REINESSA

Spas, massages, and hair appointments all seem to come with the same barely-there music that’s as good as anything at blending into the background. But for those of us who like our music a little on the heavier side—imagine if we could choose the playlist. Here are my top 20 picks for the best relaxing and otherworldly songs that might suit you a little better for a weekend bubble bath and face mask. No, every song is not metalcore. But there is something about them that feels right.

20. Of Mice and Men – When You Can’t Sleep at Night

This song takes a little bit to warm up, but there’s something so entrancing about it.

19. Motionless in White – Eternally Yours (Cinematic Instrumental)

If you’re looking for a more epic experience (maybe you’re going for a really daring hair color), then you cannot go wrong with the cinematic instrumentals from Motionless in White. They have three of these—Eternally Yours, Another Life, and Porcelain—and they are all beautiful.

18. Sleep Token – The Summoning

Sleep Token are a natural fit for taking a moment to breathe and let the music wash over you. The Summoning has a soul to it, with a lilting cadence—almost like a warm blanket cocoon for your brain.

17. Deftones – Digital Bath

I don’t think it’s possible to put together a playlist of “otherworldly” or “trance”-esque music with an edge to it without including Deftones. Digital Bath really does feel like a warm musical bath that calms the central nervous system.

16. Bad Omens – Somebody else.

We continue with the vocal distortion, but let’s bring the vocals up higher and add more of a beat! This won’t be the last Bad Omens song you see—their 2022 album was built for this theme.

15. Placebo – Running Up That Hill

Stranger Things may have brought the original version of Running Up That Hill back into the mainstream, but the Placebo cover will always have a special place in my heart (and my regular listening) with their gentle yet insistent rendition.

14. Puscifer – Indigo Children

This one might be a little “wub wub” for this playlist, but something about the feel of the bass calms my brain—so this is (shockingly) the first of two Puscifer songs on this playlist.

13. Sleep Token – Provider

At first, this song didn’t grab me like the rest of the album, but after a few listens, I realized it fit perfectly into a playlist meant for feeling nothing or feeling everything all at once.

12. Bush – Slow Me

This is a fairly recent release (2022) compared to the Bush that made the big splash in the early 2000s, but it has the same seemingly nonsensical lyrics and cadence that marks the perfect Bush spa experience. (The band name is pretty unfortunate for that sentence, isn’t it?)

11. Gregory Alan Isakov – Mistakes

Okay, this is incredibly out of genre and out of style for all the other songs, but I like to throw in a few wildcards to keep a playlist feeling fresh. This song is cold fall mornings with a hot mug of tea. It’s the smell of a bonfire on a damp day. It’s the warmth of bread baking after coming in from a cold few hours hiking outside.

10. Sleep Token – Rain

It’s time for a dose of gentle, soaring vocals and a serene piano intro. “Rain” does pick up pace with some not-so-zen drums, but the movement and shifts in the song pull you along Vessel’s journey. As the song softens, you can hear the relaxing sound of a rainstorm before you’re pulled back into a hypnotic experience.

9. Bush – Letting the Cables Sleep

Appearing on both the Charmed and ER soundtracks, “Letting the Cables Sleep” brings some late ‘90s flavor with soft yet gravelly vocals and meandering harmonies that slow things down and help the world fade into the background.

8. Motionless in White – Wasp

I honestly didn’t think there was a way to cram my favorite band onto this list twice, but shuffle really helped me out by reminding me of “Wasp”. There’s a little more distortion, a bit of a dance beat, but haunting echoed vocals that pull this back into the even, calm experience we’re looking for.

7. Bad Omens – Who Are You

As promised, the second (of three) Bad Omens songs to slide into your relaxation playlist. The breathier vocals and softer beat bring the energy down into a meditative state, and you will definitely wish the song lasted longer.

6. Puscifer – The Humbling River

Puscifer is weird. There isn’t any better way to describe them, and I definitely would not listen to their entire catalogue more than once. However… this song has an unexpected duet and a story that draws you in and helps you get out of your own head, which is fantastic for when you need to unwind.

5. Sleep Token – Aqua Regia

Aqua Regia has a bounce to it—a rhythm that lets you almost join with the song in a meditative state. It breaks up the digital fuzziness of the last few songs and brings back that soul that Sleep Token taps into so well.

4. Trees of Eternity – Sinking Ships

Aleah Stanbridge’s vocals have a depth to them that feels like Maria Brink was transported to an ancient time and is singing as a witch wanders through a moonlit night. There’s a dark calmness to the song that just feels right.

3. Zedd, Kesha – True Colors

Just trust me on this one—this is not the Kesha you remember from forced high school dance playlists. This song shows what her voice can do, and Zedd adds just the right amount woven in and around her to feel the world melt away. I once listened to this on repeat for over three days straight. (It was grad school, and things were stressful!)

2. Bush – Out of This World

If you think this playlist relies heavily on Bush songs, you would be right. I first discovered this song when it was used in an episode of Buffy (remember when shows had good music in them?), and it has stuck with me ever since. If I need to slow down or appreciate a moment, Out of This World really does help you get… out of this world… for a little bit. (ba dum tish, you’re welcome).

1. Bad Omens – bad decisions

Bad Omens, Sleep Token, and Bush make the core of this playlist (obviously), but this song is what anchors everything together. The intentional pauses, the high harmony and then drop to a deeper whispering vocal, the beat that never speeds up too much—it is the perfect metalcore relaxation spa song.