Review: Sinister

Sinister – One helluva scare!
Kevin Millikin

Something has happened during the last couple years, mainstream horror films have not only made a comeback, but they’ve actually gotten good, too! For this, I’m thankful. I’ve never cared for the brash and in your face experience of gross out, balls to the wall torture porn films — with the exception of the first ‘Human Centipede’ and I am relieved to see them on the decline.

I mean seriously, think about it: The Last Exorcism, House of the Devil, Paranormal Activity, the Innkeepers and Insidious. Those flicks have provided me with some of the best scares in recent years. And as an avid horror buff, they’ve left me looking over my shoulder and kept me hesitant about closing my eyes at night.

Everyone was telling me about Sinister, it assaulted my face book and clouded the blog-o-sphere up until its release on video. So of course, I went into it thinking– yeah, I’m sure it will be as good as [Insert: Innkeepers/Insidious/etc.] and, well, I was wrong.

The movie was so much better.

I will admit, I’m a bit biased when it comes to movies where the central character is a writer. I instantly latched on to the character of Ellison Oswald, a failed true-crime writer whose fifteen minutes of fame is far behind and has left him grasping for his next big hit. His quest to rekindle his New York Times Bestseller status, has left his family is in tatters, having moved from city to city so he could follow the juiciest, bloodiest crimes.

They land, unknowingly to them into the center of one – when Ellison moves his family into the very house he’s writing about. Strange happenings begin to occur, starting instantly with the return of his eldest son’s night terrors.

Around this time, Ellison discovers a box of super eight movies stashed away in his attic complete with a projector. Setting it up in his office, he soon discovers that the reels contain the recordings of the very murder he’s writing about along with a few others, dating back to the 1960’s.

Though the methods differ — drowning (Pool Party ‘66), burning (BBQ ’79) and a starting lawnmower run over (Lawn Work 86’)  — a common denominator remains through them all. A family is murdered, while their child is never found.

Before long, Ellison becomes enamored by the tapes. His drinking comes into fruition as a string of paranormal occurrences unfolds around both him and his children.

While I won’t getting too far into the plot with the fear of giving too much away. Every scene – dialogue and image work diligently together to create a well-crafted web of suspense and ‘edge-of-your-seat’ nervousness with no fat or filler in between. They build steadily, gaining momentum as the film hurdles towards the final and unforgiving destination (also known as House Painting ‘12)

While the mythos of the lead villain, an ancient deity named Bughuul, draws heavily from that of the boogeyman — seen throughout the film as a child’s drawing entitled, “Mr. Boogie.” He remains 100% realistic and never traverses into campy territory.

The same could be said for the movie as a whole. It remains beautiful in every aspect. From the script, actors, direction and cinematography, they all come together to create a truly terrifying cinematic experience.

In the end, my only real regret is that I didn’t experience this in theaters.

This is a Ghoul’s Night Out!

An interview with Matt Feltwater
Justin Stankus

The Ghouls Night Out Festivals started out in 2001 and have been a huge success since their inception and though the festival dropped out of sight for a few years, it is back, and this time it is back with a vengeance that has been hyped to an insane degree and has it being one of the most anticipated festivals of the year and with tickets selling out almost as soon as it was announced it’s safe to say that Ghouls Night Out is fucking back!  I have the pleasure of interviewing Matt, the brains and creator of the beautiful monster we all know as GNO and he has some very important news that he has chosen to share with Technicolor in this interview!  So goodbye to the waiting, let’s get on with it!

Justin - So Matt we both already know each other, but for the readers and fans could you state your name and your connection to Ghouls Night Out?

Matt - I’m Matt Pathetic, and I have AIDS. Living with AIDS is a terrible thing, it’s sort of like being the Incredible Hulk, all this rage bottled up and you just want to cut your arm open and bleed all over everyone. Oh wait…this is a Ghouls Night Out Fest interview? FUCK! Anyway, I’m Matt Pathetic the commander in chief behind Ghouls Night Out Fest, a celebration of all things horror especially horror music.

Justin - Tell us how Ghouls Night Out started out.  How did the idea come about and when did everything start to come together?

Matt - GNO started in 2001, while I was in attendance at the first Misfits 25th anniversary show in New York City. At that point the “resurrected” Misfits had broke up and this show should have been called watched the greatest horror rock n roll band of all time become a walking carnival in front of your eyes. I stood there in literal disbelief of what a joke that band had become. I thought to myself that night on the way back to where I was staying in New jersey, what if I organized a fest that showcased the best horror rock bands out there without the Misfits involvement. So I got back home to North Carolina and got to putting it together. I’ve been booking shows since I was around 15, so I had the know how so to speak but I’d never taken on something large to this scale before. So it was a learning experience. The first year had A LOT of headaches involved with it, like the emcee and my co-headliner dropping out in the days before the show, as well as the venue bailing on me shortly before the show was supposed to happen. But I’ve grown and learned from there, after all life is one constant project of trial and error. But it’s my baby, and I’m proud of it.

Justin - What was your “horror defining” moment Matt?  What was your first experience with horror wether it was a book, band, movie, etc. and what started your love of horror-punk?

Matt - HA! This is a great question. My first horror defining moment comes at the age of five, it was July and my mom was getting ready to take our Siberian Husky for a walk to the park. I threw a huge SHIT FIT because I wanted to wear my devil costume from the previous Halloween to walk the dog in. Keep in mind, again, it’s JULY. So just to appease me and stop my 5 year old rage from going any further she put the costume on me and a proudly paraded my happy ass to the park. So there you have it, Matt Pathetic has been obsessed with monsters since at least age 5. There’s also the fact I was a rotten little shithead as a kid, I used to go stay with my Grandmother once a week while I was younger and I had this habit of  sneaking into the kitchen opening the refrigerator putting all my monster toys in it (giant spiders, rubber lizards, giant rubber snakes, skeletor, godzilla, the wolfman etc) in the fridge quietly. Then sneak out to the porch and ask my grandmother to get me a drink, she’d open the fridge and freak out. I would die laughing at it because she would freak out and make this hilarious shriek that still to this day echos in my head and gets a chuckle out of me. So yeah, trick or treat since 1980! I think I was born defective or something.

 Justin - How does it make you feel that you have Blitzkid playing their last North American show at this upcoming festival?  How do you feel about Blitzkid?  What do they mean to you personally and what do you think they have done for the horror-punk genre?

Matt - Wow. Blitzkid first got in contact with me to play the very first Ghouls Night Out Fest, but the line up at that point was full. But that did not turn Goolsby away from bombarding me with an onslaught of getting onto this show. He sent me a HUGE press pack, some of which to this day I have pieces of laying around. He emailed me like twice a week to find out if someone had dropped out and if Blitzkid could take their spot. Finally as the show moved closer, Blitzkid’s chance came as Red Reaction had informed me they would not be able to make the show. That day, I remember meeting Blitzkid for the first time and being taken back by just how polite they were and how into the concept of GNO they were. This was also the first time they met Mister Monster. Tracy and Goolsby where the BIGGEST supporters of GNO out there. In fact after the first one, they maintained in steady contact with me and I built GNO2 the next summer around them and Mister Monster. The third year was kind of rough waters, a certain other festival showed up on the scene and basically caused a rift between Blitzkid and I. But by the time GNO rolled around we both agreed to the fact that GNO is a part of Blitzkid and Blitzkid is a part of GNO forever.  So they played the third year. After that year a lot went on and GNO became less of a priority in my life, I never intended to never do it again but I wasn’t running out getting ahead of myself for the next year like I did in years past. Last November, I was doing a show with J.V. Bastard’s metal project THE DOOMSDAY PROPHECY, and J.V. and I were talking about GNO. He basically told me, GNO needed to come back because there was nothing like it anymore. It was run out of town by copycat festivals, but it’s the original. Shortly after that Blitzkid announced their intention to cease being a band at the end of the year. At that point, I was like FUCK THIS these guys are my friends and they supported me HARD back in the beginning. Granted they took off to their own well deserved success,  and we hadn’t spoke in years but I knew if the world needed GNO it was now. As a celebration and sendoff to Blitzkid, they earned this one. So I started back at it. Here we are now one month away from the biggest GNO  EVER and it’s thanks to people like Blitzkid in the early years, and now the success is due to people like Technicolor Terror, horror-punks.com, Gore Noir Magazine, and the Graveyard Greaser Gang who help make this show what it is. Ten years ago a lot of people used to say Blitzkid sounds like the new’Fits, well being involved in this scene for a decade I can say nowadays there’s a lot of bands that sound like BLITZKID. And that’s a testament to just how far they’ve come not just as musicians, but as people. They are charismatic and they genuinely care about their fans, which is why they’ve left a mark on so many people. Blitzkid means more to me, over the course of my 20′s then I could ever find words to describe. I’d like to think I’m a tiny part of their success and their history, and to give them this sendoff is my pleasure. Thank you Blitzkid, thank you.

