I’ve neglected to mention that I have a new podcast!
Soon we will all be pod-people
It’s called The Six Demon Bag, and if you get that reference you’ll dig our show. If you don’t get the reference, we’ll surely win you over with our healthy recipesflirty fashions political discourse grab bag of topics guaranteed to include things like science, writing, movies, comics, games, anime, true tales, ponderables…all that kind of thing!
You can find pumpkins and candy corn anywhere, but where to find great scary songs for a Halloween party? There are a lot of Norwegian Death Metal bands out there with great songs about cannibalism and axe murder, but those aren’t really crowd friendly.
You may already have some Halloween music, a few ‘no-braaaaainers’ like Thriller, Ghost Busters, Monster Mash, and Dead Man’s Party. All good stuff, but you can only do the Thriller dance for so long.
Here’s another hand-picked play list of 13 spooky fun songs to help summon the Halloween spirit and keep people on the dance floor.
It’s Almost Halloween by Panic at the Disco
This song sets the mood perfectly. When I launch my own probe into the depths of the solar system, this song will be inside on a gold record.
I Want Candy by Bow Wow Wow
Yes, this song is ‘on the nose’, like a wart on a witch. Would you have it any other way?
Ghost town – Extended Version by The Specials
The moaning of the phantom organ, the eerie chorus, the delicious ska beat. If this weren’t an extended version, I’d have to play it twice.
Spiderwebs by No Doubt
As long as we’re dancing on the off-beat, let’s keep it up with No Doubt.
Walking with a Ghost by Tegan and Sara
Walking with a ghost smells better than walking with a zombie, but they both sound pretty sweet.
I Walked with a Zombie by The Aliens
If you’re feeling adventurous, checkout some other songs by lead singer, Roky Erickson. You may find yourself falling down a psychedelic rabbit hole of songs like “Bloody Hammer”, “Night of the Vampire” and “Creature with the Atom Brain”.
Spooky by The Zombies
This tune goes out to all the spooky little girls out there…
Somebody’s Watching Me by Rockwell
This video is amazing! Back in the day I was so starved for horror that I would watch MTV and wait for the music video for songs like this or The Rolling Stone’s ‘Too Much Blood’.
It’s interesting how many main stream pop songs from the 80’s make good Halloween songs. Yet another reason why the 80’s were totally rad.
The Haunted House of Rock by Whodini
This song has sound effects, monsters, and lots of sweet puns. It’s almost like a children’s Halloween album, but it’s from 80’s hip hop group Whodini.
The Freaks Come Out at Night by Whodini
Now that I think about it, this is a great Halloween song too!
What? By Rob Zombie
So much of Rob Zombie’s music is perfect for Halloween, but this song has a fun bounce to it without the hard edged aggression that may turn off non-Metal heads.
Monsta Mack by Sir Mix-A-Lot
What kind of party would it be without Sir Mix-A-Lot?
I’m Your Boogie Man
Let’s end this list with a two-fer. KC and the Sunshine Band followed by Rob Zombie. Listen for the soundbite from John Carpenter’s original “Halloween”.
I had a great time at Comikaze this year. This is only the second year for Los Angeles’ very own convention and it’s growing fast. There were many more exhibitors and activities this year but still plenty of breathing and elbow room. It feels good to know that my money is going to Stan Lee, too.
My friend and I took the L.A. public rail system to the convention center, which is always a treat in itself. Between the Con and the train it feels like our city is finally catching up with some of the other great cities around the country.
I skipped the Zombie Maze at this year’s San Diego Comic Con because it was really pricey, and I was prepared to skip the new zombie experience at Comikaze for the same reason. I found out that Activision had decided to sponsor the Comikaze Zombie maze and give everyone discounted tickets. We got our tickets immediately and rushed inside.
We were interrogated by some small children wearing headsets about whether or not we had signed liability waivers. That was a bit odd. They were doing a fine job, but I do wish they had suggested I take off my backpack. Before I knew it we were inside and sprinting, full tilt boogie, through the zombie maze.
I saw a large collection of inflatable castles and bouncy houses. Bouncy Houses? I was a bit crestfallen, hoping for something more challenging and scary. I’m training for the RUN FOR YOUR LIVES 5K after all.
These were not your ordinary inflatable castles.
First, I was wearing a large backpack and had my pockets full of phone-keys-wallet-tickets-sunglasses etc. This made crawling through, under, over, up and down a lot more difficult. It also reminded me that in the upcoming zompocalypse we won’t have storage lockers handy when it’s time to lay tracks.
Second, there was smeared blood inside the bouncy castles. I hope I never see that again.
Third, there were zombies chasing us through the bouncy castles and up and down the inflatable slides.
Fourth, running and jumping and diving across inflatable vinyl non-stop is like sprinting through deep sand. It is really exhausting, and of course there are zombies waiting at the bottom of each slide.
My friend and I were both soaked in sweat at the end and will never look at bouncy castles the same way. Maybe turning into a sweaty, blood smeared geek 20 minutes into the convention was not the best way to start the day, but I have no regrets.
That herring may actually prove sufficient for the task.
We saw a lot of the usual Con fare, including some nice spacious areas for FX makeup, gaming tables and even an indoor Quidditch match.
Elvira’s ride
Plenty of trunk space
I would like to see more publishers, authors and editors there, and I expect I will in the years to come. Thanks Stan!
Jeff C. Carter’s stories have been featured in dozens of anthologies, translated for international markets and adapted for podcasts.
His love of science, adventure and Halloween continue to inspire his science fiction, action and horror writing. He lives in Southern California with a cat, a dog and a human.
Author Jeff C. Carter 