Notes from a Padded Cell 10.29.07: The Halloween Mix Edition

Posted by Jesse Coy on 10.29.2007

I don't want to scare any of you too much, but this special edition of the Padded Cell features Spooks, Kooks, and Monster Madness. Want to make the perfect Halloween Mix? Find out what songs you need to include!





We're talking the Big Easy here! That's right, folks, a press pass has been approved for your roving music junkie to attend this year's VooDoo Music Experience, so I'll be checking out a reunited Rage Against the Machine, on top of Dr. John playing in his home city. I'm greatly looking forward to this one. And, oh yes… I will be seeing the Smashing Pumpkins AGAIN. I'm a little more excited about Lez Zeppelin, who will also be there… on top of the fact that I'm getting promo stuff sent to me like gangbusters from the other acts that'll be there.

No stranger to New Orleans, having spent a week there in '96 and a couple days there in '98, this will be my first time visiting post-Katrina, though. So anyway, that's what's up with me. As for this edition of the Padded Cell, it's time to get FESTIVE. Break out your pumpkins and kiss a witch, as we MIX IT UP!





THE HALLOWEEN MIX

1. "Skalloween" (4:39) by the Skatalites… what a great way to start a mix with the originators of ska, direct from the Caribbean. In case you don't know, the music has been around for quite a while. This act goes all the way back to the early to mid-60's. It's a fun Halloween jam that's found on their ‘96 Greetings from Skamania release. The jam sessions in the middle of these instrumental tracks leave you feeling horny, as the solos bounce from one horn player to the next. Get your mind out of the gutter… I mean "horny" as in having an affinity toward the horns!

2. "Halloween" (4:14) by King Diamond… until I hear King-D bellowing out the opener of this one ("ah-ha-ha, it's Halloween!"), I can't really feel secure about the season starting in earnest. This is a very necessary track on a Halloween mix, in addition to the fact that half of this lovable Dane's musical catalogue involves great concept albums with nice horror twists, which makes for very appropriate musical listening at this time of the year.

3. "Halloween" (3:35) by the Dead Kennedys… feeling down about the lack of creativity that surrounds you out there? I do sometimes. And this song addresses that. How many people use this one time of the year to express the dim flickering of creativity that they might still possess? As Jello says, "better plan all week, better plan all month, better plan all year." What are you gonna be? It doesn't matter. "I can see your eyes, I can see your brain… baby, nothing's changed!"

4. "Spider Baby" (2:26) by Fantomas… one of the numerous acts created by Mike Patton, ex-frontman of Faith No More, this band is challenging to say the least. Their releases always tend to be odd. Well, via 2001's The Director's Cut, the band decided to do an entire album of remakes, but they did it Fantomas style. They did remakes of movie themes. One amongst the batch came from the horror-cult comedy classic (I haven't seen it yet), Spider Baby. This song is a lot of fun. It's got this gathering of famous monsters theme (yes, this movie theme has lyrics) like another infamous Halloween tune, which I'll get to.

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5. "The Munsters" (0:47) by TV Themes… that's right, long ago I bought the CD's with all the 50's and 60's and 70's and 80's TV themes. You never know when you'll need them and they'll come in handy. And is that not the most wicked guitar riff? Don't you wish you grew up with a family like this?

6. "Monster" (3:41) by Flotsam and Jetsam… here's one of a handful of thrash bands who continued to slog it out throughout the 90's and beyond, regularly releasing new material. It's unfortunate that Metallica and Megadeth hogged all the limelight. This particular track is from this band's High release. How does it fit onto a Halloween mix? Creature transformation, my friends… "I'm turning into a monster."

7. "Halloween on Military Street" (5:18) by Insane Clown Posse… found on their Forgotten Freshness double CD release, here's a great Halloween song. I like the nice touch of this one referencing the band's home city of Detroit via Military Street, and just like King Diamond, I find that including an ICP song on a Halloween mix essential. There's some funny stuff in this one. It's a nice slice of raunchy horror and humor.

8. "Halloween" (1:46) by the Misfits… short and to the point, I first heard this on Legacy of Brutality back in the 80's. It's great to hear some of the old Misfits style, which nothing can match. I think it straddles the happy punk sound of the band, while hinting at the intense, harder stuff that they'd come to employ on Earth A.D.

9. "Scary Monsters and Super Creeps" (5:14) by David Bowie… hell, it'd be nice to hook-up on Halloween weekend in New Orleans, but all I have to do is listen to this one to make me wonder once or twice about that. There are a lot of scary monsters and super creeps out there, and they can be of the feminine persuasion. It's a nice Halloween anthem here, though.




10. "Halloween II" (3:16) by Samhain… okay, 95% of the time with these mixes, as I've pointed out, I prefer to let the shuffle function determine the order of the track list. Once in a while, though, I intervene. I just can't help myself. Here's the perfect example of a time when such an intervention is called for. Glenn moved on to form Samhain after leaving the Misfits. This is kind of like a distorted remake of the Misfits' "Halloween." Basically, if a crew of zombies and demons were to get a hold of the original song and record their own version of it, this sequel would be the end result. I like putting a song between the first and second versions of this, and that was a random thing, as to which song would land between them.