Justin - So can you shed some light on some bands that have caught your eye recently?  I’m wondering if there are any bands that you could possibly tell us that you would like to see on the hopeful next GNO Fest XI?

Matt - Oh man being in this spot, I’m FLOODED with bands wanting to play the show next year. I’m definitely not going to lie and say I hear a lot of good bands, I hear a lot of bullshit. It’s weeding through the bullshit to find a band that is not only unique and doesn’t try to sound like someone else, but also is catchy or are great musicians so on and so forth. That being said, there’s a few I found after I filled out the initial line up to this year that I think will make perfect additions to GN0’13. The Renfields are an awesome power pop horror rock outfit that I don’t think get nearly the exposure to this scene that they need. There songs are catchy like the Ramones and Teenage Bottlerocket. The Curse Of Sorrow from PA are amazing musicians that will definitely be associated with the festival going foward check them out! And there’s Black Cat Attack out of Canada, they’re just completely original and I love them and what they do within the confines of this genre. I’m not gonna let all the cats out of my bag as far as what I’m looking at next year, but I’m trying to make GNO come “home” so take that for what it’s worth and look into it as you will.

Justin - This question could have gone along with the last one but whatever, but obviously this question is about GNO XI.  Is there going to be one?  Will it be next year?  Will it reside in New Jersey?  Is there any information you can share with us about it?

Matt - When I first started GNO my intention was to do it in a different location every year, so that way people who traveled far didn’t have to travel as far the following year. This is still my plan with the festival going foward. It’s never been in the same location twice, and it never will. There’s been a very vocal online movement to bring GNO to Cincinnati next summer, I’ve also looked into Philadelphia as well, New York is obviously the dream that has to this point eluded me but the more I keep going the more I think it’s a possibility. The more noise you make so to speak each year, the less you can be ignored so the bigger the show gets the sky becomes the limit for it. That being said I know I hinted above at GNO coming “home” next year, and that’s personally where I’d like to see it happen. But plans are always evolving and nothing is set in stone at this point, but there has been small talk about next years fest between me and certain members of the GNO crew. Everything will be revealed in good time.

Justin - Now that some of the GNO history has been talked about I believe it is time to share the big news you wished to announce.  Would you like to have the honor of telling us?

Matt – Absolutely, later this year I’m going to be launching GNO Records a label that will cater to this genre of music.. There’s some other talk between myself and some bands about potential releases going foward who I’m currently not allowed to mention by name due to negotiations sake at this point but I can say one certain band I’m working out an agreement with is also playing the show this year. I’m looking foward into this new venture and hoping all the fans of horror rock get behind this label and help make it a success.

Justin - That’s fucking awesome!  So how long have you had this idea of a GNO label for?  Was this something that you had in the back of your head from the very beginning or was this something that picked up steam more recently?

Matt – I’ve always wanted to start a label, I’ve been involved in everything in the scene from being in bands, to writing for a fanzine, to booking shows I feel like this is the last and biggest conquest I could ever challenge myself with. I never knew a good name for my “dream” label and one night I was sitting here at my desk and I basically facepalmed myself and was like WHAT THE FUCK it’s been sitting here right in front of me this WHOLE time and I never realized it. Through the past ten years there’s been horror rock labels before, but they flopped. Ten years later I’m still entrenched in this scene, and I’m not going anywhere this is home to me so why not help some of the smaller bands out and help return some luster and deserving credit to the bands who haven’t made a huge name for themselves yet. There’s strength in numbers, and I truly feel like this is my mission to rally the troops to make ourselves even more known. Collectively we can take over and carve out our own niche even bigger then it currently is.

Justin - Now it may be a little soon to ask but with the label just starting out are there any bands that you wish to sign?  Have you signed one already and if so could you share with us who it is?

Matt – The first official GNO Records release is going to be a re-recorded, repackaged, version of Boneyard’s debut album from 2004 called Back To Coney. Boneyard is one of those bands who I feel are an unnoticed gem in this scene. Until now, I’m backing these bands up and I’m going to help bring them up to the level of attention they absolutely deserve. Boneyard subsequently will also be releasing a new E.P. further down the line on GNO Records called Sometimes They Come Back, but for now we’re focused on the first album. Boneyard is one of those bands that need to be recognized because I feel like they’ve gone unnoticed by this scene for far too long, hell they even broke up until I managed to talk them into doing a reunion show this past May. Now they’re back, and I hope they stay around for awhile to come. They’re such great guys and their music is fun it needs to get out there more so then what they had the ability to do previously, and I feel if I can help them out to get their name and music out there even more then so be it. I’ve been given this show and the masses have rallied behind it, now let’s do something responsible with it and help push horror rock to the next level.

Justin - Getting a little off topic but still staying on track, I have heard of your desire for a pre-party for GNO.  Is this something that will be happening this year and if so is there any info you can share with us?  Bands, events, location?

Absolutely, the preparty show will be taking place in Secaucus NJ at a venue called the Blue Room the night before GNO on August 3rd. The line up currently is: Rictus Grim, Boneyard, The Casket Creatures, The Curse Of Sorrow, and The Children Of October. 10 bucks, over 21 (sorry underagers I went out on a limb for ya at GNO I can’t work every miracle in the book) and start around 6-7pm. There’s also one more potential band that I’m currently trying to have return after a long absence. We haven’t 100% been able to iron a deal out yet but hopefully something comes through soon. So the last band will remain undisclosed until very soon I hope.

Justin - Matt I sincerely want to thank you for taking the time to do this interview and especially grateful for choosing to announce this incredible news through Technicolor Terror!  It means a great deal to us and again we thank you for that and for your time.  Before we end this interview is there anything you would like to add or share with the fans? 

Matt - GNO RECORDS/GNOFEST/TECHNICOLOR TERROR/GRAVEYARD GREASER GANG/WHB RECORDS/GORE NOIR MAGAZINE/ HORROR-PUNKS.COM
We’re taking over. And there’s nothing anyone can do to stop us.

Review: The Quintessentials – “Realm of the Great Old Ones”

Artist:  The Quintessentials
Album:  Realm of the Great Old Ones
Label:  Hawaiian Express Records (Psychical) / Infernal Records (Digital)

Disc 1
Woe to the Vanquished! | Al-Jilwah | Mail-Order Junkie | Demonica | Allie was a Scab | P.C. Game | The Devil’s Henchmen | Time | Jerkface | Midnight in the Black House | Nu’uanu Nightmare | The Time is Now! | Pan the Great! | Baby’s in Love | Scrunchy | Bubble Gum & Soda Pop | Love Bleeds Terror | The Hallowed Eve

Disc 2
Inferno | Drop Dead Gorgeous | A Better World | The Life For Me | Shannon was a Psycho | Graveyard Ghoul | Marie Infinity | Constipated Nation | Color My Rainbow Black | The Rats in the Walls | Rege Satanas! | Punk Rock Heroes | Tenth Key Willed | That Girl | Satanic Revolution | Under the Crescent Moon | The Horror Never Ends! | It’s In My Belly

This year has definitely been more than kind to the genre of horror-punk with new releases by Calabrese, and The Other along with the soon to be infamous festival Ghouls Night Out X and of course there is also Blitzkid’s farewell tour here in the US.  This will definitely and without a doubt be a summer to remember for horror fans and the horror-punk genre.  But amongst all these things there was something I was impatiently waiting for…more so than all the others, and that something my friends, is The Quintessentials new double album, “Realm of the Great Old Ones”!

