5. Under the Skin (2013) by Mica Levi
We’ve already ruled that Jonathan Glazer’s Under the Skin features one of the best original scores of the decade, so it should come as no surprise that we also think it’s one of the best horror scores, period. Under the Skin is a film that is deliberately befuddling, enigmatic, and contradictory. And its score reciprocates in kind. In her first cinematic composition, Mica Levi (of the upstart art-rock group Micachu and the Shapes) delivers an auditory experience that is sensory and supernatural; from maddening melodies to airy synths, from swaying strings to discordant drones.
Industrial and symphonic, Levi’s score is, in her own words, “physical, alarming, hot.” Exactly the mood to set when your flesh is being harvested by an extraterrestrial. This is a score that absolutely deserves to be mentioned in the same breath as the other legends on this list. It will surely be taught, referenced, and emulated for decades to come. (Meg Shields)
4. The Thing (1982) by Ennio Morricone and John Carpenter
If it’s scored by Ennio Morricone, that already makes it a winner in my book. But get this — when John Carpenter recruited the Italian legend because he wanted the score to have a European flavor, Morricone showed up with basically two scores. One was orchestral and the other a synthesizer score.
Ultimately, their collaborative process was less of a structured give and take and more of a “we’ll do it live!” approach, with Carpenter realizing as he went along that certain moments were actually stronger without the music Morricone had already recorded. Nevertheless, with input from both parties, the score came together as a fitting hybrid; classic and synth-y, tragic and opulent, epic and dreary. It’s a feast for the ears. A true Thing of beauty, if you will. (Anna Swanson)
3. Candyman (1992) by Phillip Glass
Legend has it that Philip Glass was disappointed with Candyman because he was not expecting, in his estimation, “a low-budget slasher.” Okay, Philip, did we watch the same film? Get off your high horse, piano boy. While Glass has since walked back his annoyance, if he really wanted to show a change of heart, he could score another horror film. That’s right, despite being much-imitated and sampled within the genre, Glass’s huffy organs, desperate chorals, and remorseless repetitions have only properly graced one out-and-out horror film.
Thank god that one horror film was Candyman: a movie perfectly attuned to Glass’ ritualistic, melancholic pulse. Well (yes) a slasher, Candyman boasts a romantic gait in the proper sense of the word: a tragic vision of villainy rooted in love, loss, and trauma with deeper roots than mere vengeance. And Glass’s haunting melodies and unnerving chants underpin these sadder strains of Candyman’s neo-gothic subtext. (Meg Shields)
2. Ravenous (1999) by Damon Albarn and Michael Nyman
We’ve long championed both Ravenous and its late director, Antonia Bird, but while the film’s score is often mentioned along the way it’s about time we gave it our full attention. Damon Albarn and Michael Nyman deliver something rather unique here, particularly as a score for a genre film. The first few tracks that reach the viewers’ ears offer an introduction to a time and a place that feel slightly off kilter — and it’s not just because the music sounds occasionally out of tune. It’s intentional, and the tracks were played by a group of non-musicians.
It soon gives way, though, to more traditional tunes that suggest the open beauty of the terrain, the electricity in the adventure, and the growing unease between the characters. From the ominous build of “Trek to the Cave” and (the terrifically titled) “He Was Licking Me” to the thrillingly energetic “Run” and “Ives Returns,” the score lulls viewers in with folksy sounds before gripping them with the music of a playfully engrossing nightmare. (Rob Hunter)
1. Halloween (1978) by John Carpenter
Taking inspiration from the themes of Dario Argento’s Suspiria and William Friedkin’s The Exorcist, John Carpenter crafted a score for Halloween that is as iconic as the film itself. He knew it would fall on the music to save the movie. In fact, that’s exactly what one producer said to him after an initial screening. Halloween was not scary until the tracks were laid.
To find a solution to his “failure,” Carpenter didn’t have time to overthink the problem. He merely went to work, taking three days to write the thing. He keeps it simple, but odd; a synth drum-heartbeat that breaks into a piano melody in a 5/4 time signature. The tune ripples over your ears, burrows into your brain, and shivers down your skin. It’s the kind of lick that’s impossible to shake. Once heard, it’s yours. No stroll down a dark alley occurs without this theme backing your imagination. You hear Michael Myers everywhere. (Brad Gullickson)
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Related Topics: 31 Days of Horror Lists, Horror
