Haunted Mound: The Soundtrack for Halloween

Written By: Nolan Durand

Edited By: Gavin Kennedy

As Halloween comes around, I like to listen to music that puts me into the Halloween spirit. The group that does this the best is Haunted Mound, a small group consisting of Sematary, Ghost Mountain, Buckshot, and Hackle. Each artist releases a blend of witch house, Chicago trap, black metal, and horrorcore-inspired music. 

The group started off with Sematary and Ghost Mountain releasing their first project, Grave House, where you can clearly hear those influences of witch house in the synth heavy production, and black metal samples. When combined with the duo rapping about horroresque topics, referencing classic horror movies, and descriptions of violence, it creates this haunting, eerie sound. That sound laid the groundwork for their future works and the styles of later members. It’s also the perfect sound for Halloween. Nothing can put you in that mood better than artists referencing Jason, Freddy Krueger, and The Evil Dead, all with eerie beats that could be heard in a haunted house. With that being said, I wanted to highlight songs from each member that best captures the Halloween spirit. 

Sematary:

Starting off with Sematary himself, I want to mention something from his project Grave House. One of my favorite songs from this project is “Dead By Dawn”, a reference to The Evil Dead II, helping with that Halloween feel. The song starts off with Sematary rapping over an eerie synth beat, while referencing different horror movies and describing acts of violence committed by him and around him. The song then shifts into a plugg beat with Ghost Mountain singing over it, continuing the horror references and graphic imagery. This style repeats for another Sematary verse, and a Ghost Mountain chorus. This is not only a great Halloween song, but a great representation of the style of both artists. One of the best strengths from the duo is their ability to create imagery for the listeners to imagine; ultimately creating a haunting scene in the listener’s mind. Combining that ability with their production makes this a perfect Halloween song.

Following the release of Grave House, Sematary would release his solo mixtape Rainbow Bridge. The album mainly follows a horrorcore trap sound with metal samples throughout, but the song “The Great Mothman” departs from this, being more witch house inspired. The song follows a similar pattern to “Dead By Dawn” with slow synths during the verses that build into a heavier main chorus with trap drums throughout. Sematary describes the story of the Mothman, relating the creature to himself. The song is a haunting retelling of the Mothman tale, and the production helps add to that atmosphere making it a great song for Halloween. 

My next recommendation is off Rainbow Bridge 3, where instead of having mostly eerie synths, it’s now distorted, loud, in-your-face trap beats and harsh vocals. Every song keeps that energy, making it feel like you’re in hell getting your eardrums blown out. The standout here is “Chainsaw Party”, the best song to pull off this new style, with a loud trap beat and Sematary repeating a catchy chorus while keeping the imagery aspect from Grave House. This song feels like something that would play in the background in the killer clown section at Six Flags, with it being in your face non-stop.

Going into his newer era, I’m highlighting a song off his album Butcher House. This album saw a transition into more Chicago drill-styled songs but kept the distortion from Rainbow Bridge 3. The song “Babayaga” is one of the better songs for Halloween. Named after the mythological creature, it starts off with an eerie sample from The Night of the Hunter. This sample is interrupted by the loud beat used throughout the song as Sematary raps with horror imagery and references creatures like Babayaga and Pyramid Head. This song still keeps the Halloween spirit with the song centering around Babayaga herself, and keeps the loud style used in Rainbow Bridge 3.

Ghost Mountain:

Following the release of Grave House the duo would release a second mixtape titled Hundred Acre Wrist. The duo keeps that production of Grave House with most songs being a blend of trap and witch house. “Cleaver Valley” has the duo singing over an acoustic sample of “Caroliner Rainbow Open Wound Chorale” by Burdensome Blood, giving the song a country-esque feel. They combine this with an occasional synth to give a beat that feels like fall. The duo continue to use their imagery throughout to give a haunting depiction of Cleaver Valley, and a farewell to the Hundred Acre Wrist as a whole. The production combined with the lyrics make this one of my favorite songs to listen to in the fall. It’s the perfect song to listen to as the leaves start to turn orange.

Another song off Hundred Acre Wrist that gives off a Halloween sound is “Deer God”. This is a fast paced, distorted trap beat and has the duo rapping about the Deer God, expanding the Haunted Mound mythology. The imagery they use throughout describes something you could see in a haunted house, with the chilling lyrics they sing begging out for the Deer God. 

After a departure from the group in 2021, Ghost Mountain would return to the group in 2024 and release his debut solo mixtape October’s Country in 2025. This album is more centered around witch house, but still keeps the trap elements from his previous albums. The song that is easily the most Halloween spirited is “Damien”. As described by Sematary, the duo distorted their vocals until they sounded like an “Eldritch Horror Demon Beast”. Combine this with eerie synths, distorted guitars, and loud trap drums the song brings a haunting atmosphere. Sematary joins Ghost Mountain to give chilling lyrics with plenty of references to horror, ultimately creating a song perfect to get anyone in the mood for the Halloween season.

Buckshot:

Buckshot would join Haunted Mound in late 2020, and officially released his first mixtape Burning Barn in 2022. He keeps the typical Haunted Mound style with music mainly inspired by witch house and trap, violent imagery described in the lyrics and references to horror monsters. The song “In The Morning” has Buckshot describing violent acts he committed in the world of Haunted Mound, and describes his death, begging not to be mourned with a slow chilling beat playing. 

Another song off Burning Barn is “Sawmill”, which follows a similar production style to the rest of the album. Buckshot goes on to give graphic imagery of a sawmill site, that terrorizes his mind and ultimately leads to his suicide at the sawmill after some drug abuse. Buckshot was able to create a scary tale based around a sawmill that feels like something you would hear in a classic horror poem. Combine that with synths that take a huge inspiration from witch house, and we get a song that sets the mood of Halloween perfectly. 

Before he released Burning Barn, Buckshot would release a few singles. His first single “Treehouse” is a heavily distorted trap song, and is perfect for Halloween. Buckshot sings about taking listeners to a treehouse in the woods, while a town is cursed by a ritual leaving the town in ruins. Though the beat isn’t as creepy as the previous songs suggested, the lyrics described are classic horror, with Buckshot committing rituals at this treehouse.

Hackle:

Hackle would join Haunted Mound in early 2021, and drop his mixtape Gunsmith tha Mixtape in 2022. His sound is influenced more by Chicago drill compared to the other recommendations. His lyrics, as the title suggests, also focus more on guns and drugs rather than haunting imagery compared to the other artists. This can still work to create a haunting song, especially with the production. His song titled “Hackle” creates an evil atmosphere with production and a sample of Brotha Lynch Hung’s “Dead Man” as an intro. Hackle would release his second mixtape, Haunted Nation, but it works more as fun drill music rather than music to get you into the mood for Halloween.

Closing Thoughts:

Haunted Mound offers a wide selection of songs that are the perfect fit for Halloween. With the beat selection ranging from eerie synths to loud trap music, it covers all the feelings of Halloween. With lyrics mostly being centered around horror creatures, horror movies, and violence, it helps create a haunting place in the listeners mind that creates the perfect atmosphere for Halloween.