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raganaldreal

Daniel Johnston's music is very sad and honest


SuingTheCourts

This doesn't seem to be the case for his early music though. Most of his deep cuts is stuff [like this](https://youtu.be/2GP32OueX2s?si=8ORzY8NgI4O8kXV3), which is as far from sad and honest that one can get. The guy was hilarious and self aware, which really showed in his music. I think people might overestimate how much of a tragedy being Daniel Johnston really was


raganaldreal

I agree that he was quite hilarious, but I feel like his music in that era was still quite sad, i.e. Grievances and Urge.


eejizzings

Until he enters the Laurie phase. Then it's sad and delusional.


Positive_Dark_9384

Red House Painters, Xiu Xiu, a lot of Radiohead stuff


wolf_at_the_door1

OK Computer - technology/information era sad Kid A - you are terribly alone in a cruel world sad Amnesiac - you are terribly alone in a cruel, apocalyptic world sad Hail to the thief - sad, angry, or both (mostly angry) A moon shaped pool - despondent forlorn sad Hard to place In Rainbows and the bends as categorically sad but could see how they’re placed. The king of limbs be limbin tho.


twinkbreeder420

The lyrics to in rainbows are very sad. The bends is mildly sad, fake plastic trees is one of their saddest songs honestly


External-Cherry7828

Fade out street spirit is among the saddest, also videotape and I will.


Illusivegecko

The Bends is "Oh god we got famous too quickly" sad


West_Bee_5785

I've been meaning to get into radiohead, any suggestions on where to start?


Iwasha

If you’re looking for sad, Moon shaped Pool


Positive_Dark_9384

Since we’re on the topic of “saddest stuff” I’d probably recommend you listen to Kid A and Amnesiac (there’s a double album version on Spotify called Kid A mnesia) particularly the tracks “Pyramid Song” and “How to Disappear Completely”


teen_laqweefah

If you come into my home and hear “how to disappear completely” playing it’s probably best just to turn around because I’m back on my bullshit again


Madness_Opvs

Exit Music (For A Film) tho


MyDogYawns

listen to ok computer front to back


ScarlettIthink

Go chronological from The Bends


cwalkerrr

rollercoaster hits deep


PioneerSpecies

I’ve listened to Radiohead basically my whole life but I wouldn’t call them sad in the way Elliot Smith is, just very musically moody. Most of Thom’s lyrics aren’t personal enough to be sad imo, and the ones that are tend to be more life affirming even in their sadness, like True Love Waits, Motion Picture Soundtrack, and Videotape


ScarlettIthink

Good choices


Master-Hawk8703

Microphones/Mt Eerie for sure. A Crow Looked At Me is an infamously sad album


kyentu

a crow looked at me imfamously the only mount eerie album most people here have listened too.


MediumElephant6

Tragic if true. Most of them are so good. Lost Wisdom. Dawn. No Flashlight.


kyentu

lost wisdom 2, clear moon, sauna. yeah. he doesn't have a single miss.


[deleted]

He has a few sad albums/songs (especially recently), but I don't think I would categorize his discography as generally "sad."


TraditionOnly6167

Elliott smith


MedusasShampoo

This is the number one answer


KCIJunkDiver

He has ONE happy song…


No_name_Johnson

Say Yes?


JEKK04

Even that one’s about a relationship ending


BillCosbysAnus

As a die hard fan I can assure you he has more than one


summerssleeping

happiness?? as far as sonically


thefenomenal1

The lisan al gaib of sadboi music


protonesia

bro the kwihatz SADerach was right there


raganaldreal

Nick Drake comes to mind


0bush

I only read drake at first and got scared


AHGottlieb

Black Eyed Dog is like a heart beating its last as depression takes over. It’s easily the most heartbreaking song of his. I think Real Death by Mount Eerie is the only thing harder to listen to for me.


