Contains spoilers

The fourth and final season of Yellowjackets is expected to air late this year, with filming already underway. Recently, I wrote an article discussing some of my favourite songs from the show's iconic soundtrack. From 90s rock anthems to musical theatre, it is hands down one of the most gripping TV soundtracks I've come across in a long time. Since finishing the show, I can't help but wonder what songs will feature in season four.

The dual narrative of the preceding seasons culminated in a tense finale: one ending saw Nat (Sophie Thatcher) reaching the outside world, alluding to an imminent rescue; the other picks up twenty five years later. We see present day Shauna (Melanie Lynskey) embracing the warrior persona she cultivated all that time ago, while her daughter Callie (Sarah Desjadrins) ends up killing Lottie (Simone Kessell), emphasising a murderous connection between mother and daughter.

In the wake of this chaos, season four has a lot of loose ends to tie up, and I'm just as excited to hear the music that will accompany it as I am for the show itself.

Below is a list of my predictions, along with some songs I think would fit seamlessly into the soundtrack.

10. 'Shake It Out' - Florence + The Machine

Multiple Florence + The Machine songs have already featured in YJ, and I don't think it will stop there. While songs such as 'Dream Girl Evil' have previously framed some unsettling moments, I think it would be nice to hear their more celebratory material regarding the group's rescue.

'Shake It Out' is both uplifting and mournful, something that would encapsulate this pivotal moment - the group have made it out alive, but have lost part of themselves forever.

"And I've been a fool and I've been blind
I can never leave the past behind
I can see no way, I can see no way
I'm always dragging that horse around."

In the song's cathartic chorus, frontwoman Florence Welch earnestly sings about moving forward despite the demons plaguing her. Its instrumentation has a gospel feel, owing to its organs and bells, showcasing her ability to mix pop with the macabre.

9. 'Hyperspace' - Nada Surf

This song is on my list for similar reasons. Despite the trauma the Yellowjackets have suffered, there have still been some euphoric moments (such as The Cranberries' 'Dreams' playing as they discover a lake). In light of this, I think 'Hyperspace' would illuminate the underlying hope of the show's final moments.

While perhaps not as prominent as some of the other bands used throughout YJ (The Smashing Pumpkins, Radiohead), Nada Surf were an undeniable presence throughout the 90s.

From the opening guitar notes alone, and the gradual introduction of the other instruments, there is something so hopeful about the song. For lack of a better word, it has that "we are infinite" feel of the tunnel scene in The Perks of Being a Wallflower, famously scored by David Bowie's 'Heroes'.

And yet, the lyrics convey something more tragic:

"And I can see it all and I'm okay
I wish there was another way."

It doesn't necessarily correlate to the on screen events, but the song has such a youthful, coming-of-age sound that would not be out of place in the show.

8. 'Lionsong' - Björk

Season four needs to have more weird girl music, of which Björk is a staple. While it's hard to pick just one song out of her immense discography, I think 'Lionsong' particularly captures the show's dark and unnerving energy.

It opens with stripped back vocals that are eerie and slightly operatic, followed by a breathtaking string section. Björk's very literal, indifferent lyrics ("maybe he will come out of this/ maybe he won't/ somehow I'm not too bothered either way," "I'm not taming no animal") reminded me of Shauna's complete disregard for her husband and daughter while indulging the basest parts of herself.

The last we saw of her was her reclamation of - or regression into - the "leader" she became while the group was stranded ("I was a warrior. I was a fucking queen"). The song has a scheming undertone, representative of her increasing machinations.

7. 'No Return'

The YJ theme song is an amazing song in its own right, and I included it in my ranking of the show's existing soundtrack.

The show has previously featured a cover of the track by Alanis Morissette, and I can see it using more guest vocalists in the future.

After doing a bit of research, I recently discovered that Juliette Lewis (who plays present day Nat) used to front a rock band called Juliette and the Licks. Given that the band also consisted of Hole drummer Patty Schemel, and that fans have even mistaken the 'No Return' vocalist for Lewis herself, I think the producers would really miss a trick not having her record a cover for the final season.

Honestly, it comes as no surprise that such an effortlessly cool character is portrayed by a real-life rock star. As heard on tracks such as 'Hot Kiss' and 'Inside the Cage', her raspy, ferocious vocals would be instantly compatible.

6. 'Gold Dust Woman' - Fleetwood Mac

Personally, I think it's a crime that Stevie Nicks hasn't appeared on YJ yet, given her legacy of all things witchy. Any one of her songs would have been fitting for present day Lottie and her holistic health retreat. As that ship has sailed (she was murdered in the season three finale), I still think the show could make great use of this song in relation to the teenage character, and her cult-like fascination with the wilderness.

Nicks' ever mystical (and drug induced) lyrics echo Lottie's mantric belief, "we hear the wilderness, and it hears us."

"Pale shadow of a woman
Black widow
Pale shadow of a dragon
Dust woman."

