "infectious, dancefloor-ready", and straightforward, a representative summary of the overall goal for the soundtrack;[14] and Stereogum wrote that the lead single "genuinely kicks ass";[6] while Pitchfork characterized the vocoder refrain of the repeated "yeahs" as "truly ridiculous".[5]Rolling Stone felt "Who Wants to Live Forever?" was "dejectedly gorgeous" and that Spanish singer Judeline's assist to Reznor's "forlorn moan-croon" was, for Judeline's part, lovely and understated;[13] AllMusic wrote Reznor's vulnerability "soars" on "Who Wants to Live Forever?", alongside the harmony with Judeline;[12]Pitchfork called it "the best" of the four vocal tracks and "among the most affecting and approachable Reznor has ever written", praising the "tender, quivering duet" Reznor had with Judeline;[5] and Sputnikmusic considered that song a highlight, praising Reznor's tenderness and Judeline's soothing delivery, feeling it was overall lovely and touching.[14]Rolling Stone felt "I Know You Can Feel It" was 90s-inspired grunge and trip-hop;[13]Sputnikmusic agreed with the trip-hop appraisal, feeling it created a thrilling feeling;[14] and Consequence speculated on the meaning of the lyrics "The moment it begins" from "I Know You Can Feel It", not knowing what scene it accompanied in the narrative due to the album releasing and being reviewed three weeks before the release of the film—they wrote this was not a standout track.[4]
Critics commented on the instrumental pieces of the score. Rolling Stone wrote that the score was akin to the "beatless abstract bleakness" of the band's albums Ghosts V: Together and Ghosts VI: Locusts (both 2020), with Tron: Ares's droning synths, whirrs, and buzzes akin to the futurism of the score of the 1982 film. They said "Echoes" and "Infiltrator" were some of the best material on the album, and that they were nice twists on the "human hunger and android angst" long present in Reznor's work.[13] AllMusic characterized these instrumentals as categorical in either resembling Ghosts or another Reznor-Ross score—or analogous to The Slip (2008) or Hesitation Marks (2013). They pointed out the uses of the motif established in "As Alive as You Need Me to Be" in the dance club vibe of "Infiltrator" and the darkness of "Target Identified",[12]Sputnikmusic wrote that the these tracks presented distinct themes or set "atmospheric soundscapes" for the film.[14]Stereogum wrote of tracks on the album that brought to mind Carlos's score for the opening scene of A Clockwork Orange (1971), and wrote that they found the "interstitial mood-music" on the record cool.[6]Pitchfork cited "100% Expendable" as sounding similar to A Clockwork Orange,[5] and Consequence likewise wrote that the style of "Building Better Worlds" sounded like the score for the opening scene to that film.[4]
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Godfrey, Alex (August 2025). "They Revolutionised the Film-Score Landscape. Now, as Nine Inch Nails Take On Tron: Ares, Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross Tell us How They're Shaping The Future". Empire. No.443. Bauer Media Group. pp.54–59.
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