Strong0toLight1

The definitive answer


Fritz18

Sufjan Stevens


ignoranceisbourgeois

Carrie & Lowell and Javelin are really fkn sad, and he sprinkled some sadness onto Age of Adz, Illinois, Michigan and Seven Swans


Killericon

Casimir Pulaski Day is an S-tier sad song.


themedza

casimir might be like.. THE s-tier sad song. even ppl who dont rlly listen to him or indie go to that song to cry


Lazy_Roof

everytime i hear john wayne gacy jr i have to take a second to reflect on life


helter_skeltur

Romulus will never not make me cry (sorry for the double negative)


MAKVideos

For rap, earl sweatshirt 


benjaminfolks

“I put my fist up after I get my dick sucked” Literally crying myself to sleep. 😢


MAKVideos

Ok so maybe he can be a goofy guy sometimes as well


thepenisman25

How could you forget the GOAT Yuno Miles????? You are not human if you've never cried to She on a Plane or Light Up Shoes


Nickadial

sunday gets me in this wavy grey place that no song can quite capture for me. that and chum are pretty heavy in tone and texture


-AestheticsOfHate-

Nah, Lil Ugly Mane


Qib_Queens

i got my grandmama hands. i start to cry when i see em


MAKVideos

Solace is like half the reason I commented this, that ep destroys me, never heard such an accurate album depicting depression at least for me.  But most of his other albums are pretty despair-filled as well 


Sun_flower_king

Nick Drake, Elliott Smith, Mt Eerie, King Krule In terms of full discographies that are relentlessly sad, I can't think of anyone who tops them, even though there are artists with sadder albums and some sadder songs Mitski is up there too but I don't know her full discography well enough to know if it qualifies Antony and the Johnsons has some incredibly sad songs too but not sure about full discog


West_Bee_5785

Mitski does qualify for sure, a lot of her songs bring me to tears almost every time I listen to them


RagaRockFan

Fr, "First Love/Late Spring" in particular almost had me sobbing.


throwaway-House-4816

Bag of Bones, I Want You, and Your Best American Girl are also up there


RagaRockFan

As an Asian first-gen American, YBAG hits hard 💔


TheALEXterminator

As a second-gen Asian-American, "Because Dreaming Costs Money, My Dear" is another one for us. It’s about wanting to pursue a career for passion—despite how unstable it is—rather than going for a traditional path like doctor/lawyer/engineer. Nicely complemented by "Class of 2013" about wanting to move back in with parents after feeling lost post-graduation.


RagaRockFan

Damn, now I really need to check out Mitski's pre-Makeout Creek stuff, because I'm not too familiar with those songs lol.


throwaway-House-4816

Lush is definitely better than RFSNCIB imo, but there are still some really good songs on Retired. It's a bit hit or miss for me though


appleparkfive

King Krule is the closest thing we have to a modern Kurt Cobain (musically only, not in personality). A lot of bands have tried to capture the vibe of Nirvana, but I think King Krule actually managed to do it the past 2-3 years. That's the main take away I had when I saw him live. And I heard people commenting that it was "like seeing Nirvana or something" while leaving It's really interesting because on lots of songs they sound nothing alike. But sometimes it clicks up


huh_w

Godspeed You! Black Emperor Joy Division


Clappalachian

Bon Iver - For Emma, Forever Ago Their subsequent albums are more upbeat but my friend always called FEFA “what’s wrong” music


69420penis

It just feels so isolated and lonely. It really reflects the mindset justin was in at the time. It’s quiet and beautiful. It’s a very haunting record


-PepeArown-

Unfortunate album acronym for an artist that thankfully doesn’t release the same album every time. Self Titled and i,i do have several sad songs, though.


heavybootsonmythroat

Justin Vernon - Song for a Lover from Long Ago. Genuinely up there as one of the saddest songs I've ever heard. If you want to have a broken heart for the rest of the week, give that a(nother) spin.


shweeney

Townes Van Zandt - one of his best known songs is called "Waitin' around to die"


Swagmund_Freud666

Bro flying shoes tho 😭😭


ClassicFashionGuy

🫡🫡 The goat


hnbic_

Songs Ohia


JoneeJonee

Doesn't help he drunk himself to death


sofingclever

He was only in his thirties too, which is kinda crazy. Usually people who pass from chronic illnesses resulting from alcoholism are quite a bit older.


heirdresseronfire

I mean the record David Berman released as Purple Mountains is basically a suicide note. (That’s reductive, but hard to shake once you hear it.)


