Happy Halloween!

What is the awesomest part about flying across the country on Halloween? Is it that the stewardesses pass out fun-size candy bars to everyone on the plane at six in the morning? That people in the airport are dressed like clowns and witches and TSA officers? (Well, I guess that last one makes sense.) That I gained three more hours of Halloween when I reached Los Angeles? All of these things are pretty fantastic, but the best, most awesomest part of this Halloween is that in just a few hours, I'll be seeing Elvira, the Mistress of the Dark herself, do her stage show at Knott's Scary Farm!

Elvira did many Halloween shows at Knott's throughout the 80s and 90s, but in 2001 she and the park's new management disagreed over her contract and she hadn't done a show there since. Until now! The photos and video footage of her new show, Sinema Seance, look amazing, and I can't wait to see it in person! Here's hoping she revives the old pastie routine from the Elvira, Mistress of the Dark movie.

So what is this Halloween's most special non-"Monster Mash" song? Well, of course it has to come from Elvira. As luck would have it, she just released a new 7" on Jack White's Third Man label, featuring two songs written by Fred Schneider of the B-52s: "2 Big Pumpkins" and "13 Nights of Halloween." The packaging is super-cool--the record is pressed on purple vinyl and the sleeve is heat reactive, so when heat is applied to the Elvira-shaped black blobs on the front and back, her image is revealed. 

As luck would not have it, though, it took so long to get the packaging complete that after releasing the record for a day, Third Man decided to pull it and release it next Halloween instead. I was one of the lucky ones who ordered the album the day it was released, so I currently have one in my hot little hands. Sadly you'll have to wait until next year to hear the songs on this blog, though! Until then, here's my all-time favorite Elvira song, from her 1994 Halloween compilation Elvira Presents Monster Hits. The monster roll-call at the end always gives me the warm fuzzies--they're the monsters I adore, full of blood and guts and gore! They make me wanna scream and holler, more and more and more and aaaaahhhhhh!

Now get out there and wreak some havoc, I know I'm going to. And until we meet again next year, can't we all try a little harder to make every day more like Halloween? Remember, it's not just about the candy and the costumes and the monsters and the mischief... oh wait, yes it is. It's exactly about all those things. Happy Halloween and STAY SICK!