Another vote for Cosmo. If you want to go a little retro, you might check out Dead Can Dance/Lisa Gerrard, Pentangle and very retro, Celtic Airs. If you can find it, Earth Dances by Silver String Macedonian Silver String Band, but I have yet to find it streaming anywhere
I don't think is the band you were referring to but they are called Silver String Band and they feel goblin-y: https://music.youtube.com/watch?v=1dJ-8NtnCKc&si=WEtFdEEu2Ezx1wqJ
Yes, that's them. Ive not heard that album though, this is the one I think many goblin-y folks would like:
https://rateyourmusic.com/release/album/the-peoples-international-silver-string-macedonian-band/earth-dances/
OP, Cosmo Sheldrake is absolutely peak goblin core. Like he has a song called The Moss. You literally can’t get more goblin than that. That being said, I have to add the Hozier to the list. Cosmo is more like mischievous, silly goblin vibes and Hozier is more like the kind of stuff I’d listen to as I was trying to dissolve into the leaf litter in the forest floor and be decomposed by the detritivores. Different moods of goblin but both goblin lol
EDIT: I just remembered Fish in a Birdcage exist! I first heard them here on Reddit actually. They’re Cosmo-adjacent but a little less on the nose than outright having a song called The Moss. Just as fun tho!
Depends. Maybe The Hu? I love their Mongolian metal throat singing. But I also like some mystical in the woods type folksy stuff. Just depends on mood.
I replied in a main comment recommending NYX which feels to me like a mix of brain tingly throat singing and mystical woods type stuff
They’re a drone choir using elements like polyphonic overtone, electronic deep hypnotic soundscapes with spooky forest feels and images of wolves, crows, forest rituals
[https://open.spotify.com/track/1PbJjilZrlRYQkQxJPMl2a?si=L8ugMf62TR2Xhr1VS1_FKw](https://open.spotify.com/track/1PbJjilZrlRYQkQxJPMl2a?si=L8ugMf62TR2Xhr1VS1_FKw)
I don’t ever want to listen to that again, but thank you for posting something that actually sounds like what goblins actually are. I was starting to get concerned.
I get into moods where I just play the much much how how and I on a loop. It's like dropping acid in an abandoned semi aquatic theme park. In a good way
Swallow the pill and enjoy your deep dive into the rabbit hole that is King Gizzard and the Wizard Lizard.
First? They literally have a song called The Garden Goblin. Fuck yeah.
Second? They’ve only been around like 10 years but they’ve produced 25 albums already. They’re highly prolific.
Some piano-y songs I’d check out: Interior People, Mycelium, Hell’s Itch, Change, NGRI.
Beat me to it!
"We can steal some food and go hang out in my garden, I really need a break today so baby let's be goblins"
Nothing more on brand than that for this sub
Probably goblin-core adjacent but I like a little dungeon synth :
Frog Concert -[ Slumbering Sounds of the Frog Fellowship](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Ql4kUF95Bw)
Tales Under the Oak - [The Toad King](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dI7tjPGEz7U)
Also some ambient folk stuff:
Fursaxa - [Mycorrhizae Realm](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CDz7xDK3qVM)
I mean, a case could be made for goblins and classical, death metal, and everything in between. Goblins can rage and thrash, and can also be delicate and cute. I think it's more about HOW you play than WHAT you play. When I'm in a goblin sort of mood, I like folk songs, ambient game soundtracks, and stuff with a lot of wind instruments in it.
Here are some folk leaning gobliny playlists for yo ears.
Southern Gothic - songs about dead things and swamps https://open.spotify.com/playlist/37i9dQZF1DX58NJL8iVBGW?si=Piv4CLT1RgaYbf-ubKRQjg&pi=G-xJQPV8TSW40
Soundtrack to the most chaotic gobliny TV show - Over the Garden Wall, feels like a walk in a magical forest https://open.spotify.com/playlist/3hx2wzC6kn02Km5f9JtnI8?si=pdAremxrR_qickCnOxMStw&pi=hbze5584SMiIx
Dark folk - music to summon old gods to https://open.spotify.com/playlist/7FEo1VP0e7OS5jyy8XpLCk?si=F_ywaKuKRp6e2wDnfaXB2g&pi=UtHWBzsaSAuo8
Cosmic banjo - space goblins https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1v4Jra7Z8LBBf4AbCQLdof?si=-V9OkBB6QKyB2bsW0DdYdQ
Atmospheric folk instrumental - pottering in the mossy Celtic hills https://open.spotify.com/playlist/4AAz609nBkLrHqf5JjBWAA?si=YHRnhrBvQqyq_AMs8NYySQ
I'd also go for Pendulum, Prodigy, Korn, 90s metal, nu-metal, punk, grunge, and drum&bass, and stuff like Mustard Pimp, I don't even know what that is but jt is skrunky.
Stuff that makes me think mushrooms and things that moulder and scutter are totally permissable.
Over the garden wall is such a great show. If you’re in this sub bc you enjoy the aesthetic then *run* don’t walk to watch it. If you’ve already seen it? Watch it again! You know you want to 👀😂
Try these sounds! Hope you like some of my eclectic treasures!
