Haunting Songs

fringed n fab · #1 10-21-2010, 01:29 PM

Neko Case- Furnace Room Lullaby

Ever since watching the movie "The Gift", I have loved this song and film. So haunting.

jeffd8382 · #2 10-24-2010, 09:10 PM

There are so many songs I consider "haunting" that I love... Here are a few lesser-known ones, and I will likely share some more of my favorites as soon as I can think of them... ;p

"Let It Go" - Grace Slick - this track takes time to grow on you - but it really is an awesome song (around the 3:00 mark, things get REALLY interesting!!)
"Garden Of Man" - Grace Slick - the last track from her 1980 solo album Dreams - an excellent album!

Sissel Kyrkjebø is a Norwegian singer who probably has the most beautiful soprano voice I have ever heard. If you have ever seen James Cameron's Titanic, you have heard her voice as she is the one doing the vocalizations throughout the soundtrack. Most of her music falls into the categories of pop/classical/easy listening/folk:

"Dusk" - Sissel - 1st song I thought of when I read the initial post - lovely, beautiful, haunting - gives me goosebumps
"She Walks In Beauty" - Sissel - probably even more haunting than the last, but also very lovely - this one is from the Vanity Fair soundtrack

Porcupine Tree is a modern prog-rock band formed by Steven Wilson:

"Lips of Ashes" - Porcupine Tree - nice layered harmonies, and like most of their stuff, very nice production
"Buying New Soul" - Porcupine Tree - very haunting keyboard riff starts this piece out, and it's really an interesting song
"Russia On Ice" - Porcupine Tree - some haunting sections, some beautiful sections, some not-so-beautiful sections - overall an interesting piece of prog-rock

Hope some of you will enjoy them!

jeffd8382 · #3 10-24-2010, 10:04 PM

Another place you can find some beautiful & haunting melodies is in the "Dragon Quest" series in the form of symphonic suites, composed by Japanese composer Koichi Sugiyama. The DQ series was/is a popular game series in Japan, but was much less successful internationally, being known as "Dragon Warrior"... however the music is also legendary in Japan. Drawing from the styles of composers like Tchaikovsky, Stravinsky, J.S. Bach, Mozart and even John Williams in addition to Japanese contemporaries, Sugiyama has created soundtracks to 9 games so far in the series (spanning 25 years). Once you hear some of the music that has come from this series (if you enjoy orchestral music), I think you'll understand why it is so loved by those who are familiar with it.

Here are a few of my favorite haunting melodies from the series:

"Requiem" - Dragon Quest II - a very sad, but pretty melody
"Heavenly Flight" - Dragon Quest III - one of the best pieces from the entire series IMO - gorgeous melody
"Distant Memories" - Dragon Quest III - the cello sings in this piece; another sad melody that exudes a sense of longing
"Homeland / Wagon Wheel's March" - Dragon Quest IV - I love pieces that make you feel like you're traveling and this is one of them, both in the melody of the first section and then in the insistent march rhythm of the second section
"Battle For The Glory" - Dragon Quest IV - grand and epic, a feeling of danger is pervasive here - the later section is the most haunting part - could easily be something out of a film soundtrack
"Magic Carpet / Ocean" - Dragon Quest V - although there are only a few minor chords in this piece, there is a hauntingly beautiful melody here
"Monsters In The Dungeon /Tower Of Death / Dark World" - Dragon Quest V - an unusual but interesting melody - despite being somewhat lively, still haunting
"Noble Requiem / Saint" - Dragon Quest V - a lovely piece - pretty, but very dark in tone
"At The Palace" - Dragon Quest VI - a very Baroque arrangement here
"Ocean Waves" - Dragon Quest VI - another beautiful piece with a unique melody

There are many other really nice pieces from the series... awesome character themes, great town & castle themes, some exciting battle music, etc. If you like what you hear here, I encourage you to check out the symphonic suites to all the Dragon Quest games... a lot of which you can find on YouTube. You just have to ignore the original game soundtrack, which is not nearly as interesting to listen to on its own (although fun to compare to the symphonic versions!)

equeen102289 · #4 10-24-2010, 10:28 PM

You grabbed my attention with this thread. I'm on a Florence and the Machine kick and this thread is the perfect place to recommend a few of her songs.

