Sounds of Darkness

I have always enjoyed scouring the interwebs for tasty Halloween mixes. There are lots of them out there. LOTS of them. Some of my favorites came from Jason at Scar Stuff, alabamudclay, and Reverend Frost … I think it is tremendous fun to hear the kinds of music people put together, and if background noises are thrown in there as you move from song to song, all the better. It is pretty easy to tell how much time and how much love was put into each mix.

About five years ago I found a mix from WFMU called “The Horror”. It’s one continuous track, which sometimes annoys me when there’s a track or two I’d like to set aside somewhere … but here it works. Tracks fade in and out all over each other … wind and thunder softly play behind film music, evil laughs guide you to the next track, and a Vincent Price monologue from “Masque of the Red Death” is perfectly synched with a song I don’t recognize.

It is a brilliant, brilliant mix. My only quibble is that the only playlist I could track down doesn’t reference every sound in the mix … including Price’s monologue and excerpts from “Satanic Mass” by the Coven. There are also tracks in the playlist that I have trouble hearing … but this mix has so much going on that I’m not surprised I can’t pick out a particular track.

It is a truly twisted mix. There are chants to Satan and Cthulhu, moans and wails, whispers and drums, strings and guitars, a sped-up screwed-up version of “Heartbreak Hotel”. Only the uber-cheesy “I’ll Be With You Always” from the old TV show “Dark Shadows” feels a little out of place. There is a lotta love in this mix. Tremendously fun.

The Horror – a WFMU Halloween Mix