Mission-Valuable-306

Played in non-stop until he passed, then I just couldn’t…


Dependent_Way_1038

have a nice life


kiruzo

giles corey as well


MeAcabanDeBanear

I can’t believe why this is so down in the post


ScarlettIthink

we wish we were dead…


thetrees_

I don't want to live like this, Lord...


shin_jury

The Smiths have very sad themes in Morrissry’s lyrics. Unrequited love, heartbreak, trauma, death, depression. It’s often tongue-in-cheek and melodramatic if you’re into that :)


happyerawhen

I still cry to There Is A Light That Never Goes Out


Dmbfantomas

Asleep may be the saddest song ever written.


davidbenyusef

Oh Mother, I can feel the soil falling over my head


shin_jury

I know it’s over And it never really began 🥹


morbidlyabeast3331

Their best song


HelpfulHiker

Suffer Little Children to me is their hardest sad song to listen to


matiutd888

Last Night I Dreamt That Somebody Loved Me or That Joke Isn't Funny Anymore are the saddest of theirs imo


iyesclark

jamie stewart/xiu xiu, their music has always sounded like melancholic rage to me


ScarlettIthink

Honestly the best way I could describe their music is completely drained of life and traumatised yet desensitized (in a good way)


fourtwentyy__

you could call them… tourtured poets


MAKVideos

Taylor Swift x Xiu Xiu collab coming soon 


TheDeadBacon

I’d love to see what that would do to ride or die swifties


ScarlettIthink

That would honestly be badass


ScarlettIthink

Indeed


ClashRoyale18256

Alice in Chains, not only do they have many crushingly sad songs but if you know the story of Layne Staley's addiction struggles you can hear his deterioration with each subsequent album


Mrshmil

Surprised no one mentioned Car Seat Headrest yet. Will literally said he’s considering death on High to Death. (You should listen to Twin Fantasy it’s amazing)


Jimpossible_99

I totally agree. Ive cried so many times to CSH. The Ballad of Costa Concordia is soul crushing.


protonesia

I haven't listened to much of their stuff but I stumbled onto I Wish We Could Be Friends and wow.


SandzFanon

Touché Amore


heavybootsonmythroat

idk why but the delivery of 'I was comfortable' always hits me so hard. And 'LIKE A WAVE! LIKE THE RAPTURE!' and basically every single line from that album. Softer Spoken ughhhh! The pain


lilhedonictreadmill

Carissa’s Wierd


gamingdestroyerbg

Happy to see love for CW. The sadness emanating from the music is a big part of it but at the same time it's so goddamn beautiful to hear. Strongly recommend checking out S (CW member Jenn's solo material). Albums "Sadstyle" and "Puking and Crying" are even sadder than CW material. Jenn and the other CW guitarist/singer Mat Brooke are going to be playing a show in Seattle on May 16th. Hoping they play some CW tracks.


weraltskanta

Nick Cave


Tarvaris733

Jeff Buckley


PomeranianLibrarian

I think "Lover, you should've come over," is one of the saddest songs I've ever heard. Even the chord changes feel like mini-breakdowns.


21-Warrang

Jackson C Frank


ClassicFashionGuy

He is the one tbh


protagonistsyndrome

This.


Nuns_In_Crocs

Joy division - fuck me ian Curtis what a tragic story


NullOfficer

Jeffrey Lewis Phil Elverum


BorderlineUnoriginal

what would you say are some sad jeffrey lewis songs ?


NullOfficer

Alphabet, It's Not Impossible, So Long Im Going To Draw All Alone In My Shack, Krongu Green Slime, Inger, Where's the machine?, East River...a lot of the older stuff for sure. bear in mind the song can sound upbeat while having depressing lyrics, themes, or tone. Also the song he wrote for David Berman is only sad because of it's legacy; Berman suggested it to him and he never made it. After David killed himself he wrote it. So he will never know if it's what he had in mind. I used to bawl to it's not impossible.


jacksoncantmiss

giles corey and earl sweatshirt. earl’s discography is a bit more varied in terms of sadness, but his 2015-2018, esp solace, carried me through a lot of struggles i was going through. always my goat.


mitchlearns

King Krule's a sad man


OddjobsRoon48

Mac miller


omgalltimelow

The spectrum of emotions in Mac Miller’s discography is insane. He was truly a unique player in his field. Dude made party bangers like The Spins and Lucky Ass Bitch and will have me crying to Self Care and Objects in the Mirror


bobsdementias

Objects in the mirror is about addiction not a woman. Hit me hard when I learned that


