Put These Halloween Goodies in Your Trick-or-Treat Bag

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With all the costumes and candy and scary good fun, Halloween is one of the most enjoyable holidays. Here are some items that we think will make your spooky parties even more fun, and we begin with a monstrously good soundtrack. Happy Halloween!

Return of Halloween Nuggets: Haunted Underground Classics - (Various Artists)

The ghouls at RockBeat Records continue their Halloween Nuggets series and they've come up with a frightfully good batch of tunes for this year's compilation. Most listeners will not have heard these songs before, or even have heard of most of the artists, but it's safe to say that that'll change as the set of 18 songs and two snippets of movie trailer audio are sure to thrill everyone; it's probably a good idea though to keep the track list handy so you can field all of the "Who is that?" questions you're bound to get. Most of the songs are of course extremely campy but set to very cool music and the fun begins with "Gorilla" by the Shandells; the song about a new dance has lyrics that are punctuated with screams and grunts and that rocks to a beat that recalls early Kinks. "Burn Witch Burn" by the Circus is kinda scary as it tells a story of unsuccessfully trying to incinerate a hag through lyrics like "Hey witch you're going to die here in the sand/I'm gonna choke you to death with my own two hands." The memorable chorus (careful, it's an earworm!) of "Burn Witch Burn" lightens up the malevolent vibe considerably though. Every song here is a keeper with the deep-voiced Teddy Durant sounding especially spooky on "The Night Stalker," complete with eerie laughter, and there's a bit of a Johnny Cash vibe to the story Cris Kevin tells in "Haunted House" while "Devil's Gotten Into My Baby" by the Devotions is swinging, girl group R&B. A Bo Diddley beat powers "Castin' My Spell" by the Spellbinders, obligatory "ray gun" sound effects (and wild sax blasts) abound in "Creature from Outer Space" by Sonny Day & the Tony Ray Combo and maniacal laughter permeates the Ventures-like instrumental "The Chiller" by Vic Plati Quintet. One of the better-known artists to contribute is Bettye LaVette who offers "Witchcraft in the Air," an exciting R&B number that, just for fun, includes a boiling cauldron sound effect while "Voodoo Doll" by Glenda & Glen has the sound that modern groups like the Darts have won legions of fans with. One of the two snippets of film audio comes from horror star Vincent Price as he touts "The House on Haunted Hill;" the other, by an unnamed voice actor, promotes "Robot Monster." Purchase on CD, vinyl or as a digital album here.

Nail Reformation's Spooky Press-on Nails

Ladies, do you want something to really make your Halloween outfit spooktacular? The folks at Nail Reformation, the press-on nail specialists, have just the thing! Right now Nail Reformation has some eerie seasonal delights on offer with their special Halloween-themed nail kits. The nails in these kits come in colors such as Bloody Mary (blood red), the elegant darkness of Black Mirror and the sinfully sweet Dark Chocolate, and as an added treat each kit contains a set of nail art stickers. The stickers allow the wearer to add a touch of whimsy to her nails as they depict ghosts, skulls, bones, crescent moons and Jack-o'-lanterns. Each kit contains 32 press-on nails, stickers, nail glue, cuticle serum, cuticle trimmer, 2-in-1 file and buffer, prep pad and a cuticle pusher. The vegan nails will last up to 21 days and can be reused up to three times and they'll never break or chip or damage natural nails. See what shape, length and finish the nails come in and order yours here.

Formulary 55 La Nuit Candle

Here's just about the coolest accessory you could ever want for your Halloween get together: the La Nuit candle from Formulary 55, the company that specializes in natural botanical-based luxury bath, body and home goods. La Nuit is French for "the night" and the candle's design certainly evokes nighttime, and a spooky one at that! The 11 ounce candle comes in a black jar that evokes ancient Egypt with an etching of a beetle icon on the glass and it comes with a dust cover that features a scary-looking skull design. At about four inches tall and three and a quarter inches in circumference with an 80-hour burn time the candle will last a long time, and when it's all gone the jar is meant to be reused in whatever way you choose. And while the design of the La Nuit candle is a tribute to the spookiness that night can bring, its scent is delightful with a blend of amber, myrrh, vanilla, Egyptian musk and French lavender. See all of the candles and other products that Formulary 55 has on offer and order your La Nuit candle here.

Josie Cotton and Kevin Preston - "Trick or Treat" - (Digital single)

Well we started our column with some fun music and we end it that way too. Here's a single from New Wave darling Josie Cotton and Kevin Preston who is currently playing guitar with Green Day, that harkens back to the 1950s with a cover of the somewhat obscure Chuck Berry song "Trick or Treat." The pair rock the song up in a bit of a B-52s vein with Preston reeling off a couple of short bursts of Berry-like guitar riffs. What's the song about? Well the treat that the pair is looking for is a shared sweet kiss. Listen and purchase the track here.

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