Aug 13 2011

Freaky Tiki Surf-ari: Go!Tsunami

Go!Tsunami
Official Myspace
New Wave Order, Deep Eddy Records 2009

Comrade Voorhees approves!

The exact origins of Go!Tsunami are just as mysterious as the hockey mask-wearing musicians that make up the band. Checking their official bio will tell you the band was formed in Springfield, IL and how the band consists of:

Riptide
Stan Overboard
Stringray Jr.
The Fury

What isn’t quite so murky is the band’s style. Their special brand of “power surf” draws on a wide variety of influences, such as “hot rods, horror movies, long boards, tiki idols, beach parties, exotic islands, classic cars, pin-ups, cheap beer, and rum.” New Wave Order is the band’s debut album and let me tell you, they make one hell of a first impression.

You know you’re in good hands when you hear the classic surf sound (with plenty of reverb) that opens up “Rime of the Ancient Surfer.” The good times continue with “Camel Toe,” which features what appears to be a movie trailer sample and fantastic organ wor…oh, that’s gonna sound so wrong. “Midnight in Exotica” lets the group show that they weren’t just paying lip service to Tiki culture in their list of influences. While a lesser surf band might churn out a standard surf track and slap in a few bird calls to justify the use of the word “exotica” in the title, Go!Tsunami goes the extra mile. Simply put, this track is the perfect blend of exotica and surf. This mellow Tiki tune is nicely complimented by the reverb of the soft-yet somewhat speedy-guitars and features plenty of bird calls to boot. In “Go!Tsunami,” the percussion, organs and guitars rock just as hard as the band they’re named after. “Curse of the Flying Spider Monkey” starts slow, but quickly builds in both speed and intensity for a very catchy listening experience. The unusual clash of “Mermaid vs. Sasquatch” is depicted through a dueling organ and guitar which seem to represent each respective opponent. “40 Feet High and it Kills” is the name of the next song. Is it a wave? A monster? I honestly don’t know. What I do know is that this has semi-mellow surf feel despite its obvious connotations of power.

In “Pirate Prostitutes of the Peloponnesus,” a warped guitar opens for soft cymbals and slow surf goodness, which concludes with some excellent piano work. Despite the name, “Dia de los Dangerous” doesn’t have a “Latin” feel, but the deep sound definitely makes me think of danger. As any kaiju fan will tell you, “Matango!” is a reference to the classic Toho film. Although it has a soft open, but soon revs up to breakneck reverby goodness. Speaking of references to Japanese pop culture, “Mt. Midoriyama” appears to be a tribute to the series Sasuke (better known in the US as Ninja Warrior). The organ is clearly the star here, but the guitar work is nothing to sneer at. Regular listeners of our podcast might recognize “Hot Zombie” from its appearance in our zombie-themed episode. It’s fast, it rocks and it rules. ’nuff said. Although the opening guitars of “Bushwacked” start off with a “Latin” feel, there’s a somewhat “western” feel to rest of this track. “Painkiller” is fast and furious from the get-go and never stops. Ever. The sullen reverb at the opening of “Falcon 7” contrasts with the speedy energetic tone of the majority of the song, though it does go well with the organ and percussion work towards the end.

After listening to New Wave Order, I can confidently say there’s not a bad song in the bunch. While it is a CD-R release, the disc design and packaging scream “professional.” No bargain bin slimcases and inkjet-printed cover art here. You’d never guess this wasn’t a factory-pressed disc unless you flipped the disc over.

On a final note, I would like to note how the band is aware that their name might raise some eyebrows due to the unfortunate events in Japan earlier in the year. This is an unfortunate coincidence, as the name was in use years before the disaster struck. In fact, the group has worked to help raise money to help with tsunami relief. For more information about their relief work (and other concerts), please visit their Facebook page.

Special thanks to Go!Tsunami for the review copy!

Aug 12 2011

Freaky Tiki Surf-ari: The Return

Moai zowie!

