Infernal Songs That Capture the Horrors of Jeffrey Dahmer | Playlist 🎧

1. Slayer, “213”

Divine Intervention • American • 1994

“A lifeless object for my subjection / An obsession beyond your imagination / Primitive instinct a passion for flesh…/ Sadistic acts a love so true / Absorbingly masticating a part of you.” Dirty sex? Check. Cannibalism? Also check. Wow… what more can you say? Slayer is a veteran metal band, forming in the early 80s.

Of Slayer, AllMusic biographer Steve Huey writes:

Their graphic lyrics dealt with everything from death and dismemberment to war and the horrors of hell. Their full-throttle velocity, wildly chaotic guitar solos, and powerful musical chops painted an effectively chilling sonic background for their obsessive chronicling of the dark side.

Given such obsessiveness, Slayer magnificently tackles the darkness of Dahmer on “213,” the penultimate track from their 1994 studio album, Divine Intervention.

“Erotic sensations tingle my spine
A dead body lying next to mine
Smooth blue-black lips
I start salivating as we kiss…
Panting excitedly with my hands around your neck.”

“213” sounds from eerie from the jump – a perfect soundtrack to the horrific actions by Dahmer.  Throughout its course, it’s filled with angularity, with the twists and turns matching the perversion which they sing about.  In addition to the aforementioned lyrics from the end, there’s more atrociousness to partake of.

“Driving compulsion morbid thoughts come to mind
Sexual release buried deep inside
Complete control of a prized possession
To touch and fondle with no objection
Lonely souls an emptiness fulfilled
Physical pleasure and addictive thrill
An object of perverted reality
And obsession beyond your wildest dreams.”

2. Kesha, “Cannibal”

Cannibal • RCA • 2010

Kesha has a knack for living on the edge.  She proved as much on “Cannibal” (Cannibal).  Where does Jeffrey Dahmer come into play? Dahmer abused his victims sexually and ate them.  Kesha doesn’t literally eat her victims – boys – but she adapts Dahmer’s repulsiveness lyrically.

“I eat boys up
Breakfast and lunch
Then when I’m thirsty, I drink their blood
Carnivore, animal, I am a cannibal
I eat boys up
You better run.”

The lyrics are successful, but creepy. The first verse is incredibly suggestive, lining up TOO WELL with Dahmer’s crimes.

“I have a heart; I swear I do
But just not baby, when it comes to you
I get so hungry when you say you love me…
You’re the kind of guy I’d stalk in school
But now that I’m famous, you’re up my anus
Now I’m gonna eat you fool.”

Again, Kesha is portraying herself as a maneater in the figurative sense. Dahmer was literally a maneater.  Also, one questions if anus reference coincidentally plays into Dahmer’s sexuality. Beyond that specific reference, how many of the lyrics are coincidental? Kesha even asserts “I’ll pull a Jeffrey Dahmer.”  In reality, during high school, Dahmer was known for his practical jokes. According to Gawker, he died because of them.

3. Macabre, “Apartment 213”

Dahmer • Decomposed • 2000

Macabre has been “delivering quality murderous music since 1985,” according to their website. The death metal band tackles the residence of one Dahmer on “Apartment 213.”  Not only does the band sing about the site of the perversions, they released an entire about centered around the notorious serial killer. Dahmer, released in 2000, is comprised of 26 tracks. The effort begins with “Dog Guts” and concludes with “The Brain.”  Interestingly, Dahmer includes a charmingly title song called “Jeffrey Dahmer and the Chocolate Factory,” which uses the “Oompa Loompa” song as its inspiration. Another charming number on this list also incorporates the film. Hmm, not certain Roald Dahl would be happy.  Also, “Christopher Scarver,” Dahmer’s murderer gets a nod.

Here, we’ll focus on a second song about the serial killer’s residence in “Apartment 213.”

The lyrics are cut and dry, explicitly detailing the hellishness.

