Happy Tuesday, everyone!
I’m taking a little break from my regular posting schedule today to take care of a few personal things. However, I didn’t want to leave you empty-handed, especially with Spooky Season in full swing!
Instead of spotlighting a particular 12″ single, I thought it might be fun to explore something that has always fascinated me. The connection between Halloween, 80s music, and those glorious extended remixes that we all know and love.
When we think of Halloween music, the usual suspects tend to come to mind. Michael Jackson’s “Thriller,” Ray Parker Jr.’s “Ghostbusters,” and Rockwell’s paranoid classic “Somebody’s Watching Me.” All three helped give the decade its unmistakable Halloween soundtrack.
But venture a little deeper into the 80s musical landscape, particularly the world of New Wave, Synth-pop, Gothic Rock, and Industrial dance music, and you’ll discover an entirely different kind of darkness.
This was music that didn’t necessarily need Halloween to sound spooky.
Haunting synthesizers, icy electronic rhythms, mysterious vocals, and lyrics exploring everything from obsession and isolation to fear and the supernatural were already part of the musical landscape.
And what better way to experience those sounds than on a 12″ single?
During the 1980s, the 12″ single became more than just an extended version of a popular song. It offered producers, remixers, and DJs the freedom to experiment. Songs could be stretched, rearranged, stripped down, or transformed into something almost unrecognizable.
For music with a darker edge, those extra minutes could make all the difference.
A haunting introduction could slowly build into a hypnotic rhythm. Strange electronic effects could creep into the mix. Echoing vocals and pounding drum machines could turn an ordinary dance record into something that sounded like it belonged in a horror film.
Just listen to Ministry’s “(Every Day Is) Halloween,” Dead or Alive’s “Something in My House,” or The Cure’s “Lullaby.” Each approaches darkness differently, yet all demonstrate how wonderfully the sounds of the 80s could lend themselves to the season.
And then there were the record sleeves, the artwork, the mysterious B-sides, and those extended mixes that occasionally took the music into even stranger territory.
That’s one of the things I’ve always loved about collecting 12″ singles. You never quite knew what you might discover when you flipped a record over or explored a remix that wasn’t available anywhere else.
Of course, not every song needed ghosts, vampires, or things that go bump in the night to fit the Halloween mood. Sometimes all it took was a sinister bassline, a chilling synthesizer, or a particularly unsettling vocal performance.
The 80s had plenty of those!
That’s part of what makes putting together my Spooky Season Spins selections so enjoyable. There is an enormous amount of music from that decade that fits the atmosphere, even when Halloween wasn’t necessarily what the artist had in mind.
So while I’m away from the turntables today, I thought I’d leave you with a little food for thought.
What 80s song or 12″ remix immediately puts you in the Halloween spirit?
It doesn’t have to be an obvious Halloween record. In fact, the more unusual your choice, the better!
I’d love to hear what spooky treasures are hiding in your record collections.
Thanks, as always, for stopping by, sharing your memories, and keeping the music alive.
I’ll be back with more Spooky Season Spins soon!
Until then, keep those turntables spinning and watch out for things that go bump in the night!
The Ubiquitous Mr Lovegrove – Dead Can Dance
Tribantura – Lack of Sense
Secession – Sneakyville
Sisters of Mercy – anything of theirs, but Gimme Shelter for sure
I’ve always thought Laura Branigan’s ‘Let Me In’ was a song about vampires and/or sex trafficking…or it could just be about someone at the front door. I’ve got a dangerous neighborhood in my head…
https://youtu.be/7YU-_9RjZNU?si=sSfJdsCYdQm1OrcY
How about, Eloise (No Sleep Until Wednesday Mix) – The Damned. I would love it if you restored this particular version Paul 🤞
Some songs that remind me of Halloween include the following:
Siouxsie & The Banshees – “Peek-A-Boo,” “Face to Face,” and “Spellbound”
The Specials – Ghost Town
Echo & The Bunnymen – “The Killing Moon”
Concrete Blonde – “Bloodletting (The Vampire Song”
I Start Counting – “Million Headed Monster” (I believe you’ve featured this one before)
The Cult – “She Sells Sanctuary” – especially the Howling Mix
and of course “Everyday Is Halloween” and “Something in My House” that you mentioned.