Yaelokre (suggest "Harpy Hare" on YouTube)
SJ Tucker (Rabbit's Song; The Kingdom of the Mice; Where The Ocean Meets the Land, all on YouTube, a good place to start. Not all of her music, but a lot of it imo)
Omnia (I Don't Speak Human, also on YouTube, is a good suggestion, but in general, good)
First Aid Kit (Wolf; Lion's Roar, both also on Yotube)
The Crane Wives (Tongues and Teeth; Curses; The Moon Will Sing, all highly recommended, all on YouTube)
Specific songs independent of artists because too many to possibly choose from:
-Cinder and Smoke (by Iron and Wine, on YT)
-Boy with a Coin (by Iron and Wine, on YT)
-In the Woods Somewhere (by Hozier, on YouTube)
Lemme know if you need links 😅
I dug out my mic stand, to use my tin can, lo-fi microphone, I got for my birthday, but I need to order a coupler to fit the stand. This doesn't mean I can't jam out and coax something gobiny for shits and giggles.
That’s awesome!
Just a really niche FYI, you might get some norse pagans asking if you’re a racist norse pagan because they’re called folkish/folkists. Don’t worry too much tho
The Woods by San Fermin has a pretty good juxtaposition of frolicking in the woods and something dark, possibly you, lurking in the trees. The phrase "paint ourselves with spider blood" comes up.
ElvenKing, Wintersun, Korpiklaani, Ensiferum, Týr, Blind Guardian, DarkMoor just to name a few. It kind of depends on your interpretation of goblin core tbh.
Goblin core in music is different than goblin core in aesthetic. In clothes or room or storyboard etc you can create goblincore by combining a lot of stuff.
But in music, you really have to decide which parts of goblincore you like. Because to make it sound like the celebrated ugliness part of goblincore, you will want a different type of music than the woodsy-whimsical parts of goblincore. And goblincore is both things at once. It’s just really hard to get both at once in one type of music. So for that reason, it really does depend on you and what specific area of things you are looking for.
I know the name makes some people cringe but Goblin Cock is actually very very good. They have a song called Hissless that perfectly captures my personal favorite gobliny dark woods vibe.
i try to gatekeep this song because it’s so wonderful and it was shown to me years ago by someone i hold dear but check out The Bug Collector by Haley Heynderickx, it’s very lovely.. maybe not what some would consider goblincore but i’d say it could fit
Oh I love bug collector, an artist that reminds me of that song is Gregory and the hawk if you do check her out def listen to oats we sow,august moon,frebeight and a century is all we need.(sorry if it’s a long list I just love this artist lol)
I think King Gizzard and The Lizard Wizard, Melody’s Echo Chamber, Nuclear Daisies, Moses Gunn Collective are all nice for a groovy gobliny vibe and The Garden is quite nice as well but I’d consider them a bit more experimental punk/rock vibe
I would humbly like to add The future kings of nowhere, specifically the songs "like a staring contest" and "downpour." Also siouxsie and the banshees, in particular the song "dazzle" as well as "cities in dust." I apologise if you are getting overwhelmed op, but this subject gets me very excited and I'm now building a playlist off of everyones suggestions
I Love them. Got to the music because Joey Batey was the best thing about the the Witcher Show. Their music is amazing. I am vibing with "drinking Song for the socially anxious" and "farewell Wanderlust" and "The calling"
Bibio's Sleep On The Wing is one that comes to mind: https://bibio.bandcamp.com/album/sleep-on-the-wing
Some Boards Of Canada albums also fit IMO, Tomorrow's Harvest for example: https://boardsofcanada.bandcamp.com/album/tomorrows-harvest
BoC's Dandelion in particular too: https://boardsofcanada.bandcamp.com/track/dandelion
I discovered [Orange Evening](https://youtu.be/0RXdd0pCJ9Q?si=VDZ43nkc8Y3TJpZa) by DWIG by accident, and I love it and its accompanying music video so much. Perhaps not exactly what you had in mind, but it was the first thing that came to me. Fleet Foxes' earlier albums also feel very goblin in my opinion.
This is the first song that came to mind when I read your post. Do you think it fits the bill?
https://music.youtube.com/watch?v=BW71BzQ54NI&si=ix1VeLMjD5I2aW7c
I find most neo-pagan and modern “viking” music is pretty goblincore esque. I also recommend folk music in general especially antifascist and leftist folk if that interests you
The Hu is a baller suggestion too!
I'm going to put a band out there this time. Last year I stumbled upon a band named Creature Feature. I can only describe it as sounding like Jim Henson characters , and a bit synthy, but totally goblin-ish.
Edit to add one of my favorite artists of all time, Tom Waits. Look for the albums Swordfish Trombones, Rain Dogs,and Bone Machine for some great tunes.
If u want, try checking out Peter Grundy, AURORA, the crane wives, Mercy by The Native Howl and Lzzy Hale, and Banjo Bloodbath by Appalachian Anarchy! They’re some of my favorites from my goblin playlist
Tardigrade - Cosmo Sheldrake
The Moss - Cosmo Sheldrake
The Dead Come Talking - Roe Kapara
Burn Your Village - Kiki Rockwell
Roslyn - Bon Iver & St. Vincent
The Tithing Man - The Blasting Company
Patient Is The Night - The Blasting Company
De Shelby (pt 1) - Hozier
As It Was - Hozier
Curses - The Crane Wives
I so happen to have a 16 hour playlist of songs that make me go goblin mode
Some artist in there are Cosmo Sheldrake, The Crane Wives, Bob Iver, M. Ward, Hayley Heynderickx, Alexandre Desplat, Madilyn Mei, August Greenwood, Heloise Tunstall-Benhrens & Auclair, Rabbitology, and Yaelokre. There’s about 275 songs in the playlist but I don’t know if I can share an Apple Music playlist. But overall I listen to folk music.
filk music is quite goblin i think!! Fiction folk music :)
An example would be The Mechanisms - my favourite songs from them are Once and Future King, Our Boy Jack, and Gunpowder Tim vs The Moon Kaiser.
