Sexy-Creepy Songs

November 29, 2012 6:13 PM

chococat calls his rendition of Fame "dirge-like"; I call it creepy-sexy-creepy. e.g. It's rather a turn on, even though it sounds just subtly too menacing or scary to be a turn-on, but that very quality is why it's a turn-on. Any other recommendations for similar songs? (The only other one I know that fits is Poe's Control.)
posted by divabat to Media & Arts (57 answers total)

i might be missing your goal a bit, but i think much of depeche mode's exciter album fits the bill.
posted by misanthropicsarah at 6:20 PM on November 29, 2012

Response by poster: (oh, the lyrics don't necessarily matter as much as the music/tone/sound, but I like how "Fame" makes "too much is not enough / I can ride your heart till it breaks / I've got what it takes" suddenly so dangerously hot.)
posted by divabat at 6:26 PM on November 29, 2012

Best answer: She Wants Revenge has always had this quality for me. Check out These Things and Tear You Apart.
posted by ChuraChura at 6:30 PM on November 29, 2012 [2 favorites]

It reminds me of a version of Hit Me Baby (One More Time?) some guy did for one of those Make Me a Popstar! reality shows. Marty Casey? Does that sound right? It's not particularly sexy, but it does sound pretty menacing.

Oh! Here it is.
posted by thylacinthine at 6:38 PM on November 29, 2012

Something Fast by Sisters of Mercy
posted by unknowncommand at 6:44 PM on November 29, 2012 [1 favorite]

Mad World by Gary Jules.
posted by Addlepated at 6:47 PM on November 29, 2012

Maybe Every Me, Every You by Placebo, though it's faster and more tenor-y.
posted by unknowncommand at 6:52 PM on November 29, 2012 [1 favorite]

PJ Harvey: Rid of Me
posted by mochapickle at 6:55 PM on November 29, 2012 [2 favorites]

There's an album full of covers that are done in a subdued style like this by an artist named Sexton Blake (actually a guy named Josh Hodges). One of the songs is "Girl You Know It's True" by Milli Vanilli, and that's a dead ringer for chococat's song, but I can't find a full version of it online. Here's a sort of similar version of "Bette Davis Eyes" from the same album.
posted by LionIndex at 7:06 PM on November 29, 2012

Franz Ferdinand - Words so Leisured might fit the bill.
posted by borkencode at 7:23 PM on November 29, 2012

Portishead - Sour Times?
posted by scruss at 7:37 PM on November 29, 2012 [3 favorites]

Elvis Costello's "I want you"

The chorus onward....
posted by Prof Iterole at 7:43 PM on November 29, 2012

10,000 Maniacs Because the Night ?
posted by wiskunde at 7:50 PM on November 29, 2012

Portishead is a good recommendation.

Lord Only Knows by Dirty Beaches

These others sort of match the tempo, but maybe not the creepy-sexy vibe.

Crazy in Love by Pattern is Movement

Gaudy Side of Town by Gayngs (rest of the album fits alright too)

Islands in the Stream by Feist and the Constantines

Protection by Liars

Porno by Clinic

Made by Greg Weeks

Lioness Songs: Ohia (Being in Love too)
posted by codacorolla at 7:52 PM on November 29, 2012 [1 favorite]

Barry Adamson's entire work fits this bill I think. Take Can't Get Loose as an example.
posted by Fiasco da Gama at 7:54 PM on November 29, 2012 [1 favorite]

Oh, I guess Wicked Games by Chris Isaak too.
posted by codacorolla at 8:00 PM on November 29, 2012 [2 favorites]

The Januaries' cover of Paranoid

Stina Nordenstam's cover of Purple Rain

...and as an aside, Chris Isaac visited my place of work today, and sang a little. Carry on.
posted by sourwookie at 8:01 PM on November 29, 2012 [1 favorite]

More PJ Harvey -- To Bring You My Love

Maybe Nick Cave -- Ship Song
posted by FelliniBlank at 8:06 PM on November 29, 2012 [1 favorite]

Red House Painters

Dirty Three
posted by neroli at 8:07 PM on November 29, 2012

AR Kane
posted by neroli at 8:12 PM on November 29, 2012

I kind of got that vibe from this "slightly sinister" cover of "All I Want for Christmas is You."
posted by Rhaomi at 8:21 PM on November 29, 2012

Sonic Youth's cover of Superstar by The Carpenters
posted by Brody's chum at 8:26 PM on November 29, 2012 [1 favorite]

U2 - An Cat Dubh
posted by Lucinda at 8:26 PM on November 29, 2012

Cake / I Will Survive
posted by carter at 8:26 PM on November 29, 2012 [2 favorites]

The National -- All Dolled-Up in Straps
posted by FelliniBlank at 8:28 PM on November 29, 2012 [1 favorite]

and another Portishead track, Strangers
posted by Lucinda at 8:29 PM on November 29, 2012

What's a Girl To Do Bat for Lashes
posted by Brody's chum at 8:30 PM on November 29, 2012 [1 favorite]

The Afghan Whigs' discography, but to make it short, their cover of "Come See About Me."
posted by Rustic Etruscan at 8:36 PM on November 29, 2012

Ok, a guilty pleasure: Garbage, #1 Crush

Also, I think any version of Let's Dance (Bowie or M. Ward) would end up eventually on serial killer radio.
posted by mochapickle at 8:46 PM on November 29, 2012 [2 favorites]

A lot of Daniel Knox might do it for you.
posted by cmoj at 8:52 PM on November 29, 2012

Not sure if this is the exact vibe of the song in the question (which is great), but maybe Junior Boys? Something like In The Morning?
posted by kettleoffish at 8:54 PM on November 29, 2012

If you want a lover
I'll do anything you ask me to
and if you want another kind of love
I'll wear a mask for you
if you want a partner, take my hand
or
if you want to strike me down in anger
here I stand

I'm your man
posted by hurdy gurdy girl at 11:29 PM on November 29, 2012

Seconding the Afghan Whigs, try out "Neglekted"


As for offerings like Poe's sultry yet menacing...