“At the Oxford Apartments
Jeffrey lived at 213
But his neighbors didn’t know
That Jeffrey was a fiend
He said the fridge was broken
The smell was rotten meat
But nobody knew it was the men that Jeff would eat.”

Accurately, Dahmer managed to keep secrets – awful, terrible, no-good, murderous, necrophilia-driven secrets.  The song goes on to say:

“Jeff strangled and dismembered them
And saved some parts to eat
The smell of rotting men
Got worse in summer heat.”

4. Church of Misery, “Room 213 (Jeffrey Dahmer)”

Early Works Compilation • Emetic • 2010 

Tatsu Mikami (bass) is the sole original member of Church of Misery, which has experienced its fair share of lineup changes since its inception in 1995. According to Greg Prato of All Music, Church of Misery was among the first doom metal bands from Japan. They serve up another take on the infamous apartment 213 with “Room 213 (Jeffrey Dahmer).”

“Room 213” appears on a 100-minute, 16-track compilation, Early Works Compilation, reissued stateside in 2010 by Emetic.  Interestingly, a number of serial killers are represented on the effort including Charles Manson, Jim Jones, and David Berkowitz, better known as the Son of Sam. This makes sense when examining the discography of the band. Master of Brutality, released in 2001, features songs referencing Ed Kemper, Peter Sutcliffe, Herbert Mullin, and most infamously the “Master of Brutality” himself, John Wayne Gacy.

As aforementioned, Church of Misery, as of 2018, has only one original member, Mikami.  The band’s line-up for “Room 213 (Jeffrey Dahmer),” in addition to Mikami, is comprised of Hideki Shimizu (drums), Tomohiro Nishimura (guitar), and Nobukazu Chow (vocals). Like “213” by Slayer, as well as “Apartment 213” by Macabre, “Room 213” is blunt regarding the depiction of Dahmer.

“You can smell someone’s rotting
Death comes behind you
There’s nowhere to run
Dismembered your remains and nobody cares
Factory of murder is this Room 213.”

That’s just a snippet of the perversion expressed lyrically, unfortunately. Nobukazu Chow continues paint an ugly portrait of the dangerous psychopath.

“You can see someone’s skull that boiled
Casket around you and nobody knows
Ruptured your memory, hold your breath
Factory of murder is this room 213.”

The focal point in the abovementioned lyrics is the head. Notably, Dahmer attempted a lobotomy on one of his victims, 14-year old Konerak Sinthasomphone (we have another song about Konerak specifically). The final lyrics characterize Room 213 as the “Slaughter house where the blood feast has begun.”

5. Macabre, “Konerak”

Dahmer • Decomposed • 2000

“He [Dahmer] drugged him and had oral sex / With Konerak Sinthasomphone…” “Konerak” is the second song by Macabre that appears on the band’s 2000 album, Dahmer.  “Konerak” focuses on one of Dahmer’s most notable victims, 14-year-old Laotian boy, Konerak Sinthasomphone.  Macabre, as expected, are both satirical and blunt in regard to the song lyrics.  They leave nothing to the imagination, imparting the details of crimes committed against an innocent child.

“Konerak Sinthasomphone roamed
Away from Jeff's home
Some woman saw him running naked
And 911 they phoned
The police brought Jeff and Konerak to the apartment
And left them alone
Then Jeffrey kill and dismembered
Young Konerak Sinthasomphone.”

6. Pearl Jam, “Dirty Frank”

Lost Dogs • Epic • 2003

“Eats meat. A release / Bus driving’s harder on your head than on your feet.” Eddie Vedder and Seattle grunge rock band Pearl Jam ‘push the envelope’ on “Dirty Frank.” Of “Dirty Frank,” Vedder states, “This is a song about our illustrious first bus driver, who we are convinced was a serial killer.”  Apparently, it is indeed “Just a little strange when he [Frank] gets hungry.” Though the record hails from the band’s heyday, “Dirty Frank” wasn’t released on an album in the United States until 2003 (Lost Dogs). It was released on some editions of the 1991 album, Ten, in other countries.

