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.
Battle drums. Pounding percussion. A combination of orchestral percussion and ethnic / tribal drums. Suitable for battle, fight, chase, brawls and action scenes. [Tempo: Very slow, Slow, Medium / 77 BPM]
Electronica infused orchestral music. Synth low pulse drives the music with anticipation, joined by low drones and epic percussion. Good music for war preparation, rendezvous scenes, crime investigation, video games and more. [Tempo: Slow, Medium / 110 BPM]
New classical music for film, drama, TV, and storytelling. Piano with light orchestra. Thoughtful / Questioning / Story developing. Great background music for scenes of work, progress, movement, information flow. Detective work, information coming to light, a mystery being unfolded. [Tempo: Medium / 108 BPM]
Battle drums. Pounding percussion. A combination of orchestral percussion and ethnic / tribal drums. Suitable for battle, fight, chase, brawls and action scenes. [Tempo: Medium / 108 BPM]
A powerful and grand / regal orchestral / symphonic soundtrack piece, driven forward by Taiko like percussion. Pounding drums combine with dramatic string sections to create a sense of imminent battle, dangerous situation. Perhaps a sea rescue, a dangerous missing on enemy territory, or the rise of an awesome fighting force. Military / Fantasy / Action / Conflict / Fight. (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 / 75 BPM]
A sneaky and subtly pensive background / underscore track, suitable for mystery, discovery, exploration and for history / documentary etc. This is music that you don't really 'notice' as it doesn't stand out or grab the attention. It just stays in the background and provides a creepy, uneasy, mysterious atmosphere. Has a sense of dangers lurking nearby. The track is over 6 minutes long with no repetition at all, so it can be played in a loop for a long time without getting too repetitive. Can also be used for crime / criminal police / forensic investigation, puzzle solving etc. [Tempo: Slow / 0 BPM]
A dramatic, epic, dark and atmospheric music track for Hollywood blockbusters, very dramatic scenes and cinematic trailers. Made with epic orchestra, sound design, epic drums and vocal. The dramatic female vocal gives the track an exotic, Eastern feel - but the track is also available without the vocal, and the no-vocals version is more location neutral and can be the score for any international conspiracy thriller or other high drama production. Trailer / Hollywood / Epic Music. [Tempo: Slow, Medium / 120 BPM]
A bleak and mournful track used in a documentary about the Hungerford Massacre. A crying female vocal works alongside a desolate piano, acoustic guitars, and drums to a very powerful and emotional climax. The variations offer gentler alternatives to the man track. [Tempo: Very slow, Slow / 64 BPM]
Cinematic retro synth wave; this track was created using only two vintage hardware synthesizers; a Moog Minimoog model D and a Prophet 5. Strangely futuristic and vintage at the same time. Ambient / Eerie / Synthetic / Retro / Mystery. [Tempo: Medium / 120 BPM]
Staccato cellos, pianos, uneasy harmony resolving in beauty (1 min), slightly serious yet playful and lively. Works with advertising, drama, avant-garde film, mysteries and television dramas. [Tempo: Fast / 113 BPM]
A weird and quirky track with ambient and tribal/ethnic influences. Slight jungle / tribe feel, mixed with cutting-edge, minimalistic urban and mechanical, even futuristic styles. A slapped bass groove, various textural and experimental sounds and swirley pads. [Tempo: Medium / 97 BPM]
Percussion only track / Battle drums. Tracks with Drums only are useful for action sequences, fight scenes, war and battles, macho sports and exertion, powerful imagery, dramatic trailers and more. Also available as seamlessly looping Drum loops / Percussion loops. [Tempo: Very slow, Slow / 53 BPM]
Cinematic retro synth wave; this track was created using only two vintage hardware synthesizers; a Moog Minimoog model D and a Prophet 5. Strangely futuristic and vintage at the same time. Ambient / Eerie / Synthetic / Retro / Mystery. [Tempo: Slow, Medium / 90 BPM]
Edgy and visceral music. Building with anticipation to final epic theme. Heroic music / Dramatic / Triumphant / Amazement. [Tempo: Slow, Medium / 70 BPM]
A mystery theme in classic style and sound. Performed with an actual live string section, this track has a nerve and a certain evil twist. A sense of intrigue and a delicious darkness. [Tempo: Medium / 141 BPM]