11. "God Monster" (3:20) by the Cramps… oh, sure, other bands on this mix might serve up monsters, but only the Cramps can present to you a GOD MONSTER ("from the end of the world"). Taken from ‘97's Big Beat from Badsville, this track proves that after twenty years, the Cramps are still great fun, and a perfect band to jam around Halloween time.

13. "Halloween" (13:18) by Helloween… it's time to get all epic on your ass with this one. The first thing that you should know is that any heavy metal masterpiece that can reference Charlie Brown in its lyrics has got something going for it. In case you aren't into heavy metal music as you should be, Helloween is a German metal band who began in the early 80's. This is vintage era Michael Kiske, and I have to say, I've yet to pick up a post-Kiske release. MTV's Headbanger's Ball featured this music video nearly every Halloween… that version an abridged one, of course. But you think your trusty music junkie would pull any abridgement crap on you? No way! And I think I've run out of stuff to say about this awesome and intricate heavy metal tune.

13. "Monster Mash" (3:13) by Bobby Pickett… it's the infamous Halloween tune to which I earlier referred, and I only own this one because it's included on a 2-CD Dr. Demento collection. No Halloween party or even mix such as this one that I present for you is complete without the mandatory "Monster Mash," which still retains its sense of fun the moment you hear the bubbling science lab concoctions. It asks the eternal question… "whatever happened to my Transylvania Twist?" I always wondered why someone didn't do a follow-up to this classic called "The Transylvania Twist."

14. "Everyday Is Halloween" (6:36) by Ministry… Al is okay with this track, but if you happen to meet him bearing a copy of With Sympathy, word is, he'll break it for you. My ex-wife, bearing in mind her love for New Wave, or New Romantic, or Alternative stuff from back in the 80's loves this one. It took me a long time before I officially got a hold of it on CD, incorporating it into my collection. Early Trax by Ministry was issued, and it's on there. It almost sounds like a "could've-been" hit of the 80's. There's no way you'll recognize modern Ministry as having its roots here. When's the last time you heard a "bop, bop-bop" chorus bridge in a Ministry song?

15. "Monster" (2:56) by L7… hearing a track about how a chick might turn all monster on you might be a good thing, depending on how she does it. Listen to this song, and I think you'll like the way this chick (or narrator in the song) does it. I always liked L7, and am pissed I never saw them live. Speaking of Ministry, L7 opened for them back in '99 at a show in Seattle that we went to, only we were running late, and I entirely missed L7. That pisses me off. Now I'm turning into a monster!




16. "The Addams Family" (1:24) by TV Themes… if you have TV Themes CD's and put The Munsters on a Halloween mix, equal time is only fair. The theme for The Addams Family is fun, but I still prefer The Munsters. By the way, The Addams Family did appear five days earlier than The Munsters. Both aired at the same time, from 1964 to 1966. Which do you prefer? The Munsters or the Addams Family?

17. "Monster Skank" (3:42) by Infectious Grooves… I believe that Mike Muir of Suicidal Tendencies fame, who also helms the funk/metal group Infectious Grooves, is talking about a dance, and not wanting a creature whore girl here. Or maybe he is. I just love the driving bass on this one. It's always been a favorite song of mine by these guys, really epitomizing their namesake, as in it bears an infectious groove.

18. "All Hallows Eve" (8:35) by Type O Negative… here's another act who demands inclusion. They've got a couple Halloween songs, specifically relating to that season, let alone some tracks that would loosely fit well on any Halloween mix. And all you need to do is look at the length of this song. It's shorter by some Type O standards… ha! No, I meant to say that I'm ending this mix with Pete, who I believe loves this festive holiday. I'm also ending on an epic note. And one more thing…





BOO!

Did I scare you?

DISCLAIMER- your dearly beloved music junkie is neither a left-wing crankcase nor a right-wing dittohead. The president with an ax is just good, clean, Halloween fun!



BRIC-A-BRAC

Great Albums
I'm not quitting on this topic for the Padded Cell. But since it's less important as far as being a "countdown" goes, I'm changing it from any kind of Top 100 to basically a Great Albums feature, to be dragged out when I'm in the mood. I left off near the end of -F- last time, and I realize that I left a few albums off the list. Not only the Cars' debut, but also two releases that I got this year… Cat Empire and Bird and the Bee. I'll start with those three, and then pick up with -F- next time around (whenever next time might be).


(those kooky cats!)


Paul Raven Dies
Here's one that was unexpected and is really a shame. Like Joe Strummer some time ago, a heart attack took this industrial stalwart, too. From Killing Joke to Prong, from Ministry to Pigface to Godflesh, the musical legacy is there. Ravens all around the world have stopped flapping their wings for a moment of silent respect.


(RIP)


the Cult's New Release
Boy, I'm glad I don't read reviews of stuff before I review them myself. At least via Amazon, this one took a bit of a beating. There were a fair amount of Cult fans who listed the two releases that I have as lesser Cult releases, lumping this with them. I disagree with that bit of it. I still hold by my review, too. I liked what I heard. I will say that I'm slightly annoyed that the press copy that I received was a one-disc version, whereas there's a two-disc version… which actually could've fit all on one disc. Why record labels do this, I'll never know ($$$$$). But I won't hold it against the Cult.





Well, I need to pack. But before I forget, the monkey of the week is Gunther, who, under his mother's tutelage, has been perfecting his impersonation of Nosferatu (that's HALLOWEEN for you!!!!)