The extended version of Bloodletting with the church bells and rain in the intro and outro for sure!
Insider Halloween Monsters:
Strap On Halo – When They Come For You 2016, Seattle, WA (originally formed in Omaha, NE)
34 Vampires – 34 Vampires 1991 Los Angeles
Scary Bitches – You’ll End Up Looking Like The Scary Bitches 2002 Guildford (Surrey, UK)
Mainstream Halloween Monsters:
The Splash Band – Christine (12″ Version)
ZYX Records 1984 Germany
Russ Ballard – Voices (12″ Version) EMI America 1984 (Hertfordshire UK)
The Damned – Grimly Fiendish MCA Records 1985 (London, UK)
cheers from Vienna / Austria to ALL of You ♥
Revolting Cocks – No Devotion. The 12″ is very spooky indeed..
For Halloween, a hidden gem on a hidden gem…”Bloodrush” by Act (Claudia Brucken and Thomas Leer) from the 1988 album “Laughter, Tears And Rage”.
Brilliant! Respect for this gem!
I like the idea of less obvious eerie songs, much as the likes of Thriller are classics. And The Cure’s ‘Lullaby’ is on my spooky playlist for sure. Trying to remember other songs from it, Echo & The Bunnymen “Killing Moon” for example, but I’d suggest ‘Secret Oktober’ by Duran Duran as a less well known option. Not only does it mention October in the title, but it has a haunting mesmerising refrain in it that puts me in mind of creepy carnival ride music. Duran had a lot of eerie stuff in their earlier releases, but this is my… Read more »
„Experiment IV“ by Kate Bush, „Log Cabin Fever“ by Split Enz
Fun question! I was tempted to pick something obvious (well to me at least) like the glorious Killing Moon by Echo and the Bunnymen or one of the perfectly seasonal Book of Love Tracks like Witchcraft or Tubular Bells (thanks for the great transfers last year Paul!). I pondered for a bit and I will go with something slightly off the beaten path: Bonnie Pointer – The Beast In Me Sure it features in one of (ok, THE) finest aerobics films of the 80’s, but it has enough edge that it makes a cool Halloween track. Really evokes a raw,… Read more »
Anyone remember “Dance After Curfew” by Nash The Slash, “The Order Of Death” by PiL, “Mambo Witch” by A Split Second, “Fly On The Windscreen” (Death Mix) by Depeche Mode, “Supernature” as covered by Erasure (Miller & Legg RAK Remix), “The Lunatics (Have Taken Over The Asylum) by Fun Boy Three, and last but certainly not least, Dr. Mabuse (13th Life Mix) by Propaganda.
Oh yessss! All of them! Great selection!
‘Night Boat’ by Duran Duran (on their debut LP) is absolutely spooky with the video even more so.
Good shout. That’s getting added to my spooky playlist!
Oingo Boingo – Dead Man’s Party
Siouxsie and the Banshees – Spellbound
Enjoy your day off Paul! For me, besides Thriller, is another Michael Jackson hit with Paul McCartney – Say Say Say (the video with the makeup!). Also, John Cafferty And The Beaver Brown Band – On The Dark Side, Pat Benatar – Shadows Of The Night, Love Is A Battlefield and We Belong. All were popular in October!
Hi Paul! I hope you are well.
Many records come to mind; for example “A Day” by Clan Of Xymox, “Bastion IN-D Stress” by IN-D, “The Shadow Of Love” by The Damned, “Someday You Were Here” and “Contact” by Invincible Spirit, “Western Sky” by BFG or the wonderful “I’ll Be Near You (Radical Mix)” by XMal Deutschland, to name a few. 😅
Another brilliant selection! Great! All of them!
Thank you!! 😄
For me the Split Enz instrumental “The Lost Cat” from 1984 is a perfect Halloween song.
