If you were to put together a playlist of the perfect music to play during a movie about a fish-man, you might feel tempted to include songs from The Little Mermaid or the score from Jaws. But since Aquaman isn't just about any fish-man, but a DC superhero played by the Herculean Jason Momoa, "Under the Sea" doesn't quite cut it. Instead the Aquaman soundtrack has more of a rock and roll vibe. The hero's new standalone movie hits theaters on Dec. 21, and the soundtrack is available to purchase and stream right now.
The soundtrack combines the score, by composer Rupert Gregson-Williams (who also scored Wonder Woman), with a few pop songs that play during the film. There are 16 total score tracks, including titles like "What Could Be Greater Than A King?" and "He Commands The Sea." He told ComicBook.com of the project, "I used a lot of synths. I kind of went back to my roots. I had to get a whole bunch of cobwebs off of a bunch of instruments, dust them off and get them in the studio, and that actually provided a lot of fun."
Also providing fun is an original track from Mr. Worldwide himself. Pitbull's contribution to Aquaman is called "Ocean to Ocean," and it's undoubtedly a crowd pleaser — not only due to the Miami rapper's characteristically fun lyrics, but also because the new song samples Toto's beloved track "Africa." Vocalist Rhea contributes the iconic chorus to Pitbull's take on the '80s hit.
Another original song from the Aquaman soundtrack is called "Everything I Need," which is sung by Skylar Grey and appears on the soundtrack twice — one full version, one film version. Grey previously contributed the song "I Know You," to the Fifty Shades of Grey soundtrack. This one plays during the credits of Aquaman, and it'll likely be one of the melodies that sticks with you the most.
In addition to all of these, there's one other score track, "Trench Engaged," credited to composer Joseph Bishara, who's mostly know for horror scores.
So you can probably tell that overall the Aquaman soundtrack is an eclectic one. And you might be wondering how it all fits together. But somehow the quirky movie about an impending oceanic war and Arthur Curry's (Momoa) journey to ruling the underwater kingdom of Atlantis just works, even with its mish-mashed elements. While there are plenty of intense battle scenes and moving romantic interludes between Mera (Amber Heard) and Arthur in the movie, there are just as many silly and fun moments — some downright impossible to explain.
Whether or not all of the various working parts of Aquaman fit together pleasingly is up to you. But streaming the soundtrack right now could at least give you some hints about how you're going to feel about it. And even if the aquatic hero isn't your bag, DC has plenty of other films on its slate that are hitting theaters over the next couple of years.