That’s right…the Freaky Tiki Surf-ari is back and better than ever! We even have a logo this time around! We’re still going to take a look at the connections between Tiki culture, surf music and horror while not being quite as…overwhelming as last year’s installment. Weird Jon has also been fine-tuning his music reviewing style for maintaining the same in-depth coverage without having quite the same length of last year’s work. Those new to the Freaky Tiki Surf-ari should definitely look at the previous incarnation:

The Sound of Tiki
Strange But Surf
Arthur Lyman
Witches in Bikinis
Waitiki
The Waitiki 7
Shag! and The Art Of Tiki
Daikaiju
Kava Kon
Arts & Crafts
The Moon-Rays
Chaino (NSFW cover art)
The Mission Creeps
Stereophonic Space Sound Unlimited
Man Or Astro-Man?
Robert Drasnin
The Surf Zombies
Don Tiki
Satan’s Pilgrims
The Ghastly Ones

That ought to tide you over until the new reviews are posted. As an added bonus, we have a special tie-in episode scheduled for our “6’+ (Six Foot Plus)” podcast! If all goes according to plan, it will have a fine mix of exotica and surf music taken from musicians covered last year, this year, and even some artists we hope to cover in the future. Keep your eyes here (or at either of our Facebook pages) for more details.

In the meantime, you can have fun listening to past episodes, where you’ll find at least one surf or exotica track per episode. Our most recent episode, “Aloha Luau Aloha” should be of definite interest to all who are reading this.

Aug 11 2011

I’m Back! (Let’s Do The Time Warp Again)

As faithful readers are already aware, June was a rough month for me. Two lengthy articles had to go on the back burner and my computer’s untimely death set back both my GdL and real-life responsibilities, so much so that I had to spend all of July (and some of August) catching up on everything. As you can imagine, this played hell with my site duties and I had to use my time warp powers to put everything in their proper place. But since this messed up how the new updates appeared, I thought it best to create a quick guide to the articles in question.

Lovecraftian Audio a Go-Go:

Special Order
Sticks
H.P. Lovecraft Radio Hour Volume 1

It should also be noted that I recently made a correction to the Special Order review, so you should check it out even if you read it when it originally came out.

For all of you who already ready those articles, here’s some more time warp fun from SaturnProduction:

Oh, and remember those articles I had to put on the back burner? Keep your eyes peeled in September, as that’s when I hope to have “The King In Yellow” and “Music to Game By” ready and posted.

Aug 10 2011

Zombie Hunters & ZEROs

If you hung around The Monster Channel on Sundays, you probably caught an episode of “Zombie Hunters: City of the Dead.” The independent horror series depicts the process of culling the growing zombie plague affecting a major metropolitan area. The effects are really great and the acting is pretty good. All the episodes are available online for your watching. 

The tone of the series is very dramatic, sort of The Shield with zombies. There’s a lot of drama dealing with politics and personal agendas. When writing about The Return Man, I remembered ‘Zombie Hunters: City of the Dead.’ Most zombie scenarios are built around the idea that the protagonists aren’t survivalists and are at a severe disadvantage when it comes to warding off the horde of undead. Considering that even the Center for Disease Control seems in on the fun, the idea that we’d be unprepared for this outbreak is becoming less and less of a plausibility. Something like the ‘Zombie Hunters’ is going to be the new norm for the genre if the story is going to happen over any other time than the initial hours of the outbreak.  

Seems that non-indie outlets are jumping on the trend.  At the end of July, SyFy announced the production of the ZEROs. If I read the release and the follow-up talk over at FearNet, either the pilot got green-lit or the whole series is in production. Probably the former. Zeros (short for the Zombie Exermination and Removial Operations) is described by castmember Brian Peck as “Reno 911! meets The Walking Dead,” ZEROs is going to be a satrical view where Zombie Hunters is serious.

I kind of look forward to this show. I hope it gets picked up for a full season (if it hasn’t already) because it would be a welcomed addition to the genre. Hopefully, the writing’s good behind it. Though there are plenty of ways to make a zombie outbreak funny, it’ll be interesting to see which way this show goes.

A lot of changes in the Zombie genre. World War Z got a release date of December 12th, 2012 (hawhaw, 122112. very clever, guys!) and with The Return Man, Zombie Hunters and ZEROs coming out, seems there’s still some life in zombies after all.

Aug 09 2011

The Man Who Collected Food

Caught a glimpse of this 2010 film a few days ago. THE MAN WHO COLLECTED FOOD came out on DVD & Blu-Ray last month and its generating a buzz for its interesting premise.