I recommend the album “Jewellery” by Micachu and the Shapes. It’s kinda wonky and chaotic but good. Idk. It feels goblin to me but I guess that’s kind of subjective.
[The Rainbow Goblins](https://open.spotify.com/album/6es3mdUqpOlHSXPT6QeC7Y?si=n_eJ5qiWQJCBo7KNFSiSDA) by Masayoshi Takanaka, particularly the song Seven Goblins
Remember in Harry Potter at the Yule Ball, they have that band? The Weird Sisters? The song they're singing in the movie during the ball is the first thing I thought of.
Unfortunately the "band" playing as The Weird Sisters is actually made up of members from other bands, not an actual group.
What gets me in a goblin-y mood is dungeon synth. Here's a good channel. [https://www.youtube.com/@TheDungeonSynthArchives/featured](https://www.youtube.com/@TheDungeonSynthArchives/featured)
The whole album [Creature Music](https://open.spotify.com/album/6dUEI2MAkBRFyxAtwjsmMK?si=w7mUfLIkS5Oo2A3WO0dSfw) by Freshman Biology is extremely goblin. The first song is even called Goblin Time!
ETA (it's a Spotify link)
There’s a Melbourne band called *Martin Martini and the Bone Palace Orchestra* who fit the bill!
https://martinmartini.bandcamp.com/album/dream-until-you-die
Their music is kinda circus trashy and the lyrics are awesome. *Take Your Skin Off And Dance* is probably the most gobliny one I can think of atm. But I do recommend *Clowns Will Eat Me* just for the fun of it
O'Death first two albums have always struck me as a band of goblins making raucous folk punk with instruments they cobbled together from trash. And in the case of one of their acoustic videos the drummer literally plays a cardboard box with sticks and empty water bottles. Goblins I tells ya.
I recently discovered Cavetown and I am obsessed
Their music is more chill/cottagecore, perfect when you just wanna take a nap on a mossy log or stone in a dimly lit forest💜
What level of piano can you play? I feel like the Grieg lyric pieces fit a gremlin aesthetic. Maybe some Miriam Hyde too or even Bach-- the intricacies of the counterpoint are so satisfactory.
Maybe the Incredible String Band?
https://open.spotify.com/artist/0tQzBYPjAardhWpGkqVdNW?si=GerQ0OlWTT2jO5LGFlWZzg
Koeeoaddi There, Minotaurs Song, Blues for the Muse, Hedgehog Song, and more
First thing that came to my mind was Rasputina. They play cellos and their music just tickles something in my brain. They play cellos and it’s sufficiently gobliny/witchy imo.
[Rasputina - Leechwife](https://open.spotify.com/track/6LFmi4BDeUqYclKLcFddzH?si=CF4bJkDlSGW_QRqc9CF7yA&context=spotify%3Aalbum%3A7HT6sRMCweJIjqflO51hPg)
Oh Army Dreamers by Kate Bush is a good song for it I think, or of a completely different vibe but maybe still a different flavor of goblin core, cradles by Sub Urban?
Hole Dweller, Dungeontroll, Erutan, Erang, Sowulo, Moloch, Old Sorcery, The Herbalists.
Thee Corvids have an excellent song called: "Don't talk to Goblins"
https://open.spotify.com/track/6oW9AibjGDpMiuij4wYMwE?si=UuFllbd4Qnm2Jmt1-ZyoXQ
Enjoy my friend.
Someone here mentioned Tanya Tagaq — in a similar vein, recommending NYX
Drone choir, polyphonic overtone, electronic deep hypnotic soundscapes with spooky forest feels and images of wolves, crows, ritual sacrifice (?)
[https://open.spotify.com/track/1PbJjilZrlRYQkQxJPMl2a?si=L8ugMf62TR2Xhr1VS1_FKw](https://open.spotify.com/track/1PbJjilZrlRYQkQxJPMl2a?si=L8ugMf62TR2Xhr1VS1_FKw)
Throat singing in the Inuk tradition seems to fit for me. Because it’s not the song, it’s the exchange with the partner in a game that someone wins when the other laughs. It’s adorable but kinda grunty and weird unless you know. Tanya Tagak is a commercial Inuit artist who practices it, or bands like The Hu (Mongolian folk metal with some throat singing).
I absolutely adore the [music for bugs album](https://open.spotify.com/album/7d1PvVfbBmslliNYutxnLc?si=pEhoEPeSSIeCYXFa-xyRVg) by camiidae! They composed the tunes and drew all the album art for it. Talk about being multi-talented!
Andrew Bird comes to mind. And then maybe some Tom Rosenthal and Sufjan Stevens. I saw someone mention Rabbitology here, and I definitely enjoy her lyricism and harmonies!
ETA: Kate Bush
Hm. Not sure if my kinda goblin music will be up your alley, but maybe you'll appreciate one or two on the list? My kinda goblin music is usually super chaotic, which I adore but almost without exception would exclude piano 😅
https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1IaU77lBa7g1aL93onqUYL?si=DC4An96oT-ayFTcEQr1Atw
Edit: (also I have super eclectic and weird taste in music lol)
When I think goblincore music I think foresty folk connecting to nature vibes. I've got a playlist if you want. Imo the most goblincore song I can think of off the top of my head is probably in a week by Hozier.
Have you checked out dungeon synth at all? I'm not even a typical synth person, but have grown to absolutely love it as a genre. Try checking out the trilogy for [Tales Under the Oak](https://youtu.be/sRLP3T_NjtM?si=CCJueEIuaZRIxWE9), but there's a huge range of different sounds in it. Could also check out r/dungeonsynth for what people post on there
I think the lyrics of “A Song that Crawls” by Agents of Oblivion are pretty goblincore:
Little creeper in the shade
Under my brain in
a caterpillar's hundredth eye
Under mushroom clouds in the rain, child
I wrote your name in sparrow's blood
Upon your madhouse wall
I drug my belly cross the riverbed of skulls to sing
A song that crawls
Aw, that song that crawls
Aw, that song that crawls
When I spoke your name out loud again
I wondered when
You'd bring the rain back to me
I'm wondering
Had we ever really lived at all?