A pulsating, tension building music track, featuring piano chord progression, ambience synths, and epic orchestra sound. Powerfully rising into a big, epic music track. [Tempo: Slow, Medium / 100 BPM]
Dark, edgy, doom-laden mystery underscore. Foreboding. Tension. Pulse. Danger. [Tempo: Slow / 120 BPM]
An ominous, dramatic and tension building music track featuring hybrid orchestra, combined with classical orchetra and deep synths. Growing into big, epic trailer music. [Tempo: Slow, Medium / 80 BPM]
An orchestral cinematic mystery background track. Classic movie soundtrack / film score sound, with piano and orchestral elements create an eerie, suspicious, investigative feel. This rather dark and foreboding background music will go well with drama, mystery, crime, detective investigation, solving riddles, finding clues, or just following a developing story of intrigue and enigma. [Tempo: Slow / 78 BPM]
Baraka, Koyaanisqatsi, Powaqqatsi, landscape, soundscape, desert, deserted, Carl Sagan, Mystery, Cosmos, Universe, Big Bang, Godfrey Reggio, Philip Glass, Ron Fricke, Dead Can Dance, Contemplative, Slow, Intense, Maya, Mayans, 2012, End of the world, Mayan Calendar, Nostradamus, Prediction, Prophecy, Prophecies, Shaman, Ayahuasca, Mind Travel, ESP, Alien, UFO, ET, Extra-Terrestrial, Buddha, Buda, Nepal, Tibet, dark, darkness, scifi, sci fi, sci-fi, science fiction, desolate, space, emptiness, vacuum, aliens, mind control, meditation, meditate, yoga, mystery, mysterious, mystical, apocalypse, post apocalyptic, nuclear winter, underwater, under water, sorcery, sorceror, witch, pensive, scary, horror, tibetan, monk, monks, Ancient soundscape with some oriental influences, especially the Tibetan tuvan monk singing, typical from Nepal. Great for history documentaries and specials. Also for sci-fi and horror. [Tempo: Very slow, Slow / 0 BPM]
Sparse, dark and ominous ambient track. Good for film noir, dark thriller, horror, sci-fi or spy mystery. Pensive strings, deep bass, reverberant congas. [Tempo: Slow / 0 BPM]
A modern trailer music track, starting out as a suspense piece, and then evolving into big, epic track featuring large percussion ensemble. Epic / Powerful / Brooding music. [Tempo: Slow, Medium / 95 BPM]
Dark and ominous percussion, anxious, ritualistic, tribal, fear, malevolence. For more in this style, please see the genre Ambient: Dark/Sinister [Tempo: Slow / 104 BPM]
An eerie or slightly dark suspenseful track made with chamber orchestra. Simple structure, evolving. Suspense / Cinematic / Classical. [Tempo: Medium / 120 BPM]
15 minutes continuous, uninterrupted background music track for video productions and other media. Mystical, eerie, cold and pulsating soundtrack for Scifi or Mystery. Brooding music, pensive and awe inducing. Creates a feeling of unknown tension, and a vast space. [Tempo: Slow / 120 BPM]
Tense and pulsating orchestral atmosphere growing in intensity to big finish. Evolving / Majestic / Soaring music track. [Tempo: Medium / 224 BPM]
A pulsating, drama building music track, featuring lead synth, ambience synths, and epic orchestra. Powerfully rising into a big, epic track, featuring full orchestra combined with hybrid sounds, and and large percussion ensemble. [Tempo: Slow, Medium / 125 BPM]
Atmospheric and spacey trailer music track, with a powerful melody and emotional build up, Epic hits, retro synths and orchestral elements create an uplifting heroic feel. Dramatic, dark, gritty and futuristic music. [Tempo: Slow / 75 BPM]
Horror movie inspired industrial metal powered by electronic beats. Heavy distorted guitar tones meet filthy electronica in horror filled basement. [Tempo: Slow, Medium / 140 BPM]
A foreboding and tension-building music track combining Cinematic and Electronic elements, using a blend of synths and symphonic sounds combined. Suitable for mystery and dramatic scenes. Awe / Amazement / Mystery / Drama / Darkness Music. [Tempo: Slow, Medium / 80 BPM]
An "oriental'ed" dubstep track. Aggressive and melodic, its oriental touch is given trough a catchy usage of a Duduk and Yall Tambour and its trashy side trough a rough beat and greasy bass synth. A dynamic and surprising progression that would match any sport or urban related footage. [Tempo: Slow, Medium, Fast / 140 BPM]
An epic trailer music track with retro feel synthesizers and hard hitting drums. Atmospheric opening is lined with low synth pads and drones building to an epic bass drop. Lots of glitches, boomers and drops fit for a dramatic movie or video game trailer music or other edgy, dark, gloomy and twitchy material. [Tempo: Slow, Medium / 105 BPM]