“Miguel Appet is a serious collector.  He must have the color variants, the rarities, the 1950s originals: every food he can find–and keep–in mint condition.  No one but his overbearing mother knows that his home, tucked in the quiet suburb of Cibuston, has become a massive museum to comestibles….And Miguel eats…people.  He has to, since eating his precious food is not an option.  However, being a cannibal is not as easy as it seems, especially when you have a food collection to take care of…”

Cannibalism! It’s interesting that this is a suburban take on the concept of human-eat-human. Hannibal Lector added a high-class sociopath spin to a behavior commonly associated with unsophistication (i.e. savage rednecks and Amazonian tribes.) Plus, I’m curious to see why Miguel collects food and how he started down this path of eating people. My first thoughts after viewing the trailer is that Miguel is played to be possibly autistic? Or am I confusing the eye of the collector with that mental/physical condition?

I need to get a copy of this movie and put a review up. The premise seems really interesting and I’m dangerously getting my hopes up.  But I have a good feeling about this. If anyone else has seen this – is it good? What did you like about it?

Find the official site here and the Facebook page over here.

 

Aug 09 2011

Tuesday uEtsy: Grichels

Tuesday uEtsy

Grichels – A Wrinkle in Reality
http://www.etsy.com/shop/grichels

Grichels leather keychain – black with rusty brown fox eye

This is a horrible time to feel alone. With the economy hovering between the limbo of life and death, the current well-being of multiple generations growing more perilous, it’s a bad time to be isolated from the rest of the world. Uncertainty and strife will lead a person down a dark path and there’s the peril of not turning back.

[Note: If you feel like you’re alone, reach out to the right people who can offer you assistance. Please. You always have options and there are people who genuinely care about your well-being, even if they don’t know you. There are empathetic individuals who want to help lighten your load. It works.]

Privacy is a good thing, however. Being able to feel alone, even among the wild throngs of humanity that surge and flood the small towns and metropolitans alike, is a growing luxury for some.

We know there are individuals out there whose personality and thoughts are only meant for themselves, that such a self-sustaining character can act without social connections to anyone else. Prof. Luquet was like that, as well is Mr. Fallingard to some extent. To some, these individuals who exist without ties are either self-sufficient examples of proper living or dangerous sociopaths.

This all leads to the works of Grichels, whose works incorporates the unblinking eye. It’s amazing leatherwork that involves some creepy visuals. If you need someone to watch over you, this is a good way to find a totem to guide you through the dark night until the first light of the next morning.

Grichels leather pendant necklace – black with gold speckled fish eye

Sometimes, you need a third eye. And sometimes, that eye doesn’t have to be your own. Take, for example, this pendant. You’re in a heated argument with a bitter rival over something that can make or break this career. Suddenly, you pull out this pendant, previously hidden in the confines of your shirt. Revealing its unmoving stare, the necklace stuns your opponent, leaving you at an advantage. Either you then trap them in a box or move on to the meeting to give your proposal. Depends on what field you’re in.

Grichels leather pin/tie tack/brooch – black with transparent blue glass eye

Grichels makes a lot of distinct, emotive faces out of leather. Those vegans in our readership are probably arguing that leather used to be someone’s face. They’re right. If you are uncomfortable with leather, you might want to come back next week. Or probably switch to a non-animal-biproduct vinyl substitute. And be sure to apply babypowder. If you’re uncomfortable with leather, vinyl isn’t that much better. If this conversation is awkward, imagine how powerful it could be when you have this brooch on your chest.

Grichels Sony Pocket Reader cover with light – ‘Gonart’ 11694 – black with blue eyes

Clearly, Grichels wasn’t going to let the opportunity to make a living-face book covering pass by. Instead of hampering the cover with just one book, Grichels has outfitted this cover for a Sony Pocket Reader. This character is named Gonart. We don’t know why and we are too afraid to ask, to be honest.

Grichels leather eyepatch – black with red and gold fish eye

Normally, when you lose an eye, that’s when a glass substitute comes into play; however, not like this. Perhaps you haven’t lost the eye and just scratched it, getting a recommendation from your optometrist to wear a patch for a few days while your cornea heals. Why go the traditional (read: BORING) route of a medical patch when you can don this leather get-up from Gretchels. Perfect if you also want to be a scarecrow while taking a nap or cheating at a staring contest.

