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If you grew up in the 1970s, you might recognize the feeling. The weird, musique-concrete experimental noises of Moog technology; that late-summer, early fall feeling when school comes around; the tired atmosphere that lingered on and on throughout the year, each day as redundant as the last. And every hue seemed to have more than just a hint of orange blended into it.

It was the cold war, and the low-budget media and mass produced textbooks had a certain paranoia attached to them. Danger seemed to be lurking invisibly in the background, a daily backdrop to keep the everyday citizen a tad off base in preparation for nuclear war; in the vacant halls of austere, mid-century block buildings, one could feel disoriented, and borderline schizophrenic. And in some countries, notably the UK, children were well acquainted with the dangers of everyday life from Public Information Films, in which the deadly mishaps and misadventures of life were introduced to children of all ages, from what to do in the event of a nuclear attack, to what not to play with on a farm.- watch your step, kid, it could be your last.

I of course, was not subjected to the apparent dreary drone of the 70s, but because I went to a school with next to no funding available for the convenience of the new and exciting media available, I got a chance to experience the educational productions of the 70s and 80s. Science videos would feature voice overs akin to the guy that does those retro public alert systems. Processes like mitosis and photosynthesis were backed by odd electric bleeps and blips. The overall tone was unsettling, yet oddly relaxing. No wonder it put half the class to sleep, and seeped into their subsequent nightmares like radioactive waste.

What does this have to do with Hauntology?

Hauntology is the idea that "the present exists only with respect to the past," and that society "will begin to orient itself towards ideas and aesthetics that are thought of as rustic, bizarre or 'old-timey'; that is, towards the "ghost" of the past"

Pretty much everyone knows that trends go in cycles. How at any given time, we are essentially pulling inspiration from the past. But what sets Hauntology music apart is that it takes the "haunt" in Hauntology and amplifies it sevenfold. This is intentionally creepy music which is inspired by the library music (mass-produced experimental production muzak used in documentaries and concept films) of the 70s and 80s; especially through the use of the Moog synthesizer.

Here's an example of the aesthetic Hauntology artists tend to pull from:


The record company which specializes in "Hauntology" (as it loosely applies to music) is Ghost Box Records, which produces much of the music with this kind of mentality. Their goal is to create music that makes you feel like you remember it from somewhere, like you've been haunted by it before. I gotta say, the stuff they put out is some of the most compelling and unsettling music I've come across. I'm drawn to creepy aesthetics, especially ones that come across as creepy unintentionally. It's only by looking back at the Cold War era that people realize just how paranoid the media came across, and I love trying to identify with that feeling.

Why the fascination?
I'm the kind of person who, when they are afraid of something, they tend to investigate it almost to the point of insanity until it makes sense- until it has context. Even as a toddler, I wouldn't be satisfied until my questions were answered, no matter how harsh the answers would be. Once I've established a good, working knowledge of something scary, it doesn't seem nearly as threatening. This kind of music reminds me of how conquering the fear of what lies out there in the world is as easy as putting it in context. We can never be fully prepared for disaster, but with faith and knowledge, we can roll with the punches, and in the meantime, we have expanded our minds and our character. And often, we look back at what seemed to be a world of unprecedented chaos and danger, and reduce it to the novelty it deserves to become.

Here are some of my favorite hauntology artists:

The Advisory Circle is good at taking old library music and video clip audio and making it into something terrifying yet domestic. On their excellent album Other Channels, they manage to create that feeling that what you're "watching" is completely normal and placid, until it slowly gives way to something distorted and downright malicious. It's as if you're home alone watching a TV set in 1978, and you flip to a channel you weren't supposed to have; a channel from a ghostly dimension.

The even lines are good
The odd lines are evil!





if you're in for a really creepy treat, check out "Eyes Which Are Swelling"
Eyes Which Are Swelling by The Advisory Circle on Other Channels - Free Music Streaming, Online Music, Videos - Grooveshark

Belbury Poly, named for a horribly dull and miserable school mentioned in one of the Chronicles of Narnia novels by C.S. Lewis, attempts to capture the playful, childlike 'library music for children' aesthetic. Catchy and upbeat, but with a sinister, spectral undertone. It captures the dreary feeling often associated with sitting in a classroom or in front of the TV in the mid century.



They infuse this vibe, periodically, with progressive rock leanings.


Then you have the clearly sinister intentions of the Moon Wiring Club.

"You see, we found this tape in a cabin, and decided to watch it. It was really weird. Right after it was finished, the phone rang, and in my ears trickled the mysterious, whispering words... ssseeeven daysssss....." **cuts to STATIC**

Enjoy:



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