The Quintessentials have been one of my favorite bands for awhile now and it’s hard to simply state reasons of why that is.  I definitely consider the group to be one of a handful of bands that have been able to push the boundaries of horror-punk and where it can go (my opinion), like other bands such as the Cryptkeeper Five, Green Goblyn Project, The Browns, etc.  Maybe with me being a Satanist it was finding a flat out Satanic punk band I could listen to and relate to and not have to listen only to Venom haha.  Maybe it was the band’s ability to blend two of my favorite sub-genres of punk rock, pop and horror-punk together.  Maybe it’s the band’s sound that makes them sound like The Ramones of today.  I could go on but the list of reasons is endless and I’m here to talk about their new album and why you should pick it up, so lets get to it!

As I stated previously I anticipated this album more so than Calabrese or The Other’s new releases and believe me when I tell you that this album doesn’t disappoint!  For starters it’s a double album (rare these days) with the first disc filled with brand new Satanic power pop/horror-punk hellfire tunes for your pleasure and then to top it off it comes with a second disc with completely remastered and redone versions of countless other Quintessentials classics from the bands first debut album, “The Horror Never Ends…” which just increases the listening the pleasure as there is nothing more than hearing new/updated versions of some of my favorite songs.  You can think of it as The Quintessentials very own, “Anatomy of Reanimation Vol. 1″.

This album has about everything I love in a horror-punk release and everything I love about pop-punk.  The recording is beautiful, the guitar is in full pop-punk swing, the bass makes sure you recognize it’s presence, the drums that every punk rocker grew up listening to and loves is pounding furiously throughout the album and the snotty in your face pop-punk vocals are the icing of this punk rock masterpiece.  This band blends pop and horror amazingly and brings to mind pop-punk bands such as Screeching Weasel, The Queers, The Ramones, and The Lillingtons while also bringing to mind horror-punk bands such as The Suicide Ghouls, The Browns, early Misfits, The Pink Skulls, and The Reanimated.  Instant classics such as, “The Devil’s Henchmen”, “Nu’uanu Nightmare” (my favorite), “Bubble Gum & Soda Pop”, and “The Hallowed Eve” will this album a hard one to put down and shows you that beautiful blend of horror and pop punk mixed together to create something special.

The Quintessentials definitely did all the right things with this album and I can honestly say that the wait while long was well worth it.  This is an album that even if you’re not a horror-punk fan you can get into and same goes for if you’re not a pop-punk fan, and trust me, you don’t have to be a Satanist to enjoy what guys bring to your stereo.  This album without any hesitation gets a 10/10 and I highly stress picking this up as I can’t say enough about it, just get the album and the music speaks for itself.  Any fan of PUNK ROCK PERIOD will love this album.  I truly hope you enjoy the album as much as I do and thank you for reading.

- Justin Stankus

 

Review: Dr. Geek and the Freakshow – “The Wolfman…And Other Stories From The Lab”

  Artist: Dr. Geek and the Freakshow
  Album: The Wolfman…And Other Stories From The Lab
  Format: CD
  Label: Unsigned
Track Listing
1. Intro
2. Back From The Dead
3. Judy
4. Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde
5. Vampires (The Truth)
6. Wolfman
7. Missy is Missing (Miss Graveyard Pt. II)
8. Punks Undead
9. House Of Wax
10. Mina Harker

 

I usually have a hard time starting out a review if you can believe that or not.  But not this time!  I’ll first start off by giving a big thank you to Germany for the countless gothic and undead gems you have provided us during the years!  Dead Unites, The Other, The Crimson Ghosts, The Dead End Guys, The Fright, Dr. Geek and the Freakshow, etc.  I could go on, but again, I simply want to say thank you.

Now with that small piece of business out of the way it’s time to get to the review.  I’ll be start out by being straight and direct and to the point.  I LOVE this album and I can’t emphasize that enough, I really can’t.  Any fan of Blitzkid, The Other, The Fright, Calabrese, Horrorwood Ending, etc. is going to love what this band and album have to bring to the table and is quickly going to become a must have for you horror collection.  Honestly sometimes I really hate doing reviews because I feel that like no matter what I write it will always come up short or not give the album the proper credit that the album I am writing about deserves which is the exact situation right now.  It’s a little short which is really my only gripe I have with it for I definitely would have loved to have another 3 or 4 songs on the album, but that hasn’t stopped it from being one of my favorite and most played albums.  I already know all the lyrics by heart and you already know that’s love when you know an album so well.

As I stated previously this is definitely a horror-punk band and album and yet, Dr. Geek and the Freakshow also bring bring something fresh musically although it may not be too obvious to everyone.  When listening to the album I can’t help but feel a Oi! punk influence in some of the tunes that brought to mind other beloved Oi! punk bands I love such as Germany’s own Oxymoron, or Discipline.  Whether this was just coincidence or was done on purpose is unknown to me, but something I enjoyed immensely nonetheless.  The guitar makes me smile from start to finish and is probably my favorite thing about the album, it’s so solid and with tracks like, “Back From The Dead”, “Vampires”, and “Wolfman” it makes this album very powerful and something that is very hard to put down.  The album is also extremely melodic but not to a pop-punk degree, but it definitely brings to mind bands like Robot Monster’s own Horrorwood Ending, Balzac, and even Bad Religion.

In closing this an must have album for your collection in my opinion and I highly suggest picking it up.  It’s highly addictive from start to finish and these guys definitely know what they’re doing.  This album is dark, melodic, catchy, and a joy all the way through.  I really can’t say anything more except for what I have already stated which is that I thoroughly enjoyed and love this album and cannot wait to see what else this band has in store for us.  Thanks for reading and I hope you enjoy the album as much as I do!

- Justin

Eyes Down, Eyes Stare….

An interview with Bobby of Calabrese.
Justin Stankus

Calabrese is a horror punk band from Phoenix, Arizona that formed in 2003 by Bobby (Guitar/Vocals) and Jimmy (Bass/Vocals) and they later integrated their other brother Davey (Drums) to be the final piece to the puzzle.  Calabrese combines Gothabilly looks, B-movie drive-in lyrics and a Death Rock sound that is heavily influenced by bands such as The Misfits, AFI, Danzig, Samhain, horror films and Halloween.  The band’s first full-length album, “13 Halloweens”, was released on Spookshow Records in 2005.  Their second album, “The Traveling Vampire Show”, was released in 2007.  Their latest album, “Calabrese III: They Call Us Death”, was released in 2010.  Distributed in the U.S., Japan, Europe, and through the Internet, Calabrese are quickly gaining an international audience.  But let us finally begin!

Justin – Hey Bobby, so you and me have already been introduced to one another and been in contact for awhile now, but for the fans and readers could I get your name and the rest of the member’s names as well and your positions within the band?

Bobby - This is Bobby, I play guitar and sing and drink a bunch of coffee.  Jimmy plays the bass and sings, and Davey pounds the drums and a jumps around a lot.

Justin – So Bobby can you tell us how Calabrese came to life and how you all came together?

Bobby - All three of us are brothers, so it was pretty natural to be hanging out and listening to music…except we never did that shit.  Ha!  Me and Jimmy were playing in other bands, but it was him who pulled us together to start our own thing.  Everything we were doing and hearing at the time sucked, so we wanted to start a band playing the music WE liked and WE wanted to hear.  Punk rock, Misfits, skateboarding, whatever.  We recruited Davey, and since he never touched the drums before, we beat him into emotional scum, molding and forming his mind into the rock and roll maniac he is today.