Grichels leather hair thing – metallic gunmetal silvery gray with steel blue shark eyes

When he was growing up, Strange Jason came across a picture book that showed workers in India wearing tiger masks on the back of their head. With the two-faces constantly watching, the cartoon tiger couldn’t sneak up on the men as they did whatever they did. We’re not entirely sure of that practice’s validity and Strange Jason has gone on to say “sounds kind of racist to me, but whatever. Could be real. Who knows?” If there is some truth to keeping predators from messing with your day by having a fixed gaze warding them off, welcome to Grichels; only here can you have this grimacing face look at all the people behind you. Pretty amazing, right?

These amazing products AND MORE are available here. Peep them and buy them. After getting an eyeful, come back next week for another Tuesday uEtsy.

Got a etsy store in mind that might be good for a Tuesdy uEtsy spotlight? Drop us a line.

Aug 08 2011

The Return Man (plus Contest)

Zombie, Ohio by  Scott Kenemore was the first real zombie novel I read. Eventually, I will have to read the Max Brooks contributions to the genre, especially with the movie of World War Z coming out. 

I think with the Zombie Saturation Horizon reaching critical levels, my aversion of all things Z was more of a timely going-with-the-flow. However, thanks to Dread Central this morning, I figure it’s time to go against the grain and check out V.M. Zito’s upcoming novel, The Return Man.

Much like Zombie, Ohio, the synopsis of The Return Man approaches the zombie apocalypse scenario from a different perspective. Where Kenemore put some philosophy to the undead’s existence, Zito will apply some more economical aspects. In the synopsis, the character Henry Marco is a “corpse tracker” who is hired by grieving families to return their zombified loved ones back to the grave. Along with the thriller of trying to fulfill a suicide mission contract while competing against a deadly assassin, the premise is ripe with a different level of emotional exploration that is just now getting a greater portion of the spotlight in the “—-apocalypse” fad of the last decades.

Creating a business of killing zombies to put the mourning families at rest is a pretty clever idea. It’s got my interest and hopefully, I’ll have a review of the book when it comes out in March 2012. Until then, you can go over to V. M. Zito’s site, check the blog and even read a few free chapters.  

There’s also a contest where you can have a character named after you in the book. Go here, fill out the question and submit. Who knows? You might end up a zombie or a grief-stricken employer that gives Henry Marco some work.  

Hodder & Stoughton will release The Return Man to major bookstores (which ones are left) in March 2012. I’m sure there will be an e-version of the book for all you Nook/Kindle/Pocket Reader types out there.  Get excited.

 

Aug 05 2011

6′+ Episode 10 is Up!

To quote the description given at the new listing:

“Heavy surf awaits you in this sea-centric episode. Marvel in amazement and reel in shock as you fathom horrors of the deep. Dare you tackle The Dagons, Eve Hell and the Razors, and Thee Jaguar Sharks? What about Zombie Surf Camp, the Killcreeps and GWAR? All this and more lurks for you beneath the waters so c’mon. Let’s swim.”

You can find all episodes of 6’+ over at the official site as well as on iTunes. We’re also on Facebook and Twitter.

Aug 03 2011

Up Hi? Down low: The Aquabats and growing old.

You’re getting old. Does that scare the hell out of you? It drives Mr. Fallingard to stay up at night. I haven’t lost any sleep over it but I did lose something.

You see, there isn’t a lot of music that I avoid. Yes, there are some genres I don’t like. I find that’s an acceptable practice.  There’s very little chance you’ll find me owning any dubstep or releases from artists like The String-Cheese Incident or Lil’ Wayne. But I think that’s not terribly offensive. However, I hate HI-FIVE SOUP! by The Aquabats.

I do, however, like The Aquabats. THE FURY OF THE AQUABATS! is a great album. VS. THE FLOATING EYEBALL had some weak spots but the collection MYTHS, LEGENDS AND OTHER AMAZING ADVENTURES VOL.2 is a great batch of songs. Though they abandoned the horns on CHARGE!!!, the album grew on me and it turned out to be a great step for the band as they matured. But if I can help it, I will never listen to HI-FIVE SOUP! again.

The Aquabats have always had a slightly ridiculous and, dare I say, zany approach to their songs. Their earlier releases had some youthful anthems (“My Skateboard”, “Red Sweater”) and songs about weird creations (“The Cat With Two Heads”, “Powdered Milk Man”, “Magic Chicken”). However, though they sang about junior-high in “Pizza Day,” the music was universally accessible. It was the product of the group’s generation, harking back to Saturday Morning while going to work early on a Tuesday. But man. HI-FIVE SOUP takes that youthful exuberance and cranks it waaaaaay the hell up.

