Halloween Special 2010 and Opinions on Belle & Sebastian

It's time for another Sound Opinions Halloween Special. Jim and Greg have once again scoured the dark underbelly of rock ‘n’ roll to find the creepiest songs for the season. Plus they hear what tunes give the heebie jeebies to listeners from across the country. Later in the show Jim and Greg review the new album by Scottish pop band Belle & Sebastian.

main image
Download Subscribe via iTunes

Halloween Scary Songs

Let's face it. Rock ‘n’ roll can be plain scary to a lot of folks. But there are some songs and artists that go above and beyond and give even our hosts the creeps. Here are some of their favorite Scary Rock Songs to set the mood this Halloween.

Jim

  • Salem, "King Night"
  • Pere Ubu, "Dub Housing"
  • Apocalyptica featuring Nina Hagen, "Seemann"
  • Ween, "Spinal Meningitis (Got me Down)"

Greg

  • Willie Dixon and Koko Taylor, "Insane Asylum"
  • Hüsker Dü, "Diane"
  • Handsome Family, "My Ghost"
  • Sunn O))) featuring Julian Cope, "My Wall"

Listener Picks

  • Pat from St. Paul, MN: Tom Waits, "What’s He Building?"
  • Margaret from Manhattan, KS: Old Time Relijun,"Cold Water"
  • Scott from Chicago, IL: Bobby "Boris" Pickett, "Monster Mash"
  • Jon from Cincinnati, OH: Black Sabbath, "Black Sabbath"

Write About Love Belle & Sebastian

Write About Love (Bonus Track Version)

For their latest release Write About Love, Scots Belle & Sebastian have yet again traded rainy Glasgow for sunny Los Angeles. On their last release, The Life Pursuit, this sun translated into a more upbeat dance record. But, now they have returned to their orchestral folk roots, and Greg wishes they had continued moving forward with their sound, rather than backwards. He appreciates singer Stuart Murdoch's vocals and witty lyrics, but this feels like a retreat. Greg gives Write About Love a Burn It rating. Jim thinks Greg hasn't been this wrong in a long time. He agrees that The Life Pursuit was a welcome change of pace, but really loves this album as well. It is toned down, but not precious and more full of edge. Simply put, Write About Love puts Jim in a great mood and he gives the record a Buy It.

Dear Listeners,

For more than 15 years, Sound Opinions was a production of WBEZ, Chicago's public radio station. Now that the show is independent, we're inviting you to join the band and lend a hand! We need your support more than ever because now we have to do all the behind-the-scenes work that WBEZ handled before (like buying insurance and paying for podcast hosting, ugh). Plus, we have some exciting ideas we'd like to try now that there's no one to tell us no!

edit