Justin – Now with all of you being brothers, do you think that this strengthens the band even more so than if you were all unrelated? Has this ever presented itself as a problem? Growing up with an older brother I know all about brotherly fist fights but has this fact been nothing but positives for the band?

Bobby – I haven’t been in any other bands long enough to compare both sides, but I think it’s pretty cool being in a band with your brothers.  Yeah, we get into arguments and want to punch eachother in the face, but at the end of the day…we’re still brothers and we’re still a band.  It’s easier to be mean and yell and scream at eachother, I think, because friends can just up and leave once you’ve crossed their line.  With us, there is no line!  This is for life, man!

Justin – Now why was “Calabrese” chosen as the band name? Is there a story behind the name? Also were there any other thoughts that almost made it and if so could possibly share some of them with us?

Bobby – We wanted something cool, something that would stand out and look powerful and sound gnarly.  The Coffin Daggers was an idea, but we quickly learned that EVERY horror themed band is named the Coffin Daggers!  We even thought of something like “Transylvanian Bandits”, but it was all too goofy, I guess.  Aside from the Ramones, we pretty much took the idea of using our last name from our Lord Master, Danzig, and went with “Calabrese” (even though “Danzig” nor “Ramone” was really their last names, ha!).  We thought it sounded like a cool Italian horror director’s name, or a secret word for “fuck you!”  At least that’s what we hoped.  Plus, who wouldn’t wanna have their name plastered on t-shirts and albums and comic books?  It’s gnarly!

Justin – As an obvious horror genre fan, what about horror and the imagery brought you guys together to start a horror-punk or horror rock band? What was your “horror defining” moment Bobby?

Bobby – I dunno, man, it’s hard to say.  I just remember really liking monsters and evil things and Satan shit.  Like, anything that was affiliated with the devil was both awesome and scary and weird.  I blame Jimmy, though, he had all the cool stuff that I found while sneaking into his closet.  Horror movies, Dungeons and Dragons toys, monster masks, whatever.  They always say that you like what scares you, or so I think that’s what they say!  Musically, when I first heard death metal and Slayer and stuff like Deicide, holy crap, that was some scary stuff.  I liked the imagery and all that, but later I discovered the Misfits, which was the perfect blend of fucked up lyrics, catchy choruses and ATTITUDE.  It was evil AND fun.  That’s where we all came together, musically.  Plus, there’s no fucking way I could play the guitar like Kerry King!  

Justin - I have heard your music being used when I have watched independent films such as Chainsaw Sally, etc. How did you guys get involved in these films and are there any other movies we can catch your tunes in?

Bobby - We usually get asked to be on the soundtrack, and being the whores that we are, we always say yes!  So if you’ve got ANYTHING that even slightly resembles a film and need some tunes, hit us up!  The more the better.  What have we been in so far?: The Graves (as Seen on the SyFy Channel) Blood On The Highway Hoodoo For Voodoo Prison A Go Go Chainsaw Sally Zombie Punks From Beyond The Grave Cabras Horror Film: The Movie No. My Other Possessed-Zombie Girlfriend Hack Job BAM, bitch!

Justin - Now I remember on one of your albums, I saw that you had/have a warning advising your listeners to not use a Ouija board and try contacting the dead while listening to your music. Now what’s the deal!?

Bobby - The deal is that it’s EXACTLY true and don’t do it!  Ever!  I mean, hell, if you REALLY wanna risk it…by all means, go for it!  Just be sure to get it on film!

Justin – It may be a little soon to ask, but is there any new material in the works? Can you spill any guts for us that want more!? What can fans expect from Calabrese in the near future?

Bobby – Yeah!  Right now we’re finishing up thirteen songs for the new album, which will be recorded in April and hopefully be released in May.  We’ve got all the pretty pictures of ourselves taken, most the lyrics are written, album cover drawn, etc.  We’re damn close and I’m super stoked on it!

Justin – Speaking of new material, I have had a lot of fans demanding me to ask if there is a possible all acoustic album that may be in the works or if they can expect an acoustic track on the next album?

Bobby – Ever since we did an acoustic set at Atomic Comics to release our comic book, yeah, people have been dying for some acousti-brese!  And I’m not gonna lie, we’re totally into it, and I think a lot of our songs translated pretty well into the land of the unplugged guitar.  Nothing’s set for the new album, but we’re thinking about coming out with an all acoustic album sometime next year, with new versions of old songs, totally brand new songs, anything we can whip up!  We’re gonna try our hand at making it pretty unique, or at least something that doesn’t sound like it’s gonna be boring as hell.  C’mon, when you hear “acoustic album,” you automatically think, “it’s gonna suck ass!”  So we’re gonna try to avoid that route.  We’re gonna make it cool, trust me!

Justin - If someone stumbled upon this interview and continued on reading having no idea who Calabrese was, how would you describe the band? Why would you suggest people check you guys out?

Bobby - We’re the world’s greatest horror rock band!  What more can be said?  Oh, that we’re really awesome dudes, too, and have an excellent VHS collection.

Justin – What has been your favorite show you guys have played so far since starting the band?

Bobby – I’d be a douche if I said that EVERY SHOW EVER WAS THE GREATEST SHOW WE EVER PLAYED, so there ya have it!  You rule, Every Show We’ve Played!

Justin – Speaking of shows! Are there any big scale shows in the works? Is there any chance of seeing you guys on the East Coast anytime soon? If so please don’t forget NC!

Bobby – We try to hit up most of the US at least once a year, and of course, that means the east coast!  St. Louis to Chicago to New York to Boston.  Wherever people are foolish enough to let us play, we’ll be there!

Justin – Last question when it comes to touring but who are some of your favorite bands to share the stage with? If given the opportunity to play with whoever you so desired who would it be? Do you possibly have an awesome/crazy story you could share with us about life on the road?

Bobby – There’s a lot, but I always like playing with the Koffin Kats.  They’re just a lot of fun to be around and are super professional.  Oh, and they love to party and get fucked up!  All time dream band to jam with?  I don’t wanna be obvious, but Danzig.  Like, “Lucifuge” era Danzig.  Like, SUPER BIG MUSCLES era Danzig.  That’s not weird to say, is it?

Justin - Do you, or any of your fellow band members have any strange pre-show obsessions?

Bobby – I feel like I’m always starving before we play, but I had eating before.  I feel the hunger makes you rock harder.  No, I’m not saying I like the feeling of wanting to pass out and die, but I hate feeling full and stuffed on stage.  It weighs down the rock, man!  Also, coffee and a toilet.  I like to drink coffee before shows, and I like to have a good bathroom sanctuary.  I like to think in there, clean up, whatever.  All I care about on the road is a clean, sanitary and moderately private bathroom!  It’s amazing how powerful and beautiful a decent bathroom becomes on tour!

Justin – If you could tell your fans 4 bands you think they should check out immediately, who would they be and why?

 Bobby – Umm…I wish I knew some secret treasures!  But the best of the best right now?  Like, what I’m jamming to on the way to practice?  I’m rocking The Damned, Swingin’ Utters, Hour of the Wolf and Hot Snakes.

Justin – Your top 3 horror movies. What are they and a tad bit of info as to why? Also your favorite comic book and character? I will take this opportunity to quickly give a shout out to my hero, Shadowhawk!  I love you man!

Bobby – I like a lot of 70′s and 80′s horror, leaning more towards the 70′s these days, though.  I love fucked up giallos and splatter comedies like “Dead Alive” and “Fright Night”.  ”Slumber Party Massacre” kinda stuff is always fun, and anything with a rockin’ soundtrack and a lot of boobs!  AS far as comics?  I was always into Marvel growing up, then got waaaay into DC Comics…until the recent switcharoo of every major characters origin story, which can go ahead and die already.  I put so much time and effort into learning all that garbage and they decide to tell me it was for nothing?  Nuts to that!  Anyway, now that THAT’S out of the way…my favorite characters are always minor, like Booster Gold or something.  I like Guy Gardner and Nightwing, now that I think about it.  Frank Castle, a lot of Batman’s rogues and The Boys!  Great comic by Ennis.  Oh, and Hawkgirl!  Because she’s hot.  I think.

