# Rock music spooky album cover competition

> Live situation record from CLSTR: https://clstr.news/situations/rock-music-spooky-album-cover-competition
> Updated: 2026-10-24T13:46:45.000Z. Sources: 9. Developments: 4.

The fan-voted bracket competition to identify the spookiest rock album cover has reached its final four contestants. 

Following the initial rounds involving 32 artists, the competition has narrowed significantly. Three of the four remaining albums are linked to the Black Sabbath lineage: the band’s 1970 self-titled debut, Ozzy Osbourne’s ‘Bark at the Moon’, and Dio’s ‘Holy Diver’. The fourth remaining album is Iron Maiden’s ‘Killers’, which advanced to this stage after defeating Meat Loaf’s ‘Bat Out of Hell’ in the third round.

Voting for the final two matchups is currently underway and is scheduled to conclude at 11:59 PM EST on Tuesday, Oct. 27. The winners of these battles will advance to the finals the following morning.

## Claims

- The annual Halloween bracket for rock's spookiest album covers has reached the second round. (corroborated by 6 sources)
- Sixteen artists remain in the competition after the first round. (corroborated by 6 sources)
- Guns N' Roses, Metallica, Led Zeppelin, and Pink Floyd were eliminated in the first round. (corroborated by 6 sources)
- Voting for the second round is open until 11:59 PM ET on Sunday, Oct. 18. (corroborated by 6 sources)
- Black Sabbath defeated Frank Zappa's Thing-Fish with 91% of the vote. (corroborated by 6 sources)

## Timeline

### 2026-10-24: Rock album cover bracket reaches final four

The annual Halloween bracket for rock's spookiest album covers has reached the final four, featuring Iron Maiden, Black Sabbath, Ozzy Osbourne, and Dio.

2 sources. https://clstr.news/cluster/rock-album-cover-bracket-reaches-final-four

### 2026-10-20: Rock artists reach elite eight in spooky album cover bracket

Eight rock artists, including Black Sabbath and Alice Cooper, have advanced to the “elite eight” of an annual Halloween bracket voting for the spookiest album covers.

2 sources. https://clstr.news/cluster/rock-artists-reach-elite-eight-in-spooky-album-cover-bracket

### 2026-10-14: Rock's spookiest album cover bracket enters second round

Sixteen artists remain in the annual Halloween bracket for rock's spookiest album covers after major acts like Metallica and Pink Floyd were eliminated in the first round.

7 sources. https://clstr.news/cluster/rocks-spookiest-album-cover-bracket-enters-second-round

### 2026-10-09: Rock music fans vote for spookiest album covers

A fan-voted competition featuring 32 artists has launched to select the spookiest rock album cover, with voting open until Oct. 13.

3 sources. https://clstr.news/cluster/rock-music-fans-vote-for-spookiest-album-covers

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Cite as: Rock music spooky album cover competition. CLSTR, https://clstr.news/situations/rock-music-spooky-album-cover-competition