“Dirty Frank Dahmer he’s a gourmet cook, yeah
I got a recipe for Anglo-Saxon soup, yeah.”

Obviously, “Dirty Frank” is no tribute to Frank, considering he’s given the last name ‘Dahmer,’ as in Jeffrey.

“I got a cupboard full of fleshy fresh ingredients.”
Naturally, poor Frank takes on the persona of a serial killer.
“Cook them just to see the look on their face. I cook ‘em just to see the look on their face.”

 To make things even more twisted, the music is incredibly funky. Ultimately, there are a number of colorful lyrics that appear throughout “Dirty Frank.”.

“There goes another turned into crust.”

7. Marilyn Manson and the Spooky Kids, “Choklit Factory”

After School Special • 1991

Long before he was the Antichrist Superstar, Marilyn Manson recorded After School Special with The Spooky Kids.  Interestingly, the four-song project is unavailable on CD or digitally – it was recorded on cassette.  Nonetheless, there is an intriguing song about Dahmer called “Choklit Factory.”  Like the Macabre track referenced earlier, Marilyn Manson and company brilliantly uses samples and lyrics from Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. 

“There was strange was a man there, I think he was the Tinker
He was standing right behind me looking up at the factory
Just before he left, he said
‘Nobody ever goes in, and nobody ever comes out’.”

At one point, Manson sings the dialogue from the hellish, creepy boat ride Willy Wonka, the kids, and their parents take in the film.  It’s fitting given the kind of individual Dahmer was.

“Is it raining is it snowing?
Is a hurricane a blowing?
Not a speck of light is showing
So, the danger must be growing
Are the fires of hell a glowing?
Is the grizzly reaper mowing?
Yes, the danger must be growing
For the rowers keep on rowing
Not showing signs of slowing
Any sign that they are slowing.”

All in all, “Choklit Factory” is dark and eerie to the nth degree.

“Peel back, the faces
We hide within our choklit shell
Some know indulgence
Some know and some go...”

At the end, on the final verse, Marilyn Manson explicitly mentions Dahmer:

“Jeff saved for later
His prizes of iniquity
Polaroids to covet
And bones to hide in 213.”

8. Fuck, I’m Dead, “Jeffrey Dahmer’s Children’s Cookbook”

Bring on the Dead • Razorback • 2001

Fuck I’m Dead – quite an expressive band name to say the least.  Fuck I’m Dead is a grindcore, death metal band from Melbourne, Australia.

AllMusic characterizes grindcore as follows:

When it first appeared in the mid-’80s, grindcore in its purest form consisted of short, apocalyptic blasts of noise played on standard heavy metal instrumentation (distorted guitar, bass, drums). Although grindcore wasn’t just randomly improvised, it certainly didn’t follow conventional structure, either; while riffs could sometimes be picked out, pure grindcore never featured verses, choruses, or even melodies.

As dark as Fuck I’m Dead sounds on the surface, it goes deeper and deadlier.  While they aren’t commercially lucrative, they earn the honor of an appearance on Urban Dictionary.

Fuck… I’m dead is a super ultra-mega heavy gore trashing death grindcore band from Melbourne, Australia, formed in 2000.

The song being analyzed is “Jeffrey Dahmer’s Children’s Cookbook.”  Quite a song title, from the same band with ‘fuck’ in their name. Some of the songs from Bring on the Dead also have edgy, risqué titles such as “My Feral Fucktoy,” “Fucking the Fetus,” and “Skullfucked.” Yeah, what more can you say but fuck.  Anyways, listening to “Jeffrey Dahmer’s Children’s Cookbook,” it’s completely indecipherable, in line with the grindcore vocal style, AllMusic confirms:

Grindcore vocals sounded torturous, ranging from high-pitched shrieks to low, throat-shredding growls and barks; although the lyrics were usually quite verbose, they were very rarely intelligible.