Justin – Horror punk seems to be fairly popular genre in Europe while failing to catch on in the US. Do you agree with this statement? Whether you agree or disagree why do you feel this way?

Bobby – It seems pretty radical over in Europe, yeah, but I think it’s alright in the US, too!  If you blend it all in under one giant umbrella, with rockabilly, psychobilly, rock and roll and punk rock, I think there’s a large audience roaming the land like a group of wild dogs.  Plus, I can’t complain — we have dedicated friends and fans coming to the shows, that’s all that counts!

Justin – I absolutely love the artwork for all the band’s albums especially, “They Call Us Death III”. How do you go about choosing an artist and once chosen do you give them free reign over the design or does the band go over the ideas beforehand?

Bobby – We love kick-ass artwork, so everything we do has to look awesome!  We usually search out artists, but sometimes they come to us.  More the merrier, I say!  We always give everyone ideas, and in turn, we’re given ideas and suggestions right back.  And it always ends up swell.  With “They Call Us Death,” we sent Eric Powell a few photos of us posing for reference, and he painted that whole damn cover art based off of us looking tough in our living room!  Something simple like that and it turned into pure gold, baby!

Justin – Bobby who was/are your biggest idols when it comes to the guitar?

Bobby – There are tons, dude!  Every few months I discover a guitarist that makes me wanna throw my axe in the trash!  So many guys rule, it’s mind-numbing.  But if I could sound like anyone, and could rip off really well (which I try to do all the time!) it would be Greg Sage from the Wipers, John Reis from Rocket from the Crypt, the dudes in Man or Astroman?, Motorhead, John Christ, Ron Asheton, I like the guy in Burning Brides, Greg Ginn in Black Flag, ACDC for the BEST GUITAR TONE EVER, the guitarist for the Bronx, Hot Snakes, Black Sabbath and of course, Johnny Ramone!  A lot of the time it’s not how well you play, it’s how HARD you play.  Wear your guitar low, ground your feet and turn it into a machine gun!  Bleed all over it!

Justin – Being in a horror rock band I can’t help but ask if any of your lyrics ever struck a nerve with friends, family, or loved ones?

Bobby – No way, they’re just as weird as us!  They dig it!

Justin – When it comes to horror rock in general there is no denying that every band takes a big influence from the Misfits and Elvis Presley and rightly so! But my question is this. If you had to exclude these two influences, then who would be the next biggest influence on Calabrese? Who else highly influences you personally and the band?

Bobby – Rock and roll bands, through and through.  I grew up on a lot of metal, goth, surf rock, anything with cool guitars and great vocals, so we’re all over the board here.  I guess the next biggest band that made me want to pick up a guitar would be The Ramones or Black Flag.  The Dead Kennedys really got me going, too.  A lot of punk rock stuff that had attitude and style.  That’s all you need — attitude and style!

Justin – Out of all the band’s albums which is your personal favorite and why? What are some of your favorite songs to play live? My personal favorite is, “Eyes Down” and for this fact I wanted to know if there is a story behind the song or any personal meaning behind it?

Bobby – I like “They Call Us Death,” but I like “The Traveling Vampire Show,” too, because it’s great to play live!  Lots of stuff like “Saturday Night of the Living Dead,” “Vampires Don’t Exist,” and “Voices of the Dead.”  They always get the crowd going, and that’s always great.  I never wanna be the kind of band that plays filler and avoids killer.  Fuck that!  Play the hits or go home!  ”Eyes Down” is fun to play, too, I really like the melody.  Most of our songs are vaguely based off of books or movies, but I think that one was just a collection of ideas, maybe.  Jimmy writes half the lyrics, I write the other half and then we put them together!  So it’s all kinda hectic and like a split personality, ya know?  So, in essence, to answer your question…I HAVE NO IDEA. Ha!

Justin – Give or take the band has been around for 7 to 8 years? (Please correct me if I’m wrong). But during this time what is the most important thing you have learned personally and what do you think the band as a whole has learned?

Bobby – I think we’ve learned how to be a band, how to play together, how to tour.  Something like playing more than two shows in a row was insane to us when we first started!  We also learned how to sleep in a van and live off of peanut butter and beer!

Justin – Since starting the band how do you feel your music has progressed? Is it what you imagined it would be?

Bobby – I wanna think so, and that it was all natural progression, but who knows?  I try to emulate my favorite bands, and I get into different musical kicks every other month, so again…who knows?

Justin – In closing I want to sincerely thank you Bobby for taking the time for doing this interview for Technicolor Terror and we really appreciate it! Is there anything you would like to add or say to the fans?

Bobby – Thanks for everything!  You make the shows fun, the parties wild, the daily crap bearable.  We ain’t shit without ya!

Justin – Thank you for reading and I hope you enjoyed our interview!

Review: The Suicide Ghouls – “We Put the Fun in Funeral”

  Album: The Suicide Ghouls
  Track Listing
1. The Blood is the Life
2. She Bytes
3. Zombie Midget Stripper
4. Love You To Death
5. Santa Claus is a Pedophile
6. This is Horror
7. Dance of the Dead
8. Resurrection
9. Betelgeuse
10. Dead Girls Don’t Say No
11. Fear the Ripper
12. Lycan
13. I Was a Teenage Frankenstein

The Suicide Ghouls are an amazing horror-punk band that crawled out of graves that reside within Columbus, Ohio in 2009.  This is a group that is quickly starting to make a name for themselves and I feel that even that statement is not credit that should be due to this band.  Playing with great bands including The Misfits, Calabrese, Blitzkid, Aaron Omen, Graveyard Boulevard, The Cobra Skulls, The Koffin Kats, and Juicehead just to name a few.  The band is well known for their high energy shows that are described as one of a kind, and they always leave their fans wanting more.  But what I want to know is why a band this great has not been picked up by a label yet.

As I stated previously, the biggest question for me is why is this band has not been signed yet!?  I mean shit, it literally blows my mind.  This is one dedicated band and it shows, the recording on this album is absolutely superb for an unsigned band and that’s just the recording, which also leaves the question of how much more this badass this album would be if they were signed (Labels I am talking to you, take the fucking hint!).  These guys have been able to do something that is very rare in the horror-punk scene and something I always fucking love to find!  That my friends, is horror-pop-punk!  Yes that’s right!  The snotty vocals, melodic tunes, and speed of true pop-punk which I hold so dear.  With the dark vocals, terrifying tunes that blend so well with the pop punk side, and everything horror that I cannot put into words.  This band has been able to blend two of my favorite sub-genres in Punk Rock to create an album and band that brings to mind bands such as The Creeps, The Quintessentials, Stepson, Crawling Chaos, or The Lillingtons.  I also don’t believe I need to tell you that’s a real and I mean real good fucking thing.

With tunes like, “She Bytes”, “The Blood is the Life”, “Santa Claus is a Pedophile”, “Fear the Ripper” (my favorite by the way), and “Resurrection” it was and still is hard for me to put this album down.  It really is that good.  I can’t stress enough how much I enjoy the blending of the pop and horror on this album as it now doubles the appeal of the listener as well. I mean if I owned a record shop and was asked, “What’s a great horror-punk album?”, I would respond with, “Here, check out We Put the Fun in Funeral!”  ”Oh you enjoy pop-punk?”, “Here!  Listen to We Put the Fun in Funeral.”  Like I said it doubles the appeal of the album and it’s something that’s refreshing to me.  Because believe me when I say that I love horror-punk and could go on for ages, but face it you may deny it but we all get tired of the Danvis (Danzig/Elvis) hybrid vocals every now and again.  That’s why bands such as The Suicide Ghouls and albums like, “We Put the Fun in Funeral” are so important to me.  Trust me, this band has stuff going for them.  The vocals are melodic, snotty, and scary, the music is amazing, solid, and on point, and the recording is phenomenal for a unsigned band.  This is an album that not just a horror-punk fan should pick up but that a PUNK fan in general must add to their collection.  Whether it’s Street, Crust, Pop, Ska, or Horror punk, this album has something for everyone to enjoy.  I really hope you take my advice and give this album a listen and check these guys out.  You’ll hear no complaints from me on this album.  Epic.