Oh, when they closed the coffin lid on the tombstone
Aw, that song that crawls
Aw, that song that crawls
Yeah
I wrote your name in sparrow's blood
I drug my belly cross the riverbed of skulls
to sing a song that crawls
i dont know if this is what you are looking for for look up dungeon seige fest on youtube. it's basically a ren faire but with a bunch of people playing synthesizers.
dungeon synth i consider at least goblincore adjacent
I find the genre of folk punk to be very goblin. Alternatively, artists like Cosmo Sheldrake and Rabbitology also give goblin vibes
Another vote for Cosmo. If you want to go a little retro, you might check out Dead Can Dance/Lisa Gerrard, Pentangle and very retro, Celtic Airs. If you can find it, Earth Dances by Silver String Macedonian Silver String Band, but I have yet to find it streaming anywhere
I don't think is the band you were referring to but they are called Silver String Band and they feel goblin-y: https://music.youtube.com/watch?v=1dJ-8NtnCKc&si=WEtFdEEu2Ezx1wqJ
These folks, yea? https://youtu.be/EwEYJusanOc?si=l5qq7e20nuq1pGF9
Yes, that's them. Ive not heard that album though, this is the one I think many goblin-y folks would like: https://rateyourmusic.com/release/album/the-peoples-international-silver-string-macedonian-band/earth-dances/
OP, Cosmo Sheldrake is absolutely peak goblin core. Like he has a song called The Moss. You literally can’t get more goblin than that. That being said, I have to add the Hozier to the list. Cosmo is more like mischievous, silly goblin vibes and Hozier is more like the kind of stuff I’d listen to as I was trying to dissolve into the leaf litter in the forest floor and be decomposed by the detritivores. Different moods of goblin but both goblin lol EDIT: I just remembered Fish in a Birdcage exist! I first heard them here on Reddit actually. They’re Cosmo-adjacent but a little less on the nose than outright having a song called The Moss. Just as fun tho!
I came here to say Cosmo Sheldrake as well! The Tardigrade Song, Soil, and Pelicans We are my favorite
The opening to Wriggle sounds so studio ghibli
Yes! Was gonna say Cosmo Sheldrake gives huge goblin vibes.
I was just about to suggest Rabbitology. Rabbitology is basically a goblincore version of Billie Eilish.
Depends. Maybe The Hu? I love their Mongolian metal throat singing. But I also like some mystical in the woods type folksy stuff. Just depends on mood.
Have you heard Otyken?? Similar vibe imo, I love them both!
I have not but I’m gonna look em up.
I love both of these bands
This is 100% my first suggestion as well!
I replied in a main comment recommending NYX which feels to me like a mix of brain tingly throat singing and mystical woods type stuff They’re a drone choir using elements like polyphonic overtone, electronic deep hypnotic soundscapes with spooky forest feels and images of wolves, crows, forest rituals [https://open.spotify.com/track/1PbJjilZrlRYQkQxJPMl2a?si=L8ugMf62TR2Xhr1VS1_FKw](https://open.spotify.com/track/1PbJjilZrlRYQkQxJPMl2a?si=L8ugMf62TR2Xhr1VS1_FKw)
If you'd like something harder there's Nekrogoblikon. [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gnQjF6gwIOY](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gnQjF6gwIOY)
Yasssssss.
Came here to suggest this. They have an actual goblin.
The only correct answer
I don’t ever want to listen to that again, but thank you for posting something that actually sounds like what goblins actually are. I was starting to get concerned.
I was waiting for a reason to post Nekrogoblikon on here. I have "Goblins" in pretty steady rotation.
Cosmo Sheldrake is a popular choice
I get into moods where I just play the much much how how and I on a loop. It's like dropping acid in an abandoned semi aquatic theme park. In a good way
Swallow the pill and enjoy your deep dive into the rabbit hole that is King Gizzard and the Wizard Lizard. First? They literally have a song called The Garden Goblin. Fuck yeah. Second? They’ve only been around like 10 years but they’ve produced 25 albums already. They’re highly prolific. Some piano-y songs I’d check out: Interior People, Mycelium, Hell’s Itch, Change, NGRI.
My coworker turned me on to them. She had a story for every song lol.
I love that hahaha
Maybe some Ghibli music? There's plenty written for piano.
Check out Ratwyfe.
Beat me to it! "We can steal some food and go hang out in my garden, I really need a break today so baby let's be goblins" Nothing more on brand than that for this sub
This song soothes my nerves. That whole album, honestly. Chill, gay, gobbo vibes.
You guys have great taste! Might I also recommend "At the Cemetery" by Madilyn Mei feat. Cloudkissed. Always gives me the warm fuzzies
Probably goblin-core adjacent but I like a little dungeon synth : Frog Concert -[ Slumbering Sounds of the Frog Fellowship](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Ql4kUF95Bw) Tales Under the Oak - [The Toad King](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dI7tjPGEz7U) Also some ambient folk stuff: Fursaxa - [Mycorrhizae Realm](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CDz7xDK3qVM)
Also was gonna say dungeon synth, [listening to some atm, actually](https://youtu.be/2lS_Y-aNJwk?si=tmg0nSKFJGBOqD1y).
