Are you ready for spooky season? If you think you are, let me ask again: Are you actually ready? It may seem like a lot to prepare for Halloween if you’re as big of a fan of it as I am. Decorating, figuring out what costume(s) you want to wear, constructing them, and making plans for the day (or the entire weekend) is a lot to manage. You probably already have a ton of stuff on your mind, and whoops, you forgot to make an awesome playlist to play in the background while you do everything else! The horror!
Okay, yes, I’m being dramatic, but seriously, anyone who’s a fan of Halloween time and spooky season in general probably wants to create a playlist to really enjoy the holiday well in advance of its arrival — at least I know I do. However, don’t you get tired of hearing the same few classic Halloween songs over and over again at every party you go to? You’ll definitely be over it by the end of the season. So, I’ve decided to craft the perfect, unconventional Halloween playlist of songs that aren’t explicitly about the holiday but really remind me of it. Here are five of my favorite songs to jumpstart your Halloween playlist.
- “Season of the Witch” by Lana del Rey
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Of course, I would start this off with a Lana Del Rey song. This is probably the most obvious Halloween song on the playlist since it quite literally mentions witches and cats and was made for a scary movie. However, my main criteria for choosing the songs on this list revolves around their sonic quality as well — how fitting for the Halloween season do they sound? This song clearly offers a chilled-back vibe with creepy piano accompanied by Lana’s haunting vocals.
- “Mary of Silence” by mazzy star
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Okay, now you might have to get into the headspace I’m crafting this playlist with. It shouldn’t be hard with this song because it’s one that always scared me, and for good reason. Speaking of haunting vocals, Hope Sandoval offers exactly that, accompanied by an organ and disorienting lyrics. I just love this song, and I’d listen to it when doing a scary makeup look for sure.
- “Crying Lightning” by Artic Monkeys
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In my opinion, this is one of the most Halloween-esque songs of all time. Yes, the lyrics do mention magic tricks and rainy days, but come on! The instrumental is so classically spooky! The crying guitar and the foreboding drums…I could totally see this one playing in a Halloween movie. Has that been done yet?
- “The Figurehead” by the cure
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Alright, I may be a bit biased on this one. I’m currently taking a Gothic haunts class, and I had to do an assignment where I analyzed a piece of art that could fit into the Gothic aesthetic/movement, and I chose this one. I analyzed both the lyrics and the instrumental of this song in depth, but that goes without saying. There was absolutely no way I wasn’t going to include something by The Cure, one of the eeriest bands of all time. Just listen to it, and imagine yourself in the odd, unpredictable, and downright terrifying world the singer is in during this song.
- “Dungen” by Powerplant
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This is one of my favorite additions to this list, simply because I don’t think this song has much attention! Let’s change that. I found this song on my Spotify Discover Weekly a few months ago, and, as someone who always has Halloween in mind, I immediately saw the school dance scene of a Halloween movie in my head. Kind of cliche, but I feel like this would be so fun at a party, it’s very danceable.Â
There you have it! I hope you were able to discover a new song or artist from this list, and if not, I hope it helped you get into the Halloween spirit. My goal was to offer inspiration to start making your own personalized haunting playlist, so whether you include any of these specific songs or not, happy spooky season and have a great Halloween!
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