Mood Music XXIII: 5 Songs that Are, Like, So Twilight

In honor of the week's big pop culture event (I'm going to a midnight show! I decorated a t-shirt! I'm so excited!) I thought I'd share 5 songs that don't appear on any of the soundtracks or Stephenie Meyer's playlists but have this excellently vibe that for some reason or another made me go, "This song is so Twilight."

"Dressed in Black," the Shangri-Las

The version of this song I'm familiar with, from the girl group box set One Kiss Can Lead to Another, is sung by a different group. It doesn't change the spectacularly over-the-top nature of this song, especially the spoken portions. I love "And no one...can hear me cry."

"Alone," Heart

The lyrics of this song, especially the chorus, are kind of like the first book if it were set to music.

"Romeo and Juliet," the Killers

I love Meyer's literary allusions, even when they're somewhat lacking in subtlety - as trite as New Moon's references to Romeo and Juliet, they somehow make Bella seem more real, as it's totally the kind of thing that idiot teenagers do in real life. (I like the Killers' version better than the Dire Straits - I feel like Brandon Flowers gives the vocals a bit of a desperate edge that serves the song well.)

"I'm Waiting for the Day," the Beach Boys

A song that feels appropriate for poor, sad Jacob. I can't remember whether I've said so here before or not, but listening to Pet Sounds made me think that there's a commonality between Stephenie Meyer and Brian Wilson - both have a knack for expressing a sort of teenage ethos. (I feel like some music lover/Twilight hater is going to pop up out of the Internet ether and ask how dare I compare the two.)

"Without You," Nilsson

The anthem of emotional overinvolvement and codependent fallout, which is truly the essence of Twilight. (And especially New Moon.)