Well my little ghosts and ghouls, Halloween is a mere four days away. Now that most of us are (hopefully) fully vaxxed, waxed, and boosted, we should see some return to relative Halloween party normalcy this weekend. Call me a classic pagan high priest who enjoys a good summoning -- or a bad one! -- but Halloween is my favorite holiday of the year.
As I've done in years' past, I'm giving you the tools you need to make your Halloween party a blinding success. I have added 11 more songs to the list this year -- because eleven is the number that most closely sounds like "hell" -- compiling the best songs for you to use either at a Halloween party to set the mood right or in the background on Halloween night, when you're dressed like Jeffrey Dahmer and slipping mickies in the Jack and Cokes you're handing out to trick-or-treaters' parents.
Halloween is the one time of year when it's okay to embrace evil. At any Halloween party or during trick-or-treating, you want there to be a certain level of creepiness, as well as some campiness, because Halloween is supposed to be a mixture of paganism, macabre, and fun. As a result, the playlist below includes songs that have dark and evil themes, talk about monsters or the devil or witches or the like, mention the word "Halloween," or are just plain creepy. My mix has a lot of heavy metal, but that's kind of expected, since metal bands are more likely to embrace darker subject matter than, say, ABBA. That said, it's all pretty palatable, even to those ears that might not be used to wailing guitars and double bass drums.
As always, you don't want to go too dark, like, say, Norwegian black metal, because you're going to lose your party-goers, or the neighbors are going to think you're really into church burning. And if you are into church burning, you're probably not going to want to tip the neighbors off by blaring Dødheimsgard out your front door while dressed in corpse paint and handing their children chocolate pentagrams.
For parties, you'll probably want to mix these songs in with your regular party mix. After all, who doesn't want to hear "Last Caress" after "Dancing Queen"? For trick or treating, you're probably going to want to just go straight spooky, which probably means a heavy dose of Ghost, Pentagram, Misfits, and Black Sabbath. Just make sure the songs you choose for trick or treating don't have any swears in them. Parents can be real assholes about that.
With that, here are my recommendations for your Halloween playlist, in alphabetical order by artist, with comments where I felt it was necessary. For your sake and the safety of your offspring, I suggest you add at least some of these to your Halloween party playlist, lest you'll get a midnight visit from a lycanthrope of some sort.
1-4. "Highway to Hell," "Hells Bells," "Night Prowler," and "If You Want Blood (You've Got It)" by AC/DC
"Highway to Hell" is an obvious choice and a crowd pleaser. "Hells Bells" has those instantly recognizable bells -- hells bells, if you will. "Night Prowler" is a slower, creepy song that, several years later, serial killer Richard Ramirez (aka, "the Night Stalker") claimed inspired him, or something like that. "If You Want Blood" was added solely to appease Countess Bathory.
5. "Them Bones" by Alice in Chains
6. "Angel Witch" by Angel Witch
No, you're an angel witch.
7. "Demon Eyes" by The Answer
8. "Bela Lugosi's Dead" by Bauhaus
9. "Zombie Graveyard Party!" by Be Your Own Pet
10. "Helter Skelter" by The Beatles
This should be played just before or after "Look At Your Game, Girl" by Charles Manson.
11. "Release the Bats" by The Birthday Party
12. "Howling for You" by The Black Keys
13-17. "Black Sabbath," "War Pigs," "The Wizard," "Children of the Grave," and "Heaven and Hell" by Black Sabbath
"Black Sabbath" was inspired by a vision Geezer Butler had one night after reading a book about witchcraft that Ozzy Osbourne gave to him. He woke up in the middle of the night, and a black figure was standing at the foot of his bed. The figure disappeared, and when Butler went to get the book, it too was gone. "War Pigs" is about war, death, and bodies burning. "The Wizard" is about a wizard. "Children of the Grave" is about zombabies, presumably. "Heaven and Hell" is the title track from the first Sabbath album with Ronnie James Dio as the lead singer, and it is awesome.