In an interview, the alter ego of the MC Bat Commader, Christian Jacobs, said about HI-FIVE SOUP:

“I think on Charge!! [The Aquabats] were tackling some more sophisticated humor, things like fashion, popular culture and stuff that isn’t as kiddy or pre teen as the early AQUABATS! stuff, where we were singing about tarantulas and baking chocolate cakes and midget pirates. I think this new record has more stuff like that o it, silly kid stuff, which is fun. It’s less trying to appeal to a little bit older crowd and just trying to appeal to the Halloween costume crowd, ya know?”

He’s right. CHARGE!! did deal with some developed concepts. “Stuck In A Movie!” was about the problem of relying on fictional media as a framing reference point for real life. “Look At Me (I’m A Winner!)” dealt with the concept of viewing yourself as a success, even if you’re spending your days working on a jobsite with ‘four radios blasting classic rock.’ “Fashion Zombies!” addressed the problems of dressing up in retro-fashions. Of course, there were songs about giant mechanical apes, nerd alerts and waterslides. There was stuff for the kids but also for their older siblings. I was in mid twenties when the album came out and I could still jam out to both “Plastic Lips!” and “Demolition Rickshaw!” alike.

I’ve been trying to figure out what “the Halloween costume crowd” means, though I think he meant “kids.” Specifically, “those kids who have made our kid show ‘Yo Gabba Gabba’ a hit.” Granted, that makes a lot of sense. The show started in 2007, thirteen years after the Aquabats started as a band. Even from the beginning, the band existed with theatrical elements, based on what I assume is the influence of MC Bat Commander (aka Christian Jacobs) tenure as a child/teen actor.

There were numerous of unsuccessful attempts to transform the Aquabats into a television entity, with only the recent announcement that The Hub will turn “The Aquabats Super Show” into a reality. The children’s show, ‘Yo Gabba Gabba,’ is a, if not the most important success in the Aquabats’ career. To modify their music to appeal to the group most likely to identify them from that show seems a logical, if not a bit too-safe, decision.

It could also be that the departure of longtime guitarist, Chainsaw the Prince of Karate, removed a mature element of the band in terms of songwriting. In the DVD documentary that came with the 1-Year Anniversary reissue of Charge!!!, Chainsaw comes off more like the dude who just wants to play punk rock and not deal with the all the childish, goofy shit. Off to tend to his thriving woodcarving business, Chainsaw might have taken a good counterbalance to the music writing process. Or not. Who knows for sure?

What I do know is HI-FIVE SOUP is not an album made for me. I was disappointed to find that out, to discover that I was too big for the ride. I had unknowingly committed the unforgivable sin of growing older. The music, to my ears, is a bit regressive and simplified, but The Aquabats aimed their sound for a younger audience. It’s not a case of two entities drifting apart. It’s more that they went a hard left as I inevitably turned right.

There are bands that I have outgrown, selling or giving away my copies of their CDs since their hair rock or death metal fashions no longer need apply. But this is the only time I can remember a band outgrowing me. If at the great concert of metaphor, I had to give up my space in the audience because three younger fans needed to get in and see the show. I can be resentful for it, but if this means the band can rise to greater levels of success, the disappointment will taper off.

I think staving off death or prolonging a condition that should have ended is a common thread in horror. It’s always about conquering death, refusing defeat and maintaining a level of comfort or power even when the moment has passed. I could be a monster, snarling and riddled with angst at what I saw as a betrayal as I pursue the reversal of the clock’s hands. Or, I can be glad that I got a chance to see the band a couple of times and that they released some albums that I really like. I’m too old for The Aquabats. Kind of sucks but I had my turn being a Cadet. I’ve gotten older and it’s time to let the kids have some fun. After all, with the Aquabats, it’s always about doing it for the kids.

Aug 02 2011

Year of The Von Drats

2011 might be the year of The Von Drats, the surf band from out of Toronto. Riding high from their debut release in 2010, the rockin’ “Dratsylvania,” the band has seen a pick-up in activity in 2011.  First, they were the only surf band on the Rue Morgue comp, Hymns from the House of Horror Vol.2 (which, if you haven’t downloaded by now, it’s too damn late and you had over three months to do it. Lazybones.)