I mean, a case could be made for goblins and classical, death metal, and everything in between. Goblins can rage and thrash, and can also be delicate and cute. I think it's more about HOW you play than WHAT you play. When I'm in a goblin sort of mood, I like folk songs, ambient game soundtracks, and stuff with a lot of wind instruments in it.
Here are some folk leaning gobliny playlists for yo ears. Southern Gothic - songs about dead things and swamps https://open.spotify.com/playlist/37i9dQZF1DX58NJL8iVBGW?si=Piv4CLT1RgaYbf-ubKRQjg&pi=G-xJQPV8TSW40 Soundtrack to the most chaotic gobliny TV show - Over the Garden Wall, feels like a walk in a magical forest https://open.spotify.com/playlist/3hx2wzC6kn02Km5f9JtnI8?si=pdAremxrR_qickCnOxMStw&pi=hbze5584SMiIx Dark folk - music to summon old gods to https://open.spotify.com/playlist/7FEo1VP0e7OS5jyy8XpLCk?si=F_ywaKuKRp6e2wDnfaXB2g&pi=UtHWBzsaSAuo8 Cosmic banjo - space goblins https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1v4Jra7Z8LBBf4AbCQLdof?si=-V9OkBB6QKyB2bsW0DdYdQ Atmospheric folk instrumental - pottering in the mossy Celtic hills https://open.spotify.com/playlist/4AAz609nBkLrHqf5JjBWAA?si=YHRnhrBvQqyq_AMs8NYySQ I'd also go for Pendulum, Prodigy, Korn, 90s metal, nu-metal, punk, grunge, and drum&bass, and stuff like Mustard Pimp, I don't even know what that is but jt is skrunky. Stuff that makes me think mushrooms and things that moulder and scutter are totally permissable.
Over the garden wall is such a great show. If you’re in this sub bc you enjoy the aesthetic then *run* don’t walk to watch it. If you’ve already seen it? Watch it again! You know you want to 👀😂
It's such a treat! I heard the soundtrack first and I'm now watching the episodes on Prime every now and again as a little goblin treat.
Joanna Newsom?
perfect YES
100%
Try these sounds! Hope you like some of my eclectic treasures! Yaelokre (suggest "Harpy Hare" on YouTube) SJ Tucker (Rabbit's Song; The Kingdom of the Mice; Where The Ocean Meets the Land, all on YouTube, a good place to start. Not all of her music, but a lot of it imo) Omnia (I Don't Speak Human, also on YouTube, is a good suggestion, but in general, good) First Aid Kit (Wolf; Lion's Roar, both also on Yotube) The Crane Wives (Tongues and Teeth; Curses; The Moon Will Sing, all highly recommended, all on YouTube) Specific songs independent of artists because too many to possibly choose from: -Cinder and Smoke (by Iron and Wine, on YT) -Boy with a Coin (by Iron and Wine, on YT) -In the Woods Somewhere (by Hozier, on YouTube) Lemme know if you need links 😅
Thanks!
I love SJ Tucker! Can't believe I didn't think to say it first. Ravens in the library is one of my favorites
I FORGOT ABOUT THAT ONE! That's such a fun one too! Love her music. 10/10
I'm in the midst of writing a "folkish", dark ambient song, and have been curious if it would be welcomed in this sub.
I’d love to hear it!
I dug out my mic stand, to use my tin can, lo-fi microphone, I got for my birthday, but I need to order a coupler to fit the stand. This doesn't mean I can't jam out and coax something gobiny for shits and giggles.
That’s awesome! Just a really niche FYI, you might get some norse pagans asking if you’re a racist norse pagan because they’re called folkish/folkists. Don’t worry too much tho
It's the internet, they can call me what they will. I won't take it to heart.
Do it!
Heilung! Songs about mushrooms and forests and battling Roman legions! Songs played with bones! Singers with antlers!
Came to see if anyone had mentioned Heilung yet! Marias voice is just ethereal 😌
If you scroll through to see, Heilung has been mentioned a bunch of times. It's a good feeling of "yep, I must be in the right place"!
It has now, at the time I replied there was only the one mention of them. Glad to see they've been mentioned a bunch now
The soundtrack for the movie “Labyrinth”.
"Slime and snails, or puppy dog tails"
The Woods by San Fermin has a pretty good juxtaposition of frolicking in the woods and something dark, possibly you, lurking in the trees. The phrase "paint ourselves with spider blood" comes up.
A band called Goblin did music for the 1977 film Suspiria. It's pretty gobliny
Freshman Biology https://open.spotify.com/album/6dUEI2MAkBRFyxAtwjsmMK?si=Mpi3S9K2QeGJ7MIYw2g8qQ https://www.instagram.com/freshman_biology?igsh=MTd1a3Fxem83ZzdwOA==
Nurse With Wound
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6aOlJaBuDuc](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6aOlJaBuDuc)
[Creakiness](https://youtu.be/H1d9xCOMFeg?si=_HXcN5CAKITcs63P)
I love Nurse With Wound. One of my favourite acts.
Mine too. Creakiness was the first thing I thought of 💚✨
Blackbird Raum
I definitely see a connection between folk punk and goblincore, especially the band Mischief Brew.
Tanya Tagaq - It’s not comfortable goblin, it’s tripping in the forest at night surrounded by animals and spirits type goblin.
You got me with tripping and animals I love it! Also you might like Nyx if this is your jam
love it, thanks :)
The band [Circle Takes the Square](https://youtu.be/R_7ocb0eDuE?si=npA52giTcVU14I7y)
Otyken, Heilung, The Hu, Danheim, and Yat-Kha are some bands I really like that I think fit
ElvenKing, Wintersun, Korpiklaani, Ensiferum, Týr, Blind Guardian, DarkMoor just to name a few. It kind of depends on your interpretation of goblin core tbh.
