Hey-ho, let's go
The phrase "Hey-ho, let's go" — the opening lyric of the Ramones' 1976 punk anthem "Blitzkrieg Bop" — appears five times in Stephen King's Pet Sematary, each occurrence marking a critical juncture in Louis Creed's psychological collapse and his surrender to the dark allure of the Micmac burying ground. What begins as a throwaway line of pop culture becomes, over the course of the novel, a grim, self-directed command that accompanies Louis's most transgressive acts, functioning as a rhythmic signature of his descent into madness and his compulsion to reverse death.
First Appearance: A Casual Lyric
The phrase first appears in the narrative during Louis Creed's drive to his first day of work at the University of Maine infirmary, on a beautiful September morning. After a tense argument with his wife Rachel over their daughter Ellie's fear of death, Louis feels a sense of relief and optimism. He turns on the car radio and finds the Ramones "belting out 'Rockaway Beach'" — not "Blitzkrieg Bop," but the same band and the same raw energy. He "turned it up and sang along — not well but with lusty enjoyment" . At this point, the Ramones' music represents nothing more than youthful exuberance and a carefree attitude, a stark contrast to the horrors that will soon consume him. The lyric itself is not yet spoken; it is merely the spirit of the music that Louis embraces.
The Phrase Becomes a Mantra
The second occurrence comes much later, after the death of Louis's son Gage. In the aftermath of the funeral, Louis sits alone in his living room, drunk on beer, contemplating the impossible: whether to exhume Gage's body and take it to the Micmac burying ground, the same place where he and Jud Crandall had buried the family cat Church and seen it return from the dead. His mind races through Jud's warnings, the story of Timmy Baterman, and his own rationalizations. As the thoughts spiral, the phrase surfaces in his consciousness: "Hey-ho, let's go" . It is no longer a carefree lyric but a dark, internal command, a signal that he is about to cross a line from which there is no return. The Ramones' call to action is repurposed as a self-hypnotic trigger, pushing him toward the graveyard.
The Third Repetition: A Grim Resolve
The third instance occurs immediately after the second, as Louis continues to wrestle with his decision. The phrase appears again in his internal monologue: "Hey-ho, let's go" . This repetition underscores the compulsive, almost involuntary nature of his decision. The phrase is no longer a thought but a reflex, a rhythmic chant that drowns out reason and fear. It is the sound of his sanity fraying, the beat to which he will march into the cemetery.
The Fourth Occurrence: Exhaustion and Determination
The fourth appearance comes after Louis has successfully exhumed Gage's body from Pleasantview Cemetery and is preparing to carry it to the Micmac burying ground. Exhausted, his body aching, he stands in the graveyard and mutters to himself: "Hey-ho, let's go" . The phrase now carries the weight of his physical and emotional depletion. It is a weary but resolute command, the last push of energy needed to complete his horrific task. The punk energy has been drained, leaving only the hollow echo of the words.
The Final Utterance: A Hollow Ritual
The fifth and final occurrence is the most chilling. After Louis has killed the resurrected, murderous version of his son Gage, and after he has set fire to Jud Crandall's house with Jud's body inside, he returns home. He finds Church, the cat whose resurrection started the entire chain of events, alive again on the roof of a car. Louis, now completely unhinged, speaks to the cat: "'Go on, eat up, Church. Hey-ho, let's go, right?'" . The phrase is now a hollow, almost mocking ritual. It has lost all connection to its original meaning and has become a verbal tic, a sign that Louis has fully embraced the madness and the power of the place. It is the last thing he says before he injects the cat with a lethal dose of morphine, killing it for good.
Thematic Significance
The repetition of "Hey-ho, let's go" functions as a leitmotif that charts Louis Creed's psychological trajectory. It begins as a symbol of carefree youth and ends as a marker of utter moral and mental collapse. The phrase's transformation mirrors the novel's central theme: that the power of the Micmac burying ground is not merely supernatural but also psychological, preying on grief and the desperate human desire to undo death. The Ramones' simple, driving chant becomes the soundtrack to Louis's damnation, a rhythmic pulse that propels him toward an act of ultimate transgression from which there is no return. It is the sound of a man who has stopped thinking and started doing, a man who has surrendered to the dark secret of the woods.
