When I was searching for music I wanted to find songs that had prominent baselines, since they express the low, powerful and ominous tones that seem to follow the story of Macbeth. I settled on looking for post-punk adjacent songs in order to have every song share a general genre with each other, while still connecting to the play itself. Gothic music tends to explore themes of mortality, the supernatural and existentialism through the lyrics. This helped me narrow down the options I had to choose from in my library when searching for music that could fit in with the darker concepts involved in Macbeth. I listed the songs by what song I found first, rather than in any particular order so as to not take away from songs that might linger near the bottom of the playlist.

Me and the Devil is a neoclassical darkwave song written by the alternative band Soap&skin. The song starts with smooth and dramatic violins that build up over the course of the song, which reminded me of the steady build up of emotion that Macbeth displays throughout the play. Although written in the perspective of a woman, the song feels to parallel Macbeth's mindset accurately, especially after he ordered that Banquo be killed. When the song talks about the devil and using him for satisfaction, I believe it could link closely to Macbeth's ambition and aggression, like he is now comfortable with using these emotions to fulfill the prophecy of the witches.

While going through my playlists I came across the song Pain by Boy Harsher, which follows closely with the darkwave genre. The song repeats the line "Pain breaks rhythm" throughout the entire course of the track, which can represent how pain, not just physical, but emotional as well can disrupt the flow or rhythm of life. Based on this I felt it should be included, as Macbeth's emotional instability heavily impacts his decisions in the future. The other lines weigh precariously on the rest of the song, as they seem uncertain or sporadic through their wording, this reflects into the general mood and instrumental of the tune.

Although having just seven words throughout the entire song, Wytches Chant '98 by Inkubus Sukkubus fits with the witches of Macbeth perfectly. Every word spoken is the name of a pagan goddess who represents something different, but they all seem to fit together by being goddesses of either love, fertility, magic or war. The goddess Hecate is mentioned in both the text and the song, which helps this song fit better with the themes especially since she is the Greek goddess of magic, witchcraft, the moon and necromancy.

Compared to the artists I chose, Christian Death is one of the more classic post-punk bands making the list. Blood Moon follows the dark and morbid themes that goth music seems to always fall into, no matter the subgenre. From its very core, the composition of lyrics in this song screams Macbeth, as it's about moral decay and violence, it also uses the moon as a symbol to represent omens and judgement. Even apart from the lyrics themself, the texture of this song is very raw and effective, as it's slow and minimalistic, but still keeps a heavy and claustrophobic atmosphere that lacks light tones. The dark attitudes of the song helps the lyrics feel more effective, as well as being able to fit the themes of Macbeth almost perfectly.

The song Who is She? by I monster contains a generally dreamy tone that means to depict the mysteriousness of a woman who the singer is captivated by. It uses echoing and slow disordered synths to imply mystery, intimacy and an eerie attitude, which makes me think of Lady Macbeth as she sort of remains this obsessive echo who drives the main character forward. Even as Macbeth gains power and Lady Macbeth's influence fades, her role in shaping Macbeth's ambition still haunts the rest of the play, just as it seems to within the song.

I wanted to find a song that could portray the destruction that surrounds Macbeth's attachment to Lady Macbeth at the beginning of the play while still encompassing the musical themes that fit with the rest of the playlist. Love you to Death is a great representation of what I was looking for, as it is a gothic metal song that explores themes of obsessive and destructive dependence. At the start of the play Lady Macbeth makes many of Macbeth's decisions for him and he complies in order to please her, even if this means destroying his moral judgement.

Disorder by Joy Division is a coldwave style song, a genre that emerged from post-punk around the late seventies and early eighties, which allows it to fit itself in the themes of Macbeth. The entire tone of the song stays eerie and anxious, as it is about psychological chaos, mental disconnection and the feeling of being trapped within one’s head. Macbeth has this same feeling of spiraling insanity throughout the course of the play, which is why I felt it was necessary to include this note.