*Disclaimer* “Stranger Things” Season 4 Spoilers Ahead
Volume 2 to the fourth season of “Stranger Things” is officially out which means, so is the rest of the soundtrack. Don’t worry, Kate Bush’s most popular track hasn’t left. Viewers hear “Running Up That Hill (A Deal With God)” in Volume 2 as well. Among the resurgence, Kate Bush currently is on the charts at number three this week on Billboard Global 200, and number one on Spotify for the track.
Metallica is another name more people are talking about. They recently shared a statement about the use of their 1986 track, “Master of Puppets” (the same year the fourth season takes place) that appears in Volume 2. *SPOILER ALERT* The scene that includes the track is when the character who is the lead club member of Hellfire Dungeons & Dragons, Eddie Munson (Joseph Quinn), is killed in the finale by flying “demobats,” while slamming out a guitar solo as a distraction, so his friends can attack the evil Vecna. The legendary heavy metal band agrees with fans, and think The Duffer Brothers’ (the writers) sequence of music is well suited for each scene. They said they were all “stoked” to see where the writers placed the song, and they were excited to be featured with other talented artists.
“The way The Duffer Brothers have incorporated music into ‘Stranger Things’ has always been next level, so we were beyond psyched for them to not only include ‘Master of Puppets’ in the show, but to have such a pivotal scene built around it. We were all stoked to see the final result and when we did we were totally blown away. It’s so extremely well done, so much so, that some folks were able to guess the song just by seeing a few seconds of Joseph Quinn’s hands in the trailer!! How crazy cool is that? It’s an incredible honor to be such a big part of Eddie’s journey and to once again be keeping company with all of the other amazing artists featured in the show,” Metallica stated on Instagram.
Season 4 just hit a billion hours streamed on Netflix, and this summer it is all about the series. I first remember watching “Stranger Things” when it came out on Netflix during the summer of 2015, and I loved it. When the second season came out two years later, I remember shying away from it because of how many people were talking about it. There’s something about music and movies where if I hear, or see the name too much, I get turned off by it. That’s what happened with me and “Stranger Things.” When I was at Amoeba Music Hollywood the other day and my friend showed me the Stranger Things Season 3 vinyl (that I am kicking myself for not purchasing) I told myself to ignore the hype, and it motivated me to watch it again.
This show deserves all of the hype. If you’re a fan of the 1980’s, or an enthusiast of 1980’s classics, you’ll be a fan of this show. So far, the third season is my favorite, but my favorite scene is in season four.
*SPOILER ALERT* The scene begins with Max narrating a letter she wrote for her step-brother William Hargrove (Billy) at his grave who died in the previous season, saving Eleven’s life from the evil Mind Flayer. From a distance Steve, Dustin, and Lucas are waiting in the car for her, and they run over to try and wake her from the Vecna’s trance. At the same time, Nancy is with Robin who had visited Victor Creel at Pennhurst Mental Hospital. They noted if one plays their favorite song while entranced by the Vecna, the trance could be broken.
“Hatch said music can reach parts of the brain words can’t, so maybe that’s the key, a lifeline” said Robin.
“A lifeline back to reality” said Nancy.
“It’s worth a shot”.
Communicating with Dustin at the cemetery, he runs back from the car with Max’s cassettes and repeats to the others, “It’s too much to explain right now. What’s her favorite song!”
The three hook up her cassette player, put her headphones over her ears, open the “Hounds of Love” cassette, and blast Max’s favorite song “Running Up That Hill (A Deal With God)”. The song opens a hole between both worlds and Max runs for her life back in reality where she makes it out of The Upside Down.
The scene concludes, the chapter ends, and chapter five begins– iconic.
Check out the season 4 soundtrack list below.
VOL. 1
Season 4 CH.1 : “Hellfire Club”
“California Dreamin’” – The Beach Boys
“Object of My Desire” – Starpoint
“The Red Army is The Strongest” – The Red Army Choir
“Running Up That Hill (A Deal With God)” – Kate Bush
“Fever” (Elvis Presley Cover)- The Cramps
“Chica Mejicantita “ – Andrea Litkei & Ervin Litkei
“Play with Me” – Extreme
“Steve’s Rocking Star Spangled Banner” – X-Ray Dog
“Detroit Rock City” – KISS
“I Was A Teenage Werewolf” – The Cramps
“Got Your Number” – The Lloyd Langton Group
Season 4 CH. 2 : “Vecna’s Curse”
“Surf Time” – The Surf Riders
“You Spin Me Round (Like A Record) – Dead Or Alive
“Rock Me Amadeus” – Falco
“Diamonds and Emeralds” – The Interior Castle
“Tarzan Boy” – Baltimora
“Wipe Out” – Surfaris
“Iolanta, Op.69: Scene 5, Ibn-Hakia’s Mon” – Tchaikovsky (performed by The National Bolshoï Orchestra)
“Psycho Killer” – Talking Heads
“Burning Up” – Donnell Pitman
Season 4 CH. 3 : “The Monster and the Superhero”
“In Transit to Bermuda” – Dorian Zero
“Rigoletto, Act III: V’ho Ingannato. Colpevole Fui” – (performed by Nadine Sierra and Dmitri Hvorostovsky)
“Guardian Angel” – Fergus Mac Roy
Season 4 CH. 4 : “Dear Billy”
“Legless” – Hipbone Slim
“Hard Feelings” – Al Kerbey
“Minuet in D Minor” – Johann Sebastian Bach (performed by Amelia Davis)
“Pass the Dutchie” – Musical Youth
“Dream a Little Dream of Me” – Ella Fitzgerald
“Clair de Lune” – Claude Debussy
“Running Up That Hill (A Deal With God)” – Kate Bush
VOL. 2
Season 4 CH. 5 : “The Nina Project”
“Travelin Man” – Ricky Nelson
“Running Up That Hill (A Deal With God)” – Kate Bush
“Quand le bien-aimé reviendra” – Nicolas Dalayrac from Nina (performed by Cecilia Bartoli)
“Never Ending Story” – Limahl
Season 4 CH. 6 : “The Dive”
“Violin Concerto, Op. 35: III. Finale Allegro assai vivace” – Erich Wolfgang Korngold (performed by RTÉ Concert Orchestra, conducted by John Wilson)
“The Snow Maiden: Chorus of the People and the Courtiers” – Piotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (performed by the Russian State Orchestra and the Russian State Chorus, conducted by Andrey Chistiakov)
“Pass the Dutchie” – Musical Youth
Season 4 CH.7 : “The Massacre at Hawkins Lab”
“Running Up That Hill (A Deal With God)” – Kate Bush
“Dream a Little Dream of Me” – Ella Fitzgerald
“Akhnaten: Act II, Scene 2: Akhnaten and Nefertiti” – Phillip Glass (performed by The Stuttgart State Opera Orchestra & Chorus, conducted by Dennis Russell Davies)
Season 4 CH. 8 : “Papa”
“Up Around the Bend” – Creedence Clearwater Revival
“Fire and Rain” – James Taylor
“Rock and Roll, Hoochie Koo” – Rick Derringer
“Separate Ways (Worlds Apart)” – Journey
Season 4 CH. 9 : “Piggyback”
“Running Up That Hill (A Deal With God)” – Kate Bush
“Master of Puppets” – Metallica
“Every Breath You Take” – The Police
“Dream a Little Dream of Me” – Ella Fitzgerald
“When It’s Cold I’d Like to Die” – Moby
“Spellbound” – Siouxsie and the Banshees
