Image courtesy cmar via Flickr.….
The best holidays, I would argue, are the ones that can last longer than a single day, those celebrations for which anticipation builds weeks, even months, in advance. They are associated with a specific, undeniable mood, which elevates them, in essence, to a state of mind. Christmas, ideally, is a holly jolly fest of goodwill toward men, with the sights, sounds, and smells inspiring kindness (at least, outside of shopping malls), high spirits, and the overindulgence of various questionable food items, like eggnog and gingerbread. Halloween, in contrast, is like Christmas’s evil twin, exploring a darker side of human nature, which delights in tricks and treats in equal measure. Halloween is a celebration of the macabre and the attendant thrill that comes with being unnerved. It’s not all slasher flicks and haunted houses, but if the darkest you get is watching the Charlie Brown special with the lights out, then you’re not doing it right.
Every year, I create my own playlists for both of these holidays in an effort to promote the right mood even when I am doing something decidedly un-festive, like writing a paper. Below I have included this year’s Halloween playlist. (Coming November 1st, my Christmas playlist! …No, no, I’m better than that.) Some of these songs are par for the course, just shy of “Monster Mash” ubiquity, while others are more obscure, but still thematically related. All of them, naturally, are songs that I like, and that I think capture the Halloween “spirit.” Yeah, that’s right, spirit. I went there.
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Looking to make your own Halloween playlist? All it takes is a crappy image editor you downloaded for free, Halloween clipart you found by doing the most obvious Google search imaginable, and, of course, the first execrable pun you can think of! Have fun!
Tony Delgado (@mr_thin)
/ October 29, 2011Add this to your playlist: http://youtu.be/fvVqo0fPObc
Tony Delgado (@mr_thin)
/ October 30, 2011Ah-oooooh!
Kathleen
/ October 30, 2011I guess when you are a she-wolf it is hard to keep your clothes on.
Tony Delgado (@mr_thin)
/ October 30, 2011Man-wolfs too. Remember David Naughton!