The boisterous, perverse record is a “match made in hell” for the horrid crimes committed Dahmer.  From the start, it sounds and feels uncomfortable – a savage auditory experience.

9. Macabre, “Freeze Dried Man”

Sinister Slaughter/Behind the Walls of Sleep • Nuclear Blast • 2000

“Jeffrey Dahmer wanted a freeze-dried man / So he could do things he enjoyed again and again.” “Freeze Dried Man” marks yet another contribution from satirical death metal band Macabre, following “Apartment 213” and “Konerak.” 

Once more, the band focuses on the twisted-ness of Dahmer, depicting the serial killer’s desire to freeze dry his victims.

“Jeff said he’d fondle, rub, and lay with his freeze-dried man
And pose him for pictures if flexible, with his Polaroid in hand.”

When Dahmer was finally caught, along with human remains, police officers also found photographs of the victims. Also, notably, Macabre highlights his interest in taxidermy. The Daily News gives some insight regarding this interest.  He was fascinated with taxidermy and once, showing a high school friend a stuffed squirrel, told him: “I always wanted to do that to a human.” More on Jeff’s love of taxidermy from Macabre:

“He went to the taxidermist to enquire on how to freeze dry a man
He told the man it was for a rabbit, but that was just a lie
Instead Jeffrey wanted to freeze dry a man
But the device was thirty-grand, so the thought was quickly canned.”

10. Dead Moon, “Room 213”

Strange Pray Tell • Tombstone • 1992

“Something strange is going down in Room 213…” Indeed, indeed! According to their website, Dead Moon was a United States rock band from 1987 to 2006, formed in Portland, Oregon.  The site goes on to say the band “combined dark and lovelorn themes with punk and country music influences into a stripped-down sound.” Interestingly, “Room 2013,” a song appearing on their 1992 album, Strange Pray Tell.

The record never specifically mentions Jeffrey Dahmer, but it’s obvious they’re referencing the apartment associated with the infamous serial killer.

“…No one hears the screaming from the house of fear
No one sees the man with no eyes appear
And something strange is going down in Room 213.”

“Room 213” has quite a raw sound musically.  It’s driven by jagged, ripe electric guitars.  Furthermore, the vocals are raw and unpolished, with the pitch being imperfect.  Clearly, the vocals seek to capture the eerie, frightening, and unsettling nature of the lyrics.

“...Your bones lie chilling; your blood turns cold
There’s a red tattoo carved into your skull
And something strange is going down in Room 213.”

11. Amigo the Devil, “Dahmer Does Hollywood”

Volume 1 • Regime Music Group • 2018 // Manimals • 2010

“Give or take a few dudes from the bar / Take them home with me / This night /Is going to end horribly / For someone.” The aforementioned lyric continues the pitch-perfect characterization of the psychopathic Jeffrey Dahmer.  Dahmer, reflectively, once stated, “Looking back on my life, I know I have made others suffer as much as I have suffered”.

Folk singer/songwriter Amigo the Devil (Danny Kiranos) is one of a kind. Why? As Jeff Weiss states in the title of his article, Amigo the Devil sings about serial killers and spousal abuse, with a sense of humor. Perhaps that’s why the musician is able to deliver such a chilling snapshot of Dahmer on “Dahmer Does Hollywood.”

“… I left Milwaukee behind
For this
Refreshing town
With this refreshing meat.”

The key word is meat, which refers to both sexual pleasure and cannibalism in reference to Dahmer. Kiranos also offers more biographical tidbits, including drinking, drilling, and most of all, death. Hey, you can’t sing about Dahmer and not mention death, right? Right!

“So, you should start to undress
And just try a little less
And I'll drill in your head
What you need
To be
King of this god damn city
So, come on, Believe me
Follow me home
There’s no judgement here
We’ll laugh a little
Drink a little
See what you're made of
I’m capable of making you disappear
I am the agent
That decides your fate.”

