The 10 Best Metal Songs in 2000s Horror Movies
In this third and (thankfully?) final installment of Best Metal in Horror, I want to count down the 10 best metal songs from ‘00s-era horror movies. If you need a refresher on the previous 2 decades of questionable soundtrack decisions, check out the 80’s list here and the 90’s list here.
As I waded through lists of movies from 2000-2010, I noticed that metal songs stopped showing up on soundtracks after the first couple years. I don’t know if this had anything to do with the rise of the Internet as a promotional tool (e.g. MySpace, Facebook, Twitter, etc), lower advertising budgets for record companies and movie studios, or just a general shift towards orchestral soundtracks and less abrasive music. Aside from Resident Evil: Apocalypse, this list basically dries up after 2003, so instead of a singular countdown, I’ve grouped them roughly by film.
10) Mudvayne – Not Falling (Ghost Ship)
It’s no “Dig,” but this is a solid track from one of of the more competent nu-metal bands from my high school/college years. It also fit pretty nicely into the haunted boat movie Ghost Ship. Too bad they didn’t get the guys in the band as extras for the cable-slicing-everyone-in-half scene.
9) The Dillinger Escape Plan – Baby’s First Coffin (Underworld)
I was never much of a DEP fan, but I did enjoy Miss Machine, the album from which this song came. I also very much enjoyed the over-the-top silliness of Underworld; I mean, come on, you’ve got Kate Beckinsale as a tough as nails/hungry for love vampire in pleather and Bill Nighy with a caramel stuck on the roof of his mouth. What’s not to like?
8) Static-X – Cold (Queen of the Damned)
Another nu-metal track and another ‘sexy vampire’ movie, so basically this era’s pop horror personified. While Wayne Static’s hair didn’t make an appearance in the film, terrifying as it was, this song did, which is really the main takeaway for me. I couldn’t tell you what else happens in it.
7) Slipknot – Wait and Bleed (Scream 3)
Arguably the worst of the Scream movies and the best of the nu-metal bands. It’s still hard to accept that this film came out in 2000, and how much I liked Slipknot that year. These are 2 things I wouldn’t want to discuss over dinner, so take note.
6) Glassjaw – Siberian Kiss (Ginger Snaps)
This song spoke so well to my teen angst. You guys don’t even know. I was unaware that this song was in Ginger Snaps until I went looking – just goes to show how underrated this movie was when it was released, and how deserving it is of its cult status now.
5) Killswitch Engage – The End of Heartache (Resident Evil: Apocalypse)
Killswitch Engage also had a song featured on the Ginger Snaps soundtrack, but I went with “The End of Heartache” from Resident Evil: Apocalypse because I’ve always considered this to be the best metalcore song ever, arrangement-wise. I don’t think Adam D will ever come this close to crafting the perfect pop metal song again… but before you ask, yes, I think Jesse is a better singer than Howard.
4) Slayer – Bloodline (Dracula 2000)
People go on and on about South of Heaven, but Slayer isn’t Slayer without a thrash beat. That said, “Bloodline” slams so hard that the headbang cannot be denied. Unlike Dracula 2000, this song can still inflict serious damage on my neck .
3) System of a Down – Metro (Dracula 2000)
No list from the 2000s is complete without a SOAD song. While this is a Berlin cover, it does what every good cover should do: take the source material, disassemble and rebuild it into something the band covering it might’ve written in an alternate timeline. Also, it helps you forget what a piece of crap Dracula 2000 was.
2) From Autumn to Ashes – The After Dinner Payback (Freddy vs. Jason)
The movie was crap, but its soundtrack was pretty solid, though I had forgotten that From Autumn to Ashes was on it. This is also my favorite FATA song, so it had to find its way onto this list.
1) Lamb of God – 11th Hour (Freddy vs. Jason)
Lamb of God’s best song and THE hardest riff to play when I was in college. I’m not sure how relevant the lyrics of this song are to Freddy vs. Jason, but who cares? This song totally rips, and almost redeems this terrible money-grab of a film.
So there you have it, 3 decades of the best metal from horror movies. Did I miss anything? Leave a comment and tell me!
