## Stranger Things Season 5 Soundtrack: A Guide to Every Needle Drop
The 1980s-set Netflix series Stranger Things has always had a real knack for choosing songs of the era and exploding their popularity. The most notable example of this was Season 4’s epic use of Kate Bush‘s “Running Up That Hill,” but every season up through season 5 has featured some unexpected yet welcome needle drops, including The Clash’s “Should I Stay or Should I Go,” the Police’s “Every Breath You Take,” and Metallica’s “Master of Puppets.”
So, with the premiere of the fifth and final season, let’s break down the most critically important songs chosen by music supervisor Nora Felder and the production team, episode by episode – all the music you might hear that’s not written by composers Kyle Dixon and Michael Stein. The mix so far includes a few familiar tracks, and also some new artists making their Stranger Things debut. Will this season lead to a renaissance for artists like Diana Ross or Tiffany? One can onyl hope.[
[Editor’s note: The following contains spoilers for Stranger Things Season 5 Episode 8, “The Rightside Up.”]
Episode 1: “The Crawl”
Table of Contents
Stranger Things (netflix)
- The Clash – “Should I Stay or Should I Go”
- Michael Jackson – “Rockin’ Robin”
- The psychedelic Furs – “Pretty in Pink”
- Diana Ross – “Upside Down” (reprised for end credits)
- Kate Bush – “Running Up That Hill”
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Season 5 begins with the reveal that Robin (Maya Hawke) has gotten a new job as Hawkins’ local radio D.J., and as the writer of this guide, I was honestly worried for a minute that this would mean a lot of extra work for me. So far,though,Robin’s too busy trying to fight the Upside Down to spend much time in the booth,with most of her big needle drop moments happening in this episode.
First, though, “Should I Stay or Should I go” (the song Will used to communicate with the Rightside Up during Season 1) makes a return appearance during the opening flashback to November 12th, 1983. Then, in the “present day” – November 3rd, 1987 – we hear Michael Jackson’s 1972 cover of “Rockin’ Robin”
## Stranger Things Season 5 Soundtrack: Every Song From Episodes 1-3
- ABBA – “Fernando”
- Kate Bush – “Running Up That Hill”
- The Chordettes – “Mr. Sandman” (end credits)
As promised, “Running Up That Hill” is featured again at Max’s bedside, this time for slightly longer as Lucas keeps vigil. But the real star of this episode, soundtrack-wise, is ABBA’s “Fernando,” which Mrs. Wheeler (Cara Buono) is blasting as a Demogorgon begins its attack on the wheeler house, and keeps playing throughout the attack (warping in haunting ways at key points throughout the scene).
It’s otherwise score throughout the episode,except for the end credits song choice of “Mr. Sandman,” a 1954 tune meant to invoke the era in which young Henry Creel (the future Vecna) grew up. It adds to the eerie ending of the episode, in which Vecna welcomes young Holly (Nell Fisher) into a recreation of his family home.
Episode 3: “the Turnbow Trap”
A gift for Holly: A portable stereo and a cassette tape of ’80s queen Tiffany’s “I Think We’re Alone Now” – the ’80s hit was tailor-made for a sequence in which a young girl parties by herself in a strange house.
Also, if it’s the 1980s, and folks are talking about car-related tomfoolery, then of course a music supervisor has no choice but to invoke the iconic Yello track “Oh Yeah.” Certainly if it was good enough for Ferris Bueller’s Day Off,it’s good enough to accompany Dustin drilling into a pristine BMW for the purposes of the mission.
episode 4: “Sorcerer”
Stranger Things Season 5 soundtrack: Every Song in Netflix’s Final Chapter
the final season of Stranger Things isn’t just delivering on nostalgia and thrills – it’s also boasting a killer soundtrack. From iconic 80s needle drops to a largely devoted to original score – which is epic enough to meet the moment.