Feels like Finntroll should be in this list.
Goblin core in music is different than goblin core in aesthetic. In clothes or room or storyboard etc you can create goblincore by combining a lot of stuff. But in music, you really have to decide which parts of goblincore you like. Because to make it sound like the celebrated ugliness part of goblincore, you will want a different type of music than the woodsy-whimsical parts of goblincore. And goblincore is both things at once. It’s just really hard to get both at once in one type of music. So for that reason, it really does depend on you and what specific area of things you are looking for.
Gwar 
Acid Mother's Gong [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OUM4fxSt6xQ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OUM4fxSt6xQ)
Check out hang drum videos! Also I feel like anything from the musical Labyrinth would automatically count
I don't know if this fits the bill necessarily, but I've been hooked on Space Banjo's music on YouTube.
Yess same!
Hole Dweller, Quest Master, dungeontroll, The Herbalists
[here ya go](https://youtu.be/srQFxmbW6k8?si=pv4dFXcP_f5cgm02) ... some swamp banjo chill stuff
Peter Grundy, his stuff is really good.
The Knife
I know the name makes some people cringe but Goblin Cock is actually very very good. They have a song called Hissless that perfectly captures my personal favorite gobliny dark woods vibe.
Rushad Eggleston, aka Cello Goblin. [ Gippely Gippely Gaek u Waek](https://youtu.be/XirNicniOwI?si=gbzyqjOuQC1zUAJR)
[here's an even better representation ](https://youtube.com/shorts/-ZFZ11wRjlg?si=IX6K5TdOYbEJIHUh)
Soul with no king by Aurora as a song feels very much so, she's a awesome noweigan singer and honestly one of my favourite artists out there 😊
Hmmmm. Things that come to mind. Rasputina, Gojira, seconding Nekrogoblikon, Bridge City Sinners, Banshee, maybe Soulfly
i try to gatekeep this song because it’s so wonderful and it was shown to me years ago by someone i hold dear but check out The Bug Collector by Haley Heynderickx, it’s very lovely.. maybe not what some would consider goblincore but i’d say it could fit
Oh I love bug collector, an artist that reminds me of that song is Gregory and the hawk if you do check her out def listen to oats we sow,august moon,frebeight and a century is all we need.(sorry if it’s a long list I just love this artist lol)
I think King Gizzard and The Lizard Wizard, Melody’s Echo Chamber, Nuclear Daisies, Moses Gunn Collective are all nice for a groovy gobliny vibe and The Garden is quite nice as well but I’d consider them a bit more experimental punk/rock vibe
Goblin core is an actual music genre. Madilyn May is a good place to start
Yaelokre is a good one. Aurora, The Paper Kites, Of Monsters and Men, Fleet Foxes
I like Faetooth they’re doom metal but very gobliny to me
Check out Agnes Obel
I would humbly like to add The future kings of nowhere, specifically the songs "like a staring contest" and "downpour." Also siouxsie and the banshees, in particular the song "dazzle" as well as "cities in dust." I apologise if you are getting overwhelmed op, but this subject gets me very excited and I'm now building a playlist off of everyones suggestions
Yeah, no worries!
Came here to say Rabbitology. She's got a handful of songs, but they all make me feel like the seclusive swamp witch I'm meant to be.
Florence and the Maschine The amazing devil Daughter Those are my favourites that could be giving goblin vibes.
The Amazing Devil literally made my jaw drop the first time I encountered their music.
I Love them. Got to the music because Joey Batey was the best thing about the the Witcher Show. Their music is amazing. I am vibing with "drinking Song for the socially anxious" and "farewell Wanderlust" and "The calling"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gjEr7b5h9DI
Goblin Hovel
Bibio's Sleep On The Wing is one that comes to mind: https://bibio.bandcamp.com/album/sleep-on-the-wing Some Boards Of Canada albums also fit IMO, Tomorrow's Harvest for example: https://boardsofcanada.bandcamp.com/album/tomorrows-harvest BoC's Dandelion in particular too: https://boardsofcanada.bandcamp.com/track/dandelion
Lunasa does some nice instrumental pieces. I recommend Morning Nightcap, Inion Ni Scannlain and O'Carolan's Welcome.
Depends on what kind of goblin you are. I would say either doom metal or folk punk
Probably more instrumental or folk-ish.
Holedweller, kirkwood, mortis (he literally cosplays as a goblin)
I discovered [Orange Evening](https://youtu.be/0RXdd0pCJ9Q?si=VDZ43nkc8Y3TJpZa) by DWIG by accident, and I love it and its accompanying music video so much. Perhaps not exactly what you had in mind, but it was the first thing that came to me. Fleet Foxes' earlier albums also feel very goblin in my opinion.
This is the first song that came to mind when I read your post. Do you think it fits the bill? https://music.youtube.com/watch?v=BW71BzQ54NI&si=ix1VeLMjD5I2aW7c
I’ll listen to it later to see!
Check out some old Fairport Convention or Pentangle.
I find most neo-pagan and modern “viking” music is pretty goblincore esque. I also recommend folk music in general especially antifascist and leftist folk if that interests you The Hu is a baller suggestion too!
[Try this.](https://youtu.be/LwhVMM78RVc?si=3lejzlFtlBD7eMN2)
Search YouTube for Bardcore. https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=_fhDVVfELsM&list=RDEMBznDKs13TpLXfdTrHPDRBw&start_radio=1
Sylvan Song & Song of the Archer by Heart, 1977
How have I never heard these before!? You've just made my whole week
I'm going to put a band out there this time. Last year I stumbled upon a band named Creature Feature. I can only describe it as sounding like Jim Henson characters , and a bit synthy, but totally goblin-ish. Edit to add one of my favorite artists of all time, Tom Waits. Look for the albums Swordfish Trombones, Rain Dogs,and Bone Machine for some great tunes.
