Lots of Halloween treats on the web, a few of which we've managed to locate for y'all.
An Indie Dark Pop band from Salem (yes, Salem), The Wicked have a single officially due out October 31, but the pre-release download is "Name Your Price" via Bandcamp. It's their "Nightmare Before Christmas" cover/medley and it's instantly likable, so take it for a spin and grab it while you can. You might also enjoy the band's full-length from earlier this year, "Never Trust The Dead".
Bandcamp is also playing host to a new freebie from House Of Fools, a southern Americana Rock outfit from Greensboro. "Tricky Treats - Pary One" is devilishly fun and should fit nicely on many an All Hallows mix tape. How can you argue with lyrcis like:
Don't you Trick or Treat whatever you do
Porky little fat boys make good stew
And check out that cover art. Mmm mmm good! Reminds me of those "scared of Santa" pictures. Only far less, er, jolly.
If your taste runs a little more towards the experimental, weird, almost industrial and vaguely ambient, you might find something useful on "Halloween Remixed", a collaborative take-off on last year's "Halloween" EP from The Implicit Order. It's another Bandcamp freebie. I thought the original "Trick or Treat or Die" had some potential, but it never seemed to go anywhere. And, while the new version from (O)+thers definitely goes somewhere, I'm not sure it's going where I wanted it to go. Still, free is free, so download both EPs. Don't cost nuthin'.
We at Stubbys love Sleeping At Last for their many great Christmas tunes, but the Indie emo Christian band have a new Halloween single out--a first for them for this holiday. Written for the new Nickelodian film "Fun Size", "Masquerade" is a bit more analogy than your standard Trick or Treat tune, but it's superbly atmospheric and we think you're going to like it as much as we do. This one's not free, but what's 99 cents among friends? Find "Masquerade" at iTunes and Amazon MP3.
The Scottish Indie Pop/Rock group French Wives are offering up their "Halloween" as a free download via Bandcamp. The track is just one of the many cool cuts on the latest French Wives album, "Dream Of The Inbetween", which can also be purchased via Bandcamp. The track was originally recorded for a single in 2009, but this is a new recording.
Noisetrade mostly plays host to Christian bands, it seems, so there aren't a lot of Halloween offerings over there. But you can find "Trick Or Treat", a clever rap from young Texan Alex Constancio. Download it free at Noisetrade....if you dare.
Nothing scarier than election time in America. And, if you don't mind a little chocolate in your peanut butter, The Indiana Midnights have just the, uh, noise for you. "Mitt Romney's Haunted Yacht" is a six minute Indie electronic mind-bending insanity-causing spooky ambient piece destined to wither in obscurity. It may not be everyone's cup of tea, but it is free at Bandcamp.
A little more to my personal liking is Monstercat's new "Trick or Treat EP". The Canadian electronic dance and dubstep collective have created an eery, yet danceable little soundtrack for your next haunted techno bash. Not free, this one will run you about 4 dollars via Amazon.
As long as we're doing the dubstep thing, DJ Chris White (aka Whiiite) has an EP of spooky remixes available for free download via SoundCloud. Surely, you'll find something to satisfy your personal Frankenstein among the 8 tracks here. Use the widget below to preview and download "Whiiite Presents Halloween". Or, like Whiiite on Facebook and grab it there.
Of all the new electronic ambient Halloween pieces out there, Slighter's might be the most fetching and frightening. Very atmospheric. Very creepy. Very cool, indeed. Grab "Last Pulse" free via Bandcamp. Limited time only.
Another of our favorites, here, due to their excellent Christmas cuts, is Beats Antique. the Beats are heading south of the border for their Halloween freebie, a two track single, "Dia de los Muertos (Day Of The Dead)", remixing vintage cartoon tuneage for "Skeleton Dance" and Mexican wrestling commercials for "Lucha Libre Extraveganza". The first wears a bit thin after awhile, but the latter is bloody brilliant. Well worth the free download at Bandcamp.
Yet another of our Christmas music faves, The Hush Now, have wandered into Halloween territory, releasing a free download Halloween single, "The Flapper". I always check on the Boston Indie Alt Pop outfit at Christmastime, but it seems I missed their earlier All Hallows releases. Not to worry, once you're at their Bandcamp site, you'll find "The Legend Of Dudley Town" and "Please Mesitopheles Leave Me Alone" are still free downloads, as are the band's Christmas gifts.
The Manhattan Project is has exploded onto the Northeast music scene since they debuted in 2010. The electronic duo has some excellent stuff that you can listen to on Soundcloud, Bandcamp, or their own web site. Some of it's even free. While their take on the "Halloween" theme has been making the blog rounds lately, and there's no denying it's pretty cool, I personally dug "1984". And that one is free. Download it here, using the widget below, or direct from Soundcloud.
I think it deserves mention that Light In The Attic is carrying the reissues of the Original Soundtracks to "Halloween II" and "Halloween III". Soundtracks are a weird sub-genre and, often, these little gems slip out of print just before you think about picking them up. Now's your chance for these two John Carpenter classics.
We haven't heard much from one of my personal favorites, Zombina & The Skeletones recently. Our long wait is almost over, though, as the band will release an all new EP of Halloween material on October 31. "That Doll Just Tried To Kill Me (And Other Chilling Tales of Mind-Bending Terror)" will arrive Halloween night on the group's Bandcamp site. No need to wait to get your Zombina on, though, not when so many fiendishly far-out and ghoulishly wonderful tunes are available there as free downloads. Step inside, said the spider to the fly.
Finally, my favorite new Halloween release of the season. This one ain't free, but it's well worth the price of admission. "Garage Monsters - The Best of the GaragePunk Hideout, Vol. 9" is a tremendous collection of punk, rock, garage and psychobilly treats that will liven up any undead gathering. Tracks like "Got Me A Monster" from Big Vinny & The Cattle Thieves and Thee Gravemen's "Rockin' In The Graveyard" are bound to become personal favorites of yours as they have become mine. Some explicit language in this one, so PARENTAL ADVISORY and all that. You'll find the 33 track digital collection on Amazon and at Bandcamp.
RSS Feed
