Horror movies come and go, but the power of the horror movie soundtrack never ceases to amaze viewers. There have been quite a few excellent horror movie soundtracks through the years that made their films even scarier than intended. And some were produced decades ago. Let’s look at a few examples of the best horror movie soundtracks ever made!
1. ‘Halloween’ (1978)
John Carpenter’s classic horror slasher film Halloween stands strong on its own. However, the piano intro in Michael Myers’ theme song is as legendary as the film and character itself.
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In rare fashion, Carpenter didn’t seek out a composer to pen and record the soundtrack. He did it all on his own; along with the script-writing and film direction. It’s certainly a minimalist score, but Carpenter impressed everyone with what he came up with.
2. ‘Candyman’ (1992)
Philip Glass is a classical composer, and he has lent his skills to countless movies through the years. However, the soundtrack to Candyman from 1992 was more or less his only famous composition in the modern horror genre. It’s a hypnotic, huffy, and brutal series of works with an unrelenting momentum, and it suits the mysterious and unstoppable nature of the title character.
Allegedly, Glass didn’t actually like the movie after he saw it; he didn’t think it was a faithful film adaptation of Clive Barker’s original work.
3. ‘Under The Skin’ (2013)
Horror movie soundtracks from years ago have pretty legendary soundtracks, but a few “modern” horror films have pretty underrated soundtracks that deserve a bit more love. This sci-fi horror film starring Scarlett Johansson is underrated in general, but its soundtrack is even more underrated.
Mica Levi put together the soundtrack, and the result is quite stunning. Her compositions are rhythmic and industrial, with symphonies that balance the cold nature of some of the soundtrack’s individual tracks. It’s a great soundtrack to listen to while a shapeshifting alien pickles you to death in another dimension!
4. ‘The Thing’ (1982)
Ennio Morricone is one of the biggest composers on this list. He was the king of Giallo and Western soundtracks for a while, so it only made sense that Carpenter would snatch him up for this particular film soundtrack.
The Thing was a unique soundtrack for Morricone, but he still managed to make it sound like one of his typical compositions. The swooping melodies, the swelling strings, the anxiety-inducing instrumentation; it’s a perfect piece of work.
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