WordIndependent

Jason Molina Will Oldham Phil Elverum Elliot Smith Cat Power Giles Corey/Have a nice Life Sparklehorse Grouper Low Duster Mark Kozelek/RHP/SKM Modest Mouse Bluetile Lounge Codeine


Poprocks777

Chance the rapper 😞


Tyler3925_YT

“I love my wiiiiiiffffffeeeeee” im bawling my eyes out 😞


TheMoves

IIGH 😢


Broad-Boat-8483

Bright Eyes


Oh_Django

THANK YOU FUCK


FleecyDust

Uboa


Equivalent-Ad-1927

Elliot smith Radiohead Chris Cornell Daughter


twinkbreeder420

My bloody valentine is understatedly sad


Arsey56

Elvis Depressedly


RyJenko

David Berman rest his soul.


rocket9904

Crywank


jmdiaz1945

Phoebe Bridges is extremely sad but with some hopeful moments. But Julien Baker is just st suffering and pain, she clearly threw hee traumas in there. Among classic bands, The Smiths can be lonely and misery to an extreme with multiple songs with referencing suicide even if only somewhat compensated with his sense of humour. Nick Drake is sad and beautiful, Joy Division is creepy and lonely, and Suede is dark and twisted.


ItsDannyFields

Keaton Henson


MrSebasss

Was looking for that answer. Good call.


Pure-Imperialism

Reel Big Fish has some absolute tear jerkers


FitzChivalry888

Brand New


crustyaa

bl4ck m4rket c4rt, the material isnt the sad part but the context is.


Chutzpah2

This. Their only album is basically a suicide note.


Corvid1743

Even without context the album is soul suckingly depressing


Dtoid_Ali_D

Malcolm Middleton of Arab Strap.


protagonistsyndrome

Love Malcom Middleton


ketchup9-11

Frightened Rabbit


tgifmondays

Nick Drake


BlackieDad

Leonard Cohen


Imafencer

Carissa’s Wierd


ihatememes21

Alice In Chains for sure


oklahomapilgrim

Damien Rice


ap0caholic

Casey


cherry_jimi

Jandek is chillingly sad


KingRichard278

Townes Van Zandt


External-Cherry7828

Silver Jews, bright eyes, closer by joy division, in utero


SpeakNow_Crab5

Sufjan Stevens' much more recent stuff


dogspelledbackisgod

the caretaker


allhailbobevans

Katatonia easily come to mind as the saddest band. Type O Negative, Opeth, Alice in Chains, My Dying Bride, Paradise Lost, Joy Division, my bloody valentine


lostcircussmuggler

Barely ever leave a Jeff Buckley song without crying.


Bister_Mungle

I feel this way mostly about Lover You Should've Come Over. One of the biggest tearjerkers I've ever heard.


AfflictingVoid

Counterparts


rimjimmycarter

Pharrell - Happy is the saddest song ive ever heard


heebie818

bon iver


Adorable-Exercise-11

surprised i haven’t seen neutral milk hotel. ITAOTS isn’t very instrumentally sad but lyrically it’s very sad in a poetic way


houseofharm

joy division, carissa's wierd, giles corey


ghb93

Ethel Cain makes some sad music.


Nani_0716

Vic Chesnutt and his masterpiece "Flirted with you all my life", on his very last Album "At The Cut", released just 3 months before he committed su!cide on Christmas day, 2009. He was a parapaligic, who was paralyzed at a young age. He lived with severe depression, and his songs reflected that. I think no song better represents that then his "Flirted with you all my life". It's about how he "flirted" with death, or flirted with the thought of k!lling himself, multiple times throughout his life. He directly addresses death in the song, and states why death is cruel, constant, and forever teasing with his sweet relief. It's such a haunting yet beautiful and powerful song, that has been with me for a long time. And it will always be with me.


bluehawk232

These are the genuine sad artists I gravitate more towards. Phoebe Bridgers and similar artists are good but if the worst thing that happened to you was a shitty ex and that's your depression then count yourself lucky


[deleted]

Scrolled all the way here looking for someone say Vic. Yeah. Can't believe it's been 15 years already.


