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Synopsis: Based on the Geoff Johns/Gary Frank 2008 release “Superman: Brainiac,” Superman: Unbound finds the Man of Steel aptly handling day-to-day crime while helping acclimate Supergirl to Earth’s customs and managing Lois Lane’s expectations for their relationship. Personal issues take a back seat when the horrific force responsible for the destruction of Krypton – Brainiac – begins his descent upon Earth. Brainiac has crossed the universe, collecting cities from interesting planets – including Supergirl’s home city of Kandor – and now the all-knowing, ever-improving android has his sights fixed on Metropolis. Superman must summon all of his physical and intellectual resources to protect his city, the love of his life and his newly-arrived cousin.

Soundtrack to the film Superman: Unbound. Music Produced, Engineered, Orchestrated and Performed By Kevin Kliesch.

Superman: Unbound – Original Motion Picture Soundtrack
Music By Kevin Kliesch
1. Main Title (2:07)
2. Terrorist Attack (5:03)
3. Probe Approaches Earth (0:28)
4. Intercepting the Probe/Probe Fight (2:25)
5. Dissecting the Probe/Kandor Attack (4:45)
6. Planetary Takeover (4:17)
7. Brainiac’s Ship (5:48)
8. Superman Breaks Out (6:13)
9. Brainiac Attacks Metropolis (7:18)
10. Superman Held Captive (2:54)
11. Brainiac’s Meltdown (5:06)
12. Rebuilding the City/End Titles (6:48)

Superman: Unbound Soundtrack Review
By James Harvey

During the movie, you hear it, but it’s complexities and superheroic tunings don’t really overtake the visuals on screen. Like any good soundtrack, they compliment the action without becoming obnoxious. It’s not until you actually get to listen to the soundtrack do you realize just how massive this it really is, and how much it strives to be something more. And it goes without saying, Superman: Unbound – Original Motion Picture Soundtrack, with music by Kevin Kliesch, is indeed a very ambitious release.

The soundtrack pops around, bringing in a host of different influences and resulting in a pretty varied score. Some tracks will easily become favorites, especially the more Brainiac and action-oriented tracks that really bring the intensity. It’s interesting how the soundtrack will bounce around from fairly generic but enjoyable action-oriented track to normal, ‘slice of life’ type tracks, and then over to these real dirty, grungy tracks. Some of the tracks focused on the villains sounded so grating and obviously influenced by industrial music. There is a coherent plan when you listen to the tracks. It’s not abrupt and the change in tone never feels jarring or off-putting. Then again, having watched the movie before listening to the soundtrack, that likely had an impact on how I interpreted the soundtrack.

And, it goes without saying, Kevin Kleisch’s score to Superman Unbound is ambitious and large, creating an epic scope out of quite the large tale. What makes this soundtrack sound bigger than it actually is at times is just how varied Kleisch goes in terms of musical styles, which really pays off. It results in a great soundtrack with plenty of replayability, and even some tracks that you’ll play again almost instantly. It gives it that extra girth, that extra scope that elevates it from some of the previous DC Universe Animated Original Movie score releases.

There is one drawback to this entire score, and it’s something completely out of Kleisch’s hands. There’s a lot of ambition here, and it doesn’t seem like the budget is high enough to accommodate it. There are some tracks where you can hear the budget restrict what Kleisch is trying to accomplish – it’s actually really noticeable that he had to sub out certain instruments for a more synthetic take on what he wants. And it’s not bad, don’t get me wrong, but it is a bit of a disappointment because, in those moments, that epic mark slightly falls short.

The disc itself arrives in a standard jewel case and is reminiscent of Amazon’s print-on-demand releases as the label has the same overly glossy look and the underside of the disc shows prominent burn marks. Still, I can't help but notice this disc label actually looks nicer than the non-existent labels that Warner Home Video releases for the vast majority of their titles. The booklet is a two-page affair with pictures from the film as well as credits for the disc and some word of praise from those involved with the Superman: Unbound for Kliesch's work. Aside from that the disc is pretty much what you get from the average release.