12. Violent Femmes, “Dahmer is Dead”

Viva Wisconsin • Shout Factory • 1999

“Dahmer is dead / Dahmer is dead / A broomstick bashed him upside his head / Upside the head, upside the head / Bloody broomstick…” Within the biography on their website, the music of Violent Femmes is described as an identifiable mash of rambunctious folk, minimalist punk, cubist blues, cosmic jazz, and back porch rock ‘n’ roll.  The veteran band formed back in 1981.

On the exuberant “Dahmer is Dead,” the Milwaukee trio isn’t the least bit sad about the death of Jeffrey Dahmer. Ultimately, they celebrate his demise (shout out to schadenfreude), and the lyrics speak for themselves.

“Dahmer is dead
Am I supposed to feel outrage?
Am I supposed to feel sorrow?
Jeffrey Dahmer has no right tomorrow.”

13. At the Drive-In, “Arcarsenal”

Relationship of Command • Twenty-First Chapter • 2000

Before the inception of The Mars Volta, there was At the Drive-in, which featuring Cedric Bixler-Zavala and Omar Rodríguez-López.  Mike DaRonco describes At the Drive-In as “an acclaimed post-hardcore band that mixed punk, art noise, and rock & roll with abstract, charged lyrics.” The boisterous rock band, which made a comeback in 2017 (in•ter•a•lia), was a perfect fit to write and perform “Arcarsenal.”  Music critic Tim DiGravina characterizes “Arcarsenal” as “the bullet-biting, scathing opener” of Arcarsenal.  Beyond the grittiness, “Arcarsenal” seems to reference Jeffrey Dahmer, at least in some capacity.

There are some key lyrics that support the assertion that Dahmer influences the record.  One such instance is as follows:

“Soft white glow in the cranium
A bullseye made sedated.”

Think with your head. This relates to Dahmer thanks to referencing the cranium (skull), a characteristic of his madness, as well as sedation. Another lyric explores cannibalism.

“Have you ever tasted skin?
Sink your, sink your teeth in it.”

Adding to the intensity of “Arcarsenal” are the dynamic iterations of “Beware!”

14. Soulfly, “Jeffrey Dahmer”

Omen • Roadrunner • 2010 

“Jeffrey Dahmer – master cannibal / Jeffrey Dahmer – master of the gruesome.” Metal band Soulfly captures Dahmer superbly on “Jeffrey Dahmer,” the sixth song off of their 2010 album, Omen.

Prior to providing the serial killer with the characterization of master cannibal and master of the gruesome, frontman Max Cavalera recalls the happenings in Apartment 213.

“In blood, his victims will crawl
Body parts all over his house
They feed the need of his cannibal mind
Bloody murders he left behind.”

Soulfly adds more to the horror of Apartment 213.

“Psychologic interviews in jail
To understand this behavior – insane
Set him free, he’ll do it again
A life dedicated to pain.”

In an evergreen piece for Serial Killer Shop, Daniel Lukacs ranks the Inside Edition interview of Dahmer as one of the five creepiest [serial killer] interviews ever.  In his own words, Jeffrey Dahmer told Glass how he was always fascinated with dead things and taking out their entrails. As a disturbed young man, Dahmer said that he became addicted to violent pornography. Pretty soon, the make-believe magazines were not enough. He wanted to experience the killing and dismemberment for real.

15. Phoebe Bridgers, “Killer”

Stranger in the Alps • Dead Oceans • 2017

“Sometimes I think I’m a killer / I scared you in your house / I even scared myself by talking / About Dahmer on your couch.” Chilling, particularly bringing Jeffrey Dahmer into the mix… That’s what singer/songwriter Phoebe Bridgers does on “Killer,” a piano ballad from her critically acclaimed debut album, Stranger in the Alps (2017). The psychological “Killer” explores dark thoughts, in addition to the reference to aforementioned reference to Dahmer on the first verse.

Of course, Bridgers continues the reference to J.D. on this beautiful if somewhat disturbing number:

“But I can’t sleep next to a body
Even harmless in death
Plus, I’m pretty sure I’d miss you
And faking sleep to count your breath.”

