Our selection of royalty-free cinematic music with an emphasis on tension, danger, nerve, and a sense of unease. Sometimes more subtle and sneaky music, other times more overt threatening music and soundtracks for critical situations, this music is made for action thrillers, police operations, stakeouts, spy / undercover agents, dangerous missions, hurricane-chasing and more.
A very slow and dark, pounding rhythm. Resonant distorted guitar, monotonous bass line and slow pounding acoustic drums. Images of dirty machinery, dark future. [Tempo: Very slow / 53 BPM]
A quirky and odd production music track with naive bells and a slight 'medieval' touch of harpsichord. Like an old house with secrets, perhaps something that would go in a dark comedy, a Halloween related production or a haunted house music. [Tempo: Medium / 105 BPM]
A darkly ambient, threatening and unnerving underscore. Suitable for tense and pensive drama scenes, reality show, documentary, dangerous situations, nervous undertow. [Tempo: Very slow, Slow / 103 BPM]
A foreboding and ominous film soundtrack underscore. Deep drums, atmospheric swirls and drones create a ticking, pensive, rhythmic background highly suitable for crime thriller, dark drama, investigative mystery. Hidden clues, a dangerous situation, or perhaps unveiling a dark secret? [Tempo: Medium / 81 BPM]
Underlying tension. A dark and creepy underscore track for horror or dark drama, criminal documentary or crime scene investigation. What gruesome discovery lies behind the next turn? A nervous, pensive background track. Clanky percussion, deep drones and a serious, tense undertow. [Tempo: Slow, Medium / 115 BPM]
Weird underscore soundscape for thriller, dark drama, crime scene investigation or documentary. Hints of screeching metals, deep thuds and strange twisted melodies from a dark place. A disturbing sound montage like a hidden evil or searching for clues to a gruesome discovery. Great for film, TV or in-game use. [Tempo: Medium / 83 BPM]
A transparent film or movie underscore, ambient but with a hint of emotion or personal intrigue. Good for a dark drama, mysterious or understated scene of discovery or reflection. [Tempo: Slow / 65 BPM]
A dark, cold and damp TV or film underscore cue. Pensive, unnerving and unsettling, this piece is suitable for a scene in a crime mystery, horror flick or perhaps a criminal documentary featuring evil or the occult, gruesome discoveries in forensics, crime scene investigation, etc. [Tempo: Very slow, Slow / 0 BPM]
A building and pounding action cue with driving percussion rhythms, orchestral energy, and big drums, underscoring anything from a heist getaway to a battle between man and machine. Very much in the vein of John Powell's "Bourne" movies and the scores of Hanz Zimmer and Steve Jablonsky ("Batman Begins" and "Transformers"). [Tempo: Fast / 75 BPM]
"Constructing the Machine". A pulsing and building orchestral thriller montage cue underscoring anything from working mathematical formulas to constructing a time machine. Rhythmic percussion, brass, strings, ambient fx, electronic instruments. [Tempo: Medium / 128 BPM]
Live chamber orchestra, string section playing a classical / filmscore theme with a sense of urgency and development. [Tempo: Fast / 122 BPM]
A tense musical sound texture combining percussive elements and dissonant orchestral sweeps. Suspenseful, intense, ominous. Conflict/Danger. Film soundtrack, game soundtrack or documentary / reality drama etc. [Tempo: Fast / 124 BPM]
A series of 4 pieces of textural, ambient, musical soundscapes. Suitable for documentary, cultural, history, archeology, travel and exploration, mystery and more. [Tempo: Very slow, Slow / 0 BPM]
Tough to describe in words. A hypnotic dance throb runs through this fairly avante garde track as various synth leads come in and out. Very spacey and yet relentlessly trance inducing. Brings visions of an underground pumping, sweaty nightclub scenario to mind. [Tempo: Medium / 111 BPM]
Hip Hop styled theme to the urban underworld. Groovey beats combine with plucked strings, synth pads and leads to make a hypnotic and unnervingly atmospheric soundscape. Don't look behind you. [Tempo: Slow / 90 BPM]
Suspense-filled heavy guitar dance track. Meaty and angular beats combine with synth basslines, sequences and pads. Very filmic, slightly dark and full of tense energy. Contains synths, drum units and distorted guitars. [Tempo: Medium, Fast / 110 BPM]
A strong, powerful, menacing, epic filmscore track. Symphonic orchestra and choir mixed with techno/industrial elements to create a feel of futuristic or modern warfare, mechanoids, space battle, transformers fighting, brawling or stand-off. Suitable for future / sci-fi / metal and glass, fire and destruction, dramatic trailers, battle / chase / conflict / war scenes. Also available as a Rock Mix with added power guitars and rock drums, and as an alternative version without the choir. [Tempo: Medium, Fast / 123 BPM]
