Album cover for Kim Petras’ “Turn Off the Light Vol. 1.” (Photo courtesy of BunHead)

Troy Lafond
Connector Staff

Halloween is just around the corner and that means many will be looking to get into the festive mood. However, unlike the endless pit of Christmas songs, the list of love songs that goes on forever and ever for Valentine’s Day, the patriotic-themed Fourth of July songs, the Irish themed St. Patrick’s Day songs and other holiday’s definitive tunes, there are disappointingly few majorly recognized Halloween songs. Seeing as Halloween is widely recognized as one of the best holidays, this is, frankly, a disgrace. To create the proper mood for Halloween, I made it my personal mission to find the best songs that are, in some way, related to Halloween.

Some of the best explicitly Halloween music is by up-and-coming pop star Kim Petras. She recently released an eight-song, entirely Halloween-themed, EP called “Turn Off the Light Vol. 1,” with four lyrically creepy but otherwise fairly traditional pop songs, and four nearly-entirely instrumental songs that would fit perfectly in a Halloween movie. As for other songs made explicitly for Halloween, there is the quintessential Halloween smash “Monster Mash” by Bobby “Borris” Picket.

While not all of these songs are explicitly made for Halloween, there are a number of popular songs by major artists that can perfectly adapt to the Halloween vibe. The most notable example of such is “Thriller” by Michael Jackson, which is, along with “Monster Mash,” generally considered to be one of the most definitive Halloween songs, despite not being specifically made for the season. Some other songs that can be similarly lyrically adapted to the season include “E.T” by Katy Perry, “Cannibal” and “Supernatural” by Kesha, “Monster” by Lady Gaga, “Black Magic” by Little Mix, and “I’m in Love with a Monster” by Fifth Harmony. “E.T” compares love to extraterrestrial beings. “Cannibal” is about, as one might expect, cannibalism. “Monster” is similar to “E.T” in comparing a loved one to a supernatural being. “Black Magic” is about casting a spell on people to make them fall in love. Lastly, “I’m in Love with a Monster” is about exactly what the title states. While none of these songs specifically were made with Halloween in mind, there is certainly a blatant correlation.

Due to the disappointing lack of songs made by Halloween dedicated to Halloween, to make a long playlist of Halloween themed songs, it may require some stretches of the imagination. The classic hits “Disturbia” by Rihanna as well as “Toxic” by Britney Spears have prominent background synths that recur throughout the song that definitely match with a Halloween vibe. Additionally, the growing hit “Sweet but Psycho” by Ava Max has screams in the background that also match the vibe. The lyrical connection to Halloween may be a bit more vague, however not impossible to bridge. “Disturbia” is about fear, “Toxic” is about unhealthy relationships and “Sweet but Psycho” is about falling for a crazy person, all of which can loosely be tied to the overarching themes of Halloween.

The songs, or some combination of them, is certain to create the perfect playlist for any Halloween festivities.