Top 10: Horror Movie Songs #1

Last Updated on July 26, 2021

When fellow AITH staffer Pat Torfe hit me up a while back with the idea for a list of the best horror movie songs, I had no idea putting this list together would be so much f*cking fun. If nothing else, agree or disagree, I hope ya’ll have half as much fun listening to all these jams as I did collecting them.

The only absolute criteria I had for this list was that it had to be populated by songs with both music and lyrics. Other than that, pretty much anything goes. It was tough to have to leave Dueling Banjos off the list, but ya gotta have some standards.

So check out the fun below, and if you’ve got some favs that didn’t make the list, spit bullets so your fellow arrowheads can jam out witcha!

WARNING – FOR THOSE ABOUT TO ROCK, WE SALUTE YOU BELOW!

10. Hellraiser (Motorhead), HELLRAISER

There’s just something about Motorhead that rocks. They’ve never been one of my favorite bands based on song writing or musicianship, but still they kick ass. And when you add that indefinable awesomeness to a Clive Barker classic? Good times, my friends!

9. Scream Until You Like It (W.A.S.P.), GHOULIES II

I was a huge fan of Blackie Lawless throughout my youth, and while W.A.S.P.’s big screen splash in The Dungeonmaster was sweet, it took a bad sequel to a fun movie to get them on a horror soundtrack. The upside is that at least this song made the experience of G2 slightly better than a complete waste of time.

8. Suffocate (Motograter), THE TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE remake

What used to be thrash metal seems to have morphed into nu metal, which near as I can tell simply means “stripped of all melody”. But anybody who pops in this little ditty and isn’t headbanging in the first 10 seconds is just a broken soul. Whether or not you like the fact that it puts you in a homicidal mood is something I’ll leave to you.

7. Bodies (Drowning Pool), JASON X

I was torn here, because while the song was heavily featured in the trailer, it never actually makes an appearance in the movie. But it’s so strongly associated with the flick that I feel like I’m on pretty solid ground including it. Still, the horrendous oversight of leaving it out of the cinematic release cost this outstanding song a place in the top 5.

6. Dream Warriors (Dokken), A NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET 3: DREAM WARRIORS

Tough one here because Bring Your Daughter To The Slaughter by Iron Maiden was another solid entry in the NOES metal god video race. But not only was the third flick a better movie than the fifth, but Dokken scored a legitimate crossover hit with the song as well. Not too shabby.

STAY TUNED FOR PART 2!