Ha Ha Hallowe'en

A spooky selection today, in a nod to Hallowe'en, whether you will ready for the hordes of Trick or Treaters, or battening down the hatches and pretending you're not in when the doorbell rings.

Inevitably, lots of Halloween-referencing songs to choose from, though dig a little deeper into some of the lyrics and you may be surprised by what you find. I've also lobbed in a few pumpkins, though they're not necessarily seasonal tunes.

I had to include some music by John Carpenter, though rather than go for the obvious with the main theme of 1978's defining moment Halloween, I've instead picked an extract from the 2018 'sequel', which Carpenter scored for director David Gordon Green. 

1979 by The Smashing Pumpkins was a classic slice of nostalgic rock until Moby got his hands on it and transformed it into a spine-tingling horrorshow. 1979 was a ripe year for horror films, with Alien, Phantasm, The Driller Killer, The Amityville Horror, The Brood, Nosferatu The Vampyre, and a(nother) remake of Dracula.

The Prisoner by Tears For Fears is the penultimate song on their debut album The Hurting and a re-recorded version of an old B-side. It gave me the chills when I listened to it as a young lad, though it was - and remains - one of the best things they've ever done.

The Basement Jaxx remix of Trick Me by Kelis is arguably far too upbeat for inclusion in this selection, but I like the jarring juxtaposition with Siouxsie & The Banshees before and Phoebe Bridgers afterwards.

And, having recently discovered EMF's unexpected but strangely compelling cover of Bauhaus' classic Bela Lugosi's Dead, it was a shoo in for this selection.

And who better to start and end proceedings than Misfits? 

1) Halloween: Misfits (1981)

2) Halloween Parade: Lou Reed (1989)

3) Halloween: Ash (1997)

4) Laurie Sees The Shape: John Carpenter (2018)

5) 1979 (Moby Mix): The Smashing Pumpkins (1996)

6) Pumpkin (Reincarnated): Tricky ft. Lucia (2023)

7) Halloween: The Gaslight Anthem (2014)

8) Pumpkin Head Xscapes: The Fall (1992)

9) Halloween: Japan (1979)

10) Halloween: Kirsty MacColl (1991)

11) Halloween: Sonic Youth (1986)

12) The Prisoner (Album Version): Tears For Fears (1983)

13) Halloween: Dead Kennedys (1982)

14) Halloween (Album Version): Siouxsie & The Banshees (1981)

15) Trick Me (Jaxxbackclash Rerub) (Remix By Basement Jaxx): Kelis (2004)

16) Halloween: Phoebe Bridgers (2020)

17) Bela Lugosi's Dead (Cover of Bauhaus): EMF (2025)

18) Halloween II: Misfits (1981)

1979: Quiet Life: 9

1981: Halloween EP: 1, 18

1981: Juju: 14

1982: Plastic Surgery Disasters: 13

1983: The Hurting: 12

1986: Flower / Halloween EP: 11

1989: New York: 2

1991: Electric Landlady: 10

1992: Ed's Babe EP: 8

1996: 1979 EP: 5

1997: A Life Less Ordinary EP: 3

2004: Trick Me EP: 15

2014: Get Hurt (Deluxe Edition): 7

2018: Halloween OST: 4

2020: Punisher: 16

2023: Maxinquaye (Reincarnated): 6

2025: Bela Lugosi's Dead EP: 17

Ha Ha Hallowe'en (1:06:08) (GD) (M)

If that's not frightening enough for you, then I've refreshed my #SpookyTunesSeason selections, originally posted on Bluesky this time last year. Follow the link for Volume One and Volume Two. 

The Hurt In My Heart

This one happened very quickly. PJ Harvey's song came up on a shuffle and suddenly I was following a thread from one song to the other. A dozen songs later, a Dubhed selection was born.

The less obvious connection between all of these choices is that I haven't listened to the source albums in quite a while, the various EPs even more so, a timely reminder that I need to dig them out for the full experience.

 

Swansway is a gentler version of Siouxsie's debut solo single Into A Swan from 2007 and it's stunning. Likewise, the Tanya Donelly and Kristin Hersh songs, which subsequently appeared on the Lovesongs For Underdogs and Sky Motel albums respectively but which I only own due to the versions appearing on EP releases.

 

The Deep Field by Joan As Police Woman was lent to me by a friend and every listen reminds me what a great album it. As is i don’t know who needs to hear this..., the debut album from Sarah Tomberlin, a chance discovery when she supported Angel Olsen on tour a couple of years ago.

 

Rita Lynch has been a staple of the Bristol live music scene for decades and her albums have continued to capture her on-stage fire and lyrical bite, as evidenced by her eighth (I think) in 2022, Mrs. Lynch. Smile is taken from her 2010 album, What Am I?

 

Sharon Van Etten and Angel Olsen collaborated on a one-off single, the 80s power ballad-infused Like I Used To, so their pairing here seemed an obvious choice. I have pretty much everything that Angel has recorded; conversely relatively little by Sharon, which I need to address.

 

On a similar note, there were slim pickings in my collection for Julia Holter and Phoebe Bridgers. Both of these choices came from music magazine cover-mounted CDs and I've yet to buy the source albums in either case. Another reminder that I just don't have the time or money to keep up with all of the music that I'd like to explore more....

