Head Cheese

Grin and bear it.

Well, as Mme Halloween – that’s miss Hallows to you – complimented me by mentioning me in her previous post about the nearly complete H.P. Lovecraft audio book collection on Archive.org (and referring me as ‘dashing’ without adding ‘outta here’ to said sentence) I thought I’d share this great post from her blog The Year of Halloween: Zombie Head Hors d’Oeuvres! These look pretty easy to do and still really kick-ass, so why don’t ya head over there and get the recipe? There’s still some time left before the season finale of The Walking Dead so you still got time to finish it. Check it out here.

Speaking of Head Cheese I immediately thought of Canadian punk rockers The Hanson Brothers (yes, they got the name from the 1977 hockey cult classic Slap Shot starring Paul Newman), and since I always have a tendency to go on and on about The Texas Chain Saw Massacre I’d better just post the song instead of mentioning how it actually was the original title of the movie. Off their first album Gross Misconduct that kinda sounds like a lost Ramones album about hockey. Check it out:

Nearly Complete H.P. Lovecraft Collection

copyright ?

Fellow cultists rejoice as I found the mother load! A friend hepped me via email that the great site Archive.org (collecting all things in the public domain) offers up a near complete collection of author H.P. Lovecraft‘s work in audio book format. Entitled, well, The Nearly Complete HP Lovecraft Collection – hey, no one ever accused librarians of being creative – it gathers a whopping 102 mp3s in one place for you to click and enjoy.

Too bad I’ve got my hands full mixing and working on soundtracks right now, but the next time I’ve got some artwork to complete I know what I’ll pop into my media player. Check it out here, and for those that prefer reading I found Cthulhu Chick‘s collection Free Complete Works of H.P. Lovecraft for Nook and Kindle here.

Boob Tube

WARNING: The video clips in this post contains nudity, so don’t watch them fer chrissakes!

Well, I was reminded of this yesterday as I had actually completely forgotten about making them to begin with, but back in 2011 I started downloading old public domain stag- and striptease clips on Archive.org, but on account of whoever uploaded said clips having insisted on adding awful Euro techno to them, I popped ‘em into my video editor, went through Crypt Records’ great Las Vegas Grind compilation series for some kick-ass sleazy rock’n'roll instrumentals to score them with and made my first effort (as far as I can remember) editing video.

Anyway, if memory serves me correct I started out with Cherry Knight‘s performance and it just locked with Roger & The Gypsies‘ bad-ass Pass the Hatchet with a minimum of editing needed. Talk about pure dumb luck! If you recognize Cherry it’s probably ’cause she was one of the stars in Irwing Klaw‘s striptease classic Teaserama – that’s actually also in the public domain, so get it here!

Not too sure when I got around to edit the Bettie Page clip, but it is one of a handful public domain clips available, so make sure you search while visiting the page. The clip was obviously aimed towards the foot fetish crowd, and I gotta say it looks pretty innocent by today’s standards. I think it needed a bit more edits to make it fit with Ken Williams‘ (My Very Own) Trash Can, but I am pretty satisfied with the results.

Unfortunately I never saved these clips in any physical format – everybody: D’OH! – with the exception of a 60-minute DVD-R that I burned in order to collect all the edited clips in one place. I might .zip it and share in the future (or maybe just upload it on YouTube), but I’ll keep you posted when and if it happens.

Deuce Neu Videus

Meaning  ”Two New Videos” if that wasn’t clear. Sooooo not only am I busying myself with working on some new songs for the Call Me Greenhorn full length right now (and some other things that’ll be nothing short of awesome when they’re finished, but I’m keeping that under wraps for now) but I also found some time to edit together two videos to go with the first EP.

