Quick answer: Netflix’s Below uses two musical languages to make its Newfoundland setting feel lived-in and its sea-born horror feel unknowable: familiar songs that suggest community and memory, and Mark Korven’s original score, built for tension and unease. The soundtrack album was released digitally on October 8, 2026, and lists 17 score cues running about 41 minutes in total. The series’ licensed songs are a separate part of the listening experience.
Music is doing more than filling silence in Below. In a story about a close-knit fishing community facing a creature from the water, songs can sound like a room full of people who know one another; the score can make that same coastline feel suddenly unfamiliar. That contrast is a big part of why the series’ sound world feels both local and unsettling.
What makes the Below soundtrack distinctive?
The key is the difference between music the characters might recognize and music that seems to come from the story’s darker edges. Folk and rock songs can anchor scenes in everyday life: a gathering, a memory, a familiar ritual, or the feeling of a town trying to hold itself together. Original horror scoring works differently. It can stretch a pause, unsettle a quiet image, or suggest that something is wrong before a character has understood why.
That division is especially effective in a series set in a remote Newfoundland community. The landscape is not just scenery; it shapes work, family life, local identity, and the characters’ relationship with the sea. Music that feels communal gives the town texture. More abstract sound can then make the same environment feel threatening without needing to show the creature in every scene.
Mark Korven’s original score brings the dread
Composer Mark Korven is known for building distinctive, tactile sound worlds for horror and suspense, including The Witch and The Lighthouse. For Below, the official soundtrack release gathers short, scene-linked cues rather than presenting the music as one long suite. The track titles include “Iceberg Trance,” “Fonda’s Discovery,” “Submarine Disaster,” and “Calvin’s Discovery / Fonda Explains.” Even without giving away every scene, those names point to the score’s job: track discovery, danger, and the uneasy overlap between scientific explanation and something that refuses to feel ordinary.
Short cues can be powerful in television because they enter and leave quickly. A musical idea may only need a few seconds to change how a viewer reads a face, a stretch of water, or a sudden silence. Rather than constantly telling the audience to be frightened, an effective score creates uncertainty and lets viewers do some of the emotional work themselves.
Why familiar songs matter as much as the horror cues
The show’s needle drops add another layer. Soundtrack listings for Below include The Waterboys’ “Fisherman’s Blues,” Spirit of the West’s “Home for a Rest,” Gordon Lightfoot’s “Sundown,” April Wine’s “Roller,” and Gerry Rafferty’s “Right Down the Line,” among other selections. These tracks do not all do the same emotional work, and they should not be treated as interchangeable background music.
“Fisherman’s Blues” is an especially apt title for a story centered on a working waterfront. Its presence can connect the series’ coastal setting with a broader musical tradition of longing, travel, and belonging. Canadian artists and familiar rock songs can also make the fictional town feel connected to a wider cultural world—even while the plot isolates its residents from help.
There is a useful tension here: a song can make a scene feel warm or familiar, but that familiarity can become unsettling when the story turns. The audience brings memories and associations to recognizable music. A score, by contrast, can operate more directly on the moment, shaping suspense without asking viewers to remember a particular era or place.
The soundtrack album is not the complete song list
One distinction is worth making for listeners searching for every song from the show. The digital album announced by Netflix Music focuses on Mark Korven’s original score and lists 17 cues. Licensed songs heard during episodes are separate recordings, so a score album and an episode-by-episode song guide answer different questions.
That matters if you are trying to find a specific track. If you remember a recognizable song from a pub, a family moment, or an episode’s closing scene, it may not appear on the original-score album. Conversely, a short cue on the album may be written specifically for a tense discovery or a moment of danger rather than being a standalone song with a conventional verse-and-chorus structure.
Watch the official trailer
The trailer offers a useful preview of the series’ mix of coastal atmosphere, family drama, and creature suspense. It is not a substitute for the episode soundtrack, but it helps show how music and sound contribute to the show’s tone.
Where to find the Below soundtrack
The original score album is credited to Mark Korven and was released digitally on October 8, 2026, through Netflix Music. For the most accurate listening options and track availability, check your preferred music service and compare the album listing with an episode-by-episode song guide. Availability can vary by country and platform.
Frequently asked questions
Who composed the music for Netflix’s Below?
Mark Korven composed the original score for the 2026 Netflix limited series Below.
When was the Below soundtrack album released?
The digital original-score album was announced for release on October 8, 2026.
How many tracks are on the original score album?
The published track listing contains 17 cues, with a total running time of about 41 minutes. Track timings may vary slightly between music services.
Is “Fisherman’s Blues” by The Waterboys on the score album?
“Fisherman’s Blues” appears in episode-song listings for the series, but it is a licensed song rather than one of Mark Korven’s original score cues. Check a complete episode soundtrack guide if you are looking for the exact scene placement.
Does the Below soundtrack include only horror music?
No. The series combines original suspense scoring with licensed folk, rock, and other songs. That contrast helps balance the town’s everyday life with the threat beneath the water.
Sources and further reading
- Netflix: Below official series page and episode guide
- Film Music Reporter: Below soundtrack album details
- SeekerTune: Below episode song listings
- Netflix: Below official trailer on YouTube
By Shivam Das
