The Burton D'Agostini Procedure is a duo from Grand Rapids made up of Jeff Burton and John D'Agostini, two musicians who spent years backing touring bands before building a project of their own. Their sound pulls together sixties psychedelia, the rock of the seventies and eighties and modern alternative, and they care a great deal about how a record is produced and mixed: their songs are made for headphones, with the stereo picture doing much of the storytelling. "Strange Condition," out on October 10, is one of two singles the pair are releasing this autumn alongside "Float Over Here," and by their own account it makes a fitting soundtrack for Halloween.

I agree. It's everything we love about Halloween. First, it's spooky! Second, it's fun (and even somewhat cartoonish)! And third, I am sure the song is best enjoyed together with a party full of friends.

Musically, the element that sticks out here is the vocals. They are monotonous, dark and low-pitched. All of this creates an otherworldly, I'd even say zombie-like effect. The arrangement builds an atmosphere that amplifies the effect. Dark and heavy distorted guitars embody force (and the supernatural is a force to be reckoned with, we all know it!). Bells add spookiness. And the drums work like a throwback to the 80s — they evoke nostalgia. And nostalgia, the longing for the past, its colors, sounds and smells, is key to every celebration, every holiday, which is like a moment hung in time between past, present and forever. This song is exactly such a moment, the feeling you’ll want to return to every October, when the dead come back for one more dance.