#Listen Now – Horror Movie Soundtracks - Midwest Music Marketplace

Spooky season – it starts in September and runs until the jingle bells drown it. Since we’re all about the music, I searched for the Best Horror Movie Soundtracks. What I found was a lot of opinions. Jump to the list or continue reading for how I decided on the order.

I chose six articles that had done the research and then smashed the lists together. The lists varied in length (10, 10, 13, 14, 30, 35) and focus (modern vs classic). Although the largest list had 35 entries the articles came up with 62 different titles! There is ALOT of high quality horror lurking in those stacks of wax. In fact, only 24 of the soundtracks appeared on more than one list. So, I noted each title and rank. I counted how many times the title appeared and calculated an average ranking. The results for the titles that appeared at least twice are below.

Horror Movie Soundtracks Ranked

Halloween, John Carpenter 1979 – # of lists 6 -every one! Average Rank – 4 and the top pick for the two largest lists.
Suspiria, 1975 or 2017 – # of lists 6, evenly split between the 1975 and 2017 remake, Average Rank – 5
Psycho, Bernard Herrmann 1960 – # of lists 5, Average Rank – 6
The Omen Trilogy, Jerry Goldsmith 2005 – # of lists 5, Average Rank – 9
Rosemary’s Baby, Krzysztof Komeda 1968 – # of lists 4, Average Rank – 7
The Thing, Ennio Morricone 1982– # of lists 4, Average Rank – 9
The Music Of Candyman, Phillip Glass 2001 – # of lists 4, Average Rank – 11
The Shining, Wendy Carlos and Rachel Elkind 1980 – # of lists 4, Average Rank – 12
Under the Skin, Mica Levi 2013 – # of lists 4, Average Rank – 12
It Follows, Disasterpeace, 2015 – # of lists 3, Average Rank – 8
Videodrome, David Cronenberg, 1983 – # of lists 3, Average Rank – 15
Jaws, John Williams 1975 – # of lists 2, Average Rank – 3
Eraserhead, David Lynch 1982 – # of lists 2, Average Rank – 4
Nosferatu The Vampire, Popul Vuh 1978 – # of lists 2, Average Rank – 5
Cannibal Holocaust, Riz Ortolani 1980 – # of lists 2, Average Rank – 6
The Exorcist, William Friedkin 1973 – # of lists 2, Average Rank – 9
Maniac, Rob 2012 – # of lists 2, Average Rank – 11
The Wicker Man, Paul Giovanni and Magnet 2002 – # of lists 2, Average Rank – 12
Halloween III: Season of the Witch, Tommy Lee Wallace 1982 – # of lists 2, Average Rank – 13
A Clockwork Orange, Wendy Carlos, Rachel Elkind 1972 – # of lists 2, Average Rank – 20
The Keep, Michael Mann 1983 – # of lists 2, Average Rank – 21
Hellraiser, Christopher Young 1987 – # of lists 2, Average Rank – 22
The Texas Chain Saw Massacre, Tobe Hooper 1974 – # of lists 2, Average Rank – 24
Near Dark, Tangerine Dream 1987 – # of lists 2, Average Rank – 25