18. "Hunting for Witches" by Bloc Party
19. "D.O.A." by Bloodrock
20. "(Don't Fear) The Reaper" by Blue Öyster Cult
But do fear sprouts because the consumption of raw sprouts may result in an increased risk of foodbourne illness, such as salmonella or e-coli.
21-22. "We Are The Dead" and "Scary Monsters (and Super Creeps)" by David Bowie
23. "I Want Candy" by Bow Wow Wow
24. "Howl" by JC Brooks & The Uptown Sound
25. "Satan Is My Motor" by Cake
26. "Halloween Theme" by John Carpenter
Instantly recognizable as one of the more creepy horror movie themes.
27. "Ring of Fire" by Johnny Cash
28. "The Night Time is the Right Time" by Ray Charles
Baybaaaaayyyy!
29. "Spooky" by The Classics IV
30-31. "I Love The Dead" and "Feed My Frankenstein" by Alice Cooper
32. "I Was a Teenage Werewolf" by The Cramps
I wasn't.
33. "Zombie" by The Cranberries
34. "The Crypt Jam" by The Crypt Keeper
This song is ridiculous, but a light-hearted Halloween option.
35. "Am I Demon" by Danzig
No, no I'm not.
36. "One Way Ticket" by The Darkness
You see, it's a one way ticket to hell. And back.
37. "Demon's Eye" by Deep Purple
38. "Am I Evil?" by Diamond Head
"Yes I am."
39. "A Nightmare on My Street" by DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince
This is a classic late '80s rap song, playing off of the popularity of Freddy Krueger, who, for many of us growing up in the '80s, was the most terrifying of all the horror movie villains. I should also note that I did, in fact, perform this with a friend for our elementary school talent show in fifth grade. I was Freddy. It was pretty awesome.
40. "Dream Warriors" by Dokken
Speaking of Freddy, this was the title track to Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors.
41. "Season of the Witch" by Donovan
42-43. "The End" and "People Are Strange" by The Doors
"The End" is one of the creepier Doors songs, which says a lot.
44. "Hungry Like the Wolf" by Duran Duran
45. "Murder On the Dancefloor" by Sophie Ellis-Bextor
In case you're spiking your M&Ms with molly.
46. "I Walked With a Zombie" by Roky Erickson
47. "Zombie Eaters" by Faith No More
48. "Trick or Treat" by Fastway
'80s metal band Fastway played the soundtrack to the 1986 the metal-themed horror film Trick or Treat. This is the title song.
49. "Satan Is My Master" by Ben Folds Five
50. "Kiss Me Deadly" by Lita Ford
51. "Close My Eyes Forever" by Lita Ford and Ozzy Osbourne
52. "Evil and a Heathen" by Franz Ferdinand
53. "Halloween Blues" by The Fratellis
54-61. "Monstrance Clock," "Year Zero," "Stand by Him," "If You Have Ghosts," "Ghuleh/Zombie Queen," "Cirice," "Nocturnal Me," and "Rats" by Ghost
"Monstrance Clock" is about conceiving "Lucifer's son," and "Year Zero" is about Satan in general and has a nice gothic feel to it. "Stand by Him" is about "the night of the witch," which is, in fact, tonight. "If You Have Ghosts" is a Roky Erickson cover about having ghosts. "Ghuleh/Zombie Queen" is about Ghuleh and a zombie queen. "Cirice" is a sold song about souls merging. "Nocturnal Me" is about you, assuming you're nocturnal. "Rats" is mostly about rats. To be honest, I would suggest just including all songs from Ghost's four albums and three EPs -- Opus Eponymous, Infestissumam, If You Have Ghost, Meloria, Popestar, Prequelle, and Seven Inches of Satanic Panic -- especially if you're looking for trick-or-treating background music. They are demonic in a polite Swedish way.