The momentum has carried the band forward. They recently “backed” the debut run of The Tiki Bikini Beach Paradise Party A-Go-Go in Toronto’s 2011 Fringe Festival, sort of the festival to let the freaks and geeks have the stage and spotlight in a town that’s notoriously known as the place where hit Broadway plays go to get their act together before schleping down to New York. From what the reviews make of it, ‘The Tiki Bikini Beach Paradise Party A-Go-Go’ is a loving tribute to the beach movies and surfer/island culture of the 50’s and 60’s. From what I’ve read and heard from someone who has went, it’s a fun show and I’m glad that the Von Drats were able to participate. The show was listed as part of the “Best of Fringe,” and I doubt the show could have gone there without the expert music from those horizontal-striped Dratsylvanians.

As if being stars of the underground stage wasn’t enough, the Von Drats have taken to the airwaves. Or cablewaves. They provide the opening theme to the SPACE series, Fanboy Confessional. Check out the trailer below.  

Fanboy Confessional from Markham Street Films on Vimeo.

 

Aug 02 2011

Tuesday uEtsy: Timebomb Kustoms

Tuesday uEtsy

Timebomb Kustoms
http://www.etsy.com/shop/timebombkustoms

Out here in Leathbridge, there’s a part where the river bends around a rocky bit of hillside where townsfolk usually camp out on hot days to go swimming in the deep part of the bend, deep enough that the brave can jump from anywhere up to twenty feet and be safe.

Up past the safe point, where the posted signs and installed fences prohibit diving sit rusty but none the less efficient, an eye can look out past Phrank Point and see the curve of the interstate that follows the river’s path. A lot of freight gets shifted on that way since it’s too far from any port or train depot.

Late night, you’ll find a few more than just teenagers leaning over the fence. Some old bodies with deep eyes gaze out at the road and see all the million miles that never got put under their feet. People stuck in town, by happenstance or by choice. It’s a quiet time, where lit cigarette butts trick fireflies into dancing and the only sound save the splash of the nighttime water on the cold riverbank is a passing truck, its highbeams lighting up the forest.

Bubbling tiki mug

Capturing some of the wild side of the road is Timebomb Kustoms. Elbow deep in the black-red oil of the kustom kulture, these pieces of art are available for both your living room and your front cab.

Von Frankeneye

You know what this world needs? More flying eyeballs. We don’t think there’s enough flying eyes in this world for its own good. There’s too little flying eyes for our tastes. Thank goodness that Timebomb Kustoms has provided this beautiful print of what we need, now more than ever.

Brown Dum Dum Tiki shift knob

Automatic transmission wastes fuel and if you learn how to drive stick, you’ll find that it’ll make you 15% more attractive to people you will want to date. These are reasons alone to try your hand at Standard transmission, though good luck with the clutch. However, as a reward to mastering the shifting gears, get yourself this shift knob. Timebomb Kustoms has a wide range of available adornments to your stick, to add that bit personality to your ride.

Atomic Frank shift knob

You don’t need a hotrod to buy one of these. You could have a Shriner’s go-kart, much like the Atomic Frank demonstrates here with his thermonuclear fez. If you want Frank here to just watch you play World of Warcraft and judge you, by all means. Purchase. Though, from looking at that smile, Frank here isn’t that much of a judging type. Frank’s cool.

8×18 pinstriped and metal flake panel

Bad pinstripes are like the crappy prison tattoo of cars. If you’re going to screw around with your car, why not save up and get some decent work done. And for some of you who DON’T have cars, hell. Why let that stop you? WHY LET  ANYTHING STOP YOU? Instead, you can purchase this metal panel, flaked and striped from Timebomb Kustoms and hang it in your room. That’s how much of a gear head you are. You don’t even need a car.

 

The Atomic Trucker

If knobs and metal panels aren’t your thing, we don’t know what to say. Hopefully, it’s not permanent. Instead, try to cure yourself with some of the original art on display here. Much like the Ed Roth, Rat Fink type, Timebomb Kustoms doesn’t get itself bogged down in the kustom kulture’s heyday, instead looking forward to the future. And the future GLOWS IN THE DARK. We can’t say this paining glows in the dark. It will keep an eye on things when your asleep. Let that comfort you.

Go to Timebomb Kustoms esty page and find out how you can make your life so much cooler. But you’ll never be too cool for another Tuesday Etsy spotlight next week.