- Justin Stankus

 

Review: Jamey Rottencorpse and The Rising Dead – “The Rise of the Dead”

Tack Listing
1. Intro
2. The Devil And His Band
3. Dance ‘Til You Die
4. The Rise of the Dead
5. Bloodbath
6. Movie Maniacs
7. Somewhere Under the Graveyard
8. Education
9. Come And Die With Me
10. Zombie Girl
11. I Can’t Sleep at Night
12. Strange and Scary
13. Radioactive Zombies
14. Outro

This amazing band started on Halloween in 2009 crawling out of the Hell fire pits of Bremen, Germany.  Lead by vocalist Jamey Rottencorpse and his ghoulish followers, TomTom Scumbag (Guitar), Slimebag Die Well (Guitar), Mr. Snowy Claws (Drums), Moldy Oddfingers (Kaos-Pad, BG-Vocals), and Riot Earp (Bass).  These soon to be superghouls which are currently signed to Dr. Cyclops Records are definitely my favorite band that the label has signed so far.  Bringing to you an awesome mixture of old/new school horror-punk with a twist of metal, set the volume to 138 and there you have it.

As I’m sitting here drinking this blood red wine I ponder where to begin with this album.  I knew from the very beginning that this was going to be an epic band and could not wait for this album’s release.  I even remember telling Jamey to hurry this album’s release up for I couldn’t wait any longer.  But for one I love the fact that this a horror-punk album from beginning to end, through and through.  No slow ballads, no doo-wop inspired love songs (which I love by the way, don’t get me wrong haha) this is just straight to the point in your face scary horror-punk that would even make Danzig proud.  I love the recording and sound of this album, it’s beautifully solid, not raw yet not overdone either, it’s just right!  The dueling guitars of Scumbag and Slimebag is one of my personal favorites on this album, every song is solid and even though it’s simple the solo on, “Somewhere Under the Graveyard” is unbelievably epic and get’s me so fucking amped I find myself rewinding that solo over and over again and over course having one of my favorite lines from, “Night of the Living Dead” playing in the background just makes it that much more enjoyable.  As a use to be drummer I always am picky with the drums when it comes to any album and Snowy doesn’t disappoint as the drums are on time, clean, and solid.  Jamey’s vocals are some of my favorites, as he doesn’t try to imitate Danzig and doesn’t go for the super melodic tone most horror-punk bands tend to lean towards T.B. being an example, yet not going incredibly wretched like Saint Legions of The Lurking Corpses.  It’s right in the middle and I love it, I will note though that I love both previously mentioned vocalists and am just using them as examples.

In closing there’s not too much more to say that I haven’t  already stated.  Some people will complain and say that this album sounds like every other horror-punk band or album but of course that’s to be expected, you’re not going to please everyone on the planet.  But there’s something about the album that didn’t give me that same vibe, I definitely love this record and I personally believe that any horror-punk or horror-based music fan will highly enjoy this album and band and I highly recommend checking this album out.  Also I don’t care what anybody says or if anyone hates me now, but Jamey’s face paint puts Graves and Goolsby’s face paint to shame with a boot to the face.  Fucking EPIC!

- Justin Stankus

I’ve Got A Taste For The Blade!

An interview with John and Bret of Beneath the Cellar
Justin (Apathy) Stankus

Beneath the Cellar was founded in the summer 2006 in Orange County, CA.  Though the original lineup has since moved on, lead singer and guitarist and founding member Johnny Macabre still has the band marching on at a incredible and strong pace.  Since the additions of bassist Chris and drummer Bret, the band has achieved a tighter sound and are currently in the studio fine tuning the new songs for the new and upcoming record. Beneath the Cellar has been one of my all time favorite horror-punk bands and I keep wondering why a band that is so good and has so much has not been signed yet.  Honestly all I can say is there’s truly great things to be heard with this band, if you haven’t checked them out yet please do.  For I have been a devoted fan since hearing them back in 2007.  But let us finally begin!

We’ll start the interview off with a simple: what’s your name and what do you do in the band?

J – Howdy, I’m Johnny and I vocalize and play the guitars
B – I’m Bret and I play drums

What was both of your musical “moments”?  When did both of you realize that making music is what you wanted to do for a living?

J - I have wanted to make music since I was in grade school. Ever since I picked up the guitar I wanted to write music and express myself.
B – When I was in high school before I ever played drums, I saw Joey Jordison of Slipknot do a drum solo and I said “that’s what I want to do”, haha.

So this question could be directed at you both but how did Beneath the Cellar come about?  How did both of you end up in the band?

J - I started the band with a few friends in late 2005.  We really started it just to have fun and play music, it evolved into what it is today over time.  Members have come and gone but it has always been the project that has been close to my heart.  lol…
B - I was a fan of BTC before I met any of the guys.  Long story short, made friends with them and the original drummer couldn’t do it anymore and I already knew the songs from obsessively listening to their CD so I was asked to join.

“Beneath the Cellar” is on my list of my all-time favorite band names.  Is there a story behind the name and why was it chosen?  Was there another name that almost made it and if so would you tell us?

J - The name was kind of inspired by Henrietta from the movie Evil Dead 2.  You know, she was buried beneath the ground in the fruit cellar haha.  Why that came to mind I don’t know, but we all agreed on the name and it just kind of stuck.  We were toying around with too many names to think of at first, to tell you the truth I don’t even remember them, I don’t think they were very good haha.

Obvious horror fans, what was it about everything macabre and the imagery of horror that brought you guys together to start a horror-punk band?  What were your “horror defining” moments?  Whether it was a comic, movie, cartoon, band, video game, etc. and why?

J - Actually we never intended to be a horror punk band at first.  I think it probably manifested from what I was listening to during the time when the band started.  I’ve always loved anything and everything Danzig and I was/still am a huge Blitzkid and Balzac fan.  For the first record at least those were my two biggest influences on the music side.  The lyrics were formed more from personal anguish lol.  I definitely am always inspired by horror, it’s the genre I identify with them most.  Although we haven’t had too much artwork done yet I am always inspired by comics, I still collect to this day.  Art has always been something I enjoy doing when not working on music.
B - My mom showed me a book on Jack the Ripper when I was much younger and since then I’ve had a fascination with anything related to horror or the macabre and I love music why not do something that incorporates both.

I cannot stress enough how much I love the album guys!  I especially cannot get enough of the epic tune known as , “Taste for the Blade”.  Was/is there a story behind this song?  It is my favorite so I must know.  What are your favorite songs to play and why?

J - I wrote the song about my sister who passed away from ovarian cancer in 2005.  It is basically about her and my feelings following her passing.  I have never been religious but it was a real loss of god kind of time for me.  Right now my favorite stuff to play is the new stuff that’s gonna be on the new record.  As for the old record I like to play True Hell and Ali Baba probably the most.
B - I also like playing the new stuff but my favorite to play off the old record are probably True Hell and Devour and Console.

Another thing I love about the album and the band is your vocals John.  Most horror-punk bands have no shortage of Danvig vocals (Danzig/Elvis hybrid) which isn’t a bad thing to me, but sometimes it gets pretty old.  But to me at least it doesn’t seem like you were trying to achieve those exact kind of vocals though I can still hear a big influence.  I have gone on to say that besides the great Danzig and TB Monstrosity that your vocals are my favorite in horror-punk so far, especially on, “True Hell”.  Is this how you’ve always sung?  Or did you purposely try to steer clear of most of what the other bands were doing?

J - Truthfully I think I learned to sing by belting out Danzig songs while i’m driving lol.  But what was important to me was not to mimic any artist and kind of make it my own.  I think people will see that my vocalization has evolved when they hear the new record.  Not that I’ve totally dropped my old style but I have tried to vocalize more natural as I’ve continued to perform, I feel like it’s always changing for the better.

