Home At Last, from Labyrinth. This is actually an instrumental that plays when Sarah is putting away her toys and pictures. It’s a very slow, tinkly version of As the World Falls Down, also known as the Jareth Is Dead Instrumental. You see why I hate it?
Superheroes, from Rocky Horror. This is the song that Brad and Janet sing in the wreckage of the Frankenstein Place as it’s blasting off to a distant planet. Also known as the Frank Is Dead Song. Of course it depresses me.
However, for sheer slit-your-wrists despair, nothing beats the cover of Mad World on the Donnie Darko soundtrack. The original by Tears For Fears balances mopey lyrics with a surprisingly up-tempo beat so that the song veers between precious and poignant, making it a perfect evocation of teenage self-consciousness. The Donnie Darko version strips away almost all instrumentation, leaving just the singer’s quiet, steady voice. It is the naked, vulnerable personification of melancholy. I’ve listened to it on repeat, and every single time it gives me chills of beauty and gloom.
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Oh, my goodness, a ROUSING second to that “Mad World” cover. So very gloomy and eerie…and rather beautiful too.
It hadn’t struck me till just now that both Frank AND Jareth get a sort of…eulogy in song like that. (Though, I guess that’s because I never really thought Jareth was dead…or…hmm…Now I don’t know. :))
Rampant Bicycle
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Thirded. I’ve actually called it “that bleeding to death in the bathtub” song more than once.
I like it though. But… only in very small doses. o_o
Yeah, I never thought of Jareth as dead. It’s just an instrumental to me.