The strangest 12 inch I ever had was when Deep Purple reformed, and their original UK label, EMI/Harvest put out a series of 12 inch singles of varied tracks. The one I ended up with was Child In Time. All three songs were from the Made In Japan album (so, basically half the album on one 12 inch! And those songs weren’t exactly short!), and one on Polydor of the Perfect Strangers single, with a 10 minute instrumental called Son Of Alerik. (Running at 45 RPM, that track filled up Side 2!)
Book of Love – Witchcraft
I would also add ‘Tubular Bells’ by them.
Good discussion! For me it’s “Umbrella” by Siouxsie and the Banshees – bonus B-side track from the “Candyman” 12-inch single (1986). It’s a doomy, juddering instrumental, starting with Budgie walloping the drums and then building to a guitar-led crescendo. Don’t know why or how it works, but it does. Must be dark magic!
Kate Bush’s “experiment iv”
Das Kabinette – The Cabinet
Oh yesss! Great tune!
Oingo Boingo – Weird Science springs to my mind. I saw the music video earlier on an episode of Stereo Underground on a UK TV channel.
Nothing better than Das Kabinette’s The Cabinet.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=wkgIkBhll2U&list=RDwkgIkBhll2U&start_radio=1&pp=oAcB&ra=m
Hi Paul, What a great discussion here. I saw the post earlier this morning and I have been digging through the crates (my cranium) of my brain pondering my selection. There were indeed a few choices, but then it hit me like a lightning strike!! The song that reminds me of All Hallow’s Eve everytime it’s played is: “Martin” by Soft Cell. Released as an added bonus 12-inch record from their second album, “The Art of Falling Apart”,this song totally gets me to think about the season of the witch! It’s like a horror movie score you can dance to!… Read more »
Bauhaus – Bela Legosi’s Dead always puts me in the Halloween spirit
The Killing Moon (All Night Version) – Echo & The Bunnymen, one of their absolute best songs extended to the max for dramatic effect. Full moon on a cold autumn night vibes.
Rockwell – Somebody’s Watching Me instantly takes me into Halloween mode no matter what day of the year!!
The 12″ version of Siouxsie and the Banshees’ Spellbound always puts me in the spooky spirit. Gloomy goth music xoxo
Greetings Paul,
as a kid i always found Ultravox’s Vienna quite sinister sounding.
the video didn’t help either ;P
peace,
dj
Notable for me is Echo & Bunnymen’s cover of People Are Strange from the Lost Boys Soundtrack
The House Is Haunted (By The Echo Of Your Last Goodbye) by Marc Almond
My Life With The Thrill Kill Kult – Do You Fear (For Your Child)
Mysterious Art – Das Omen
Great one! It’s a great song and I love the witch calls in the background of the song.
“Ghostdance” by Ghostdance. New beat/Hard Beat from Belgium released 1989. I always prefer to play the New Beat Mix.
“Dead Man’s Party” by Oingo Boingo – I had to look it up, it WAS a 12″ and included “Party ‘Til You’re Dead Mix””
Yes, that is the one I conjured in my mind, and I used to have that 12″! Have to go crate digging now to try to find it in my old 12″ DJ singles boxes stashed in the closet of the guest room.
me too!
Absolutely!
And while I was lost in thought like that, “Ellen Bernfield – Tidal Wave (Tsunami)” (the 12th version) popped into my head. Great vocals, a strangely building groove. I used to have it on a compilation back in 1984. Unfortunately, I no longer own the vinyl, and it seems this track never made it into the digital age either.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZA_tV3W7NL8
My favorite is “Where the Wolf Bane Blooms” by The Nomads from 1984, although I don’t believe it was a single.
For me, it was definitely Karel Fialka’s “Hey Matthew” 12th from 1987. It had that quirky B-side, “The Things I Saw.” I don’t even remember which side I played more often.
Later, I searched online again for that maxi single, but unfortunately to no avail. A classic that time had simply swallowed up.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f1xmc3iy_w0
Buy the cd with bonus mixes: https://www.discogs.com/release/13241468-Karel-Fialka-Human-Animal
But it doesn’t include either the long version of “Hey Matthew” or “The Things I Saw.”