Aug 01 2011

Funding Leslie Vernon

The 2006 movie Behind The Mask was an ambitious movie that tried to revitalize the slasher genre by incorporating the meta commentary/elements into the movie itself. The premise involves a camera crew trailing a murderer named Leslie Vernon, offering analysis on the general tropes of the 80’s slasher format as well as the specific character elements of this movie.  

It’s a bold piece of work that tries to hotshot the next great American monster, though I don’t know if the genre is ready for a boogeyman named “Leslie Vernon.” As a film, it’s enjoyable. The mockumentary format goes for the majority of the film, with the last act turning cinematic. It’s a movie that set some lofty goals and we might commend it for having the chutzpah to shoot as high as it did, even though some of its efforts might have fallen flat.  

There’s always promise for a sequel, no matter what corner you write yourself into. Thanks to Dread Central for pointing it out that the “sequel/remake/revisioning” “Before The Mask” is looking for financial backing. The filmmakers have decided to crowdsource the funding. Much like a pledge drive (and like various sites like Kickstarter and IndieGoGo) different donation levels get you different reward packages. The basic level pre-orders a copy of the DVD, even though the movie hasn’t been made yet. It’s an interesting concept that allows for more creative projects to get produced. If you’re interested at looking to see how you can monetarily support this project, head over to the Facebook page.  

Is this the future of low-budget movies? Will the independent horror genre rely more on its audience to see the products get made? Is this a new avenue or a fad to be burnt out? Your comments are welcomed.

Jul 30 2011

H.P. Lovecraft Radio Hour Volume 1

Silly tentacle monster, that's not a Japanese schoolgirl!

Founded in 2008, the goal of the H.P. Lovecraft Radio Hour is to spread awareness of Lovecraft’s works in audio form using a mix of adaptations and original comedy sketches (as a way of “eroding the grains of sanity you so hopelessly clutch”). The debut release, H.P. Lovecraft Radio Hour Volume 1, features the following Lovecraft stories from early in his career: “The Picture in the House,” “Dagon” and “Beyond the Wall of Sleep.” After a very humorous introduction warning us of the dangers of listening to the program, we soon hear the tale of a young man traveling rural New England by bicycle who is forced into an abandoned house by a storm. Once inside, he discovers the rare book Regnum Congo and is quickly repulsed by the graphic depictions of cannibalism within. However, he soon finds that he is not alone as he originally thought and his host’s eccentricities quickly grow more and more disturbing. Despite the name “C’thulhu and the R’lyeh Riders,” the comedy sketch is not a parody of western-themed radio dramas. Instead, it’s a broadcast from Miskatonic University, where Cthulhu and his rock band are being interviewed to promote their reunion album! “Dagon,” a prequel of sorts to Lovecraft’s The Shadow Over Innsmouth, tells the story of a merchant marine whose life was changed forever during the first World War. After escaping from his German captors at sea, he eventually drifted onto what he assumed to be a section of the ocean floor that had been brought to the surface by volcanic activity. The decay and strange monuments were bad enough, but what happened one fateful night made the horrors of war seem downright cheery. “The Iron Cauldron” is a comedy bit featuring a very familiar character sharing cooking tips and “Beyond the Wall of Sleep” deals with the recollections of a former asylum employee’s experience with a backwoods patient whose strange visions turned out to be more than mere madness.

Combining faithful adaptations with excellent performances and music, the H.P. Lovecraft Radio Hour has made an excellent first impression. Although only one actor (Ryan Haggerty) is used for the most part, his wide vocal range makes allows him to do so without it being obvious to the listener. This is aided in part due to the use of Lovecraft tales featuring a narrator recounting past events, which make for a hybrid of audio drama and audio book similar to Batman: The Stone King. I also enjoyed the clever use of audio effects. In addition to using them to accentuate the descriptions of the illustrations mentioned in “The Picture in the House,” there’s also an interesting instance of using them to represent one of Lovecraft’s infamous “italicized endings.” My only compliant involves the comedy sketches. While the introduction was hilarious and “C’thulhu and the R’lyeh Riders” was pretty amusing, “The Iron Cauldron” just didn’t work for me. I think the problem with writing Mythos-themed comedy is that the split second you mention a particular character, the audience almost always know what direction the rest of the sketch will go in. Your mileage may vary. That (very) minor issue aside, I highly recommend the H.P. Lovecraft Radio Hour Volume 1 to both longtime Lovecraft fans and those who are just getting into his work. I hope they switch over from CD-Rs to factory-pressed CDs in future, as I think the series could do very well in “brick and mortar” retail settings.