Bret, who are your biggest influences when it comes to drumming? John, who were/are your idols when it comes to the guitar?

B - I grew up listening to a lot of metal and watching Joey from Slipknot got me into drums but my list of favorite drummers is endless.  If I had to narrow it down to 3 it would probably be Ray Luzier (not a huge Korn fan but the guy kills the kit), Travis from Blink, and Shannon Lucas form The Black Dahlia Murder.
J - You probably wouldn’t be able to tell but I am influenced a lot by a plethora of artists.  Everything from Paul Allender from Cradle of Filth to Paul Leary of the Butthole Surfers.  Recently I’ve been inspired a lot by Die from Dir en Grey.  Obviously I am influenced by a lot of horror rock but I like artists who continue to progress and change with their playing.

Is there any new material in the works?  Can we expect a new album anytime soon?  What can fans expect from Beneath the Cellar in the near future?  Spill some guts!

J - Definitely!!!  The new record is pretty much already written we are just working out the kinks in the songs.  We are also supposed to be putting out an exclusive track on an upcoming horrorpunk comp.  As for the record it’s gonna be coming out in the first quarter of 2012 for sure!!!  Expect great things!
B - The comp is Rest in Horror From Monsterfiend, and that should be out early next year.

If someone stumbled upon this interview having no idea of who you guys were.  How would you describe Beneath the Cellar?  Why would you suggest people check you guys out?

J - That’s a hard question, I guess if you had to compare us to other groups you would probably start with bands like The Misfits, Blitzkid, The Spook, AFI.  I don’t know where people would put us, we just do what we do and hope people enjoy it.  I guess the best way would be to listen to the music haha.  Why should people check us out??  Because we fucking RULE!! lol
B - I hate describing the band haha, because it’s not just horror-punk, I like to call it melodic punk.

What has been your favorite show since starting the band?

J - Probably playing with Blitzkid, or this big festival show we played at the Knitting Factory in Los Angeles before they closed it down.  That was the best live sound setup we have ever had.
B - Opening for Calabrese in Vegas.  Not necessarily cause it was an amazing show but just all the fun I had before during and after the show. It was an awesome day.

Speaking of shows!  Now I have to ask, are there any big scale tours in the works for you guys?  Is there any chance of fans seeing you guys on the East Coast anytime soon?

J - Possibly, the real reason we don’t tour much is money.  We would love to tour all over but we just don’t have the cash.  Unfortunately we are a poor band lol we have to do everything ourselves while still sustaining a place to lay down at night.  But it will happen eventually i promise!

Last question when it comes to shows but who are some of your favorite bands to share the stage with?  If given the opportunity who would you guys love to tour with? 

J - I love playing with Order of the Fly, they are really great people, Calabrese is also really fun to share the stage with!  I would love to share the stage with the Butthole Surfers!!
B - I like playing with The Order of the Fly, Calabrese, Stellar Corpses and The Wreckin Kats.  If given the opportunity I’d like to tour with Wednesday 13 or Blitzkid.

Do either of you possibly have an awesome/crazy story you could share with us dealing with life on the road?

J - I’m pretty tame I guess, as i’ve gotten older I don’t really like to get trashed at shows anymore so I keep it pretty calm I guess.  I’ve had a lot of substance abuse problems that kind of keep me from getting out of hand lol.  Bret is a different story, that boy loves to get trashed!
B - Like I said Vegas was fun but I don’t think I can share details, haha.  One of the funniest though was probably when we played San Diego.  I got plastered after the show and don’t remember much till after I woke up and apparently I had given out my debit card and ended buying booze for everyone and had a bottle of wine and a 30 brick leftover.  I was broke for a week after that.

John, has any of your lyrics ever struck a nerve with friends, family, or loved ones?

J - I think my mom and dad had a lot of emotions come out because of the theme of my sisters death driving the first record.

If you could tell/suggest 4 bands for your fans to check out who would they be and why?

J - The Rosedales, The Melvins, OSI, and Despairs Ray
B - The Order of the Fly are a great band and awesome guys (and gal), Murderland has some bitchin’ tunes, I’m really digging the Darrow Chemical Company stuff and My Buddys in the Wreckin Kats put on a rad live show.

Your top 3 horror movies.  GO!

J - Night of the Living Dead, Gozu, and Shaun of the Dead
B - Return of the Living Dead, Flesh for the Beast, and anything with Vincent Price.

Where can fans/potential future fans get a hold of your merchandise?

B - We should have merch in the next few months if all goes well but you will be able to pick up our merch at http://www.theskeletoncrue.com.

The band has been around for a few years now.  During this time what is the most important things each of you have learned personally?  As a band what has Beneath the Cellar learned?

J - I’ve learned a lot about myself, too much to write.  I’ve learned that I have a bad drug problem and I’m terrible with money lol.  As for the band we have learned to let everyone have their own influence, it really makes the songwriting process go a lot smoother.
B - I learned to stop drinking before playing a show haha. And don’t leave gear lying around without someone watching it.  I lost a stick bag I just got for christmas with $100 worth of brand new gear and unused sticks at a show.

When it comes to horror based music or horror-punk in general there is no denying that every band takes a big influence from The Misfits and rightly so.  But my question is, if you had to exclude them, then who is the biggest influence on the band?

J - For me I would have to say Balzac and Blitzkid.
B - I’m a huge Bliztkid fan, especially when they happen to have a good drummer haha.

Since starting the band how do you feel the your music has progressed?

J - I feel that we have progress tremendously as a band and as separate musicians.  The new songs are more progressive than anything we have ever done before, I think we all fell like were doing something thats gonna be really special.
B - I didn’t start the band but I know playing in BTC has pushed me to be more creative with my druming.

In closing I want to give another big thank you to John and Bret for taking time to do this interview!  But before we let you go, is there anything you’d like to add?  Anything to say to the fans?

J - To everyone who has been there for us in one way or another to help us out we really thank you, you are what drives us to keep going.  And also I would like to thank you for interviewing us, much thanks mate!!!
Big thanks to everyone that supports what we do, Fans, Family & Friends, we couldn’t do it without you.

Hope you all enjoyed the interview!
Justin

The Casket Creatures – “Tales from the Unknown”

Astist: The Casket Creatures
Label: Unsigned
Track Listing

1. Intro of the Unknown
2. Bad 2 Hearse
3. Not Forgotten
4. Sweet Screams
5. Tales of Agnes
6. Agnes
7. Gore On The Dancefloor
8. 2 4 5 Trioxin
9. Candarian
10. Say Goodbye to Sunlight
11. Tale Of The Beast
12. Bark Of The Beast
13. Evil Comes Home

So where and what to say to start off this review?  Well…let’s just start it off by sating that this album is a fucking epic listen!!  The Casket Creatures’ new full-length entitled, “Tales from the Unknown” does not disappoint and is one of the best unknown gems I have heard in a long time.  I only received this masterpiece about two days ago, maybe less, and let me tell/stress that since hearing it the first time round that songs have been played on repeat multiple times, the album itself has been played over and over, shit I’ve even gone to bed the past two nights listening and finally passing out to the album on repeat.  It’s that good.  Seriously though, this album has so much going for it, the vocals are excellent and some of the best I’ve heard since Beneath the Cellar, I am in fucking love with the guitars on this album, and the bass and drums are also quite solid while the recording is incredible for an unsigned band.

Something else that I adore on this album is that it is truly a “horror-punk” album, it’s scary from beginning to end.  It’s something I have noticed more and more every time I listen to the album.  The bands stays on that scary raw edge yet still keeping that melodic sound and still being able to sway away from going too soft on us which (in my opinion) I think most horror-punk bands are leaning more towards now, most band (in my opinion again) never or always never seems to have any shortage of scary/horror themed lyrics but musically I feel some of that horror is lost musically.  The Rosedales, later Blitzkid, Nim Vind, 1476, etc. for some examples, fuck I’m not knocking any of those bands by the way, I love everyone of them dearly!

