‘Mayor Lovecraft’ Leeman Kessler Brings Some Eldritch Fun With His Exclusive Picks For ‘The Sound Of Halloween’
Leeman Kessler — TikTok star and the actual mayor of a town in Ohio – shares how to put some horror bop into your holiday with his picks for ‘The Sound of Halloween’ playlist.
Boo! It’s Halloween! Throughout October, HollywoodLife is running The Sound Of Halloween, where some of your favorite fiends of the music, movies, television, and pop culture worlds pick songs that should be on your Halloween 2022 playlist. With horror more mainstream than ever, there’s a wide range of tracks that can make your Halloween a scream, but don’t be scared – there are experts here ready to help you have the best holiday ever. For this installment, TikTok’s Mayor Lovecraft – Leeman Kessler, the creator and star of the Ask Lovecraft series and literal mayor of Gambier, Ohio – shares his picks.
Though Kessler’s realm is a shifting collage of phtalo, emerald, malachite, and a bioluminescent slime – thanks to the haunting cosmic horror of Cthulhu and H.P. Lovecraft’s other tentacled creations — Mayor Lovecraft tells HollywoodLife that this Halloween might be a shade of green for another reason. “I think we’re gonna see a lot of She-Hulks, particularly as the green filter on TikTok has convinced a lot of folks that not only is it easier being green, it’s sexier too,” he says when predicting the most popular Halloween costume of the year.
@mayorlovecraft always has been
“Given its proximity to a pretty important election, I hope most young folks go as fully registered voters regardless of what costume they choose,” he adds. Such wisdom is par for the course from Kessler, who imbues his performances online with civic pride, charm, and plenty of knowledge. As a scholar of H.P. Lovecraft’s work, Kessler isn’t one to shy away from the author’s problematic past; he’s willing to dissect H. P. Lovecraft’s prejudices while also celebrating modern authors – including women, POC, and queer creators – who are taking the cosmic horror genre Lovecraft pioneered into new territory.
@mayorlovecraft Replying to @michaelthemusicteacher i have been summoned. #AskLovecraft
If that isn’t enough reason to follow Mayor Lovecraft or check out LeemanKessler.com, his “The Best thing About Living In Ohio” series may have you consider moving. So, as you work on your Yig or Shoggoth costume for this year’s Halloween, check out Leeman Kessler’s picks for The Sound Of Halloween.
Mayor Lovecraft’s Halloween Playlist Picks
King Luan, “No Vampires Remain in Romania”
Leeman Kessler: With What We Do In the Shadows finding the perfect blend of macabre humor, this song which I learned about from one of their credit sequences was an obvious choice for irreverent horor that still bops.
“Weird” Al Yankovic, “Nature Trail to Hell in 3D”
Few songs match this one for joyous bombast that revels in the camp slashers of the 80s. Decades after hearing it, it ear-worms its way easily into my brain with few complaints on my part.
Jonathan Coulton, “Creepy Doll”
When you want a Twilight Zone or Tales From the Crypt episode in less than 3 minutes, there are few artists who are more able to fulfill that need more masterfully than Jonathan Coulton.
HollywoodLife: What is your most prominent Halloween memory?
I persisted in trick or treating well into high school, and in my senior year, my best friend and I cleaned up as the Two Wild and Crazy Guys from Saturday Night Live, which delighted the households who remembered the bit and generally confused everyone else.
What do you think will be the most popular Halloween costume this year? What SHOULD be, in your mind?
I think we’re gonna see a lot of She-Hulks, particularly as the green filter on TikTok has convinced a lot of folks that not only is it easier being green, it’s sexier too. Given its proximity to a pretty important election, I hope most young folks go as fully registered voters regardless of what costume they choose.
Do you have any particular October/Halloween traditions?
We are avid trick-or-treaters and have a lot of crafty and costuming friends so the parties this season are always an impressive sight of creative inventiveness.
If given a budget and free range to do whatever, what horror movie would you star in? You can remake any film of the past, or you could create your own.
Muppets Army of Darkness. No question.
What’s on tap for October for you — and the rest of the year?
I am stepping outside my comfort zone and starting my very own college radio show (Editor’s note: available online at 1pm ET on Mondays) which is both exciting and terrifying, which seems in keeping with the season.
Bonus question: What’s the best thing about Halloween in Ohio?
The best thing about Halloween in Ohio is that it’s the perfectly crisp weather and the trees are always just at the right level of changing leaves to get you into the Halloween spirit.
Also, assuming the 21 st century didn’t drive him mad, what would H.P. Lovecraft’s favorite musical artist in 2022?
As for HP Lovecraft’s favorite musician in 2022, I suspect he’d be really into Harry Styles since he loved messy drama.