Here’s a breakdown of every song featured in Stranger Things Season 5, updated as each episode drops:
Episode 1: “The Crawl”
* Journey – “Separate Ways (Worlds Apart)”
* Falco – “Nightmare”
* Dead or Alive – “you Spin Me round (Like a record)”
* The Psychedelic Furs – “Love My Way”
Episode 2: “The Unseen”
* Hasbro HeadStart – “Learning Colors”
* Bronski Beat – “Smalltown Boy”
* Kate Bush – “Running up That Hill (A deal with God)”
* Tommy Tutone – “867-5309/Jenny”
Episode 3: “Chapter Three”
* Dio – “The Last in Line”
* The Cure – “Just like Heaven”
* The blue Nile – “Tinseltown in the Rain”
Episode 4: “webs”
* Starship – “We Built This City”
* The Hives – “Hate to Say I Told You So”
* Fleetwood Mac – “Dreams”
Episode 5: “Shock Jock”
* Siouxsie and the Banshees – “Spellbound”
* The Cramps – “Goo Goo Muck”
* Baltimora – “Tarzan Boy”
* The Exploited – “Punk’s Not Dead”
* Joy Division – “Love Will Tear Us apart”
* The Damned – “Neat Neat Neat”
## Stranger Things Season 5 Soundtrack: Every Song in the Finale
- Kate Bush – “Running Up that Hill”
Stranger Things really put the show’s composers to work for this 75 minute episode, with the only major needle drop featured being the repetition of “running Up that Hill.” Kyle Dixon and Michael Stein definitely make the most of it though, once again riffing beautifully off the song for Max’s big inspirational speech at the episode’s stirring conclusion.
Episode 7: “The Bridge”
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Stranger Things (Netflix)
- kate Bush — “Running Up that Hill”
- Moby — “When It’s Cold I’d Like to Die” (feat. Mimi Goese)
- Butthole Surfers — “Human Cannonball”
The exchange between Max and Lucas as she wakes up from her coma is very funny, especially coming in the penultimate episode of the series: When Lucas asks her if she’s sick of “Running Up that Hill” yet, she shakes her head, but when she turns the question around on him, he nods. (And fair enough!)
That may be a series wrap on Kate Bush actually. Instead, during this emotional character reunion, the soundtrack pulls another song from its own past, albeit one that is also from this show’s future: the 1995 Moby track “When It’s Cold I’d Like to Die,” featuring Mimi Goese. It was previously featured in the show’s first and fourth seasons.
The last big musical moment of the episode comes as Robin and Mike debate the relative merits of Butthole Surfers as a soundtrack for saving the world, Mike making his case with a song off the 1987 album Locust Abortion Technician. (Incredible title for an album.) Robin, meanwhile, makes her case for The Replacements. She’ll ultimately lose that fight — for the better.
Episode 8: “The Rightside Up”
Stranger Things (Netflix)
- The Chords — “Sh-Boom”
- Prince and the Revolution — “When Doves Cry”
- Prince and the Revolution — “Purple Rain”
- Fleetwood Mac — “Landslide”
- pixies — “Here Comes Your man”
- Iron Maiden — “The Trooper”
- Cowboy Junkies — “Sweet Jane”
- (In the Style of) Etta James — “At Last”
- David Bowie — “Heroes”
Prior to the series finale, Season 5 felt like it’d shown a lot of restraint in terms of big splashy song choices. Turns out, that was because it was saving its biggest needle drops for the last hour of Stranger things ever (at least until the first spinoff premieres).
At least Robin got her wish from Episode 7: No offense meant to Butthole Surfers, but any rational person on the planet (including the members of butthole Surfers, I’d guess) would agree that Prince is a major upgrade. “When Doves Cry” begins the countdown for the bomb going off before final detonation gets triggered by “Purple Rain,” the latter being an unconventional but largely bittersweet choice for Eleven and Mike’s final conversation.
Eighteen months later, Fleetwood Mac’s “Landslide” does its duty as one of the premiere backdrops for nostalgic musings, though in the case of robin’s monologue at the radio station it’s also a handy bit of catch-up on what’s been going on between the previous battle and graduation day. Robin also takes the chance to introduce the citizens of Hawkins to Pixies’ “here Comes Your Man” cover.
Before things wrap up, Dustin gets to pay tribute to the lost Eddie by blasting Iron Maiden at the end of his valedictorian speech at graduation, and a person who is not Etta James does a beautiful job of singing Etta James’ “At Last” to celebrate Hopper and Joyce getting engaged. It all wraps up with David Bowie’s “Heroes,” an on-the-nose but still emotional choice for the final credits.
Stranger Things Season 5 is streaming now on Netflix.
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