The spooky season is once again upon us. And whether you’re a naysayer who thinks such an American tradition has no place Down Under or a hardcore goth who spends hard cash on pumpkins and plastic skeletons while complaining that “Christmas has become so commercial”, we’ll all be winding up at someone’s Halloween gathering this October.
So if you happen to be the host of a costume-party rager on this year’s All Hallows Eve, here are ten bone-chilling-bangers (that aren’t Thriller) to ensure it’s a legendary ghouls night out for all invited.
Screamin Jay Hawkins – I Put A Spell On You
Terrific fun to listen to and even more enjoyable to scream and wail along to with your buddies. Many have tried to capture the charm of this sax-driven, black magic ride but there’s only one Screamin Jay Hawkins, baby.
The Cramps – Human Fly
With its gruesome, body horror lyrics and descending surf rock guitars, Human Fly is a tidal wave of distortion and terror that could knock Dick Dale right off his surfboard. It’s one of the earliest records in the psychobilly genre, and certainly one of the best.
Lydia Lunch – Spooky
An often covered song with a choppy guitar riff and words about a spooky little girl, Lydia Lunch’s version is arguably the definitive cover since she actually does sound like a spooky little girl. Dusty Springfield’s rendition is great too, but it’s more suitable for lounges rather than Lycanthropes.
Misfits – Halloween
Just about any Misfits song could have made this list but Glenn Danzig crooning “HAAALLLOWEEEN” like he’s Jim Morrison howling at the moon means this one is the perfect horror-punk tune to celebrate October 31st.
LaVern Baker – Voodoo Voodoo
Rarely do songs about evil voodoo spells sound this jazzy and endearing. An obscure, bouncy little number from the ‘50s, Voodoo Voodoo is a guaranteed finger-wager of a track. Sure, it’s not the scariest or loudest song around, but this one’s for the grandad of the house.
Gravediggaz – Nowhere To Run, Nowhere to Hide
A short-lived group that featured the likes of Prince Paul and Wu-Tang’s RZA, the debut record from Gravediggaz is an underappreciated classic of the horrorcore genre. But this song, in particular, makes the cut thanks to its ravenous lyrics and ghostly samples.
Rihanna – Disturbia
Alright, this one is a bit of a stretch, but not everything on your playlist has to blatantly Halloween-y. A tale of mental turmoil set to an absolute zombie march of a beat, Disturbia is a throwback to a time where the scariest thing on Earth was Mike Myers in The Love Guru.
Stevie Wonder – Superstition
Musically, Superstition is a funky soul number filled with sexy melodies. But lyrically, it’s a laundry list of bad luck premonitions with a stern warning against believing in such silly omens. That opening drum beat is guaranteed to make someone to go “OH SHIT!” too.
Bauhaus - Bela Lugosi's Dead
Ladies and gentleman, the ORIGINAL goth record. Though it's been covered by many and re-recorded a few times by Bauhaus themselves, nothing compares to the original, nine-minute version of this song from 1982. With its squeaky floorboard drumming, descending partial-barre chords and Peter Murphy just being Peter Murphy, it’s the very definition of a slow burn.
Bobby "Boris" Pickett - Monster Mash
One of the biggest novelty singles of all time, Bobby "Boris" Pickett's Monster Mash is also (in our opinion) the greatest spoken word song of all time thanks to its giant graveyard of painful Halloween puns. Considering this was written in a time before rhyming dictionary dot com was around, we salute you, Mr Pickett, whoever you are.
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