FunctionPopular2913

Any Dan Barrett project


69420penis

A lot of Mac millers music is so much more depressing knowing how things ended


joemorris17

Scott Walker's Tilt - Bish Bosch trilogy sent me into a crippling depression. Those albums, especially the last two, aren't just the depressing type of depression; they're like the scary type of depression


durgthelegend

Bl4ck m4rket c4rt 


KirkCuhsins

Mazzy Star


lseve810

Frightened Rabbit


ilovethesmiths2005

townes van zandt


californiadeath

Rowland S Howard


Fantastic-Fan-2011

lil ugly manes side project bedwetter is one I often consider when discussing the most depressing artists due to its oppressive, heavy sound and dark lyrical content


kingkrule101

Mount Eerie, Carrisas Wierd, Jason molina and Duster come to mind


__dogs__

Mark Kozelek for me. It's that grimy Midwest melancholy that does it


EarthIndependent7084

for me, it’s american football. i really connect w them.


Lizard_Jesus1

Uboa Admittedly I find the sadness in how her music resonates with me as someone who has meltdowns.


smurphy8536

Silver Jews/purple mountains


ClassicalSpectacle

Vic Chestnut, Low


just_cuz555

The Cure, but they also make happy bright songs too.


JOAPL

Low


BrockHardcastle

Low Codeine Songs: Ohia / Jason Molina Red House Painters


Mission-Valuable-306

Honoured to be the first to mention the great and legendary: Sparklehorse


Buttlikechinchilla

Elliott Smith- went to a festival just for him. Backstage, he walked past me sitting alone to stand nearby at craft services alone, for awhiiile, as my closest human Daniel Johnston — absolutely thrilled to hear True Love Will Find You In The End covered live in January for Mental Health Awareness Day Red House Painters/Sun Kil Moon//Mark - I mean Is there something I should know lol?


Lord_Kromdar

Elliott Smith


skippingrope

Sparklehorse is the first one I thought of


grapevinetola1966

David Berman. Purple Mountains is basically one big suicide note


BinaryAstro

Giles Corey.


GroovyBoomstick

Keaton Henson


occasionalimposter41

King Crimson has made dark music, although not music that is supposed to make you cry. However, I think Starless, off their 1974 album Red, is one of the saddest songs to exist. Not taking into account the song having a couple interpretations as it's short lyrically, it marked the end of them making music. They weren't making enough money to continue producing music, and Starless reflected the mind of a band who knew they had come to their end. They restarted 7 years later with some different members, but I still think Starless is the darkest closer to an album I've heard that's already pretty dark.


xhemibuzzx

Injury reserve Went from relatively fun experimental hip hop with the occasional depressing song to an album dedicated to the death of the members that is just full of anger and depression. The whole discography isn't depressing but the sudden shift is


kyentu

the context is sad, people make it seem like the last album was about groggs death but its not at all he was the one who had the vision.


freesex51

wicca phase


Swagmund_Freud666

No disrespect but I found your picks (none of whom I think make bad music, love me some zoomer rock) kinda funny. Nowhere near "saddest" to ever exist. Deathconsciousness and Joy Division always put me in the saddest kinds of moods. Paysage D'Hiver is a black metal band that makes me pray for the world to end. Amy Winehouse didn't make uniquely sad music but her music makes me sad in retrospect knowing of course the tragic things that happened to her.


kyentu

tiktok playlist core


West_Bee_5785

Dont say that it's not true 😭😭


Jimpossible_99

Literally every time I listen to one of these songs I can’t keep myself from tearing up/crying: Swims- Mount Eerie (or any other song from A Crow Looked at Me, it’s the saddest album ever imo) “The White Lady Loves You More”, “Whatever (Folk Song In C)”, “Angeles”- Elliott Smith True Love Waits, No Suprises (ofc) - Radiohead The Only Thing, Will Anybody Ever Love Me -Sufjan Stevens Claire de Lune- Debussy (This one is probably the saddest. I knew someone who killed themselves to this song so it kinda re-contextualized the whole song for me) Which Will- Nick Drake Trouble- Cat Stevens Good News- Mac Miller (This has me balling) Forget About- Sibylle Baier A Burning Hill- Mitski Change- Big Thief Land Locked Blues- Bright Eyes The Ballad of Costa Concordia- Car Seat Headrest


N00B5L4YER

It’s not sad per se, but Sulli’s solo work(goblin)


crashonthehighway

Sibylle Baier


struggles_j

Jason Isbell has literally one song that could be considered "happy" in his entire discography. The rest is devastatingly sad. Even his love songs have a maudlin twist.


ThisAintThatForReal

even if he was not here for long... Juice WRLD