18. Imogen Heap - Hide & Seek: You may recognize this tune from Jason Derulo's Whatcha Say. It's one of the most beautiful songs I've ever heard, and the video isn't hard on the eyes, either. The auto-tune used on Imogen's voice makes the track hauntingly beautiful. Usually, the software is blamed for draining music of its emotion, but in this case, it maximizes the ballad's gloomy atmosphere.
19. Bon Iver - Woods: This little masterpiece is extraordinarily similar to Imogen's Hide & Seek. In fact, that's the first song I thought of when I listened to Woods. Some of you may recognize this track as a sample in Kanye's Lost in the World off of his most recent album, My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy. Just like Ms. Heap's creation, this track is mysteriously dazzling. Justin Vernon (Bon Iver's real name) keeps repeating the same two lines throughout the whole song, "I'm up in the woods, I'm down on my mind / I'm building a sill to slow down the time." He most likely wrote them in reference to the time he spent composing his first album, For Emma, Forever Ago, in his father's Wisconsin cabin in the woods after suffering a heartbreak.
20. Oh Land - Wolf & I: I wrote about this track in detail here, but I'll provide a brief synopsis in case you missed it. It's a hauntingly simple love song in which Oh Land is the moon and the wolf is her lover. (Sometimes the wolf isn't so big and bad.) To know the rest, give the song a spin.21. James Blake - The Wilhelm Scream: Like many of Mr. Blake's songs, this one sounds like pure water. It's about self-doubt, which is often the scariest of sentiments. James coos, "I don't know about my dreams / I don't know about my dreaming anymore / All that I know is I'm falling, falling, falling, falling / Might as well fall in."
22. Little Boots - Hearts Collide: This is a sparkly, spooky dance track. Its sound is simultaneously icy and warm. The lyrics are exquisite, "I don't mind being alone / Keep myself to myself / I walk the streets in the rain / And keep my head down." Everything about it, from the glistening production to Little Boots' wolf-like howls, is slightly spine-chilling.23. Jennifer Lopez - Hypnotico: I figured I should end this portion of the list with a club banger, considering #18 - #22 could keep you in therapy for a month. Hypnotico, a bonus track co-written by GaGa and Akon on JLo's last album, Love?, is dark, dancey and sexy. My favorite line is, "Hungry for some yum, yum / Gonna get me some, some." Just listening to it, I want to work my way over to the club and get all sweaty. Enjoy!
And don't worry. We have more Spooky POP on the way to keep you HOT and HAUNTED.
Unapologetically,
Gregory