An ominous, edgy, tense, semi-orchestral and semi-industrial action soundtrack. Orchestra with epic percussion, majestic sounding choir. Glorious / glorifying but also tense / terror / dark power, with a technology / mechanical edge. Good for dramatic trailers, modern and futuristic warfare, battle / fight, sci-fi and fantasy, action adventure, raw/violent sports footage and more. Also available as a Rock Mix with added power guitars and rock drums, and as an alternative version without the choir. [Tempo: Medium, Fast / 136 BPM]
Dark, twisted and sinister electro-metal track. Eerie synths and hypnotic bass meet in a head-on collision to form a powerful formula . Imagine Nine Inch Nails jamming with Massive Attack and asking Jeff Beck to guest. [Tempo: Slow / 63 BPM]
Dark, twisted electronic track full of foreboding. Sinister synth pads and bass combine with simple spacey piano lines and lush strings. The chorus blooms into a soft peaceful section, a release from the foreboding mood of the verse. [Tempo: Medium / 116 BPM]
A staccato, ominous, aggressive march, perhaps portaying battle ready hordes going off to war. Fantasy and adventure, medieval or historical, conquering forces. [Tempo: Slow / 56 BPM]
Soft, slow and moody with a feeling of intrigue and mystery. Orchestral strings, catchy synth leads and distant synth pulses mix with a spacey trip-hop style rhythm section groove. Contains strings, synths, bass and drums. [Tempo: Slow / 70 BPM]
Full percussion and orchestral score suggests big open spaces, great adventures, new frontiers to conquer. Main battle drums set in after about a minute. [Tempo: Medium / 97 BPM]
A wide, brooding cinematic soundscape featuring spacey pads, a rhythmic topline and deep, distant drum fills. Evoking images of distant horizons, infinite space or world changing natural events. Suggests documentary style programming covering ecology, science & technology, future cataclysmic events and large scale discoveries. [Tempo: Medium / 123 BPM]
A slow, pulsating, rather ominous and pensive rhythm sets the scene for a track that develops into an expansive, open aural vista. It has a sense of something important happening, something amazing approaching. It keeps growing into a glorious crescendo until finally all is revealed at the climax. A great track for when you want to build expectation and excitement towards the revealing moment. [Tempo: Medium / 120 BPM]
Action build-up / Gear-up / Hollywood action/tech/scifi. A pensive and at times grand, heroic orchestral film soundtrack piece which blends electronic instruments and symphony orchestra for a technology / futuristic feel. This rather long track goes through various stages, some of which are pensive and foreboding, others more heroic, more regal and grand. This track will go well with any high-tech / sci-fi / war- or action film. (A note about the version described as 'Stage Mix': This version is recorded with the reverb/ambiance of a concert hall, making it sound somewhat more 'distant' from the listener and, some would say, more 'live') [Tempo: Medium / 61 BPM]
Use of Eastern percussion to bring across the clash of the titans on the battlefield, coming face to face with your adversary. Gearing for war, high impact, action, battle, fight, conquest, confrontation, combat. Recorder, shakers, dufflis, duff, dhol. [Tempo: Fast / 135 BPM]
World percussion, strings, low pianos, synth. A piece full of thrills. thriller, chiller, dangerous situation, hair raising, spine chilling, adventurous. Chase, urgent, stressed. [Tempo: Slow, Fast / 135 BPM]
Majestic and dark, this fantasy inspired passage canters towards wavering violins at 00:41. [Tempo: Very fast / 110 BPM]
Tensile, unearthly washes stretched over a deep sonic rumble. Ominous, discordant & menacing. Very uneasy, sneaky, mysterious, a little bit psychotic. [Tempo: Very slow, Slow / 0 BPM]
A sense of impending doom builds from distant bells to sinister cellos, drums & a climax at 2:45. [Tempo: Slow / 85 BPM]
A creature from beyond time and space appears, accompanied by massive, cinematic, trailer-style orchestra and choir! [Tempo: Fast / 151 BPM]
A percussion driven track, good for a military march scene. Note: This track starts *very* quietly and grows in a very slow crescendo. You will hardly hear anything until it starts to build up enough volume around 00:30 onwards. [Tempo: Medium, Fast / 98 BPM]
Is this business as usual or a front for an illegal operation? Suspenseful underscore, featuring odd-meter orchestral/electronic rhythmic vamp which gives the feeling of a working process, but at the same time of mischief, something not-quite-right. Good for mystery films and documentaries on crime. Key of D, 104 bpm. [Tempo: Slow / 103 BPM]