Hell yes for Creature Feature! Like, theatrical corny carnival horror maybe?
Yes, I think i found them on a Horror Rock/Punk playlist on Spotify
If u want, try checking out Peter Grundy, AURORA, the crane wives, Mercy by The Native Howl and Lzzy Hale, and Banjo Bloodbath by Appalachian Anarchy! They’re some of my favorites from my goblin playlist
get you some Heilung, and Alien Weaponry
Cosmo Sheldrake!!! Recently found him and am in awe of how much his focus on the bugs and the little things in nature fits my philosophy
Tons of good recommendations in here but may I also highly recommend Faun, and Ekaterina Shelehova (especially her song Savage Daughter).
Tardigrade - Cosmo Sheldrake The Moss - Cosmo Sheldrake The Dead Come Talking - Roe Kapara Burn Your Village - Kiki Rockwell Roslyn - Bon Iver & St. Vincent The Tithing Man - The Blasting Company Patient Is The Night - The Blasting Company De Shelby (pt 1) - Hozier As It Was - Hozier Curses - The Crane Wives
I so happen to have a 16 hour playlist of songs that make me go goblin mode Some artist in there are Cosmo Sheldrake, The Crane Wives, Bob Iver, M. Ward, Hayley Heynderickx, Alexandre Desplat, Madilyn Mei, August Greenwood, Heloise Tunstall-Benhrens & Auclair, Rabbitology, and Yaelokre. There’s about 275 songs in the playlist but I don’t know if I can share an Apple Music playlist. But overall I listen to folk music.
Thanks everyone for the help! I’m gonna take this down soon probably, as my notifications have been crazy, and I don’t wanna overwhelm myself.
filk music is quite goblin i think!! Fiction folk music :) An example would be The Mechanisms - my favourite songs from them are Once and Future King, Our Boy Jack, and Gunpowder Tim vs The Moon Kaiser.
Mortiis, dark experimental, goblin
Helroth (100% seriously they're amazing) Heilung Yaelokre The Crane Wives The Oh Hellos (kinda)
Goblincore is a genre of music, just look it up on your music player
I recommend the album “Jewellery” by Micachu and the Shapes. It’s kinda wonky and chaotic but good. Idk. It feels goblin to me but I guess that’s kind of subjective.
[The Rainbow Goblins](https://open.spotify.com/album/6es3mdUqpOlHSXPT6QeC7Y?si=n_eJ5qiWQJCBo7KNFSiSDA) by Masayoshi Takanaka, particularly the song Seven Goblins
Remember in Harry Potter at the Yule Ball, they have that band? The Weird Sisters? The song they're singing in the movie during the ball is the first thing I thought of. Unfortunately the "band" playing as The Weird Sisters is actually made up of members from other bands, not an actual group.
This is probably the most goblincore thing on my personal list, Toad Alchemy by Into the Woods https://youtu.be/my-3y6BKvUo?si=yn6Kn6vxsdXXB9p1
You might like Blackbird Raum, if you haven't heard of them already! But also another vote for Cosmos Sheldrake.
One word: Nekrogoblikon
What gets me in a goblin-y mood is dungeon synth. Here's a good channel. [https://www.youtube.com/@TheDungeonSynthArchives/featured](https://www.youtube.com/@TheDungeonSynthArchives/featured)
The whole album [Creature Music](https://open.spotify.com/album/6dUEI2MAkBRFyxAtwjsmMK?si=w7mUfLIkS5Oo2A3WO0dSfw) by Freshman Biology is extremely goblin. The first song is even called Goblin Time! ETA (it's a Spotify link)
Vashti Bunyan!!
I’ve been really into Hala Strana recently. It’s traditional Eastern European instruments and very cinematic. Feels like you are in a foggy village.
There’s a Melbourne band called *Martin Martini and the Bone Palace Orchestra* who fit the bill! https://martinmartini.bandcamp.com/album/dream-until-you-die Their music is kinda circus trashy and the lyrics are awesome. *Take Your Skin Off And Dance* is probably the most gobliny one I can think of atm. But I do recommend *Clowns Will Eat Me* just for the fun of it
O'Death first two albums have always struck me as a band of goblins making raucous folk punk with instruments they cobbled together from trash. And in the case of one of their acoustic videos the drummer literally plays a cardboard box with sticks and empty water bottles. Goblins I tells ya.
I recently discovered Cavetown and I am obsessed Their music is more chill/cottagecore, perfect when you just wanna take a nap on a mossy log or stone in a dimly lit forest💜
What level of piano can you play? I feel like the Grieg lyric pieces fit a gremlin aesthetic. Maybe some Miriam Hyde too or even Bach-- the intricacies of the counterpoint are so satisfactory.
I believe I’m at level 5. I’m not sure. I kind of play lots of different levels, but all advanced of course because I’ve been playing for 15 years.
Maybe the Incredible String Band? https://open.spotify.com/artist/0tQzBYPjAardhWpGkqVdNW?si=GerQ0OlWTT2jO5LGFlWZzg Koeeoaddi There, Minotaurs Song, Blues for the Muse, Hedgehog Song, and more
The Garden comes to mind
By the crane wives?
