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October is upon us, little darlings, and your resident Monster Mama is beyond thrilled! The leaves are changing, wooden stoves are burning, the air is chilling, and the overall mood is entirely haunted. This glorious time of year is perfect when paired with cozy sweaters, double-checking  your doors at night, and a warm spiced chai tea curled up under the blankets while watching a beloved movie filled to the brim with fright (right, Oogie?).

The ambiance! The stories! And of course, the music of the season helps set the mood even more for Samhain, which is approaching fast. For once, I am going to tell you not to  question me, naughty monsters, because I have the perfect song that needs to be added to the unwritten Halloween list we all know and love in our hearts.

Everyone gets chills when Vincent Price’s voice fills the speakers during his monologue in “Thriller.”  We all know the words to “Ghostbusters” and “Monster mash,” and “I put a Spell on you” has had a spell on most of us since the day we heard it!

But I have another that needs to join the ranks.  This one combines a classic horror villain who will never go out of style, mixed with flashy rock wrapped up in a devilish white and black painted mask. Prepare your playlists!

“Hunters Moon” by the band Ghost.

If you haven’t heard it, stop reading immediately, go put it on YouTube, then head right back here as you listen to it. Let me take you through a guided tour as you listen.

Ghost’s fontman, Tobias Forge, or Papa, his satanic Pope persona,  calls out on a steady beat, telling you that everything has been a long time coming and he’s coming back for you…

It sounds like a nice thing to say, but there’s a heaviness in the air, a threat to his soft cadence that warns the listener that his intentions are not to your benefit. There are memories tugging at his mind that cannot quite surface, though they torment him all the same.  The hollowness in the actions he must commit are present, yet he will enact his reign of terror regardless.

Tonight, it’s the Hunters Moon.

The high-pitched synth sets off a ripple of intensity into the air, then the heavy bass and drums further solidify impending doom stalking you to that special hiding place where he is going to find you.  

He says he is dying to see you, to be there together.  And as Papa walks up the dark staircase, he stops beside the horrific mask of our slasher King, Michael, the propped mask in parallel to him, his own black and white painted face glowing beneath the fading lamplight and then the beat crescendos…

He’s upon you. Where you hide, he has found you. He has brought the darkness, the hunt, to you, and now you must face the consequences of his obsession…

If you are a horror lover, if you wept happy tears when the Halloween revival happened in 2018 and then continued with Halloween Kills in 2021, if you crave the scent of fear in the air and panic beneath your skin, Papa gives you his all in Hunter’s Moon. This song was on the Halloween Kills soundtrack and effortlessly blends the Halloween universe with Tobias Forge’s vision of rock music.  

“Hunter’s Moon” is a necessary addition to everyone’s Halloween playlist, and trust me, there are plenty of other Ghost songs that can be added to the mix.  

For now, I’ll leave you with this scrumptious  morsel that I hope will light your taste buds on fire for more. Have a safe Samhain, a Happy Halloween, and as always, beloved monsters, until next time.

Stay curious and just a little bit disturbed…

Monster Mama will be back next time with more witchy content. Bye for now.

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