Keep your eyes on the official website, as a second volume is in the works. When will it be released? When the stars are right…

Special thanks to Changing Elevations for the review copy!

Jul 29 2011

The Case of the Haunted Hotel

Given the widespread popularity of their sketch comedy videos (my personal favorite being Girls Are Not To Be Trusted), Derrick Comedy requires no introduction. A few years back, they took a break from sketch comedy to shoot the film Mystery Team, which details what happens when a group of grown up child detectives try to solve a murder. To help promote the film, Derrick Comedy released a short film detailing the trio tackling a classic case for junior detectives: investigating an allegedly haunted building. Given its obvious appeal to readers of Gravedigger’s Local 16, I thought I’d share it with you:

It should also be noted that Derrick Comedy sketches tend to be of the NSFW variety. You have been warned!

Jul 23 2011

6′+ Episode 9 is Up!

To quote the description given at the new listing:

“We’re missing the 2011 Psychobilly Luau and that SUCKS!

Three days worth of bands with DJs, Burlesque dancers, sideshow acts, raffles, vendors and every sensible psychobilly and horror punk band on the East Coast. We spend this episode celebrating the show (that we’re not going to be at) by playing music from Henchmen, Labretta Suede and the Motel Six, Screamin’ Rebel Angels, The Memphis Morticians and more.

When you’re done listening to this episode, head over to www.psychobillyluau.com today to see all the information.”

You can find all episodes of 6’+ over at the official site as well as on iTunes. We’re also on Facebook and Twitter.

Jul 19 2011

Tuesday uEtsy: The Koob Tube

Tuesday uEtsy

The Koob Tube
http://www.etsy.com/shop/jkoob13

Forbidden Love 8X10 Print

Come this Thursday, we’re on the other side of summer. It’s a peak time when the sunlight lingers the longest and we start to look forward to the sliding temperatures while enjoying what days we have left before busting out the long sleeves.

Old Gus, not one for the warmer weather, has been sticking inside while the other three Quiet Side workers have managed the grounds. Thankfully, not too many new graves have been needed. We’ve been blessed, though the summer heat has required a lot of watering to keep the grounds looking decent for visitors.

Quiet Side has had a couple quarry men come by, talking with Stephen Berneau’s father who runs the Funeral Home about some replacement headstones. They’ll have to talk with Quiet Side’s Director but it’s usually take a month or so. Though it’ll be a while before it arrives, there’s already signs of people preparing for fall.

It might be a good time to consider your own preparation. Thankfully, there’s this week’s Tuesday uEtsy, with The Koob Tube.

Evil Trio 4X6 Postcard

Specializing in art, the Koob Tube is the work of Jeremy Coutuier, showcasing some of the best of pop and cult culture. Not only does he have prints, but he also has post cards available. Still need to write ‘WISH YOU WERE HERE’ to someone? Why not send a trio of the classic monsters of horror to liven up someone’s day.

Cthulhu Calling 8X10 Print

Payphones still exist. Everywhere. They’re not as old as the Old Ones but they’re still around. Thank goodness that they are, because there’s hardly any signal in R’yleh.

Mars Tango Original Illustration

Plenty of satellite service on Mars, though. It’s not known but the red planet is considered one of the most romantic in the solar system. Neptune is too frigid and Venus, like its name, comes on way too hot and heavy. So when considering intergalactic dating, think of Mars.

The Thing in the Moonlight 8X10 Print

If getting a call from C’thulu wasn’t enough, there’s this Lovecraftian print featuring a fretful trolley man ferrying something frightful towards…Fresno? Who knows. Do you? If so, buy it and display it.

F is for Femme Fatales 4X6 Postcard

If monsters and mars aren’t your thing, the Koob Tube offers this noir-post card that can fill your friends or family mailbox with some Mike Hammereque intrigue. Or perhaps, you know someone who enjoys having a dame filter in between the cable bills and Trader Joe magazines.

Find more work of art available at The Koob Tube’s official Etsy store. Purchase and decorate and enjoy the summer!

 

 

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