Editorials
[Editorial] 9 Great Horror Soundtracks
It’s nearly Halloween. Outside, the wind is howling. The trees are bare, the branches looking like skeleton limbs crudely stuck together. Leaves cover the ground, causing each step to elicit a satisfying crunch. The sky is steel grey, threatening rain, thunder, and lightning. In a simpler way of putting it, it’s the best time of the year.
For me, one of the best ways to celebrate this time of year is by putting on some of the creepiest, eeriest, scariest music that I can get my hands on. There is something deliciously fun about scaring myself with shrieking violins, out-of-tune pianos, otherworldly choirs, and bizarre ambient tones.
And since this time of year is something special to a great many people, I wanted to share some of my favorite horror soundtracks, the ones that make me want to curl up under a blanket and play one horror movie after another, until the saving grace of the sunrise saves me. Join me below for 9 Great Horror Soundtracks!
Note: This list is in no particular order
The Fog
John Carpenter has created many classic scores throughout the years, with the theme to Halloween becoming quite possibly one of the most famous horror themes of all time. But it’s the score for The Fog that always unsettled me more. It’s one of Carpenter’s most atmospheric films and the score had to match that feeling. And it does, with more added on for good effect.
Note: You should definitely get the extended remastered edition here. Very much worth it!
The Shining
C’mon, did you really think this wasn’t going to make it on the list? I’d add this to any similar list simply for the works of Krzysztof Penderecki. But even without them, this soundtrack is quite possibly one of the easiest ways to scare the absolute crap out of me. Put it on and there’s a good chance that I’m going to start looking over my shoulder every few minutes. Scratch that, every few seconds.
Silent Hill 2
While the soundtrack to Silent Hill 1 is more evil, Akira Yamaoka’s score to Silent Hill 2 is far more phantasmagoric, mixing beauty with horror. The end result is one of the most famous and beloved horror video game soundtracks ever released.
Lord Of Illusions
I’m such a fan of this movie to the point that I think it might actually be my favorite Clive Barker film. I know that’s a bold statement but it’s so much fun and has such a unique feel about it. The score by Simon Boswell has this incredible mix of noir jazz and horror that is both erotic and eerie. Probably one of the most under appreciated horror soundtracks.
Suspiria
Another obvious choice, this soundtrack, composed by Goblin has been lauded ever since the film came out in 1977. The electronic score has some of the eeriest tones and patches used on a synthesizer and then laid down on celluloid.
American McGee’s Alice
The second video game to make this list, American McGee’s Alice came out to critical acclaim for its dark, inventive imagery and the twisted take on the Alice In Wonderland mythos. But what might be the most popular aspect of the game is the soundtrack, composed by ex-Nine Inch Nails member Chris Vrenna.
The Omen
“AVE SATANI! SANGUIS BIBIMUS!” The most demonic entry into this list, I can’t help but feel shivers run up and down my spine during this soundtrack. Truly one of Jerry Goldsmith’s crowning achievements, The Omen will always be one of the great classics.
Twin Peaks
Much like Lord Of Illusions, Twin Peaks had a mix of erotic jazz with this eerie atmosphere. The difference is that Twin Peaks had a far more lighthearted approach, making this the perfect entry for those you who can’t stand to be too scared.
The 7th Guest
The final entry into this list is yet another video game. Taking place in a haunted mansion where every horrifying puzzle could leave you stumped for days, the music took the stylings of the 1930’s and mixed it with horror to create a delightfully terrifying soundtrack that haunted me for years as a child.
Alright readers, now that I’ve shared mine, what are some of your favorite horror soundtracks? Let me know in the comments below!
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Some movies are just so beloved that you can experience them through cultural osmosis without ever sitting down to actually watch them. From loving parodies to meticulous recreations of iconic scenes, memorable filmmaking lives on even after the curtains close on the silver screen. And when it comes to horror, few films can compete with the massive impact that Stanley Kubrick’s The Shining had on popular culture as a whole.