Many moods captured in an epic underscore. Begins with dark march and action-oriented outbursts, with interludes of tragic reflection and heroic themes. Second half is a furious action / march, always with a menacing and dark undertone. Good for medieval battle, attack of the evil empire, blood-soaked battleground. This track was recorded with a real live philharmonic orchestra. [Tempo: Very slow, Slow, Medium / 0 BPM]
Huge stabs give way to twisted maniacal anguish and haunted voices. Tragic theme introduces a grim march propelled by determination and grit. The theme is presented at the end in a burst of triumph and heroism. Good for epic battle, fight to the finish, dark action. [Tempo: Very slow, Slow, Medium, Fast / 0 BPM]
A twisted, dark and discordant waltz opens this dynamic epic track of courage and determination that also shows a sad and tragic emotional side. Voices create a medieval undertone. The track finishes with dark orchestral stabs and hangs on a barely resolved violin phrase. Good for dark battle, epic defeat. [Tempo: Slow, Medium, Fast / 0 BPM]
This dynamic track starts with unsettling intrigue and suspense, and develops into a flight-for-life. A broad orchestral theme tugs at the heart as the prey is mercilessly pursued. A sustained chord at the end leaves this track unresolved. Good for suspense, drama, thriller, horror. [Tempo: Very slow, Slow, Medium / 0 BPM]
This is a collection of tracks depicting an experience of survival training, personal challenge and conquering of fear. All of the moods are captured; introspection and trepidation, fear, anxiety, striving, success and triumph. Highly editable and flexible, these are tracks that are designed to underscore and support without being too specific. Stings and alternate versions are provided for many of the tracks. Piano and guitar are featured. Many tracks share the principal themes, creating a coherent show package. Good for outdoor TV series, reality shows, lifestyle programming, documentary, nature programming, history. [Tempo: Very slow, Slow, Medium, Fast / 0 BPM]
Action and suspense soundtrack with a funky, retro feel similar to classic 60s and 70s film scores. Starts with a sparse, avant garde feel gradually building to a dramatic, driving funky groove with horns and strings. Also features piano, percussion, drums and bass. [Tempo: Medium / 112 BPM]
An eerie track with elements of dark dub, hip-hop and downtempo ambient music. Has a unique sound / style and a cool hip hop beat with echoing female voices. Rough / Cool / Mysterious. Good for analysis, rough background groove, corporate use, inner city dark vibes, etc. [Tempo: Slow, Very slow / 79 BPM]
A rhythmic, pensive, tense soundtrack based on orchestra and pounding, epic percussion. Good for rescue mission, military conflict / mission, grand adventures. Has a sense of something ethnic and foreign, but without being tied to a specific country or region. This track is also available with an additional Lead Vocal [Tempo: Slow, Medium / 97 BPM]
Enhance your scenes of long and dark winters, loneliness, mystery, broken hearts or breathtaking nature with this brooding, urban downtempo track featuring piano, pads, bells, bass and drums. Creates a real feeling of space and emptiness over a relaxed funky groove. [Tempo: Slow, Medium / 77 BPM]
Driving and energetic orchestral/electronic track. Broody suspense building mood music for chase scenes and action sequences and high intensity situations. Suitable for film, TV and DVD documentary. CSI Miami, NCIS and Criminal Mind type music. Instrumental, Action Music, Action Thriller Electronic. [Tempo: Slow, Fast / 85 BPM]
A catchy, forward moving orchestral/electronic track suitable for action/thriller, featuring groovy drums and a powerful sub bass line that will give your project a nice touch. [Tempo: Medium, Fast / 130 BPM]
Mystery, intrigue and magic in this deep, tense / pensive fantasy underscore. Creepy, sneaky, underlying tension. Good for adventure, exploring, lurking danger. Use in fantasy games, sci-fi / horror film, mystery and suspense. Full orchestra; available with or without choir. [Tempo: Very slow, Slow / 100 BPM]
A dark, cold and damp TV or film underscore cue. Pensive, unnerving and unsettling, this piece is suitable for a scene in a crime mystery, horror flick or perhaps a criminal documentary featuring evil or the occult, gruesome discoveries in forensics. Soundscapes. [Tempo: Slow, Medium / 85 BPM]
Tense combination of sound designer sounds with ambient synth textures and a hard hitting techno backdrop. action, drama, dramatic, chase, crime, police, battle, war, futuristic action and suspense. [Tempo: Fast, Very fast / 100 BPM]
Jazzy Experimental abstract track with a cinematic touch . [Tempo: Slow, Medium / 95 BPM]
Jazzy, abstract intro. Grows in intensity as it goes along, and introduces new elements. Works well as an intro to something with high expectation. [Tempo: Medium, Fast / 160 BPM]