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.
Edgy and visceral music. Building with anticipation to final epic theme. Heroic music / Dramatic / Triumphant / Amazement. [Tempo: Slow, Medium / 70 BPM]
A spooky and mysterious cinematic music composition with ever-evolving harmonies and scary vibe, with a tongue-in-cheek / fun mystery vibe. Great for Halloween-related videos, films and projects, magic music and mischief! [Tempo: Medium, Fast / 130 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]
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]
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 tension-filled, pulsating and dramatic string orchestra piece. Filled with turmoil, drama and movement, this piece will work great as a cinematic main theme / intro theme, or a dramatic trailer. Serious music / Neo-Classical. [Tempo: Medium, Fast / 121 BPM]
Dark, edgy, doom-laden mystery underscore. Foreboding. Tension. Pulse. Danger. [Tempo: Slow / 120 BPM]
A minimalistic and sparse ambient music track with a repeating bass figure over kalimba and subtle percussion. Light tension, time passing, observation. Useful as illustrative background music for TV, film and other media. [Tempo: Medium / 95 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]
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]
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 marching, foreboding and determined, orchestral track with pounding drums. Dangerous situation. Powerful onslaught. Heroic rescue. Honor and victory. [Tempo: Medium / 85 BPM]
A pulsating and forward moving, orchestral track with a heroic, triumphant and regal drive. Great for action, trailer, rescue mission, overcoming adversity, driven by desire to succeed. Finishes with a melancholic afterthought, a low-key revisit of the main theme. [Tempo: Medium, Fast / 95 BPM]
A dramatic, semi-orchestral and cinematic track filled with rousing emotions, building tension. A sense of witnessing history in the making, amazement and heroism. (Stem files available.) [Tempo: Slow, Medium / 90 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]
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]
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]
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 / 66 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 nasty industrial-electronic track with vicious, pounding percussion and a violent, edgy and gritty sound. Violence / Horror / Sci-fi / Destruction / Alarm / Madness. [Tempo: Slow, Medium / 88 BPM]
An epic hybrid trailer track with larger than life hits. Huge bass stabs that are heavily distorted yet have warm analog quality. The track is reminiscent of Tron soundtrack with melodic synthesizer elements and huge orchestra accompaniment. This track is a must have for any epic movie or video game trailer. Dark and edgy.
[Tempo: Slow, Medium / 65 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]
Deep bass lines and synths build a dark and intense atmosphere with a sense of suspense and drama. Good track for underscore dramatic situations. An amazing fusion of distorted guotar lines, percussion and strings. [Tempo: Slow, Medium, Fast / 100 BPM]
Hard hitting, fast, relentless and ruthless techno / industrial style material. This track is high on energy and packs a mean punch. Suitable for film chase or fight scene, extreme sports, racing, raw power, sci-fi and much more. [Tempo: Slow, Fast / 86 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]
Dark, eerie, ominous, brooding, evil, atmospheric, determined, moody, haunting electro-cinematic rock track with a great sense of suspense, drama & foreboding. mix of synths, drum loops & guitar samples. Would suit action / filmic / halloween / horror / thriller type projects. [Tempo: Medium / 110 BPM]
A mystical tension, suspense / action track with orchestral and hybrid elements. Simmering tension, with a dark atmospheres. Ominous, foreboding. [Tempo: Slow / 75 BPM]
An eerie and mystical ambient world / ethnic soundtrack, featuring Middle Eastern or North African moods and sounds. Atmospheric, dream-like, a feeling of foreboding and tension, like a mystery in the desert landscape. (Stem files available.) [Tempo: Very slow, Slow / 0 BPM]
Typical news broadcast type music with synthetic and orchestral elements blended into a pulsating, serious sounding music bed. Great music for Latest News / Breaking News type productions. (Stem files available.) [Tempo: Medium / 116 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]
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]
An epic blockbuster music track loaded with power and energy. Featuring huge impacts, risers and orchestra. Rising from dark, suspense mood to big trailer track. Awe / Power / Greatness / Epic Music. [Tempo: Slow, Medium / 145 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 and ominous percussion, anxious, ritualistic, tribal, fear, malevolence. For more in this style, please see the genre Ambient: Dark/Sinister [Tempo: Slow / 104 BPM]
Fantasy style orchestral soundtrack. Dark, gloomy and ominous. Big horn sections, mysterious melodies. Great for fantasy, epic adventures, dark times, horror, impending doom and conflict. Occasional deep vocal grunts and chants. This piece plays for over 6 minutes with plenty of variation, and can be used for several different cues, or used all together as background atmosphere. [Tempo: Slow / 75 BPM]
Dark and gloomy, powerful and pensive action thriller underscore. Nervous and understated rhythmic pulse, dark, twitchy strings. A deep sense of danger and dark forces. Great as a soundtrack for film, tv or game, mystery thriller, undercover mission, etc. [Tempo: Slow, Medium / 96 BPM]
Staccato and nervous, semi-orchestral tension underscore. Undercover, dangerous mission. Few guitar notes mixed with symphonic elements and a pulsating rhytmic backdrop. Movement, getting into position, primed and ready for action. Great for spy, mystery, thriller, crime, secret mission, military or swat team etc. [Tempo: Medium, Fast / 125 BPM]
Dark and subtly dramatic underscore for film, tv, game or any visual media. Foreboding, serious, perhaps political or law thriller, undercover or dangerous mission. Pensive, mysterious piano notes, nervous strings, brass crescendi and an understated rhythmic pulse. [Tempo: Medium / 89 BPM]
Semi-orchestral, semi-industrial and powerful thriller soundtrack. Dark string and brass textures, a pulsating beat that oozes just under the surface. Serious, international conflict, war or battleground, covert mission, etc. [Tempo: Slow / 50 BPM]
Staccato strings and synth pulse arpeggio. Military or science fiction cinematic sountrack style. Spluttering synthesizers, orchestral horn stabs, timpani, congas and snares. First half sneaky and building, dissonant, arm-up. Second half all-out battle, chase, action. [Tempo: Medium, Fast / 100 BPM]
Sneaky, threatening, pensive, semi-orchestral rhythmic underscore. Use to illustrate danger, lurking enemies, suspicion and uneasy feeling, the sense of a threat hiding behind the next turn. Dangerous situation. Ominous, foreboding and sinister. Good for action-adventure, dramatic reality-TV, fantasy- or action games, spy thriller, police drama, and more. [Tempo: Medium / 90 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]
Expanding ambient, cosmic textures, futuristic layers, good for sci-fi, contact and discovery. [Tempo: Very slow / 119 BPM]
A very pensive underscore track, suitable for drama or thriller. Thoughtful, a sense of time passing, clues coming into place. Starts out with a simple piano and grows in intensity towards a frantic crescendo at about 01:15 before returning to the original, sparse theme once again. [Tempo: Medium, Fast / 139 BPM]
A pair of brooding, dark, ominous pieces. Perhaps a dark sorcerer... Suitable for black magic, fantasy/sci-fi, visual presentations and more. Each one climaxes towards the end. [Tempo: Very slow / 94 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]
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]
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]