Whether or not you think the flick is a good adaptation of Stephen King’s seminal novel, 1980’s The Shining slowly but surely grew into one of the most influential genre movies ever made, inspiring everything from surprisingly heartfelt sequels to classic episodes of The Simpsons. However, not all The Shining references are created equal, and today I’d like to shine a light on six unexpected homages to Kubrick’s iconic film.
In this list, we’ll be focusing on references and Easter eggs that either came out of the blue or came from creators that you wouldn’t expect to be fans of this classic ghost story. That being said, don’t forget to comment below with your own favorite references to the Torrance family and the Overlook Hotel if you think we missed a particularly memorable one.
With that out of the way, onto the list!
5. A Nightmare on FaceTime – South Park (2012)
Regardless of the brand’s iffy reputation among former employees, the death of Blockbuster Video was a serious blow to fans of physical media. Of course, some folks were more affected by this than others, and South Park’s Randy Marsh definitely took things a little too far in the twelfth episode of the show’s sixteenth season.
Titled A Nightmare on FaceTime, the main plot of this 2012 story is a surprisingly faithful recreation of The Shining where Randy purchases an empty Blockbuster store and begins to go mad once he realizes that his investment may not have been a very good idea due to the rise of streaming and the now-defunct RedBox storefronts.
4. The Overlook Hotel Level – Ready Player One (2018)
I was never really a fan of Ernest Cline’s Ready Player One, so I viewed Stephen Spielberg’s divisive adaptation of the novel as an improvement over the source material despite having its own narrative issues. In fact, I actually prefer how Spielberg changed the story by removing several references to his own work and replacing a lengthy Blade Runner detour with an over-the-top homage to The Shining.
A CGI-heavy recreation of the film’s most iconic moments that feels like a big-budget ghost train ride set within the Overlook Hotel, this intense sequence is more of a recreation of the freaky aesthetics of The Shining rather than its mind-bending narrative. However, it’s still fun to see Spielberg make a heartfelt tribute to a filmmaker that was once his close personal friend.
3. IKEA Singapore Halloween Ad (2014)
It makes sense that commercials don’t typically borrow from the horror genre, as it might be a bad idea to scare away potential customers, but some references are just too much fun to pass up.
That’s probably why the publicists behind this Ikea ad from Singapore were allowed to turn their commercial into a genuinely unsettling recreation of Danny’s tricycle scene from The Shining. After all, nobody cares if your store is haunted so long as it offers late-night shopping hours and a large selection of merchandise that you can become lost in forever and ever…
2. The End of ‘Bondage and Beta Male Sexuality’ – Community (2014)
Community is no stranger to recreating iconic movie moments within the show, and the series had previously tackled horror tropes in episodes like the fan-favorite Epidemiology. However, the most laugh-out-loud moment on this particular list comes from a brief gag towards the end of the season five episode ‘Bondage and Beta Male Sexuality’.
The majority of this episode has nothing to do with scary movies, but there’s a brief subplot involving supporting character Chang and a possible encounter with ghosts that leads him to question his own existence. This subplot culminates in the episode’s hilarious ending where the camera zooms in on a black-and-white photograph of Chang in period clothing at some kind of celebration, just like Jack Nicholson at the end of The Shining.
However, the picture’s subtitle eventually reveals that it’s merely a conveniently placed keepsake from the ‘Old Timey Photo Club’.
1. The Overlook Hedge Maze Sequence – Zootopia 2 (2025)
Disney movies are pretty far removed from both the gruesome horror of Stephen King and the heady filmmaking of Stanley Kubrick, so I don’t think anyone was expecting the climax of last year’s Zootopia sequel to take place in an animated version of the snowy hedge maze from The Shining.
In this unexpectedly intense sequence, friend-turned-villain Pawbert Lynxley (an unhinged lynx cat played by Andy Samberg) chases our protagonists through a creepy labyrinth in a loving recreation of Jack Nicholson’s icy demise outside the Overlook Hotel. The actual ending here might be a little more child-friendly than what’s being referenced, but it’s amazing that the filmmakers were able to push the horror elements as far as they did – especially since the scene doesn’t really have anything to do with the rest of the movie.
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