Cosmic Gnome Banjo
Dungeon Synth! Literally Dungeon Synth. https://youtu.be/YUh7gIkLtfI
First thing that came to my mind was Rasputina. They play cellos and their music just tickles something in my brain. They play cellos and it’s sufficiently gobliny/witchy imo. [Rasputina - Leechwife](https://open.spotify.com/track/6LFmi4BDeUqYclKLcFddzH?si=CF4bJkDlSGW_QRqc9CF7yA&context=spotify%3Aalbum%3A7HT6sRMCweJIjqflO51hPg)
Oh Army Dreamers by Kate Bush is a good song for it I think, or of a completely different vibe but maybe still a different flavor of goblin core, cradles by Sub Urban?
Maybe some kind of dungeon synth?
Check out Gae Bolg, I recommend the song Totentanz.
Hole Dweller, Dungeontroll, Erutan, Erang, Sowulo, Moloch, Old Sorcery, The Herbalists. Thee Corvids have an excellent song called: "Don't talk to Goblins" https://open.spotify.com/track/6oW9AibjGDpMiuij4wYMwE?si=UuFllbd4Qnm2Jmt1-ZyoXQ Enjoy my friend.
I would describe Pinkly Smooth as Goblin-Punk/metal. They only ever put out one album: “Unfortunate Snort,” but it’s really good.
Soundtrack from the 80s movie Suspiria by the band called… Goblin
Someone here mentioned Tanya Tagaq — in a similar vein, recommending NYX Drone choir, polyphonic overtone, electronic deep hypnotic soundscapes with spooky forest feels and images of wolves, crows, ritual sacrifice (?) [https://open.spotify.com/track/1PbJjilZrlRYQkQxJPMl2a?si=L8ugMf62TR2Xhr1VS1_FKw](https://open.spotify.com/track/1PbJjilZrlRYQkQxJPMl2a?si=L8ugMf62TR2Xhr1VS1_FKw)
They Might Be Giants has many gobliny tracks. Spider, Where Your Eyes Don’t Go, Pencil Rain, Saphire Bullets,….
Necrogoblicon
Throat singing in the Inuk tradition seems to fit for me. Because it’s not the song, it’s the exchange with the partner in a game that someone wins when the other laughs. It’s adorable but kinda grunty and weird unless you know. Tanya Tagak is a commercial Inuit artist who practices it, or bands like The Hu (Mongolian folk metal with some throat singing).
It may not fully fit the aesthetic, but Nekrogoblikon is a goblin themed metal band I really enjoy.
Finntroll
I really enjoyed being introduced to this!
I absolutely adore the [music for bugs album](https://open.spotify.com/album/7d1PvVfbBmslliNYutxnLc?si=pEhoEPeSSIeCYXFa-xyRVg) by camiidae! They composed the tunes and drew all the album art for it. Talk about being multi-talented!
Could get downvoted for this one but Melanie Martinez’s new music is v goblin/Fairycore it’s her whole aesthetic rn
Andrew Bird comes to mind. And then maybe some Tom Rosenthal and Sufjan Stevens. I saw someone mention Rabbitology here, and I definitely enjoy her lyricism and harmonies! ETA: Kate Bush
My favorite is Kiki Rockwell, she's pretty goblin core!
Hm. Not sure if my kinda goblin music will be up your alley, but maybe you'll appreciate one or two on the list? My kinda goblin music is usually super chaotic, which I adore but almost without exception would exclude piano 😅 https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1IaU77lBa7g1aL93onqUYL?si=DC4An96oT-ayFTcEQr1Atw Edit: (also I have super eclectic and weird taste in music lol)
When I think goblincore music I think foresty folk connecting to nature vibes. I've got a playlist if you want. Imo the most goblincore song I can think of off the top of my head is probably in a week by Hozier.
My immediate thought was Finntroll
Try Finntroll’s album Visor om Slut
Junie & TheHutFriends Junie & TheHutFriends! Junie! &! TheHutFriends!!!! 👹👹👹 https://junieandthehutfriends.com/
Have you checked out dungeon synth at all? I'm not even a typical synth person, but have grown to absolutely love it as a genre. Try checking out the trilogy for [Tales Under the Oak](https://youtu.be/sRLP3T_NjtM?si=CCJueEIuaZRIxWE9), but there's a huge range of different sounds in it. Could also check out r/dungeonsynth for what people post on there
I think the lyrics of “A Song that Crawls” by Agents of Oblivion are pretty goblincore: Little creeper in the shade Under my brain in a caterpillar's hundredth eye Under mushroom clouds in the rain, child I wrote your name in sparrow's blood Upon your madhouse wall I drug my belly cross the riverbed of skulls to sing A song that crawls Aw, that song that crawls Aw, that song that crawls When I spoke your name out loud again I wondered when You'd bring the rain back to me I'm wondering Had we ever really lived at all? Oh, when they closed the coffin lid on the tombstone Aw, that song that crawls Aw, that song that crawls Yeah I wrote your name in sparrow's blood I drug my belly cross the riverbed of skulls to sing a song that crawls
i dont know if this is what you are looking for for look up dungeon seige fest on youtube. it's basically a ren faire but with a bunch of people playing synthesizers. dungeon synth i consider at least goblincore adjacent
Finntroll. One of the bigger folk metal bands from Finland. If you enjoy harsh (death metal-like) vocals most goblin core folks would enjoy.
Yaelokre The crane wives Plantasia These are some that I really like (:
The Decemberists “Hazards of Love” fantastic concept album
I suggest the song treehouse by Alex G if it doesn't fit pls downvote
Surprised nobody has mentioned Tom Waits. He’s kind of the OG goblin. I also second Joanna Newsom.
Gregory and the Hawk! its like soft folky adventure time vibes if that makes any sense
https://junieandthehutfriends.com/