Let’s be honest, October is really just a thirty-day buildup to Halloween. We all have our ways of getting in the mood for Spooky Season, whether that be a horror marathon or an impending sense of panic as we realize it’s Oct. 27 and we still don’t have a costume.
In my long tradition of adoration for Halloween, I’ve found that one of the easiest ways to get in the mood is through music. And yes, we all already know “This is Halloween” and “The Monster Mash.” This list of five October albums is more about the vibe of the season rather than direct send-ups. Whether it be fear, fun, or just something fantastic, we’ve got an album for everyone’s October.
"Odessey and Oracle" by The Zombies
Even if we put aside that the band is literally called The Zombies, “Odessey and Oracle” (yes, spelled with an extra e) is the perfect album for witchy fall party vibes. The Zombies were one of many, many British boy bands that rose in the 60s, and they petered out soon after this 1968 release. In “Odessey and Oracle,” you can almost hear their uncertainty over the future, which makes the album both mournful yet also full of a certain carefree-ness. It’s a bit like a celebration of life party for the band, or maybe a swinging London-style funeral.
This unique blend of moods suits Halloween well, a holiday whose energy can veer wildly depending on which neighborhood street you visit. Twinges of harpsichord in “I Want Her She Wants Me” and the iconic synths in the aptly titled “Time of the Season” have just the right amount of playful spookiness without tipping over into kitsch. With lines like “What’s your name? /Who’s your daddy? /Is he rich like me?”
The Zombies sound a bit like edgier Beatles, as if they ran around in sunglasses and trench coats instead of mop tops. The more relaxed tracks are somber, but far from sedate; winding down but not wound down. High or low energy, they keep the songs tight and always a tad out-there.
The band may not have the legacy of their contemporaries, but The Zombies’ “Odessey and Oracle” is a great listen for October.
Best track: “Time of the Season”
"Suspiria" (1977) Soundtrack by Goblin
Even if you know absolutely nothing about Dario Argento’s phantasmagoric dark fairy tale “Suspiria,” the film’s soundtrack stands alone as a singular achievement in instrumental composition. Progressive rock band Goblin held nothing back when tasked with scoring the Italian horror classic–tribal drums, chanting, operatic wails and the chimes of a celeste all come together in the brilliant title track.
However, “Suspiria” is far from a one-song wonder, with music that goes from pure toneless dread (“Sighs”) to uneasy jazz freeform (“Black Forest”). Even without the movie playing, against all odds, it’s remarkably cohesive, pulled together by the overall impression that something’s not quite right. That same impression is what makes “Suspiria” a great mood piece for the season; put it on for your haunted house, blast it in the dorm hall on Halloween night, or just grab some headphones and give it a listen. You’ve never heard anything quite like it.
Best track: “Suspiria”
"First Utterance" by Comus
The emaciated titan keeled over in agony on the front sleeve is still not enough to prepare you for how off-putting this album gets. With a folksy sound that calls to mind a Medieval jester banished to wander the dark forests, Comus recounts necrophilia, women in white fleeing for their lives, mental hospitals and hangings.
I wouldn’t call any of these tunes–some of which are over nine minutes–particularly catchy, or even fun to listen to. But you don’t listen to “First Utterance” for fun, per se. Through their vivid descriptions and unique production (who would have thought violins could work in a tense chase song?), Comus finds the right mix of disturbing and engaging to drop your jaw but keep you listening. It’s never outright scary, but always spooky.
The effect is like huddling around for a ghoulish tale in night, with only a campfire for warmth and light. That cracking branch was just a squirrel… right?
Best track: “The Herald”
"I Believe" by Gerritt Wittmer
Gerritt Wittmer stuck a microphone directly into your nightmares, and this album was the result. “I Believe” deliberately keeps itself shrouded in mystery–untitled songs, almost no information online and unassuming Dorothea Lange-style cover art. In keeping with this theme, it’s one of the extremely rare albums in the modern era to only be available on vinyl.
What you’ll find when you give it a spin is one of the only albums I’d call outright terrifying. “I Believe” connects the expanses of desolate farmland over half of this country to the dark void of broken American dreams and loneliness. Chirping crickets give way to hellish distortions. Agricultural equipment morphs into vast, churning machines. And in touches you can hear the whisperings of… ghosts? Demons? Despairing people ? Up to you. In any case, they aren’t alright.
“I Believe” is an experience more than an album. It’s best heard at night, in a pitch black room, with loud speakers to ensure you can’t escape. Be warned: once you listen, you will never forget. No matter how hard you try.
Best Track: “Untitled” [side one]
"Bad Moon Rising" by Sonic Youth
It was a tough choice between “Bad Moon Rising” and the underrated, haunting “N.Y.C. Ghosts and Flowers”--not even I am indulgent enough to put two Sonic Youth entries on a five-album list. But there’s something about the hazy, prepared guitar chords that immediately brings forth the idea of autumn (not to mention the jack-o’-lantern leering on the cover).
“Bad Moon Rising” was Sonic Youth’s second studio album, when they were still squarely in their noise rock era of heavy sound and loose melodies. Their work here is less chaotic and more atmospheric than their debut. Which, for our purposes, makes it a fitting soundtrack for the month.
There are a lot of things about “Bad Moon Rising” that put you in the Halloween spirit: plucked bass from prepared guitars, poetic lyrics about the Manson family and Satan, eerie arpeggios everywhere. But it’s really the bass on tracks like “Fear Runs (in my Family)” that instantly conjures up the chilly breeze whistling through the grass and swirling amber leaves illuminated by the full moon.
The incredible cover art not only epitomizes the Halloween spirit, but provides a remarkably apt tone-setter for the album itself. When I think of “Bad Moon Rising,” I think of gazing over the horizon on All Hallow’s Eve, a night teeming with mystery and possibility–and just the slightest tinge of fear.
Best track: “Intro”