62. "Friend of the Devil" by Grateful Dead
63. "Clap for The Wolfman" by The Guess Who
64. "Maneater" by Hall & Oates
65. "Hallow's Eve" by Hallows Eve
66-67. "Halloween" and "Mr. Torture" by Helloween
German power metal band Helloween obviously has the right name for a Halloween mix, and their song "Halloween" is included for obvious reasons. I also chose to go with "Mr. Torture" because I like the song. So there.
68. "Friendly Ghost" by Harlem
This one's a little more light-hearted, to offset the vast majority of this list.
69. "I Put a Spell On You" by Screamin' Jay Hawkins
I prefer the original to CCR's cover (which is still very good) because Hawkins adds a level of voodoo campiness that CCR just couldn't have matched.
70. "Magic Man" by Heart
71. "I Ain't Superstitious" by Howlin' Wolf
72. "Devil Inside" by INXS
73-76. "Killers," "Murders in the Rue Morgue," "Number of the Beast," and "Fear of the Dark" by Iron Maiden
It was tough figuring out just one Iron Maiden song to include, so I went with three. The first two are from 1981's Killers album: "Killers," which is essentially about someone being stalked and murdered, and "Murders in the Rue Morgue," which is not only my favorite Iron Maiden song, but is also based on short story by Edgar Allen Poe of the same name. The third, "Number of the Beast," is a metal classic off of the 1982 album of the same name. Because of this song, my children know that 666 is the number of the beast.
77. "Thriller" by Michael Jackson
This is a no-brainer and should be played at every Halloween party for eternity.
78. "White Rabbit" by Jefferson Airplane
This is especially good if your partygoers are all on LSD.
79-80. "Devil's Child" and "The Ripper" by Judas Priest
81. "I'm Your Boogie Man" by KC & The Sunshine Band
82. "Halloween" by King Diamond
83. "Wicked Annabella" by The Kinks
84. "Hotter Than Hell" by KISS
85. "Pretend We're Dead" by L7
86. "Vampire" by Black Joe Lewis & The Honeybears
87. "Heeby-Jeebies" by Little Richard
88. "Look at Your Game, Girl" by Charles Manson
Recorded when Manson was still trying to break into the LA music scene and before he started ordering his minions to murder movie stars and grocery store owners, this song comes across as an innocent folky acoustic song. Then you realize it's sung by Charles Manson, and it becomes super creepy.
89. "(Don't Worry) If There's a Hell Below, We're All Going to Go" by Curtis Mayfield
90. "Evil Love" by Meat Puppets
91-92. "Fade to Black" and "Creeping Death" by Metallica
93. "(Every Day Is) Halloween" by Ministry
I wish.
94-98. "Halloween," "Last Caress," "Death Comes Ripping," "Mommy, Can I Go Out & Kill Tonight," and "Bloodfeast" by The Misfits
"Last Caress" has some of the most brutally catchy lyrics in a horror punk song: "I got something to say / I killed a baby today / And it doesn't matter much to me / As long as it's dead."
99. "Shout at the Devil" by Mötley Crüe
100-101. "Dead Men Tell No Tales" and "I'm Your Witch Doctor" by Motörhead
102. "Dead!" by My Chemical Romance
103. "Frankenstein" by New York Dolls
104. "Spiderwebs" by No Doubt
105. "Dead Man's Party" by Oingo Boingo
106. "Tubular Bells (Theme from The Exorcist)" by Mike Oldfield
107. "Running Scared" by Roy Orbison
108. "O Fortuna" by Carl Orff
108-110. "Mr. Crowley," "Bark at the Moon," and "Zombie Stomp" by Ozzy Osbourne
111. "Dracula's Wedding" by Outkast
112. "Cemetery Gates" by Pantera
113. "Ghostbusters" by Ray Parker, Jr.
114. "Satan's Bed" by Pearl Jam
115-116. "Sign of the Wolf (Pentagram)" and "Last Days Here" by Pentagram
Doom metal pioneers Pentagram have a good number of hard-rocking creepy songs, but "Sing of the Wolf" is probably the most relevant to Halloween. "Last Days Here" is one of their earlier songs (from '74), and it's like a foreboding post-psychedelic time capsule.
