10 Dark Songs - best atmospheric songs

Love songs without romance, songs of unrequited love without sentiment, the pain of being seperated from a loved one, of being left lonely, of being stalked in the big city, the hopelessness of being born into a world full of prejudice, of fear of one's own emotions ...

The sounds are striking and disturbing.

Even without the music, the lyrics stand on their own as poetry.

Although from various genres of popular music, the sound is similar. They are restrained, solemn, and tense. If the tension breaks, the outburst is angry and desperate.

Most of us have been in despairing situations -- it's part of life -- and there's usually a song we can relate to, reminding us that we're not the first to have suffered.

But these songs are good, too, if you're just feeling reflective.

They've all made me sit up and listen ... to the darker side of life.

From Doherty's debut solo album, Grace/Wastelands, released in August, 2009.

Inspired by time done in London's Wormwood Scrubs, the song is about the lonliness and monotony of life in a prison cell.

Originally recorded in 1957 by Johnny Mathis, David Bowie covered it in 1976, and again (this version) in 1981.

The lyrics might be romantic, but with the song's haunting melody and Bowie's steely vocals, the taste is bitter sweet.

A hit for the Swiss group, Double, in 1986, reaching number eight in the UK Charts, and number 16 in the US.

It's about a girl awaiting the return of her lover. Cool instrumentals and sullen vocals demonstrate the girl's desolation.

When dawn arrives, all hope of his ever returning departs.

The rhythm literally sways like a ship at sea.

Reminds me very much of another song, 'I Cover the Waterfront' -- look out for the Billie Holiday version of that.

This one was released in 1994, and became a European smash hit.

Sung in English, French, and a Senegalese language, the lyrics are trilingual, describing the first seven seconds of a child's life and its perception of the world.

And when a child is born into this world

It has no concept

Of the tone of the skin it's living in

Just one of the many things some human beings concern themselves with, that should be irrelevent.

A 1991 hit about unrequited love.

Shara Nelson's vocals are superb, expressing desperation and maintaining that not to be with the man she loves, be against the laws of nature.

The title was covered by Tina Turner on her Wildest Dreams album.

A highly atmospheric song about being hated, ignored, and destitute within the confines of a small town.

A closed in, downcast spirit dominates the music, the lyrics describing the predicament and offering hope.

From the 1996 album Who Can You Trust

From the 2006 album, Back to Black.

What a woman wouldn't do to be with her man. If he had to serve his country in some unholy war, she would be there, fighting with him -- and for him.

Husband, Blake Fielding-Civil -- from whom Amy was said to be inseparable -- was sent to serve a prison sentence in 2007. She seems only to have half survived the separation. The song is sung from the heart.

Originally released by Phil Phillips in 1959, this murky cover was recorded for the 1989 movie Sea of Love, starring Al Pacino.

Like the constant tidal rhythm, this song could go on forever -- it has no definite end. The power of eternal love compared to the eternal power of nature, perhaps.

The lyrics seem harmless enough -- even romantic. But the melody is an eerie one, and Tom Waits' vocals lend a sinister tone.

I've also added a video of the original Phil Phillips version for comparison. Although it's quite different to Tom Waits' cover, it is strangely chilling. Whether that was intended?

A libertango that tells of the shadier side of Paris life -- a sound full of mystery.

Who the stalking man is, I don't know, but the lyrics are certainly creepy.

Since it's release, the song has become a signature tune for Jones.

From her 1981 album Nightclubbing.

This was recorded for the 1993 movie Young Americans, and was released on Björk's debut album, appropriately titled Debut, of the same year.

The song and it's arrangements are dark and highly dramatic, its lyrics telling of feigning immunity to emotional pain.

Thank you for reading -- and for listening!

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