Dahmer seemed to have no issues whatsoever sleeping next to corpses, not to mention abusing them prior and after death.  Here, Bridgers may have her share of dark thoughts, but she doesn’t take it to the same level as Mr. Dahmer in the least.  Still, on the chorus, Bridgers makes more killer references, though bloodlust itself might be an overstatement.

“Can the killer in me
Tame the fire in you?
Or is there nothing left to do for us?
I am sick of the chase
But I’m hungry for blood
And there’s nothing I can do.”

16. The Black Dahlia Murder, “Control”

Everblack • Metal Blade • 2013 

“Salaciously, I experiment / Driven by fear of abandonment / To lobotomize /A dead stare in their eyes…” Goodness gracious – “ain’t that some shit”! Melodic death metal band The Black Dahlia Murder tackles the devilish Dahmer on “Control,” a song appearing on their 2013 album, Everblack.  According to the biography penned by Eduardo Rivadavia for AllMusic, The Black Dahlia Murder “actually sounds like they should live in Scandinavia, where much of the frenetic brand of death and black metal that inspires them originated.”

The aforementioned lyrics from “Control” reference Dahmer’s salaciousness and lobotomies.  Of course, it only gets worse as The Black Dahlia Murder colorfully mention the sick murderer’s “animated fuck-dolls.”

“No return from ‘213’
Within these walls, I own your soul
Surrender now
Succumb to me
Suspended in vegetative throes
Animated fuck-dolls
Warm bodies with holes
All pleasures of flesh, I now own
Their past is forgotten
Eroded from the frontal lobe.”

17. Eminem, “Brainless”

The Marshall Mathers LP2 • Aftermath • 2013

Throughout his illustrious career, unapologetic, Midwest rapper Eminem has referenced serial killers.  Shouldn’t come as a surprise, of course. Jeffrey Dahmer, naturally, has appeared a couple of times.

On “Brainless,” he paints a picture of himself as completely unstable.

“I walk around like a space cadet, place your bets
Who’s likely to become a serial killer?”

Referencing his love of chainsaws earlier, he returns to his evil side:

“Angry and take it out on the neighbors’ hedges
Like this is how I’ll cut your face up, bitches
With these hedge-trimmin’ scissors with razor edges.”

On the second verse, he explicitly references Dahmer:

“Just think if I had a brain in it, thank God that I don’t
‘Cause I’d probably be Dahmer.”

18. Eminem, “Must Be the Ganja”

Relapse • Aftermath • 2009

“Must Be the Ganja,” also appearing on the 2009 album, Relapse, is yet another example of an Eminem record referencing Jeffrey Dahmer.

“Faced with a dilemma: I can be Dalai Lama
And be calm or bring drama
A step beyond of Jeffrey Dahmer.”

As disturbing as name-dropping Dahmer is, it gets worse as the twisted MC shares just how knowledgeable he is about serial killers in general.

“Who can name every serial killer who ever existed in a row?
Put ‘em in chronological order
Beginning with Jack the Ripper
Name the time and place; from the body, the bag, the zipper
Location of the woods
Where the body was dragged and then dumped
The trunk that they were stuffed in
The model, the make, the plate
And which model, which lake they found her in
How they attacked the victim
Say which murder weapon was used to do what in which one
Which knife and which gun
What kid, what wife, and which nun
Don’t stop, I like this it’s fun
The fucking night’s just begun.”

Numerous songs have been penned about Dahmer, some of which simply reference his name without going into depth.  On another song from Relapse, “Bagpipes from Baghdad”, Eminem raps, “I’ll cut ya like Dahmer, pull a butcher knife on ya.” He’s a fixture of pop culture, particularly rappers.  Famously, Juicy J references him on the number one Katy Perry hit, “Dark Horse”.

“She’s a beast, I call her karma
She eat your heart out like Jeffrey Dahmer.”