Creepy Electronic Music (Unpopular List of Scary Songs & Albums)

For the lovers of dark and creepy electronic music, I’ve made this list of the eeriest music bands, albums, and songs that I know of.

The music presented in this compilation is scary in either of the two following ways. Some of it has a mysterious, haunting feeling and deals with such topics as dark, evil witchcraft rituals, ghosts, and other spooky mysteries. While other is associated with serial killers, suicide, and other such problems that are more down-to-earth.

But either way, all selected music is weird, creepy, sinister, and ominous. And I’m pretty sure you will find here bands you’ve never heard of yet.

If you are also interested in different shades and genres of dark music, here are my other lists:
List of Depressing Electronic Music
List of Sad and Depressing Metal Music Albums and Songs
List of all dark music-related posts

Now, let’s cut to the cheese.

 

1. Darkwave and Dark Electro

Band: JPRS-CRPRS (Russia)

This is a project of a young man from Moscow that I know personally (we talk online sometimes). His stage name is Roman Dandridge-Brewster. Roman produced all these albums at home, being inspired by horror films and music from them. For example, in many of his songs you can hear the three-note sequence from the score to Fright Night—his favorite vampire film.

I love how amateur and weird his music sounds. There is something very special to the sleaziness the songs are made with. Sometimes the imperfection combined with the weird, ‘inhuman’ production sound really does look like the music has been made by a living dead or a ghost.

If I had to choose only one favorite album, it would probably be Attack of the Brain Eaters (2008). However, it would be a tough choice.

The last album, actually, has mostly a melancholic and romantic feel, but still has a lot to do with various horror topics.

Album: Атака Мозгоедов (Attack of the Brain Eaters) (2008)

Album: Когда исчезает пульс (When the Pulse Disappears) (2007)

Album: Чарли..Кто там! (Charlie… Who’s There!) (2007)

Album: Prelude to tragedy A Cry in the Night (2010)

Album: Доставка в ад (Delivery to Hell) (2007)

 

2. Ambient and Dungeon Synth

Label: Evening Disclosure

This is an entire netlabel that specializes in super scary electronic music: dark ambient, drone, noise, vaporwave, and their combinations. The artists on the label are unknown and some are probably even anonymous.

Even the design of their Bandcamp page is extremely spooky and disturbing. Many of the album covers show places of big cities at night. Then there is Jason Voorhes on another cover. An album called S T A L K E R. And another one called Hitman. And a bunch of titles that don’t make sense on their own, as well as strange album covers.

But everything together looks like pieces of a weird psychotic puzzle that once being put together, will tell a sick horror story that has something to do with serial killers and mental problems.

Here are a couple of the creepiest releases:

 

Band: Amethyst Portal

Amethyst Portal is (or was) a dark new age music project of Rachel Audrey and Gavin Norman—two members of a famous witch house band and creative collective Mater Suspiria Vision previously mentioned in my blog multiple times.

On their official Bandcamp page they call their music “occult industrial”. But it sounds more like mystical ambient music. Rachel’s lyrics are full of New Age symbolism. The songs are dark and relaxing. Unfortunately, the project seems to be no longer active after publishing eight songs during 2017-2018.

If you want to learn more, I have an entire article with the analysis of each of Amethyst Portal’s songs.

Rachel Audrey is also an actress starring in multiple films of Cosmotropia de Xam—the movie director and founder of the band Mater Suspiria Vision. If you are interested, I wrote an analysis of his neo-exploitation films—Phantasmagoria 1 & 2 (2017 & 2018) (starring Rachel Audrey), and Diabolique (2013).

Here are a few creepiest songs of the band:

 

Band: Arcana

Another duo that plays atmospheric medieval dungeon synth. Their music sounds pretty mystical and very dark. Often sad. Arcana’s best albums were released in the 90s:

1. 1996 - Dark Age of Reason
2. 1997 - Lizabeth (EP)
3. 1997 - Cantar de Procella
4. 1999 - Isabel (EP)

Here is the song that I think has the darkest, most ominous and mystical mood:

Song: God of the Winds

 

Band: The Residents

These classics of avant-garde music have many albums and songs that sound spooky. But here are the ones that I find really creepy:

Album: The Postcards From Patmos (2008)

Song: My Window

Song: Six More Miles

 

3. Film Soundtracks

Compiation: Electronic Phantasmagoria: Scores from Sleazy Horror Films of the Late 60’s-Early 80s.

Electronic Phantasmagoria is a compilation of soundtracks from low budget exploitation films of the 70's. I listen to it quite often—it’s amazing. The mixtape is unofficial: someone transferred audio fragments from VHS tapes to his computer and published it on YouTube. Some of the pieces are from really obscure films. There are even a couple from La Goulve, as well as other forgotten and unknown oeuvres!

Thanks to this compilation I discovered, watched, and wrote articles about The Curse of the Alpha Stone (1972), Sexual Healing Trilogy: Fongaluli, Madame Zenobia, and The Healers (1972-1973), and Devil’s Ecstasy (1976), as well as a few other interesting films that I watched, but haven’t written about.

Many of the pieces contain actors’ dialogues and monologues, some phrases from which won’t leave my mind.

 

OST: The Serpent and the Rainbow (Brad Fiedel, 1988)

This is an outstanding and a very rare soundtrack to a mainstream voodoo-themed horror film. I wrote a separate post about The Serpent and the Rainbow OST where I shared all that little information I could gather about this mysterious release.

Composed by Brad Fiedel—the creator of the OST for The Terminator—it sounds quite similar to it, having borrowed that famous opening ominous drum beat. But instead of the spooky sci-fi style, it has a tribal vibe.

 

 

OST: Terminator (Brad Fiedel, 1983)

I’m sure you know this one. So it’s here just as a reminder.

 

OST: The Nightmare on the Elm Street (Charles Bernstein, 1984)

As well as this one.

 

4. Dark Trap and Witch House

Interestingly, for the most part witch house doesn’t have much to do with witches, mysticism and other horrors. However, there are a few bands that do exploit this topic.

 

Band: Mater Suspiria Vision (Germany)

Albums: Phantasmagoria (2017) and Baba Yaga (2018)

I consider these two albums as one, because they are official soundtracks for the exploitation horror film dilogy Phantasmagoria by Cosmotropia de Xam. In my opinion, these two releases are some of the very best the whole witch house genre has to offer.

Read my detailed review and analysis of the films Phantasmagoria 1 and 2. And my review of the album.

 

Songs by Other Bands

SEMICOLOŊ - Astral Mind (feat. BΛNMΛSKIM)

One of my favorite witch house songs with lyrics inspired by ‘astral trips’ and other New Age mythology. Very dark, mysterious and sweet.

SEMICOLOŊ - The Unborn

Another sinister song from Semicolon.

MORGVE - Sisterhood

Probably, my favorite song of the band. I’m not sure what “sisterhood” means here, but probably something that has to do with witches. In any case, the mood fits the topic.

Witch House Compilation: ▲ VVi✝chkvl✝ ɅpøkɅlypse Mix ▲

And here is a selection of songs by other witch house musicians that also have sad, haunting and mystical feeling.

 

5. EBM and Industrial

Now let’s look at even darker and heavier electronic music. 

 

Band: Suicide Commando (Belgium)

This is a one-man project led by Johan Van Roy who plays in the genre of aggrotech. Many of his songs have references to historical and fictional serial killers. He even has an album called “Bind, Torture, Kill”. And another one is called “Implements of Hell” referencing Albert Fish who used various tools to torture his victims.

Song: Acid Bath (Construct Destruct, 1998)

Acid Bath is a reference to Acid Bath Murderer—John Haigh convicted in killing six persons and stating he killed nine. He used a bath with sulphuric acid to dispose of the bodies.

The lyrics, however, don’t have much to do with the story of the murderer, but they do with the general serial killer topic.

Song: Severed Head (Implements of Hell, 2010)

This song has a sample from the documentary about Edmund Kemper:

He killed her with a hammer in her sleep, cut off her head and hands, and then put her vocal chords in the garbage disposal. And threw darts at her severed head.

This refers to what the murderer did to his mother.

The words “severed head” are repeated multiple times in the song. The whole thing together with the music sounds super creepy and disturbing.

Song: Bind, Torture, Kill (Bind, Torture, Kill, 2006)

Song: Face of Death (Face Of Death, Single, 2003)

This song features a sample that, fortunately, doesn’t relate to a real serial killer. It’s from a mainstream film 8mm. But this monologue still gives chills.

The best part of killing someone is the look on their face. It's that look. Not when they're threatened. Not when you hurt 'em. Not even when they see the knife. It's just when they feel the knife go in.

 

Songs by Other Bands

Tiamat - Lucy

A romantic story of a relationship between the lyrical character and Lucy. Obviously, Lucy means Lucifer. A nice dark and mysterious synthesizer-based song by one of my favorite heavy metal bands.

 

And here is my acoustic cover:

 

Beltane - Shine On You Crazy Mother Fucker

Beltane is another heavy metal band who like to sing about black magic and sometimes make industrial music instead of pure black metal. This song is about Alister Crowley—a famous occultist and devil worshiper. The title also parodies “Shine on You Crazy Diamond” by Pink Floyd dedicated to Syd Barrett (who wasn’t a satanist).

Interestingly, the band members are real pagans living off-grid in New Zealand. They are also a family with kids. Moreover, they have a label Satanica Productions that accepted my album Cradle My Rock in 2014 (though nobody has ever bought it).

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I created this blog for like-minded people with weird taste for unpopular, obscure, and sleazy films and music. If you feel our tastes are similar, let's be email friends. You can also reach out to me if you need help in finding any rare film or music mentioned in by blog.

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