Stranger Things: all the songs from season five. The show's soundtrack

Music has always been one of the narrative pillars of "Stranger Things", but in the fifth and final season its role takes on even greater weight. No longer a simple nostalgia trigger or springboard for viral moments, the soundtrack becomes an integral part of the show's emotional farewell, accompanying characters and viewers alike toward the definitive close of an imaginary world that has shaped contemporary TV drama.

From its very debut, Stranger Things has shown a rare awareness in its use of pop and rock music: iconic tracks are never used as mere decoration, but as elements capable of redefining the meaning of a scene, amplifying its impact or rewriting its place in collective memory. That's what happened with "Running Up That Hill" or "Master Of Puppets", both brought back to life through a narratively pointed and culturally precise placement.

The fifth season, however, takes a different path. Rather than chasing another viral breakout, it prefers to work through subtraction and layering, using music as an emotional throughline. The chosen tracks converse with the show's past, but above all with its present: a story heading toward its conclusion, steeped in melancholy, memory and a sense of loss.

The first episode, “The Crawl”, immediately recalls the show's origins. Tracks like those of Philip Glass or Elmer Bernstein's orchestral forays help make the atmosphere more unsettling and suspended, while the recurring returns of Kate Bush take on an almost symbolic value, as if that song had become a sort of inner voice for the series itself.

The finale, "The Rightside Up", is instead built as a true musical epilogue. The choices made by the Duffer brothers no longer look to the 1980s merely as an idealized aesthetic, but as a shared emotional space capable of holding together emotion, power and memory. The fifth season's epilogue leans in particular on Prince. The inclusion of "Purple Rain" and "When Doves Cry" in the concluding episode had an immediate effect on streaming platforms. In the days following the broadcast, "Purple Rain" saw a global streaming increase of over 200%, with an even sharper spike among younger listeners. "When Doves Cry" is following a similar trajectory, while Prince's entire catalogue has enjoyed renewed interest.

The episode's closing moment, set to "Heroes" in David Bowie's original version, after the use of Peter Gabriel's version in the first season, ideally brings things full circle, giving the series a rare narrative coherence. Here is the complete list of songs from the fifth season of "Stranger Things", episode by episode.

Chapter One: The Crawl

• Should I Stay or Should I Go – Stranger Things Cast (by The Clash)

• Rockin' Robin – Michael Jackson

• Pretty In Pink – The Psychedelic Furs

• Upside Down – Diana Ross

• May 25th – Matthew Cardinal

• Running Up That Hill (A Deal With God) – Kate Bush

Capitolo Due: The Vanish of Holly Wheeler

• Fernando – ABBA

• Running Up That Hill (A Deal With God) – Kate Bush

• Notes On A Scandal – Philip Glass

• Someone in Your Garden – Philip Glass

• Mr. Sandman – The Chordettes

Capitolo Tre: The Turnbow Trap

• To Each His Own – Freddy Martin & His Orchestra

• I Think We're Alone Now – Tiffany

• Oh Yeah – Yello

• Car Boy – Julek Ploski

Chapter Four: Sorcerer

• Higitus Figitus – Karl Swenson

• Premature Plans – Elmer Bernstein

• Betrayal – Elmer Bernstein

• Sh-Boom – The Chords

• Running Up That Hill (A Deal With God) – Kate Bush

Chapter Five: Shock Jock

• Heart and Soul – Floyd Cramer

• The Fight – da Nightmare on Elm Street 3

• Snake Pit, Pt. 1 – from Nightmare on Elm Street 3

Capitolo Sei: Escape from Camazotz

• Running Up That Hill (A Deal With God) – Kate Bush

• Running Up That Hill (Instrumental Cover) – Rob Simonsen / London City Orchestra

Capitolo Sette: The Bridge

• Running Up That Hill (A Deal With God) – Kate Bush

• When It’s Cold I’d Like to Die – Moby

• Human Cannonball – Butthole Surfers

Capitolo Otto: The Rightside Up

• Sh-Boom – The Chords

• When Doves Cry – Prince

• Purple Rain – Prince

• Landslide – Fleetwood Mac

• Here Comes Your Man – Pixies

• The Trooper – Iron Maiden

• Sweet Jane – Cowboy Junkies

• Heroes – David Bowie

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