 

Lisa Germano first came to my attention via the Inconsiderate Bitch EP on 4AD, label boss Ivo Watts-Russell taking her debut album Happiness (at the time only released in the USA) and remixing several tracks to stunning effect before releasing it to a wider audience. Puppet is a prime example of this, the versions on the 4AD EP and album proving to be standout tracks on both releases. I got the original album many years later, which if nothing else proves that Puppet was a great song to begin with. So, what better way to wrap up this selection? 

 

1) Big Exit (Album Version): PJ Harvey (2000)

2) Les Jeux To You: Julia Holter (2018)

3) Swansway: Siouxsie (2007)

4) Smile: Rita Lynch (2010)

5) Chinese Satellite: Phoebe Bridgers (2020)

6) Nervous: Joan As Police Woman (2011)

7) Swoon: Tanya Donelly (1996)

8) collect caller: Tomberlin (2022)

9) Echo (Single Version): Kristin Hersh (1999)

10) You Shadow: Sharon Van Etten (2019)

11) Intern: Angel Olsen (2016)

12) Puppet (US Album Version): Lisa Germano (1993)

 

1993: Happiness (USA): 12

1996: Sliding And Diving EP: 7 

1999: Echo EP: 9

2000: Stories From The City, Stories From The Sea: 1

2007: Into A Swan EP: 3

2010: What Am I?: 4 

2011: The Deep Field: 6

2016: My Woman: 11

2018: Aviary: 2

2019: Remind Me Tomorrow: 10

2020: Punisher: 5

2022: i don’t know who needs to hear this...: 8

The Hurt In My Heart (46:06) (KF) (Mega)

Bad Santa V

In what seems to be becoming an annual tradition, here's another festive Dubhed selection. 

 

Again, a mix of old and new, merry and maudlin, sincere and just flat out cheesy. Previous selections have tended not to outstay their welcome, coming in at under an hour. I've thrown caution (and common sense) to the wind this year, gifting inflicting an extra 50% on you lovely people, so you get nearly an hour and a half of Christmas drivel.

Lots of covers pf Christmas classics by the likes of Phoebe Bridgers, Ash, Emmy The Great & Lightspeed Champion, Lenox Avenue and Cranes. I nearly went for Al Jourgensen's version of What A Wonderful World but BMX Bandits won out in the end. Sinkane also delivers an all-star cover of The Waitresses' Christmas Wrapping, featuring various members of LCD Soundsystem, Holy Ghost! and Beastie Boys.

One of my all-time favourite Christmas albums is by Low, who are represented here twice, with If You Were Born Today and a fresh cover of Just Like Christmas by Silversun Pickups, released a couple of days ago. Remembering Mimi Parker.

 

The selection closes with a prime example of the cheese/charm spectrum, Air Supply delivering a gleaming-white-teeth-and-hairsprayed-mullet version of Sleigh Ride. Following this, The Trash Can Sinatras perform Snow, a beautiful rendition of the Randy Newman song. 

 

Hopefully something for everyone here (well, maybe not everyone; I steered clear of Kanye West's Christmas song) for the week ahead. Enjoy!

 

1) Lonely Star (Christmas Song) (Single Version): Dream Nails (2020)

2) Everybody's Having Fun (It's Christmas Time): Natalie Prass (2016)

3) Swing Down Sweet Chariot: Elvis Presley ft. The Jordanaires (1960)

4) Be Good At Christmas: Katie Malco (2016)

5) Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas (Cover of Judy Garland): Phoebe Bridgers (2017)

6) Never Do A Tango With An Eskimo: Alma Cogan (1955)

7) Holiday Tylenol: Anni Rossi (2017)

8) Christmas Wrapping (Cover of The Waitresses): Sinkane ft. Nancy Whang, Pat Mahoney, Money Mark, Nick Millhiser, Roxane Danset, Jordan McLean & Jas Walton (2020)

9) Merry Christmas Baby (Album Version) (Cover of Johnny Moore's Three Blazers): Chuck Berry (1964)

10) I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday (2004 Version) (Cover of Wizzard): Ash (2004)

11) I Was Thinking I Could Clean Up For Christmas: Aimee Mann (2005)

12) What A Wonderful World (Cover of Louis Armstrong): BMX Bandits (1986)

13) Shitty Christmas: Babaganouj (2013)

14) Happy Xmas (War Is Over) (Cover of John Lennon, Yoko Ono & Plastic Ono Band): Cranes (1996)

15) If You Were Born Today: Low (1999)

16) Commodore Xmas: The Saturnettes (2013)

17) Just Like Christmas (Cover of Low): Silversun Pickups (2022)

18) A Tiny Christmas: Lawrence King (2017)

19) Christmas In Prison (Cover of John Prine): Emmy The Great & Lightspeed Champion (2006)

20) The Dollyrots Do Christmas: The Dollyrots (2018)

21) Xmas To Forget: Nathaniel Rateliff ft. Elle King (2020)

22) No Cure For The Common Christmas: Saint Etienne (2010)

23) The Little Drummer Boy (Cover of Katherine K. Davis, Henry Onorati & Harry Simeone): Lenox Avenue (1970)

24) Sleigh Ride (Cover of Arthur Fiedler & The Boston Pops Orchestra): Air Supply (1987)

25) Snow (Single Version) (Cover of Randy Newman): The Trash Can Sinatras (1999)

Bad Santa V (1:27:30) (KF) (Mega)

Bad Santa IV

Bad Santa III

Bad Santa II

Bad Santa