Not a Witch

Let me set the scene:

You’re huddled on the couch with all the lights out, taking cover under your blankets as you watch the horror movie play out on the TV screen. The blanket is balled up in your tight fists as the minor keys of the orchestra keep you on the edge of your seat. Because of the drop in key, you know a jump scare is coming.

Let’s set up a different scene:

Halloween night, you decided to watch the Stephen King classic, “The Shining.” The only problem? The speakers of your TV are broken, so the entire two and half hours of silence are filled with a man typing away at his typewriter, a child riding a big wheel through the hallway, and…well you can’t remember the rest because you got bored 30 minutes in and scrolled through Instagram the rest of the time.

Music makes a big impact in how we perceive things, like movies for example. Music can make us feel hopeful or fill us with dread. The right strings can move us to tears. In Perks of Being a Wallflower, Emma Watson’s character plays a song that makes the audience feel her freedom as she stands in the bed of her brother’s pickup, driving above the speed limit through a dark tunnel. It stands to reason that every party needs a playlist to fill your guests with the goal emotion; for a kid’s birthday party, you might play feel-good pop music! For a tea party, you might stick with piano instrumentals to give it that sophisticated feel.

For a Halloween party, you want goosebumps to ripple across the skin of each guest. Send a chill down their back. Keep them guessing.

My apartment is filled with moons, crystals, candles, dried flowers, and the smells of incense and essential oils. My roommate and I celebrate the full moon by making moon water. Our families and neighbors suspect that we're witches and watch for signs of casting spells and hexing our enemies. As a result, my roommate and I are throwing a Halloween party with the theme “We’re Not Witches.”

Therefore, you’ll find that many of the songs on our playlist involve titles or lyrics about witches and spells. You'll find classics, throwbacks, new releases, haunting melodies, or songs that make you want to dance. (One thing I learned through this process, though, is that Florence + The Machine is severely underrated.)

"It's more fantastic than any dream made or paid for in factories." —Ray Bradbury

• Witch— Karliene
• Witching Hour— In This Moment

• Season of the Witch— The Phantoms
• A Little Wicked— Valerie Broussard
• Barton Hollow— The Civil Wars
• Black Magic— Jaymes Young
• Black Magic Woman— VCTRYS

• Black Widow— Iggy Azalea, Rita Ora
• Buzzcut Season— Lorde
• Choke— I DONT KNOW HOW BUT THEY FOUND ME
• Dead Man's Party— Oingo Boingo
• Disturbia— Rihanna
• (Don't Fear) The Reaper— Blue Oyster Cult
• Freak Show— Set It Off
• Freakshow— Skillet
• Howl— Florence + The Machine
• Freakshow— The Nearly Deads
• Ghost Story— Cheat Codes, All Time Low
• Glory and Gore— Lorde
• Gypsy Woman— Anarbor
• have a great day— easy life
• Heads Will Roll— Yeah Yeah Yeahs
• Leave My Body— Florence + The Machine
• Lights Go Down— I DONT KNOW HOW BUT THEY FOUND ME
• Monster— dodie
• Monster— Lady Gaga
• Monster— PVRIS
• Monsters— All Time Low, Demi Lovato, blackbear

• Moonlight— Ariana Grande
• Mx. Sinister— I DONT KNOW HOW BUT THEY FOUND ME
• No Light, No Light— Florence + The Machine
• Psycho Killer— Talking Heads
• Season of the Witch— Lana Del Rey
• Seven Devils— Florence + the Machine
• Shadow— Chromatics

• Sisters of the Moon— Fleetwood Mac
• Small Town Witch— Sneaker Pimps
• Spellbound— Siouxsie and the Banshees
• The Killing Moon— Echo & the Bunnymen
• The Magic— Lola Blanc
• Time Warp— Rocky Horror Picture Show
• When The Sun Loves The Moon— Reinaeiry
• willow - moonlit witch version— Taylor Swift
• Witchy Woman— Eagles
• Thriller/Heads Will Roll— Glee Cast

Happy Halloween, children of the moon.