“You will be Mine Tonight,” (I think) by the Toadies. At first I thought it was just a neat song, until I heard the lyrics. It is about a man breaking into a girl’s resident, drinking a beer from her fridge, then breaking into her room and raping, killing, or possibly kidnapping her. I hear lots of rap songs with violent lyrics, but the machismo and bravado of them just makes them sound silly to me. This song’s lyrics is very creative and very disturbing.
Any of Danny Elfman’s music, and most Jeff Buckley songs give me chills.
there’s a tori amos song called “space dog” that has the most incredible end to any song i’ve ever heard. i have no idea what the lyrics mean, but her voice and the instrumentation makes my whole body shiver. her first three albums all give me chills, as a matter of fact.
also, the second half of disc one on the wall is mighty chilling sometimes. “run to the bedroom in the suitcase on the left you’ll find my favorite axe”. i love that part of the album
The first movement Mendelssohn’s violin concerto in E minor, Opus 64, often does it for me. Also the first movement of Beethoven’s 6th symphony. The 4th movement of his 9th symphony (aka Ode to Joy) is good, too. Dang it, I know there are a few more, I just can’t think of them at the moment.
Oh yeah, one of them is “Gabriel’s Oboe” by Ennio Morricone from The Mission. Especially in one of the last scenes where Jeremy Irons is holding the cross and the Portugese (hmm…maybe Spanish, I don’t remember) are shooting at him. And that reminds me, Schindler’s List’s theme is pretty moving, too.
Three songs:
Crush by Dave Matthews (perhaps the most romantic song ever writen)
Untitled by Domestic Problems (you can download about half of it here)
Suicide is Painless (theme from MASH)* (Lyrics that always seem to hit home when I’m feeling down.)
Hmm, now that I think about it –
The entire cut of The Wall, my favorite album of all time as well.
The Pogues’ “Fairytale of New York”, along with several other moments on If I Should Fall From Grace With God where the melody goes straight to some preconscious part of the limbic system for me.
Too Late for Prayin’, by Gordon Lightfoot
Anything for Love, Gordon Lightfoot
Moya
[sup]GODSPEED YOU BLACK EMPEROR![/sup]
Mogwai Fear Satan
[sup]MOGWAI[/sup]
Houdini Blues
[sup]KRISTIN HERSH[/sup]
Washer
[sup]SLINT[/sup]
Stranger than Kindness
[sup]NICK CAVE AND THE BAD SEEDS[/sup]
[sup]DIAMANDA GALAS[/sup]
Much of her work is music about the anguish of dying from AIDS. It’s supposed to give you chills.
Spem in alium
[sup]THOMAS TALLIS[/sup]
The soundtrack to The Omen and the Eurythemics song, Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This) give me the chills.
yes! a music thread!
Lately, songs that have been giving me chills are ‘Prison’ and ‘Toxic Angel’, by Joseph Arthur. I downloaded the live versions of these songs off napster (considering how i own the albums on which these two tracks are to be found, I’m ok with this), and it’s simply chilling. Let’s see…It’s All Over Now, Baby Blue (Van Morrison’s version) always chills me up. Special K off the new Placebo CD is damn good as well. As far as classic chilling songs go, though, definately Caruso by Gavin Friday, Lemon by U2, and just about everything Leonard Cohen’s ever done, specifically Waiting for the Miracle, First We Take Manhattan and Everybody Knows. Great stuff.
H.P.E.
I have to agree with SPOOFE and Halber on Pink Floyd’s “Comfortably Numb”, and with the ever-insightful Zenster on “Tocatta and Fugue in D Minor”.
Other songs that have this effect, in no particular order:
“Herald’s Lament” by Mercedes Lackey; soft, simple music with lyrics that blend hope and grief. (“Death never dared him captive keep/He lies not there, he does not sleep…”)
“Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald” by Gordon Lightfoot; the subject matter is enough to chill the blood, and Lightfoot handled it well, I think.
“Poison Glen” by Clannad; again, simple harp song with poignant lyrics.
“The Highwayman” by Loreena McKennit; the original poem always gave me chills–her voice makes it all the stronger.
“Pretty Polly” (a folk song, I don’t know who wrote it)–the end is rather creepy: “Oh, where is pretty Polly/Yonder she stands/With rings on the fingers/Of her lily-white hands” seems innocuous enough, unless you know that Polly was murdered.
How could I forget this one?!?
[li]SiBheag, SiMhor[/li][sup]PLANXTY[/SUP]
The Ullian pipes in the solo introduction are achingly plaintive. When the guitar and mandolin finally join in the melody line, it just about rips your heart out with its eloquence and dolorous sweep. Truly one of O’Carolan’s masterpieces.
[sup](Even though skilled Irish musicians regard it as a sort of nursery rhyme.)[/sup]
PS: I’m listening to it right now and it is so chilling me out. Learning to play this on guitar in full harmony was one of my most satisfying musical achievements.
Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto #2 in C Minor (Especially Mvt. 2, Adagio Sostenuto)
Crystal Flame - Blues Traveler
Jealous Guy - John Lennon
Piano Man - Billy Joel
Walk - Pantera
You don’t know me - Ray Charles
Black - Pearl Jam
Hunger Strike - Temple of the Dog
Stuck inside of mobile with the memphis blues again - Bob Dylan
Across the Universe - Beatles
Hurdy Gurdy Man - Donovan
Nothing Compares 2 You - Sinead O’conner
Dead Skin Mask - Slayer
Florence - Little Blue Crunchy Things
Heaven - Talking Heads
Jersey Girl - Tom Waits (and a plethora of his other tunes)
Arms Wide Open - Creed (normally this song would do nothing for me, but it was serendipitously the first song that I heard after my son was born, the line, “I hope he’s not like me…” hit me hard.)
100 years - Blues Traveler
Simmer Down - Mighty Mighty Bosstones
Snap your Fingers Snap your Neck - Prong
Wish you Were Here - Pink Floyd
Homeward Bound - Simon and Garfunkel
I could go on for awhile but this seems to be getting pretty long so I’ll leave it at that.
“Hallelujah” by Jeff Buckley never fails to do some serious spinal damage.
Other songs that make me stop and gasp:
“One Rainy Wish” - Jimi Hendrix
“Souvenir” - Pretty & Twisted
“Correspondences” - The Tea Party
“Dry the Rain” - The Beta Band (especially that epic climax)
“Red Right Hand” - Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds (just plain scary!)
“Time After Time” - Cyndi Lauper (for purely nostalgic reasons)
[sub]My first post. Yay![/sub]
Hello mate, you finally made it then?
The Mercy Seat by Nick Cave (and the fabulous cover of this song by Johnny Cash.
Most definitely Moya by Godspeed You Black Emperor. Actually, most GYBE! stuff gives me chills.
Swimming The Channel Vs. Driving The Chunnel by Botch
Bro Hymn Tribute by Pennywise
Lisa Germano’s Geek the Girl
Kym Brown’s Pygmalion