Gothtober -Wil’s 9th Annual Halloween Playlist

Here is my 9th annual Halloween Playlist. The world holds as many distractions and diversions as the previous years, I am just making a more concerted and intentional effort to focus on celebrations of the Halloween season around me since my soundtrack pretty much remains constant year. I believe if we forget the things that brought us joy as children, we will become miserable adults buried in anxiety over bills and the stock market. This makes a proper soundtrack dedicated to darkness even more needed to capture the magical excitement of Halloween. . Perhaps these songs might bring some sonic horror to ears and carry Halloween into the rest of the year for you. . This year all but one song are from new releases. I am continuing the tradition of not repeating artists from previous years. Goth and all its various sub-genres are the most obvious tombs to plunder, I am including a few artists that lean in a more rock or metal direction. Lyrically, the songs are at least metaphors for things that go bump in the night or are related to the season. This year’s theme seems to be death. As the veil between the living and the dead thins, may you be happily haunted and continue to play this loudly in dark places.

 

 Male Tears-"Domin8"

 

 Snow Ghosts - Curse

 

Still Patient - "All Dead"

   

VOSH- "Superstition"

   

                               

Orphans of Dusk- "Victim of a Vampire"

   

 Temple of Angels - "Torment"

   

Troller - "Gore"

   

Shores of Null- "A New Death is Born"

   

Night Goat - "Death Crow Dance" 

Snow Ghosts : "the Fell"

This album came out back in February and I kept forgetting to review it. This is a trio out of Bath, UK. They sonically fall somewhere between post-rock and neo-folk. There is a dark brooding beauty to the hypnotic hook of their songs. "Filaments" has the tension of a building storm that counter balances the more delicate plea of the vocals. Hannah Cartwright does have a powerful and unique voice, that is the emotional heartbeat of these songs. There is more of an electronic haze cast over the more surreal "Curse". This band's fourth album and they are clearly masters of richly textured songs.  

Thematically they delve deep into folklore and metaphor. Using an odd blend of old folk instruments as well as synths to create a Dead Can Dance like blend of old and new , but with almost pop tinged melodies to fuel these surreal ballads. "Hawthorn"  carries a more mysterious ambiance to it's twilight musings. 'Avine" is more of a minimalist folk song. It sounds like something you might singe to a ghost out on the Moor. While Hannah's melodies are raw and more folk influenced, the synth atmosphere becomes more of a dominant factor on songs like "Prophecies".  This album is really well produced in how it blends the two worlds. 

That blends is felt stylistically on "Home" . The beat provides the type of drive they need to keep things interesting and support her floating voice.  "Magpie" is another lapse into haunting folk. It's good to hear her voice bare like this as the ambiance subtly creeps up. "{Vixen" opens with more of a drone to the music summoned under her verses. The ambiance sounds nice, but the song hovers in the same place for the bulk of it's six and a half minutes. I find the melody of "Taken" closes the album with a more purposeful and heartfelt melody that compensates for the drone of the synths under it. Lyrically it's about the death of a young person, and that can be felt in how the music expresses this theme. I will give this album a 9.5, it is beautifully crafted in both music and concept.