GIALLO WEEK: Soundtrack for a Killer

Today...we pause for a sexy musical interlude.

Giallo is nothing without the pulsating music accompanying the violent murders onscreen. Think about your favorite Giallo film. Now take away the music and add something else. Doesn't work...does it? While there are certainly films that you can apply the same experiment to...the soundtrack for any Giallo film is its own entity. An entity born of death and sexual deviance and the unrelenting love of the dance floor. Yes...while the soundtrack to any Italian genre film can be eerie and downright is the Giallo soundtrack that can embrace you in a dreamlike manner, assault you in a frenetic nightmare and inspire you to put your dancing shoes on...all at once. It is not Giallo music if it doesn't do all these three things. And what makes this particular soundscape so interesting is that it doesn't necessarily have to come from a good film. Hell...some of my favorite Giallo soundtracks are from downright terrible films. However, the music from some of those films are forever seared into my subconscious. Occasionally recalling the bass track to The Fifth Cord  whenever I'm in traffic despite the film being...ok. I mean...some of the camera work is cool...and I tried to love it because of Franco Nero...but,'s not a great film. Still...that score is pretty goddamn awesome. And sometimes...just sometimes...that's all that really matters.

From Bava's classic The Girl Who Knew Too Much  to Argento's masterful Opera  and beyond there really is nothing like music from a Giallo film. Nothing. Ennio Morricone, Bruno Nicolai, Riz Ortolani, Fabio Frizzi and the immortal Goblin are masters of their craft that aurally match the brilliance of the auters whom their music complements. Below are a couple of links to some great Giallo mixes, which also includes some other Italian genre films of distinction. Click the red 8track link below and press play...or just hit play on the YouTube playlist provided for you at the bottom. is one of the best playlists on YouTube and makes for a great soundtrack to your Deviant day (or night). Now...go kill someone in the dark!

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