Hard-hitting, relentless hybrid industrial trailer production music track with some Hip Hop influence - leading to a victorious crescendo. Tons of electronics, piano, guitars and sound design elements. Edgy / Tension / Big. [Tempo: Slow, Medium / 128 BPM]
A tense and gritty electronic / industrial music track with a sense of danger and urgency. A dire situation, code red, time running out, impending chaos. Deliberately dirty, uneasy, stressed music. [Tempo: Slow, Medium / 75 BPM]
A dark and edgy track with deep ambiance and big percussion. The track opens with a very ambient and wide open sound, distant effects and chimes add to the mood of the track. Deep bass and powerful drum hits add a great bit of power to the track. Acid synthline is full of energy and edgy drums combine into a great mix of electronic and cinematic sound. A versatile track that can be used anywhere from videogame to dark horror film, sci-fi, crime, etc. [Tempo: Medium / 125 BPM]
A very dark and dramatic music, starting as a suspense build-up for an epic sounding main section, which consists of a classic symphonic orchestra with large percussive elements and metal impacts. Powerful / Tense / Dangerous. [Tempo: Medium, Fast / 85 BPM]
A Percussion Only track, with marching snares, military march. Occasional big drum strikes. Useful as music for scenes of war, war preparation, battle preparations, etc. [Tempo: Slow, Medium / 100 BPM]
Cranky and dark beats with a mix of Funk and Hip-Hop music styles. Moody / Mean / Serious / Suspicious / Urban Music. [Tempo: Slow, Medium / 90 BPM]
Battle drums. Pounding percussion. A combination of orchestral percussion and ethnic / tribal drums. Suitable for battle, fight, chase, brawls and action scenes. [Tempo: Slow, Medium, Fast / 68 BPM]
Neo-classical / orchestral music with piano, for film, cinema, theater and storytelling. Introspective, contemplative and searching. Background music for film, scenes of a progressing story or developing storylines. Also good for documentary, culture, history and more. [Tempo: Medium / 139 BPM]
A dark, doom laden, aggressive and gritty, semi-electronic / semi-orchestral music track. The first and last thirds are relentless and violent with an industrial, edgy, futuristic sound. The middle third has a more ethnic / world feel. Future / Action / Dystopian Music. [Tempo: Fast / 120 BPM]
A powerful, intense music track featuring a blend of epic orchestra and pulsating synths in bass and lead section. Tension / Brooding / Ominous / Fight music. [Tempo: Medium, Fast / 95 BPM]
A fast, dramatic and powerful blockbuster music track featuring an aggressive string section, large brass ensemble and loud, epic mixed choir. Very epic and awe inspiring music. [Tempo: Medium, Fast / 80 BPM]
Calm intro section into Powerful and edgy, massive electro track. Power / Sci-fi / Future. [Tempo: Slow, Fast / 135 BPM]
An open, transparent underscore music with a somewhat mysterious, pensive tone. Echoey guitars over a slightly dark drone. Thoughtful and reflective, perhaps regret or waiting for something. The end part takes on a more assertive, gloomy, doom laden feel. Also available as an Underscore version, and as a version without the drums. [Tempo: Very slow, Slow / 90 BPM]
A Percussion Only track, with marching snares, military march. Occasional big drum strikes. Useful as music for scenes of war, war preparation, battle preparations, etc. [Tempo: Slow, Medium / 100 BPM]
A Percussion Only track, with big pounding drums in various more and less intense patterns. Useful as music for sound design, film scoring, games and more. [Tempo: Slow, Medium / 140 BPM]
A dark yet magical piece. Epic, with a focus primarily on full choir. Requiem feel. [Tempo: Slow, Medium / 70 BPM]
A grand, epic track that is not very aggressive or dark, but rather more illuminating, sacred, expectant. Rousing and regal, with a victorious / triumphant 'resolve' at the end. Good for fantasy, sci-fi, historical/cultural, grand entry, rising force, etc. Amazement / Heroism / Illumination / Uprising. [Tempo: Slow, Medium / 150 BPM]
This chamber orchestra track has a balance of story-telling and cinematic drama capabilities and can be used in a wide range of media. A beautiful piano arpeggio melody to accompany this track and the soft and sudden piercing stabs and leads with the violin to really bring the most emotion and enjoyment of this beautiful melody and emotional track. Edgy, raw, close, live strings production. (Stem files available.) [Tempo: Medium, Fast / 65 BPM]
