Recommendation of Scary Music: That Song That’s Actually Frightening
One facet of music as an art form is that it can evoke fear—just hearing it can send chills down your spine.
In this article, we’re spotlighting a range of pieces under the theme of scary music.
From classic horror movie theme songs to classical music at the core, plus rock and popular music, we’ve curated a wide selection! Some tracks might not seem particularly scary when you’re just listening, but once you learn the backstory, they suddenly become terrifying… You might make discoveries like that.
Be sure to check it out!
- A seemingly scary nursery rhyme: a children’s song that gives you the chills when you hear it
- Chills down your spine. A collection of Vocaloid songs that are scary but irresistibly listenable.
- Anime songs to listen to on Halloween: Theme and insert songs from anime about yokai and ghosts
- [If You Can Sing These, You're Amazing!] Cool Karaoke Songs for Women
- A collection of cool songs that sound great when sung by women, originally male songs
- [Played in the Parks] A Special Feature on Iconic and Popular Songs from Disney Halloween
- [Fun] A Collection of Children’s Songs Featuring “Ghosts”
- Hits you hard! A collection of dark and cool Vocaloid songs
- Vocaloid Halloween Song Special [Trick or Treat]
- Yami songs recommended for women
- [Yandere] A Special Feature on Chilling Vocaloid Love Songs
Recommendation of terrifying music: Actually scary songs (11–20)
To Bring You My LovePJ Harvey
PJ Harvey—affectionately known as “Polly”—is a singer-songwriter whom Britain can proudly present to the world: a truly alternative artist.
Since her explosive debut as a trio in the early 1990s, she has never stayed within a single genre, and stands as a singular, almost miraculous figure who has also achieved commercial success.
In her early period in particular, she released many songs that bared the raw passions of womanhood and sent shivers down the spines of male listeners.
This time, I’d like to introduce the opening track from her third album, To Bring You My Love, released in 1995, which marked a new step forward for her as a solo artist.
It’s a track stripped of any beat-keeping instruments, built only on a repeating, noisy guitar backing, vibraphone, and organ, carrying a whiff of the blues.
Harvey’s voice rises as if from the depths of the earth—utterly overwhelming.
Be sure to pay attention to the lyrics as well, in which she wields a distinctive authorship that’s different from mere emotional outpouring.
AEnimaTool
Tool’s masterpiece “Ænima.” The soundscape unfolds like wandering into a complex labyrinth: the vocals start restrained and gradually intensify, and as the song alternates between ferocity and calm, it keeps sinking deeper into an abyss.
Eerily repeating phrases, suddenly blooming beautiful melodies, hypnotic refrains, murmurs and shouts—the whole world is dark art and an intricate puzzle.
Listen to it several times and let yourself get trapped in its depths, unable to return.
Gloomy SundayBillie Holiday
In Europe and America, “Gloomy Sunday” is famous as the anthem of suicide.
There’s an urban legend that, when people listened to it back in the day, suicides occurred around the world, which helped make the song notorious.
Since its release in 1935, it has been covered by numerous artists up to the present and sung in various languages, including Hungarian and French.
In Japan, the notable covers tend to come from singers influenced by chanson; it’s fun to compare the different versions, from Fubuki Koshiji to Mari Natsuki!
Main TitleJerry Goldsmith
This is a masterpiece composed by the great Jerry Goldsmith, who created many legendary soundtracks in film history! It’s the main theme from the classic 1979 film Alien, and precisely because it lacks dramatic twists or a catchy, hummable melody, it leaves the listener with a profound weight and an indescribable sense of unease and fear.
Considering that in the sequel, Aliens, the director changed from Ridley Scott to James Cameron and the overall style shifted dramatically, it seems only natural that the music would also pass from Goldsmith to James Horner.
The terror unfolding within the confined space of a spaceship is most striking in the first film, and I feel Goldsmith’s score brilliantly captures a creeping sense of dread.
It might be interesting to trace how the music evolves across the series!
We Suck Young Blood. Your Time Is Up.Radiohead
We Suck Young Blood.
Your Time Is Up.
, included on Radiohead’s sixth album Hail to the Thief, is a work that highlights a dark pop tone as the band attempted to step away from a traditional rock sound.
At the time, it drew global attention as a song written by vocalist Thom Yorke, themed around a phrase in the title that criticized and opposed the policies of a certain country’s president.
Once you read the lyrics, I think the way you hear the song will change—so take your time to read them and give it a listen!
I Don’t Like MondaysThe Boomtown Rats
With its sparkling piano phrases, cheerful handclaps, and catchy, melodic sound, this song is unlikely to inspire fear in anyone who hears it.
Led by Irish musician Bob Geldof—also known for charity efforts like Live Aid—the Boomtown Rats released this hit in 1979, and it reached number one in the UK.
In Japan, it’s also known by the title “Aishū no Monday” (“Melancholy Monday”).
Behind the song, however, lies a tragic school shooting carried out by a young girl in the United States, and the lyrics reflect that background.
As you listen and consider why she committed such an act—especially the meaning behind her reported motive, “I don’t like Mondays”—you may perceive a stark contrast between the song’s breezy atmosphere and its unsettling underlying theme.
Recommendation of Terrifying Music: Those Actually Scary Songs (21–30)
Halloween ThemeJohn Carpenter
The theme song of the Halloween series—an important work in the history of horror films—is the main theme that appears throughout the series in various arranged forms.
The 1978 film Halloween, a low-budget yet massive hit that is highly regarded for its artistry despite being a splatter film, was directed by John Carpenter, who also composed the music himself.
The theme has been loved as an iconic piece that symbolizes the work and continues to evoke fear—truly an eternal classic.
Its 5/4 rhythm that builds a nameless sense of anxiety, the minimalist piano motif, and the ominous timbre of analog synths—despite the simple construction, it vividly showcases Carpenter’s talent as a composer.
The very fact that Carpenter can display such remarkable ability both as a film director and as a composer is, in a way, almost frightening in itself!