Boo! It’s Halloween! Throughout October, HollywoodLife is running The Sound Of Halloween, where some of your favorite fiends of music, movies, television, and pop culture pick songs that should be on your Halloween 2022 playlist. As we enjoy the last full week before Halloween, we’re doubling your joy by adding a full-size treat of TSOH. First up, Jack Torera of Switzerland rockers The Jackets takes over the Aux cord to add some classic creeps to the playlist.
On the verge of celebrating their 15th year as a band, The Jackets – Jack (aka Jackie Brutsche, the fearless, androgynous, wild force of rock), Chris Rosale, and Samuel Schmidiger – continue the champion rock ‘n roll with their blend of humor, attitude, and unapologetic boldness. Led by Jack, with their trademark eye makeup, The Jackets are one of those bands all your cool friends are listening to (and paying import prices to get their albums ahead of others in the U.S.).
The Jackets bring the deadly and the sexy to the stage, but do they bring the spooky? Though they proudly exist beyond the realm of the straight world, the group isn’t inherently creepy. But, as Jack tells HollywoodLife, horror business often finds them. “Once, I played a Halloween show in France in a club with The Jackets,” says Jack. “My guitar got tangled in a spiderweb decoration on the stage, so my guitar was dressed up as a spiderweb until the end of the show.”
One will have to wait to catch The Jackets again, like a patient spider anticipating the fly. The group just wrapped up a short tour of Spain. The group is working on new music, giving fans hope that the follow-up to 2019’s Queen of the Pill is on its way. Until then, here are Jack’s picks for The Sound of Halloween.
Jack Torera’s Halloween Playlist Picks
The Monsters, “Rock Around The Tombstone”
The Cramps, “I Was A Teenage Werewolf”
Screaming Lord Sutch, “Jack The Ripper”
The Jackets, “Losers Lullaby”
[Editor’s Note: We’re including this song from The Jackets on the playlist. It should get the ghoulies grooving.”
HollywoodLife: What is your most prominent Halloween memory?
Jack: Once I played a Halloween show in France in a club with The Jackets. My guitar got tangled in a spiderweb decoration on the stage, so my guitar was dressed up as a spiderweb until the end of the show.
When someone says “Halloween,” what’s the first thing that jumps into your mind from your past?
Partytime!
What do you think will be the most popular Halloween costume this year?
A zombie Queen [Elizabeth II]?
What SHOULD be, in your mind?
A huge poo and a toilet. A lot of things are going down the toilet this year in the world.
Do you have any particular October/Halloween traditions?
Yes, I normally go to a weekender party in Spain called Funtastic Dracula Carnival. It’s legendary; it’s wild, great bands, and there is a lot of funny dressing and dancing going on. It’s always sold out in minutes!
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.
Ash vs. Evil Dead! I’m sure that it was a lot of fun making that series.
What’s on tap for October for you — and the rest of the year?
The Jackets [just played] ten shows in Spain in October, and we will release a single and music video in November.