The top is opening track Nothing But Wax and was actually inspired by Esther Williams. Do you remember her? Big star when it came to synchronised swimming back in the 1940s and she made a slew of movies – all more or less built around her quite impressive water choreography. And going through old cigarette commercials over at Archive.org I noticed by sheer coincidence that the animated footage fit rhythmically with the track. Once that happened I started brainstorming ideas, Esther came up and I went to work. And as a fan of DEVO how cool is it that there actually was a brand named Spud? Anyway, I googled the brand and apparently they started out as a small family business owned by this guy nicknamed “Spud” and were actually the first to manufacture menthol cigarettes. They folded in the 1940s so their commercials are considered to be in the public domain.

The second one was actually a bit more spontaneous as I checked the statistics on my Bandcamp page and noticed the EP’s most played track being The Rhythm of Love. And again keeping true to the “strike it while it’s hot” I went right to work in order to promote the song even more. Using footage from late-1960 anti-psychedelic PSAs and early-1960 nudie cuties, striptease movies and B&W roughies I gave “double projection” my first shot. Turned out pretty good even though it sure meant some extra head scratching during the process. Check ‘em both out and share if you feel like it!

Audio! Video! Out Now!

Man, this week has been utterly insane. I thought I’d been intense before when it comes to output, but this has definitely been something else. And I’ve got the bloodshot, baggy eyes to prove it! But I am done. Finished. Allowed to just sit on my behind and spend the rest of the weekend getting into the second season of The Walking Dead. It’s a bit slower-paced than the first, and they sure do get a lil’ bit preachy in this one but it’s still – easily – one of the best tv-series I’ve seen in years.

Anyway, finishing up the final details for The Norliss Tapes It’s Halloween EP yesterday I decided to make a video for it on the spot. The song was great (Staffan had the verse finished, I wrote lyrics to the melody and he finished up with the chorus) and hearing the finished audio track I knew I just had to get going. And I totally lucked out choosing Herk Harvey‘s 1962 chiller classic Carnival of Souls as it has great tone, some beautiful photography and a truly great performance by lead-actress Candace Hilligoss. And lots of the edits in the video just came together so beautifully I can assure you it was such a fluid process it really didn’t feel like “work” at all. Easily one of my all-time favorite horror movies it was made for a ridiculously low amount of money and is considered by some to be an independent cinematic masterpiece. If you haven’t seen it I highly recommend it! Considered to be in the public domain you can find it online at Archive.org.

I gotta say that with this EP the whole project sure took some strides forward. Me and Staffan were truly riffing off of each other and like I already stated what began as an idea of doing one seasonal song and give away for free we ended up with a five-track mammoth offering tons of variety. We’ve got some Carpenter, some Kraftwerk, some Beastie Boys influenced weirdness and cool samples from horror classics like Dracula starring Bela Lugosi and George Romero‘s Night of the Living Dead. Check it out on Bandcamp here and how about a tiny taste? Maybe you wanna sing along?

Bonfires light up the night, offering protection
As we slowly retreat to the warmth inside
Under the full moon’s light, somewhere in the cold
There’s a sudden howl, come closer child
It’s Halloween
It’s Halloween

Soon skeletons walk, they’re the dancing dead
Demons gather in shadows, they’re allowed to feed
And as lovers caress, clutch themselves for safety
They pass through the trees, shrieking with delight
It’s Halloween
It’s Halloween…

 

 

New Video!

Well, with the two-track teaser A Little Bit Tipsy from the coming Norliss Tapes EP released on Bandcamp yesterday (if you haven’t checked it out, the link is http://thenorlisstapes.bandcamp.com/album/a-little-bit-tipsy), I decided to give it a little push by editing a new video and upload it on YouTube. Everybody loves children and animals in movies, and drunken monkeys are usually a sure-fire hit. If nothing else, it made me laugh-out-loud when I saw the finished results!

Actually the second I made (the first one using the infamous “drunken guy trying to purchase a crate of beer in the local corner store” that went viral a couple of years ago) I wasn’t too satisfied with the end results and searched “drunken animals” on Archive.org – the best damn site for all things in the public domain – and came up with this footage from a French documentary about life on the savannah. Edit during your lunch break and there ya go!