This band and album reminds me a lot of old school Blitzkid, Wednesday 13, and a tinge of Balzac (musically of course haha) but still keeping there own unique sound and originality.  I think the only gripe I have with this album if anything is all the intros, I love the first track and it doesn’t bother me and I understand that they’re trying to portray the album as a story which is awesome and unique.  But I feel this way because I would rather have had these intros replaced with more badass tunes from the band.  But with songs like, “Bad 2 Hearse”, “Agnes (my favorite)”, “Gore On The Dancefloor”, “2 4 5 Trioxin”, “Bark of the Beast”, and “Evil Comes Home” it’s very easy for me to overlook this one and only gripe I have.  In conclusion I have to say that “Tales from the Unknown” is a gem that I feel any horror-punk fan will find something to enjoy, sure they aren’t Calabrese, Blitzkid, or Mister Monster but that’s something I love about these guys and this album.  It’s something new and refreshing to listen to, I highly and stress highly that you should go pick up this album for it will have something for any horror-punk fan to enjoy, young or old.  It is sure to do nothing but please you and it is easily becoming one of my favorite albums in my collection!

- Justin Stankus

The Woman

I kinda like how ”The Woman” came to be. From the information I have managed to gather, as a serious internet-based, self appointed movie reviewer, it all started back when this guy Andrew Van Den Houten adapted Jack Ketchum’s novel “Offspring”, which is in fact a sequel to the classic horror novel “Off Season”. I guess that “Offspring” (the movie) was successful enough to get this Van Den Houten guy thinking about a sequel, because as it turns out someone else owns the right to the first novel. The catch was that Ketchum had only written two novels!
What the hell are you gonna do, then? I’ll tell you what you’re gonna do: you get the original writer and one of the more talented guys among young horror directors together, and let them cook up a brand new story.
That’s what Van Den Houten did and when I say “one of the more talented guys”, I’m not talking about Van Den Houten himself, because even though I appreciated “Off Season” for what it was (a lean, mean, gory horror flick), this guy has nothing on Lucky McKee, who co-wrote and directed “The Woman”.

Now, if you’re not familiar with McKee’s body of work, you need to put out the joint you’re sucking on or put down that bottle of booze, right now. This has to be rectified, immediately. His debut “May” is one of the most assured first time-movies I’ve ever seen, with a magnificent performance by Angela Bettis. If this movie isn’t mentioned in all those “all time greatest horror films” in a couple of years, I’m gonna plunge head first into a lifelong depression, mark my words.
McKee followed this with “The Woods”, which was apparently tampered with by the studio but it’s still a pretty decent effort where the entire cast consists of a students at an catholic all girl school and honestly, who wants to argue with that artistic choice, huh?
Basically, McKee knows what he’s doing and the fact that he was attached to another Ketchum-adaptation (the 2008 effort “Red”) but dropped out due to artistic differences, gives you a hint that this guy isn’t just in it for the money. If he was, I guess that he could’ve directed one of the many remakes that’s been invading the horror scene these last couple of years. But he hasn’t. Which makes him an ok kinda guy, I guess. Everybody loves an artist with a vision, right?

Now, if you’re into horror at all, I mean just the slightest bit, and you’re not familiar with “The Woman”, I guess you’re kinda like the titular female character, which means that you’re spending your days in the wilderness, without contact with the civilized world. This movie created quite a stir when it was showed at Sundance and some guy started screaming that this movie should be banned and whatnot. I mean, for a day or two it was quite the interweb-sensation. But you know, that was a couple of months ago, so that’s ancient history by now. But after knowing all this, expectations were quite high when I sat down in the theatre to watch this one. I wondered if someone would start shouting and screaming at the festival showing I attended. I mean, I’m Swedish and we Swedes tend to be pretty liberal when it comes to movies’ contents, at least when it comes to the nudity part. Hell, we even released that “A Serbian Movie”-shit a couple of months ago, totally uncut!
Well, no one started screaming. In fact, most people seemed to enjoy it, unlike that Sundance guy. I don’t know what his problem was. I take it that he’s not a fan of Lucky McKee’s other flicks. Because, let me tell ya: this is a bold, original horror movie, exactly what the genre needs.

Just to be on the safe side, here’s the story for you who is in fact living in the wilderness: Chris Cleek (Sean Bridgers) is a successful country lawyer, who one day while out hunting comes across The Woman (Pollyanna Macintosh), the last surviving member of a cannibal clan who was roamed the Northeast American coast for decades. Naturally, like any red-blooded American he captures her and brings her home. His wife Belle (Angela Bettis) isn’t so thrilled. Not his daughter Peggy (Lauren Ashley Carter), either. But you know, this is the kind of family where daddy knows best, so it doesn’t matter much what they say. His son Brian (Zach Rand), on the other hand, is much more fascinated with this creature that’s now living in their cellar…

I’ve always had a fascination with horror movies that takes a closer look at family dysfunctions and Jack Ketchum is the guy to take a closer look at this kind of thing. After all, he wrote “The Girl Next Door” which was turned into a pretty decent flick a couple of years back. The family depicted in this movie is right up there with the Sawyer clan from the original “Texas Chainsaw Massacre”-movie, when it comes to fascinating families in the horror genre. Much of this is because Sean Bridgers and Angela Bettis’ fantastic performances as the parents. You know, when the movie starts out it’s kind of darkly humorous and this Bridgers guy has got this kind of Will Ferrell-thing going on, so you can’t help but laugh at him. He plays it like one of those Will Ferrell-characters that think that they are very authoritative but too stupid to realize that no one takes them seriously. Now imagine, if you were watching a Will Ferrell-movie like that, and then suddenly you realize that this stupid, funny guy actually beats his wife. That’s kind of how “The Woman” plays out, like a dark comedy that slowly but surely pulls the rug out from under you. And you know, when it’s finally pulled away, it’s really gone. You’re not gonna find that rug anywhere, man. Might as well just buy a new one…

But you know, Bridgers and Bettis isn’t the only ones who delivers a great performance in this one. This Pollyanna Macintosh chick that plays The Woman, she’s not afraid to let it all hang out, literally speaking. Most of the movie, she’s close to naked, but since her character doesn’t know how to speak, she communicates with looks and growls. And she’s pretty scary, let me tell ya! But like all good horror movie monsters, she’s oddly sympathetic, as well.

You gotta admire a movie like this, not for its gore and violence but for the fact that McKee & Ketchum has the guts to make a horror movie that examines the mechanisms of how men and women interact, even if it does mean that someone might accuse them of being misogynistic. McKee is that rare kind of director: a man who insists on making women his lead characters, and I applaud him for it. I hope this guy never loses his fascination with the female gender and keeps making movies like this. I don’t know what experiences McKee has had with his girlfriends, but man,  I hope that they keep doing whatever the hell it is that they’re doing to him.

I’m still kind of amused by the fact that a movie like this can still manage to create a controversy. I mean, the last time I checked it was 2011, right? And even though I keep wishing for that goddamn DeLorean car from “Back To The Future” every goddamn Christmas, I never get it, which means it’s still good old 2011. But come on, we’ve seen pretty much by now. For anyone to say that this movie is misogynistic is just plain stupid. “The Woman” says more about how men treats women in this day and age than any drama I’ve seen recently. That doesn’t mean that you gotta run out there and do it, right? I thought we were passed this stage by now.

So good one there, Mr. McKee, for creating that rare kind of beast: a horror movie that keeps the gorehounds satisfied, as well as us pretentious assholes who keep insisting on looking for a deeper meaning, an allegory or shit like that.

I could go on and on about this movie. I still haven’t mentioned how McKee uses music to great effect or how this Zach Rand-kid looks exactly like one of those creepy kids that used to be on that scary “Seventh Heaven” TV show. I think it’s better if you just find out that for yourself. You won’t regret it.  Rest assured: I have done myriads of things in my life that I regret. Watching “The Woman” wasn’t one of them.

Until next time: take scare!

Thomas