While US horror-punk icons The Misfits never shied away from the morose or the macabre, their gargantuan original vocalist Glenn Danzig’s slick, leather-lunged croon was never better than on this slice of ghoulish fun, given a belated release in 1996 after being recorded for the band’s proposed debut album.Ī mover of a tune that transcends their B-movie aesthetic and played-out merchandise empire, there’s enough morbid joy in these two minutes to put a grin on the face of any creature of the night.
It’s a gateway to a sprawling and ambitious body of work that helped make contemporary classical composition accessible to a generation already primed for such sounds amid the rise of progressive rock. While speciality radio had taken to Oldfield’s debut excursion on Virgin Records, including BBC radio’s John Peel, it was two passing appearances in the timeless tale of possession that would place Theme from Tubular Bells in the all-time Halloween pantheon. Instantly recognisable as the theme song from envelope-pushing possession horror film The Exorcist, this tune itself sits as the first movement in a full-blown instrumental masterwork by the same name, composed and performed in its entirety by 19-year-old Mike Oldfield. Mike Oldfield: Penned an immortal piano motif in 'Tubular Bells'. MIKE OLDFIELD - THEME FROM TUBULAR BELLS (1973) It’s not hard to imagine vocalist and songwriter Gerry Roslie being possessed himself, a frankly alarming studio performance elevates the affair to cult-classic status, with a bug-eyed, full-throated howl. This is pure, primeval, proto-punk rock ‘n’ roll, with no pretences or airs: stabbing, mangled chords reinforce a sense of dread, locking in with bass that’s overamplified to distortion.
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