Gothic Bite Magazine loves The Nightmare Before Christmas, and our founder’s favourite signer is Marylin Manson. James is here to talk to us about the Pumpkin King…This Is Halloween!

This, Our Town Of Halloween!

Boys and girls of every age, would you like to see something strange? That’s right, Biters, This Is Halloween, and I’m revisiting our favourite town.

This article is actually a special request from our founder. She loves Marilyn Manson, I love cover songs, and I enjoy The Nightmare Before Christmas.

Ages ago, back in the early 00s, I worked in a public library. In their kids’ section, I found a CD called Nightmare Revisited. This album was released in 2008 for TNBC’s fifteenth anniversary. Many gothic music icons participated.

The track we will look at predates the album by two years but was added to it. Here’s Marilyn Manson’s This Is Halloween.

Pumpkin Screams In The Dead Of Night

We must look at Danny Elfman‘s original to see how Manson stacks up. When Elfman was doing interviews when promoting the film, he said he was constantly asked if it was too scary for kids.

“When it came out, I did a two-day press junket, and virtually every interview started with: ‘Too scary for kids, right?’…So, to come back years later and see families out there and to get recordings of people’s kids who are four years old singing ‘What’s This?’ or ‘This is Halloween’ makes me really feel blessed. It’s like a second life and proving them wrong.”

Danny Elfman, 2021, about The Nightmare Before Christmas.

My opinion on TNBC or the songs being too scary for kids is not really. This is Halloween from Elfman, missing the signature choir of people singing Ews or Ahs, which could sound haunting with the right setup.

I Am The One Hiding Under Your Bed

You could argue we had the townsfolk chanting La at the fountain nearby, but that falls more under annoying than haunting.

The other thing worth noting here is this is our introduction to everyone in Halloween Town. So, it feels more like a roll call or checklist. Shadow on the moon, check. Wind through the hair, check. One clown with a tear-away face, check.

When really thinking about it, his composition reminded me of a pitched-down version of Psycho‘s theme from the infamous shower scene with its opening instrumentation. So, Elfman does have that going for him, but can Manson outdo him?

Marylin Manson Is Hiding Under Your Stairs

In true Halloween spirit, if we are going for creepy, Marilyn Manson has won, with his version being a Gothic-Metal cover. The song is already darker and edgier to start.

The other thing that turns the song metal is the change of tune from a kiddy film style of scary to something more ominous, like the opening to the Oogie Boogie song. Oogie Boogie is the villain; you are meant to fear him.

Audibly, not only do we have the more ominous instruments, but Manson switches between a low, raspy drone and what I think is an eerie, high-pitched falsetto.

This combination can be quite off-putting when done right. Just look at moments like Poltergeist‘s “They’re here” or the “Remember me, Eddie” speech Christopher Lloyd gave in Who Framed Rodger Rabbit. Nothing was all that scary about what they said, but how they said it was unsettling.

Fingers Like Snakes And Spiders In My Hair

Outside of the soundtrack itself, a video was shot. This video is where we get a good deal of spooky. It makes this a respectful and improved tribute to This is Halloween, making it scarier.

Between clips of the film’s opening number, we have shots of Manson and his band performing on this Tim Burton-esk stage vaguely modelled after Halloween Town.

The band members, which I couldn’t get a solid look at, give off an Uncle Fester—The Addams Family—or a pin-less Pinhead—Hellraiser—vibe with their wardrobe and makeup. Now for the man of the hour, Marilyn Manson himself.

He is a perfect analog for the Pumpkin King. His tall and thin frame, pale complexion, prominent facial features paired with his makeup, and shock and awe-inspiring style of showmanship make him genuinely imposing.

This Is Halloween! This Is Halloween! Halloween! Halloween! Halloween!

Manson also does this thing in the video where he hangs on the mic with an almost disinterested thousand-yard stare as he drones the lyrics, reflecting Jack Skellington’s boredom with Halloween.

As I spend a lot of time on YouTube, I’ve seen many people cover this holiday classic. I will say this: most of them get it wrong, even cover artists I normally love. So, what’s the GBM recommendation, Biters? For this particular This Is Halloween song, stick with Elfman or Marylin Manson.

Happy Halloween,
James