Calling all phobophiles! Get in the Halloween Spirit (like your favorite seasonal store) with my annual list of horror music videos. From strolling around in the cemetery, being chased by cannibal cheerleaders, or performing in the afterlife for a whole bunch of deceased icons, this year I've taken note of some great videos that could horrify, disgust, thrill, or possibly chill.
Maybe it's because I was born in October, make killer pumpkin bread, or simply because I love scary movies, I consider myself the resident horror fan here at the station and have long participated in the #31DaysOfHorror challenge online. Nine years ago I started a blog to document "31 Days Of Horror (Music Videos)" as my schedule was so busy that I found myself falling asleep trying to watch a full film. But I knew I had time for a spooky music video, so that's the origin story. I post a "horror" music video online every day during the month with a little commentary.
I keep track of music videos year round with the Notes app on my phone writing down artists and songs with videos that fit the horror theme and then when October rolls around I scroll my list and start sharing.
Here's 20 of the best horror music videos released this year:
Allison Ponthier - "Hollywood Forever Cemetery"
My favorite video this season; its like if Beetlejuice met Mulholland Drive in the afterlife with cameo appearances by Elvis, Marilyn Monroe, and a few other notable icons!
Yeah Yeah Yeahs - "Burning"
A very noir offering from one of indie rock's best. Find it on their first new album in nine years, Cool It Down.
Yves Tumor - "Secrecy Is Incredibly Important To The Both Of Them"
Twisted vignettes to dark psychological horror films you never saw in the 80s.
Down Time - "Melted"
The spirit of this video by former Denver/L.A. based band is giving me all the best homages and vibes from some of my favorite trippy underground films and television shows (think Sid & Marty Krofft meets Hausu).
Pixies - "Vault Of Heaven"
What happens at 7-Eleven stays at 7-Eleven or is that just the beginning? Get spooky-ish with the legends!
Kevin Morby - "Rock Bottom"
With that repeated lyric "they're all gonna laugh at you" (a nod to the film Carrie), you'd have to think something horrific will happen, and it does, but in a comedic way!
Weyes Blood - "It's Not Just Me, It's Everybody"
Our baroque pop horror queen Weyes Blood is back & does not disappoint! NOW WITH ANIMATION!
Coin - "Brad Pitt"
How far would you go to feel YOUNG... FOREVER?
Bluebook - "My Good Ear"
Honestly if I was going crazy, I'd let this band nurse me back to health too. Stunning video from Denver's master of hauntingly beautiful music, Julie Davis.
Kiwi Jr. - "Night Vision"
What I love about this video is what you don't see happening, just what its all leading to.
Michigander - "Stay Out Of It"
The grimest of reapers is soon to be a dad! The prettiest pop music with with a haunted twist of a music video!
Porridge Radio - "The Rip"
Laughing at my REAL journal entry for this video: This scary/gorgeous video is intense and reminds me I need to get back on that treadmill so I am in full beastmaster/final girl mode in case any masked lunatics confront me & I can run away (and survive)!
Fruta Brutal - "Cultura Vampira"
Local artist Martin Better Longo describes this video best: "El baile de la vida tiene más sentido cuando sabes que se debe terminar." Bonus points if you can spot some other local musicians in this, like NEOMA!
Interpol - "Toni"
Two words: Beautiful violence.
Soccer Mommy - "Bones"
A visit to the cemetery is always scary.
Young Fathers - "I Saw"
This band always seems to capture (through music and visuals) a kind of scorching, dark beauty that I am addicted to.
Jackie Cohen - "Moonstruck"
Tell me this is a video about cannibal cheerleaders without telling me its a video about cannibal cheerleaders. ENJOY!
Orville Peck - "The Curse Of The Blackened Eye"
Watch to see if the video's co-star Norman Reedus aka Daryl Dixon from The Walking Dead is really a zombie!
The Mars Volta - "Graveyard Love"
“They will seek your ruin, and burn your lands, because if they can’t have you, no one can.” This is REAL horror, a chilling and beautiful short film that depicts scenes of war, terror, poverty in Puerto Rico. What a return from this beloved band!
Muse - “You Make Me Feel Like It’s Halloween”
Homage after homage to some of the greatest horror films of our youth that still scare us (or at least me)!