Florence and the Machine songs:
1. I'm Not Calling You a Liar
2. Cosmic Love
3. My Boy Builds Coffins

Others;
1. Oh Father- Madonna
2. Shadowboxer- Fiona Apple
3. We Three- Patti Smith

daniellaaarisen · #5 10-24-2010, 10:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by equeen102289

You grabbed my attention with this thread. I'm on a Florence and the Machine kick and this thread is the perfect place to recommend a few of her songs.

Florence and the Machine songs:
1. I'm Not Calling You a Liar
2. Cosmic Love
3. My Boy Builds Coffins

Others;
1. Oh Father- Madonna
2. Shadowboxer- Fiona Apple
3. We Three- Patti Smith

You forgot "Howl" and "Heavy In Your Arms"! the most haunting song by Florence!

I ADORE her. "My Boy Builds Coffins" is on my haunting playlist, along with the other two I posted

Kayli · #6 10-24-2010, 11:13 PM

"Asleep" by The Smiths

Sanne2 · #7 10-25-2010, 06:13 AM

K's Choice - Virgin State Of Mind
Sinead O'Connor - Troy
The Veils - Lavinia (album version!)
Amanda Marshall - Beautiful Goodbye
Bjork - Hyperballad
Hurts - Wonderful Life
Metallica - Mama Said
Manic Street Preachers - The Everlasting

Brad · #8 10-26-2010, 03:41 PM

"Leif Erikson" - Interpol

baboles · #9 10-26-2010, 11:54 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by equeen102289

You grabbed my attention with this thread. I'm on a Florence and the Machine kick and this thread is the perfect place to recommend a few of her songs.

Florence and the Machine songs:
1. I'm Not Calling You a Liar
2. Cosmic Love
3. My Boy Builds Coffins

Others;
1. Oh Father- Madonna
2. Shadowboxer- Fiona Apple
3. We Three- Patti Smith

I love Florence and the Machine! "Oh Father" is definitely a haunting song! I also find "Live to Tell" by Madonna to be very haunting.

baboles · #10 10-27-2010, 12:01 AM

"Self Control" - Laura Branigan

jeffd8382 · #11 10-27-2010, 02:04 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by baboles

"Self Control" - Laura Branigan

Thanks for this! I completely forgot about this song... I don't have any of Laura's stuff on CD, so I only really thought of her "Gloria" song when I would see her name.

jeffd8382 · #12 10-27-2010, 01:40 AM

Hey everyone...

There is a German singer/songwriter who I'm very fond of: Juliane Werding... and I think actually she might appeal to some fans of Stevie, Christine & Fleetwood Mac. That is, of course, if you don't mind listening to lyrics in a foreign language. I had a bunch of tracks of hers uploaded for another friend of mine, so I decided to pick 25 of my favorites, focusing on songs that have a somewhat "haunting" quality to me, and I uploaded them to a page to share with all of you! I also posted lyric translations for those wondering what her songs are about... she tends to be a poetic lyricist, not too terribly dissimilar to Stevie's style of storytelling (although some may be much easier to figure out than in Stevie's writings) Her voice has a somewhat deep, husky quality, particularly in recent years... however her singing style is very smooth and pleasant. She has been active since the early 1970's, but her best music has been made since the mid-1980's (IMO). Her musical style is mostly in the pop/rock genre, but she often incorporates world music influences, new age stylings, ambient textures and folk/country instrumentation.

To check her out, click here:
http://sotd.yolasite.com/haunting-selections.php

Hope you guys find something you like there!

Oh and a big thanks to everyone else who's shared some of their favorites... it's fun checking them out and sharing our diverse musical tastes!

Here's a picture montage I created a couple years ago for one of her songs, "Wüstensohn (Desert Son)", from her 2001 album "Es Gibt Kein Zurück (There's No Turning Back)":

And here is an official video clip for a song from her 2008 album "Ruhe vor dem Sturm (Calm Before The Storm)", called "Haus überm Meer (House Above The Sea)".
This song is very reminiscent of her style in the 80's.: