Local Spins Halloween Playlist No. 4: Hazy Past’s Brian Haik gets strange with Alice Cooper, Dead Kennedys and David Bowie

Like Ministry, Grand Rapids musician Brian Haik really wishes every day was Halloween, so he concocted his own rock-oriented Top 10 romp of faves for the Local Spins Halloween guest playlist.

 

EDITOR’S NOTE: With Halloween only a few scary days away, Local Spins finishes up its flurry of Halloween-hued guest playlists by West Michigan musicians with this Top 10 roster of Shock-tober gems by Hazy Past’s Brian Haik, who also has helped form the bands Afro Zuma and Skankadank. Besides playing guitar, the singer-songwriter dabbles musically on harmonica, mandolin, percussion, keys and bass, and was inspired by the likes of Duane Allman, Derek Trucks, Jimi Hendrix and Jimmy Page.

Haik also relishes Halloween, hosting an annual Halloween party at his house with a playlist that “gets everyone on the dance floor,” so he’s included some of his favorites for the spooky holiday here. (A few of these also will get played Saturday night when Hazy Past plays Rockford Brewing Co.’s Halloween party at 9 p.m.) And if you missed the gruesomely fun Top 10 playlists devised by Delilah DeWylde, Rob Bruce of Murder Party and Tommy Schichtel of The Concussions, they’re all online here.

BRIAN HAIK: THE LOCAL SPINS HALLOWEEN PLAYLIST

1. “(Every Day Is) Halloween,” Ministry (1984) – “(Every Day Is) Halloween” pretty much sums up how I feel about Halloween. I wish every day was Halloween! It’s the greatest holiday of the year, and the most celebrated at my house. The song is about a person who gets stared at because she/he dresses strange all the time.

2. “Monster Mash,” Bobby “Boris” Pickett (1962) – This classic song is a must for every Halloween party playlist. It doesn’t matter that it came out in 1962. The lyrics are all about monsters, ghouls, zombies, Wolfman and Dracula. You can’t get much more Halloween then that.

3. “Welcome to My Nightmare,” Alice Cooper (1975) – Alice Cooper is the king Rock & Horror, and this song is one of his most haunting songs. Starts off slow and eerie, and then it’s a full on rock show with horns.

4. “Halloween,” Dead Kennedys (1982) – This song rocks! It’s the most rockin’ Halloween song that I know of. The lyrics are great on this one.

5. “Scary Monsters (And Super Creeps),” David Bowie (1980) – This is David Bowie’s Halloween song. Of course, there are several other happenings going on the lyrics, but hey, it’s a great Halloween dance tune by the late and great David Bowie.

6. “Haunted House,” Jumpin’ Gene Simmons (1964) – Another Halloween song from the ’60s is this one by Jumpin’ Gene Simmons. The song, as the title says, is about a haunted house. It has been covered by many artists, including John Fogerty, Jerry Lee Lewis and Sam the Sham to name a few. It’s scary enough of a song to inspire Chaim Witz (The Demon) from the rock band Kiss, to change his name to Gene Simmons.

7. “Goblin Girl,” Frank Zappa (1981) – Sometimes, Halloween songs can be funny and quirky. This Frank Zappa song is a fine example of that.

8. “Dead Man’s Party,” Oingo Boingo (1985) – Oingo Boingo, led by Danny Elfman, came up with this awesome song about dead people dancing at a party. This high energy, horn-driven song should be on every Halloween dance party playlist.

9. “Halloween,” Siouxsie & The Banshees (1981) – “Halloween” by Siouxe and the Banshees is an awesome tribute to the holiday. Any song that chants “Trick or Treat” and “Halloween” must be a Halloween song. I love the guitar on this one.

10. “Walk of the Mummy,” SLK (1982) – For the last song, I picked an Ann Arbor ska band, SLK (Street Light Knights). These guys were big in the Eastern Michigan scene in the early ’80s. Although it’s hard to make out all of the lyrics (and good luck finding the lyrics on the web), it’s a fun Halloween tune.

BRIAN HAIK: The Local Spins Halloween Playlist on Spotify

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