# Apocalyptic Songs **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [October 26, 2009, 5:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/apocalyptic-songs/515201 "2009-10-26T17:55:03Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![cjepson](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a9adbd/32.png) [@cjepson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cjepson)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2009, 3:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/apocalyptic-songs/515201/61 "2009-10-27T15:03:59Z")
Ooh, I can’t believe I forgot about “Morning Dew”. It’s rather downbeat, but it’s such a classic that there are many, many versions, listed here: [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Morning\_Dew](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Morning_Dew) ---
**Author:** ![duality72](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/duality72/32/3910_2.png) [@duality72](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/duality72)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2009, 3:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/apocalyptic-songs/515201/62 "2009-10-27T15:09:43Z")
[“Four Minutes”](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZUCvp6moUPQ) from _Radio K.A.O.S._ by Roger Waters. A bit bleak, but you gotta love the countdown at the end for an apocalyptic theme. Sort of apocalyptic: [“Amused To Death”](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ds9JN1XaBRA) from the album of the same name, also Roger Waters. Semi-apocalyptic/destruction oriented: [“What God Wants Pt. 1”](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QdeXsePZjnI), also from _Amused To Death_ [“Symphony of Destruction”](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gv6psE7l7rk) by Megadeth ---
**Author:** ![duality72](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/duality72/32/3910_2.png) [@duality72](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/duality72)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2009, 3:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/apocalyptic-songs/515201/63 "2009-10-27T15:54:53Z")
Early Metallica: [“Call of Ktulu”](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sWGOEWdV13M) [“For Whom The Bell Tolls”](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bg92QpjRcJk) [“Fade To Black”](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WEQnzs8wl6E) is more about depression/suicide, but the [Apocalyptica cover](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x97f-_y93a0) removes the lyrics but retains the “doom” feel, with a symphonic metal twist [“The Thing That Should Not Be”](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LIj60VJQ8Wo) “Rockets Fall On Rocket Falls” by Godspeed You! Black Emperor is good, but long and on the bleak side. [This](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mJJQ0d1NiQQ) is the second half of the song, but stands well on its own. ---
**Author:** ![Spoke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e57/32.png) [@Spoke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoke)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2009, 4:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/apocalyptic-songs/515201/64 "2009-10-27T16:17:48Z")
> [@Marley23](#): > > Say whaaaaa? I’ve never heard that idea before. [that Burning Down the House may be about nuclear conflagration] Aside from the line about fighting fire with fire, and the metaphor of burning down your own house, there’s this: _People on their way to work (Baby what did you expect) Gonna burst into flames_ ---
**Author:** ![Peter\_Morris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peter_morris/32/359_2.png) [@Peter\_Morris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peter_Morris)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2009, 4:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/apocalyptic-songs/515201/65 "2009-10-27T16:24:54Z")
[20 tons of TNT](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=48waPFTXJvY) ---
**Author:** ![It\_s\_Not\_Rocket\_Surgery](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/it_s_not_rocket_surgery/32/312_2.png) [@It\_s\_Not\_Rocket\_Surgery](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/It_s_Not_Rocket_Surgery)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2009, 5:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/apocalyptic-songs/515201/66 "2009-10-27T17:01:08Z")
> [@duality72](#): > > Early Metallica: > > [“Call of Ktulu”](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sWGOEWdV13M) > [“For Whom The Bell Tolls”](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bg92QpjRcJk) > [“Fade To Black”](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WEQnzs8wl6E) is more about depression/suicide, but the [Apocalyptica cover](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x97f-_y93a0) removes the lyrics but retains the “doom” feel, with a symphonic metal twist > [“The Thing That Should Not Be”](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LIj60VJQ8Wo) These are fine, but there is a Metallica song that is blatantly about apocalypse - [“Blackened”](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DU_ggFovJNo). ---
**Author:** ![Aghris](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecccb3/32.png) [@Aghris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aghris)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2009, 6:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/apocalyptic-songs/515201/67 "2009-10-27T18:01:02Z")
> [@EinsteinsHund](#): > > Can you please enlighten me about this ending of the song? It’s a collection of German prepositions, but it doesn’t make any sense. 😕 In Holland, most of us learn German in high school. While the first couplets are about the singer and his job, the last couplet is targeted at students, showing the futility of learning. In school, we all had to learn these lists to know which cases to use. We all hated it. ---
**Author:** ![duality72](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/duality72/32/3910_2.png) [@duality72](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/duality72)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2009, 6:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/apocalyptic-songs/515201/68 "2009-10-27T18:05:17Z")
> [@It\_s\_Not\_Rocket\_Surgery](#): > > These are fine, but there is a Metallica song that is blatantly about apocalypse - [“Blackened”](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DU_ggFovJNo). Good catch. Definitely top of the list for Metallica. ---
**Author:** ![Aghris](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecccb3/32.png) [@Aghris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aghris)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2009, 6:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/apocalyptic-songs/515201/69 "2009-10-27T18:38:36Z")
Funny, I never know U2’s Unforgettable Fire was about the [Nagasaki and Hiroshima bombings](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Unforgettable_Fire_(song)). Guess it’s suitable too. ---
