I'm always on the lookout for new songs I can add to a Halloween playlist. Thanks to the remake of Fright Night, I can add a brand new one to the stack.
Have you ever felt Something evil Lurking around The moon is full The streets are empty Shadows cover the town You can't call it You can't shake the feeling Quiet do not make a sound But the wind seems to speak Something's here in the room with me
Kid Cudi ("Day and Night") takes a somber approach to the campy vampire story. He's channeling a combination of Evil Ed and Charley. He knows that something is wrong with this town but he also knows that no one will believe him unless he can prove it. It's a low key, introspective song that just sends a little bit of a chill down your spine.
The video, however, is creepy. Kid Cudi walks by himself at night in the Las Vegas suburbs. There is no light. He looks just a little bit off. He's slow to react but able to see everything in the shadows. Everywhere he looks, there's another vampire attacking a citizen. It's not as violent as the film's feeding, but the twin trickles of blood and quick escape of the vampire get the job done.
The longer the video goes on, the worse the dread gets. We learn pretty quickly that Kid Cudi is a vampire himself. He's just not happy at all. The other vampires are jumping from victim to victim, racing through the streets and attacking whatever prey is left. He's much more subdued.
He slowly walks into a bedroom and just sits there. He's already fed for the night. He doesn't want to. He doesn't want anything to do with this lifestyle anymore.
Shot in grays and blues with a handheld camera, the video just follows Kid Cudi through the town. The angle changes on occasion, but it rarely jumps through the story. The chorus takes place in a bedroom, but the rest is the path he took to get there. We're on a slow ride with Cudi and he is no rush to make it end. This adds a great sense of suspense to the song. The track itself almost numbs you, while the video won't let you step away. It's the power of subtlety in horror on great display.
And the final shot of the video is as beautiful here as when it's used in the film. It's a great interpretation of a rarely used vampire trait relating to the sun. It's worth watching for that scene alone.
Thoughts? Sound off below.