It’s the spooky season—but not everyone is down to get haunted.
While you and your friends might be eager to put up your skeleton decorations and cuddle up to watch some Halloween classics, some people have sworn off the holiday altogether.
These people have their reasons for not liking this terrifying time of year. Some folks just don’t like being scared; others have religious hangups with the season. Still, this time of year has a lot of people thinking about the dark arts—and occasionally, they’re not too thrilled about that.
One person who’s not happy with the Halloween season is TikTok user Charity (@charityisme), who says that she recently threw out her Hatch sound machine due to the company’s use of “creepy” imagery and themes in their advertising.
What’s Weird About This Hatch Sound Machine Ad?
In a video with over 2 million views, Charity says she threw away her Hatch sound machine—a move that she says led some to claim she was “in religious psychosis.”
Responding to these viewers, Charity says she was inspired to throw away the machine due to a video that the company posted on YouTube.
The video shows a woman in a room illuminated with red light. There are candles in the room, and the piece has a Coven-esque, eerie vibe.
“It’s here. The season where we dabble in the dark arts, set the right light vibes, dress like a small Victorian child for bed, and regulate our circadian rhythm with restorative, phone-free sleep. Fallelujah! It’s time to sleep,” the ad says.
This Woman Has Problems With The Ad
As for why this ad is such a problem, Charity says it goes against her interpretation of Christianity.
“They are proclaiming…that they are dabbling in the dark arts,” she says of the ad. “There is a woman laying in bed, dressed promiscuously” — the woman is wearing a black dress, then a long, white dress — “who is actually messing around with tarot cards.”
“And then you can see that there is also crystals on the nightstand, and an entity that is not seen lights the candles and sets the mood and dims the light and turns on the Hatch sound machine,” she continues, noting that the term “Fallelujah” is a take on the Christian “Hallelujah” to which she takes offense.
“If that wasn’t enough to convince you that this company has demonic ties, unfortunately, there is more,” she states.
She Says That It Gets Worse
Charity’s problems with the video don’t end there. She then references another ad from the company, which plays on horror movie tropes of possession and spirits.
“Why would a company who sells sound machines to adults and also young children and babies promote their product using horror films?” Charity asks.
She continues by saying she’s had technical issues with the product, saying that sometimes the volume changes by itself. She also says that she occasionally hears conversations in the voice machine, but that they’re largely unintelligible.
“A lot of people have tried to explain this phenomenon as a auditory hallucination or radio frequency interference between radios that your neighbors might have or that you might have in your home,” she says. “But the weird thing about it is that Hatch themselves has admitted to practicing divination to create their sounds.”
As evidence for this claim, she says the company’s website uses the word “ritual” and that they reference horoscopes.
Hatch Responds
In a social media comment, Hatch responded to the backlash from this and related videos.
“It’s come to our attention that our recent Halloween ad may have unnerved some people,” Hatch wrote. “To be clear: we did not mean to imply our devices are literally possessed by dark forces. We were simply trying to show how our phones haunt our souls, steal our sleep and flood our eyes with unholy blue light. Totally different thing. Hope that clears it up.”
Rolling Stone also reached out to Hatch for comment. In response, the company said, “The only dark forces we intended to highlight were the evils of doomscrolling before bed. At the end of the day, our mission is simple: to help everyone get their best sleep.”
Regarding the “voices,” it could be radio interference, Auditory Pareidolia, or something called “Musical Ear Syndrome.” Whether Hatch’s explanation of the advertisements convinces you is likely down to your personal beliefs.
@charityisme Why is my Hatch Sound Machine in the garbage? Here’s the answer ? #demonic #christiantiktok #demonicspirits #christiantok #christiansbeaware ♬ original sound – Charity
Commenters Are Divided
In the comments section, many users said Charity was being unreasonable with her claims.
“It’s October….you guys seriously need to chill, not everything is that deep,” wrote a commenter.
“The demon that my child becomes without the hatch machine is far scarier than this ad,” joked another.
However, some seemingly bought into the idea that the company’s products were demonic.
“I had a hatch sound machine in my registry. Immediately took it off, thank you so much for sharing!” exclaimed a user.
“The ads alone should convict even a non believer .. sheesh,” declared another.
The Mary Sue reached out to Charity via TikTok direct message and comment, and Hatch via email.
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