Sounds of Darkness

Mort Garson – Black Mass - Lucifer (1971)
WEIRDNESS

For some reason, I have distinct memories of my classmates talking about “Black Mass Lucifer” when I was probably a 2nd or 3rd grader. I don’t recall why – it could be that they thought playing it at night would be spooky, or perhaps they were talking about the noises during the “Incubus” track. I don’t recall hearing the music back then … I just remember somebody had it on 8-track, and I think they were a little scared of it. If they knew the composer’s name was Mort Garson (not Lucifer), maybe it would’ve been less intimidating.

Each track on the album is an electronic musical impression of some aspect of the occult. The music is at times eerie and sinister, but never truly terrifying. There’s a tremendous amount of “old school charm” in this record – as there is with several electronic albums before about 1975. My favorite tracks are “Solomon’s Ring”, “The Philosopher’s Stone”, and “Voices of the Dead”.

While not explicitly a Halloween album, “Black Mass – Lucifer” has enough spookiness and references to the occult to merit inclusion in any Halloween collection. The liner notes, written by a UCLA Professor of Folklore and Mythology, are an interesting read. Garson passed away in January of 2008, so here’s hoping his music will live on.

It looks to me like you can download it here.