by Zach Siddiqui
Ghosts, guises, graves, and gratuitous sugar — Halloween’s always going to be the most recreationally sinister time of year. Sure, costumes don’t always strike fear anymore. I seriously considered dressing up as the kidney in the Bad Art Friend story from a few Discourses ago.
Even so, I still imagine stray souls getting trapped in jack o’lanterns and demons cleverly making their way past salt circles.
And what could encompass that gigantic evil energy better than music? So here’s my top playlist for when you need to move through life feeling just a little dark and ghoulish.
Blood in the Cut – K.Flay
A 2017 radio hit, “Blood in the Cut” puts a creeping, pain-chasing spin on unrequited love. From the looping guitar strains to the underlying morbid lyrics, lashing whips and skulls breaking open, K.Flay paints a gloomy, unsettling scene for the end of October.
Wicked Ones – Dorothy
A night of necromancy and casual torments — that’s what Dorothy describes to the listener in loving detail and the tones of classic rock. “Wicked Ones” tells a simple story, but the song’s calls for mischief fit the season perfectly, no overthinking.
Puppeteer – MAX
Max Schneider’s “Puppeteer” plays with strings, teeth and magazines in its wordplay-laden lyrics, making a spectacle out of what boils down to a simple romantic proposition. Schneider expertly weaves a helping of darkness into an otherwise common pop sound. Definitely something vampiric to the line “I don’t bite, but I heard you might…”
all the good girls go to hell – Billie Eilish
It’s not spooky season without Billie Eilish, but “all the good girls go to hell” really caught my attention. There’s a sort of suburban element to Halloween, trick-or-treating amidst haunted houses and spiderwebs. This song embodies that with its take on pearly gates like picket fences and California neighbourhoods on fire, with Eilish’s blurry vocals set against subdued instrumentals.
Play with Fire – Sam Tinnesz
Sam Tinnesz has the kind of vocal presence where if he says he loves the smell of gasoline, you douse yourself in it like it’s Old Spice. (No—don’t actually do it, oh my god). “Play with Fire” is deliciously dramatic, all low tones and promises of chaos.
You can view the rest of this playlist at Attuned’s Spotify:
Attuned 