Check out Volume 1!
Mannheim Steamroller
Mannheim Steamroller is a new-age, neoclassical, and progressive rock outfit that is most well-known for their series of albums that focus on carols and songs for the Christmas season, in addition to their contributing their own original pieces. Starting in 2003 they released a handful of Halloween albums as well which featured instrumentals and sound effects tracks.
The first release of this series, the two-disc Halloween, is a mix of original tracks (“Rock & Roll Graveyard, “All Hallow’s Eve”, the spacey “Z-Row Gravity”) and reinterpretations of classical pieces (“Hall of the Mountain King”, “Ride of the Valkyries”, “Night on Bald Mountain”). The second album, Halloween Monster Mix is a one CD compilation of the first double-disc album featuring remixed versions with more sound effects thrown in.
Halloween 2: Creatures Collection is another double disc set with the first disc primarily offering instrumental covers of horror-related TV & movie theme songs (X-Files, The Munsters, The Addams Family, Outer Limits, Psycho, etc). As far as I can tell, the second disc is all original tracks. Finally, the fourth album Halloween: Sweet Tooth is just a compilation of the three previous albums.
Unlike Midnight Syndicate and Nox Arcana, these albums don’t attempt to be dark or Gothic. It’s the same trademark new age, jazzy, progressive sound of Mannheim Steamroller, just applied with Halloween in mind. Nothing sinister sounding here and with tons of sound effects used throughout the albums, they are a great mood enhancer for any Halloween party.
I love Mannheim Steamroller’s Christmas albums, and I love these Halloween offerings as well. I really hope they revisit this series sometime soon.
Alice Cooper
What self-respecting fan of rock music and Halloween goes the whole season without listening to Alice Cooper!?
While Welcome to My Nightmare is an all-time classic in terms of rock albums and concept albums, it’s really DaDa that presents Alice Cooper at his creepiest. The title track itself is easily the eeriest song Alice has ever done. Other Halloween-worthy songs from Cooper’s career include “Go to Hell”, “Pain”, “Skeletons in the Closet”, “I Love the Dead”, “Dead Babies”, “Tag, You’re It”, “Teenage Frankenstein”, “He’s Back (The Man Behind the Mask)”, “This House Is Haunted”, “Keepin’ Halloween Alive”, and the excellent trilogy of “Chop Chop Chop”, “Gail” & “Roses On White Lace” from Raise Your Fist and Yell.