117. "Zombie Zoo" by Tom Petty
118. "Wolfman's Brother" by Phish
119. "The Monster Mash" by Bobby "Boris" Pickett & The Crypt Kickers
This is a classic Halloween song that should be played at least once at every Halloween party.
120-121. "Fallen Angel" and "Flesh and Blood (Sacrifice)" by Poison
122. "Halloween" by Matt Pond PA
123. "We Drink Your Blood" by Powerwolf
124. "(You're The) Devil in Disguise" by Elvis Presley
125. "Going to Hell" by The Pretty Reckless
126. "Gates of Babylon" by Rainbow
The song is about sleeping with the devil. And then paying for sleeping with the devil. Probably because the devil gave you the clap.
127. "Halloween Parade" by Lou Reed
128. "Devil Woman" by Cliff Richard
129. "The Time Warp" by The Rocky Horror Picture Show cast
130. "Diablo Rojo" by Rodrigo y Gabriela
131-133. "Sympathy for the Devil," "Dead Flowers," and "Paint It, Black" by The Rolling Stones
134-136. "Soul Sacrifice," "Black Magic Woman" and "Evil Ways" by Santana
137. "Li'l Red Riding Hood" by Sam The Sham & The Pharoahs
138. "Witchcraft" by Frank Sinatra
139. "Halloween" by Siouxsie and The Banshees
140-141. "Angel of Death" and "Raining Blood" by Slayer
While I would generally recommend steering clear of Slayer at parties, there is no more appropriate time to let it loose than Halloween. And you can always use it as a way to clear people out.
142. "Bullet With Butterfly Wing" by Smashing Pumpkins
It just wouldn't seem right to have a Halloween playlist without a Smashing Pumpkins song on it. I went with this one, not only because it starts by exclaiming -– wrongly, mind you -– that "the world is a vampire," but also because it's an awesome song.
143. "Serial Killa" by Snoop Doggy Dogg
144-145. "Don't Be Afraid of the Dark" and "The Witch" by The Sonics
Halloween has room for garage rock, too.
146. "Fell On Black Days" by Soundgarden
147. "Ghost Town" by The Specials
148. "Wicked Garden" by Stone Temple Pilots
149. "To Hell With the Devil" by Stryper
In case you are concerned that your playlist might be a little too devil-heavy, you can balance it out with this '80s Christian hair band classic.
150. "Santeria" by Sublime
151. "Psycho Killer" by Talking Heads
"You're crazy!"
"That's what they said about Son of Sam."
152. "Devil's Daughter" by Tax the Heat
153. "See No Evil" by Television
154. "Here Comes the Night" by Them
155. "Killer On the Loose" by Thin Lizzy
156. "Possum Kingdom" by Toadies
157-158. "Demon On Demand" and "Sinister Minister" by Township
159. "She's My Witch" by Kip Tyler
160-161. "Running With the Devil" and "D.O.A." by Van Halen
162. "The Black Angel's Death Song" by The Velvet Underground
I have never done acid, but I assume this song is what a bad acid trip would have sounded like in Victorian England.
163. "Animal (Fuck Like a Beast)" by W.A.S.P.
164. "Burning the Witches" by Warlock
165. "Got My Mojo Working" by Muddy Waters
166. "Baby You're a Haunted House" by Gerard Way
167. "If My Mind is Evil" by White Lion
168-171. "Death Letter," "Dead Leaves and The Dirty Ground," "Little Ghost," and "Walking With a Ghost" by The White Stripes
172. "Boris The Spider" by The Who
173. "Frankenstein" by The Edgar Winter Group
174. "Friends of Hell" by Witchfinder General
175. "Witchcraft" by Wolfmother
176. "Superstition" by Stevie Wonder
177. "Werewolves of London" by Warren Zevon
"I saw a werewolf drinking a piña colada at Trader Vic's / And his hair was perfect." Great line.
178-179. "Dragula" and "Living Dead Girl" by Rob Zombie
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment