8 Eerie Earworms — Iconic Songs Written for Horror Movies

Horror movies aim to ignite the senses — primarily sound and sight. Terrifying images and creepy sound mixing assault your adrenal gland, causing stress, distress, and fear. However, not every audio cue in a film is meant to make you sweat. In fact, some are meant to capture the spirit of the movie (quite literally, in the case of Ghostbusters) and even create catchy associations for marketing and the official soundtrack.

We previously discussed existing songs that have become inseparably associated with the horror films that made them famous. Today, we’re taking a look into music that was made specifically for the movie. Some of them escaped containment and went on to become massive radio hits outside of their debuts, and others have been relegated to slightly deeper cut obscurity depending on whether you’re talking to a horror fan or not.

Brush up your Halloween playlist and your movie marathon rotation with these eight bespoke songs written to accompany horror films.

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“Ghostbusters” by Ray Parker Jr.

Ghostbusters

Let’s get the most obvious one out of the way. Ray Parker Jr.’s upbeat dance-pop hit definitely breached the ghost containment unit to become one of the most iconic movie songs ever. It’s on every Halloween playlist. Even your grandparents have probably heard it. “Ghostbusters” hit #1 on the Billboard music charts in August 1984 just two months after the movie premiered.

With only a few days to compose the song, Parker was inspired by a cheesy television advertisement he saw late at night. He needed to work the film’s title into the lyrics, and from that day on, the world finally had an answer to, “Who you gonna call?”

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“Dream Warriors” by Dokken

A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors

Metal band Dokken created their glam rock anthem “Dream Warriors” for the third A Nightmare on Elm Street film. This headbanging hit reached #22 on the Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks chart when it released as a single, and was later featured on the album Back for the Attack.

The music video for “Dream Warriors” featured clips of the film, including scenes of Robert Englund as Freddy Krueger along with Patricia Arquette as Kristen. In the music video, Dokken appear to drive off Freddy with their musical prowess. The video humorously ends with the Dream Demon himself waking up, indicating that the band had infiltrated his mind as he slept. Always the jokester, Freddy Krueger quips, “What a nightmare! Who were those guys?”

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“Pet Sematary” by The Ramones

Pet Sematary

One of The Ramones’ biggest hits of all time, the horror punk song “Pet Sematary,” was written for the Stephen King adaptation of the same name. Despite its success overall, it was nominated for a Razzie award in 1989 for “Worst Original Song.” The history behind the song’s origin is also somewhat murky, although King and The Ramones had connected at one point and the band’s name was even mentioned in the original novel.

Dee Dee Ramone was said to have written the lyrics to the song less than an hour after being handed a copy of the book. Drummer Marky Ramone even compared Dee Dee’s writing and ability to put fears and curiosity into lyrical words to King’s own creative style. The eerie music video for “Pet Sematary” was later filmed in a cemetery in Sleepy Hollow, New York.

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“Cry Little Sister” by Gerard McMahon

The Lost Boys

If this gothic anthem doesn’t make you want to put on your finest black leather and sing your heart out, you might actually be dead inside. “Cry Little Sister” is the theme from The Lost Boys, and even though it failed to chart, it has an undying legacy with horror fans. Gerard McMahon wrote it without seeing any footage of the film, though he claims if he had seen the film, this is not the song he would have written.

With its swelling choral energy, “Cry Little Sister” isn’t specifically about vampires, but more so about longing for family. Producer Michael Mainieri also helped create the hypnotic beat of the song, and McMahon really worked to capture the feeling of being an outcast from the perspective of rebellious, rejected youth. The song also popped up in the soundtrack and credits for The Lost Boys‘ two sequels The Tribe and The Thirst.

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“Through the Trees” by Low Shoulder

Jennifer’s Body

Not only was “Through the Trees” written for Jennifer’s Body, but the band Low Shoulder was created for the film too! In this horror flick that’s finally getting its flowers, Low Shoulder is the Satanist rock band that tries to cash in Jennifer Check for their shot at stardom. Their hit song ends up being played ad nauseum on the radio, much to Needy’s annoyance.

As one reviewer put it, this song “sucks just the right amount” as an earnest satirization of the music of the late ’00s. “Through the Trees” is done in the style of a power ballad that is bland and inoffensive, and unfortunately pretty memorable in the horror pantheon for those reasons. A real band called Test Your Reflex created the song and provided the vocals, skillfully and intentionally styled to evoke this era of music and social culture.

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“Hunter’s Moon” by Ghost

Halloween Kills

Swedish rock band Ghost is already the perfect candidate for spooky songwriting, so when they were approached by a producer from Halloween Kills, they were ready to go. The band had a few song concepts that fit with the film’s themes, and ultimately this energetic pop metal tune from the killer’s perspective is what came forth.

“Hunter’s Moon” doesn’t feature in the film itself, but it does play over the credits and does have a few references to the Halloween franchise hidden in its lyrics. Particularly the idea of “coming back” and “under a headstone, sister” reference key parts of Michael Myers’ story. The song was later rereleased on the band’s fifth studio album Impera the next year.

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“You Might Be the Killer” by HARLØ

You Might Be the Killer

Music written for films isn’t unheard of, but what about a song based on a movie based on a Twitter thread? Little-known horror film You Might Be the Killer was turned into a feature after writers Sam Sykes and Chuck Wendig had a hit viral Twitter exchange lampooning the tropes of summer camp slashers.

That thread formed the basis of the film starring Alyson Hannigan (of Buffy fame) as Chuck and Fran Kranz (of Cabin in the Woods fame) as Sam, two friends who determine through a series of odd circumstances and panicked phone calls that Sam might actually somehow be the killer causing serious disturbances at his new summer camp job.

The movie, song, and music artist ultimately aren’t well known (and the song only plays over the film’s credits), but those seeking an irreverent, less mainstream horror movie experience this year will be entertained.

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“Who Made Who” by AC/DC

Maximum Overdrive

Another Stephen King entry on this list, AC/DC’s “Who Made Who” was created for the soundtrack to Maximum Overdrive, a film about machinery becoming sentient after Earth crosses the tail of a comet. In the source material, this encompasses all machines — from radios and arcade machines to vehicles and vending machines.

The song captures that ironic perspective that humans would eventually become slaves to the machines they created. The lyrics of “Who Made Who” mention video games, databanks, and satellites as it asks the titular question. And while Maximum Overdrive wasn’t a commercial success, the song did well enough, with the track reaching the top 10 in Australia and number 16 in the UK. The readers of Hit Parader magazine even voted it the second best track of 1986 overall.

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How many of these horror movie songs have you heard? Let us know if we missed your favorite over in the Sideshow Social Network or at side.show/geekgroup.

Stir up the spirits and face the monsters within … Spooktacular has been unleashed once again!

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