Red Delicious - "Siren" and "Want Me"

Splashdown - "A Charming Spell" and "Ironspy"

Елка - Город обмана

Shiina Ringo - Honnou
posted by elleyebeebeewhy at 12:10 AM on November 30, 2012

maybe something by Serge Gainsbourg?
posted by juv3nal at 1:10 AM on November 30, 2012 [1 favorite]

Toadies' Possum Kingdom
posted by spunweb at 1:44 AM on November 30, 2012 [1 favorite]

What about Born Slippy (you might know it as the 90s rave track - 'LAGER LAGER LAGER LAGER' featured in Trainspotting) covered by Sam Obernick. Very sultry.
posted by everydayanewday at 1:50 AM on November 30, 2012 [1 favorite]

..or maybe Turn It Up by Robots in Disguise, though it has a different kind of urgency.
posted by everydayanewday at 2:03 AM on November 30, 2012

OK, last one! She Cries Your Name by Beth Orton.
posted by everydayanewday at 2:10 AM on November 30, 2012 [1 favorite]

Most Dean Wareham (Galaxie 500/Luna) I consider to be stalker music.
posted by rhizome at 3:50 AM on November 30, 2012

Lots of Giant Sand songs strike me this way because of Howe Gelb's voice. Examples: Shiver, Dirty from the Rain

Another one from Chris Isaak (who unfortunately never comes to my workplace and sings): You Owe Me Some Kind of Love
posted by FelliniBlank at 3:55 AM on November 30, 2012 [1 favorite]

Drive - The Paradise Motel
posted by h00py at 4:31 AM on November 30, 2012

"Bang Bang" always seems this way to me.
posted by DisreputableDog at 4:51 AM on November 30, 2012 [1 favorite]

Gavin Creel "Make You Love Me"

i'm gonna MAKE YOU LOVE ME
i'm gonna hold you down
no matter what you're feelin
you're gonna come around

and i'm gon' MAKE YOU LOVE ME
no matter what you say
posted by jaimystery at 5:09 AM on November 30, 2012

Einsturzende Neubauten - Sand (it's an unironic cover of a nancy sinatra song!)
posted by ennui.bz at 6:40 AM on November 30, 2012 [1 favorite]

Richard Thompson's so very wonderful version of Oops! I did it again.

Leonard Cohen (so very wonderful) just about owns sexy-creepy.
posted by she's not there at 9:07 AM on November 30, 2012 [1 favorite]

Wafflehead by Robyn Hitchcock Cree. Pee.
posted by BeBoth at 10:28 AM on November 30, 2012

Isobel Campbell & Mark Lanegan - Come Undone
posted by The corpse in the library at 11:33 AM on November 30, 2012

The Nurse Who Loved Me--A Perfect Circle
Sober-Tool
Evil-Interpol
PDA-Interpol
We Know Where You Sleep-The Paper Chase
Never Let Me Down Again-Depeche Mode
Greenskeepers-Lotion
Papillion-Editors
posted by mmmbacon at 12:06 PM on November 30, 2012

Maybe this is too obvious, but how about Radiohead's acoustic version of Creep?
posted by Mendl at 1:27 PM on November 30, 2012

I must say that sexy had never entered my mind.
Like in a million years, I wouldn't have thought "sexy." But thanks!
I did a version of Hopelessly Devoted to You several years ago, which may or not fit your criteria. I always thought the lyrics of that one were pretty dark; stalker-ish even, given the right context.
posted by chococat at 4:04 PM on December 1, 2012

It doesn't have a lot in common tonally with these other songs, but Bruce Springsteen's I'm On Fire gives me the feeling you describe.
posted by audacity at 9:29 PM on December 3, 2012

Recoil would fit the bill for me:
Want
Breath Control

I think with those and other songs by Recoil there's definitely an effort to get that creepy and perhaps not sexy but sexual feeling.
posted by bjrn at 2:22 PM on December 4, 2012

PJ Harvey should always be your first stop when you need some sex in your creepy or some creepy in your sex. A few of her songs have already been mentioned. Two others that come to mind are It's You and A Girl Like Me.

The Smashing Pumpkins have a few songs along these lines; Ava Adore and Eye, for instance.
posted by dephlogisticated at 4:51 PM on December 4, 2012

Bill O'Sullivan's Pretty Mouth and Green My Eyes sounds like this to me.
posted by amicamentis at 2:45 PM on December 10, 2012

Ooh! Ooh! I know I'm late, but the Dead Brothers' cover of "Trust in Me (The Python's Song)" fits this bill really well.
posted by Rustic Etruscan at 6:28 AM on December 13, 2012

I think I'm super late to the party, but check out VAST's "Pretty When You Cry."
posted by ntartifex at 1:13 AM on December 19, 2012

In that vein, the Blackeyed Susans cover of Springsteen's "State Troops" is very much this, and hardly anyone has heard it.

The version you want is NOT the 6:48 one from "dedicated the ones we love" but a shorter one that was on a single of theirs.
posted by softlord at 9:19 AM on January 12, 2013