It's nearly Halloween, but it'll probably be way too hot to go out in costume, so stay home and groove to these five fantastically spooky Halloween jams.
"Trans-Europe Express" - Kraftwerk
An early track from the godfathers of electronica, "Trans-Europe Express" is very progressive in its sound and style for its time of release in 1977. The eerie robotic and constantly repeated Trans-Europe Express has a trance like tone to it mixed against a techno beat. The music video also possesses that creepy vibe as the clean cut band of German boys travel in a trans-continental train, passing through tunnels and sporting an alien-like persona.
Sure to give you goosebumps when: Travelling on a train, preferably across Europe at high speed through lots of tunnels.
"Tiptoe Through the Tulips" - Tiny Tim
Everything about this tune gives you the shivers - the high pitched operatic voice from Tiny Tim, the ukulele as the only instrument and most of all the film clip. It infamously appears in the horror film Insidious, where a simple song about walking through a garden gets a contextual restructure to be something much darker. “Tiptoe through the window... By the window... That is where I'll be... Come tiptoe through the tulips with me” .
Will give you nightmares if: Your bed just happens to be by the window, by a field of tulips and you suddenly hear a ukulele playing….
There is something elusive, lovely and downright spooky about this electronic lullaby. Its gentle and hypnotic tones are overshadowed by a haunting whistle that instantly sends a shiver down your spine. Through the use of technology Alison Goldfrapp’s vocals are distorted and draped in echo to create a new sound. Released in 2000 on the band's debut album Felt Mountain, the song has made an appearance in many films and TV shows. The last lyrics of the mostly electronic tune leave the listener with the chilling “ Frankenstein would want your mind... Your lovely head, your lovely head, your lovely head.”
Perfectly spooky for: Drinking a bloody mary in the bath tub…with the lights off.
"Frontier Psychiatrist" - The Avalanches
“I was in another world, a world of twenty thousand girls, And milk, And rectangles, to an optometrist, a man with a golden eyeball” If these lyrics are not enough to make you think "what in the world am I listening to?" then I am not sure what will. Released in 2000 by Australian electronica/ dance group The Avalanches, this song not only has strange left of centre lyrics, but a sporadic musical rhythm that features an array of genres. From vinyl scratching to orchestra tones to a comedy duo’s dialogue. A disjointed, bizarre, creepy clip adds to the tune's collective weirdness featuring a ghost choir, and (naturally) a mariachi band.
For full freaked out affect play when: Exploring an abandoned mental hospital or a visit to the shrink.
"The Killing Moon" - Echo and the Bunnymen
Resurrecting itself from the 1980’s onto the very cool Donnie Darko soundtrack, this is a track thats beautifully poetic in all its darkness. There is a hint of the gothic to this tune, its lyrics are alluring and sorrowful. Everything about this song is 80’s with lyrics that are almost modernist pagan prayers “Fate up against your will, through the thick and thin. He will wait until you give yourself to him” married with razor sharp guitar riffs.
Creepiest when played: When out and about at the park at midnight and there is a full moon.