It encapsulates the complexity of her character; she is someone who is at once a shadow of her old self, yet harbours a shamanic power, drawing on a spiritual kind of strength to process past events.

Lindsey Buckingham's use of a resonator guitar further evokes this otherworldly, folk rock aspect.

5. 'Get Out of My House' - Kate Bush

Returning to my weird girl music train of thought, Kate Bush would be a great addition to YJ. 'Get Out of My House' is taken from her progressive 1982 album The Dreaming, which is full of carefully crafted storytelling. Inspired by Stephen King's The Shining, the song navigates the idea that human beings are houses in which emotions dwell, and that we desperately protect against outsiders ("No strangers' feet/ will enter me").

Like the titular house, the concept of the show's wilderness comes to embody a similar sentiment. As always, Bush's vocals have an unruly flair perfect for any given moment in the show, but I think its bizarre lyrics are particularly important here - again regarding Lottie's attachment to the wilderness and refusal to leave it.

"This house knows all I have done [...] This house is full of mistakes [...] this house is full of madness"

Towards the end, Bush sings "I will not let you in/ I face towards the wind/ I change into the Mule", before mimicking horse sounds, reflecting the idea of being as stubborn as the animal. In the context of the show, it could represent a private, primal urge that will always dwell within the Yellowjackets.

4. 'dark' - Maddie Ashman

This inclusion is less a prediction and more a song that, in my view, strongly echoes the show's themes.

Maddie Ashman is a fiercely experimental independent artist from London, specialising in microtonal music. Her entire otherworld EP speaks to the shows's folk horror elements, both lyrically and musically. Drawing on Welsh folklore, it tells the story of a young girl called Jennifer.

'dark' is a standout track, documenting her irrevocable step into the wild. It has just the right amount of microtonality, engendering an overall menacing feel. Ashman's vocals are fraught, bordering on manic, and enhanced by some truly unique chord voicings. The lyrics conjure up a wilderness that transforms and consumes, using the forest as a site of horror unravelling.

"a wooded world is this
what if you won't be missed
what if they find you here
what if they lose you here."

3. 'Hey Man, Nice Shot' - Filter

Previously, YJ has favoured big names from the 90s grunge scene (Hole, The Smashing Pumpkins). I think it will definitely continue leaning into this, with the group getting more and more exasperated leading up to their rescue.

This Filter track has a very similar structure to 'Bullet With Butterfly Wings', previously used in season two. Like the SP song, it opens with a brooding verse, before exploding into an intense, wall-of-sound chorus. Its mix of industrial rock and grunge results in an unapologetic rage, which to me just oozes Nat energy. I could definitely see it playing over a confrontation between her and Misty (Sammi Hanratty), when the group found out how the latter sabotaged their initial chances of rescue.

2. 'A Forest' - The Cure

This track by The Cure would make for a beautifully self-referential moment on screen. Its gloomy opening guitar riff works itself into an atmospheric post-punk piece, with its lyrics ominously utilising a forest setting:

"Come closer and see
See into the trees
Find the girl
While you can"

The song was allegedly inspired by a dream frontman Robert Smith had about being lost in the woods, which is mirrored in its ambient, dream like quality.

As with 'dark', the woods become a site of horror and transgression, equally explored in the song's moody instrumentation. I think it would be most effective in the exact moment of rescue. This is a triumphant moment for the group, but it is also one of revelation. As the rescue team arrive in the wilderness, they are essentially entering a burial ground, unearthing the events of the past nineteen months. While long awaited, the reality of this moment would be utterly chilling to outsiders.

1. 'Woman is a Tree' - The Last Dinner Party

This had to my number one, and if it isn't included in the season four soundtrack I'll be very disappointed.

Aside from the fact it was explicitly written with YJ in mind, The Last Dinner Party capture that folk horror essence so adeptly. The intro follows a similar structure the show's OST itself, with a harrowing choral arrangement emphasising this casual link.

Lyrically, the song demonstrates a connection between nature and femininity; far from limiting this to stereotypes of motherhood and nurturing, however, the song nods to its potential to annihilate. We can hear this not only in the gruesome imagery of birds "crushed under foot", but in the emphatic final line:

"My heart is at rest now and everything’s
Still"

This definitely reverberates in the groups' experience of nature's bleakest and most devastating aspects. What's more, the lyric "I'm superior mother, I answer the call" echoes both Lottie's affinity with the natural world, and Shauna's growing delusions and despotism.

To reiterate, 'Woman is a Tree' is a truly compelling composition that absolutely must feature on the soundtrack.

Honourable Mentions

'It Will Come Back' - Hozier

'Everybody Scream' - Florence + The Machine

'You Oughta Know' - Alanis Morissete

'Undone - The Sweater Song' - Weezer

'Happy House' - Siouxsie and the Banshees

'Kiss Me' - Sixpence None The Richer

'Moon Girl' - Ha Vay