**Author:** ![Anne\_Neville](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Anne\_Neville](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anne_Neville)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2009, 7:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/apocalyptic-songs/515201/70 "2009-10-27T19:03:00Z")
> [@Blake](#): > > “Christmas at Ground Zero” Wierd Al Also “One of Those Days” from the same album. ---
**Author:** ![Aghris](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecccb3/32.png) [@Aghris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aghris)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2009, 8:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/apocalyptic-songs/515201/71 "2009-10-27T20:46:03Z")
OK, I’m all set. Got my playlist, my ‘The End is Nigh’ and ‘Repent, Sinners!’ banners, got my 2012 promo posters and printed Revelations leaflets. Too bad I can’t get any gas masks or giger counters. For those curious, my playlist will be: Nena - 99 Luftballons The The - Armageddon Days Are Here (Again) Asia - Sole Survivor Creedence Clearwater Revival - Bad Moon Rising Talking Heads - Burning Down The House De Dijk - Dansen op de vulkaan Doe Maar - De Bom Billy Joel - Goodnight Saigon (Not really doomsday, but suitable) Sting - I Hope the Russians Love Their Children Too Zager and Evans - In The Year 2525 Kate Bush - Running Up That Hill (Also not doomsday, but I always got the shivers when I heard this song when I was young) Man at Work - Overkill Nazareth - Morning Dew Muse - Apocalypse Please Regina Spektor - On The Radio Peter Gabriel - Red Rain U2 - Seconds NIN - The Beginning Of The End Timbuk 3 - The Future’s So Bright, I Gotta Wear Shades The Turtles - Eve of Destruction Tool - Aenima U2 - The Unforgettable Fire DMB - When The World Ends (Oakenfold Remix) REM - It’s The End of the World (And I Feel Fine) Prince - 1999 Soundgarden - Black Hole Sun Jeff Wayne - Eve of the War The Clash - London Calling ---
**Author:** ![Haunted](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/898d66/32.png) [@Haunted](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Haunted)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2009, 9:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/apocalyptic-songs/515201/72 "2009-10-27T21:00:14Z")
Nice! ---
**Author:** ![Dallas\_Jones](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dallas_jones/32/3277_2.png) [@Dallas\_Jones](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dallas_Jones)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2009, 9:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/apocalyptic-songs/515201/73 "2009-10-27T21:17:59Z")
When the World is Running Down, The Police. Wish You Were Here, Pink Floyd ---
**Author:** ![Spoke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e57/32.png) [@Spoke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoke)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2009, 3:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/apocalyptic-songs/515201/74 "2009-10-29T03:08:08Z")
Speaking of the Police: [Omega Man](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=77_Bfauft-w&feature=related) - The Police (_Post_-apocalyptic.) ---
**Author:** ![Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spectre_of_pithecanthropus/32/12343_2.png) [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spectre_of_Pithecanthropus)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2009, 3:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/apocalyptic-songs/515201/75 "2009-10-29T03:22:00Z")
> [@Finagle](#): > > 99 Red Balloons (99 Luftballoons) Is that apocalyptic? I could never catch all the lyrics of that, either in English or German. The OP might check out a band called The Dears; an album of theirs was titled _No Cities Left_ which sounds like it might contain some apocalyptic lyrics. ---
**Author:** ![Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spectre_of_pithecanthropus/32/12343_2.png) [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spectre_of_Pithecanthropus)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2009, 3:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/apocalyptic-songs/515201/76 "2009-10-29T03:26:07Z")
“Wooden Ships”, I think originally by Crosby Stills Nash and Young, but the Airplane did a fine cover of it too. “Death Don’t Have No Mercy”, performed by the Grateful Dead (either _Live Dead_ or _From The Vault Two_, not to mention innumerable bootlegs.) ---
**Author:** ![Jophiel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jophiel/32/66_2.png) [@Jophiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jophiel)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2009, 4:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/apocalyptic-songs/515201/77 "2009-10-29T04:35:06Z")
> [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](#): > > Is that apocalyptic? I could never catch all the lyrics of that, either in English or German. The premise of the song is that the singer releases 99 balloons into the air which a faulty defense computer takes to be something hostile in the airspace and precipitates a nuclear launch. _Back at base bugs in the software Flash the message: “Something’s out there” Floating in the summer sky As 99 red balloons go by […] The war machine springs to life Opens up one eager eye Focusing it on the sky […] It’s all over and I’m standing pretty In this dust that was a city…_ ---
**Author:** ![DWMarch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dwmarch/32/1010_2.png) [@DWMarch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DWMarch)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2009, 4:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/apocalyptic-songs/515201/78 "2009-10-29T04:57:22Z")
“Fuck the World” by the Insane Clown Posse. I’m sure they’ve got plenty more that would fit but that’s the first one that comes to mind. ---
**Author:** ![janis\_and\_c0](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/janis_and_c0/32/21_2.png) [@janis\_and\_c0](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/janis_and_c0)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2009, 5:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/apocalyptic-songs/515201/79 "2009-10-29T05:05:13Z")
NIce Playlist… I like Simon and Garfunkel’s _The Sun is Burning._ ---
**Author:** ![Peter\_Morris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peter_morris/32/359_2.png) [@Peter\_Morris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peter_Morris)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2009, 10:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/apocalyptic-songs/515201/80 "2009-10-29T10:34:42Z")
Has anyone said [8th Day](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fBkvcQEGq9k) yet [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/apocalyptic-songs/515201.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/apocalyptic-songs/515201.md?page=5)