Another UFO: Another Supplemental (Document #MVM02) (A Hellraiser Installment)

WFMU Playlist & Interactive Live Chat

On the anniversary of the Roswell Incident this year, we broke open the UFO file here in the Lava Lamp Lounge, and offered a long meditation on that particular corner of UFO-logy. However, I uncovered a treasure trove of vintage UFO documentaries, and decided to get back to that subject, this time for our annual Halloween Spook-tacular. While Aliens are not precisely Halloween fare, it was nice to settle down with something weird and spooky to close out the season this year.

Enjoy!

Dimestore Radio Theater Halloween Spook-tacular 2025! (Part 4)

WFMU Playlist & Interactive Live Chat

Closing our our annual Spook-tacular this year, we continue with Four presentations that are perfect for the spooky in your family. More installments of The Weird Circle, The Price of Fear and Quiet, Please are all on the docket, but we also have a very curious novelty – The Haunted House of Song – that will give you something special to enjoy, outside of the usual shows. Dig in… if you dare!

Enjoy!

WFMU Playlist & Interactive Live Chat

Digging into the archives again, to look for more music and recordings by The People Who Died, trying to keep it focused to 2025 deaths, for the Halloween Spook-tacular this year. Actual deaths are a lot scarier than anything else I could think of, and there were too many to avoid dedicating a show to all of it. Lynch and Lehrer wind up in the mix, along with many other folks, too many to contain in one show, as all of this spilled over into another show a few weeks later.

Enjoy!

Dimestore Radio Theater Halloween Spook-tacular 2025! (Part 3)

WFMU Playlist & Interactive Live Chat

Our annual Halloween Spook-tacular continues, and with it, our tour through mid-century horror radio wends through the dusty corridors, to find new aural treats that have not yet scared us before. More installments of our four regular October Shows are available for you, including stories from The Weird Circle, The Price of Fear, The Strange Dr. Weird, and Quiet, Please. Celebrate Halloween the right way, with horror selections, from us.

Enjoy!

In Search Of The Ghost Hunters of The Mid-Valley (A Hellraiser Installment)

WFMU Playlist & Interactive Live Chat

It’s the holiday season, and as usual, we find that the once-a-year tradition of seeing the Ghost Hunters emerge and get sighted by any number of local oddball, here in the Mid-Valley. Miss Rikki (of legendary Closet Radio  fame) joins me for a tour of the Mid-Valley, in search of ghosts and other mysterious happenings. There’s plenty of music, natch, and we do our best to find the scariest parts of the Mid-Valley… all while trying to raise a little coin for WFMU.

Enjoy!

Dimestore Radio Theater Halloween Spook-tacular 2025! (Part 2)

WFMU Playlist & Interactive Live Chat

Our annual Halloween Spook-tacular is off to a good start this year, as we continue our journey through four horror radio mid-century broadcasts from the dark side of the radio dial. Its holiday installments of The Weird Circle, The Price of Fear, The Strange Dr. Wierd, and Quiet, Please, all ready to scare you into the spirit of the season.

Enjoy!

… IN HELL.

WFMU Playlist & Interactive Live Chat

In a rare radio event that was far too long in the making, Miss Rikki of Closet Radio notoriety joins me for a pseudo A Momentary Lapse of Reason reunion, as we join forces as Jungle Room correspondents, who have gone on-location, to a town at the southern end of the Mid-Valley, with the unlikely name of Hell. In this scripted adventure with a cast of characters almost too numerous to mention, we’ll go to Hell and Back just to bring you some Holiday Entertainment. Will we survive this incredible adventure? Who will we meet along the way? Will it all be in the name of ridiculous Halloween fun?

You can count on it.

Enjoy!

WFMU Playlist & Listener Comments

Enjoy!

Enjoy!

WFMU Playlist & Interactive Live Chat

Additional “Riders To The Stars” Resources.

(Just the audio “commentary,” and video versions of the broadcast.)

20 Minutes Into The Future 2024 Halloween Special! (A Big Time Television Celebration)

It’s that time of year, when our thoughts turn to those of Halloween!

Heather would have picked something local.

Austin is stuck in the 80’s, at Halloween.

Our Setlist:
Vic Crume * The Haunted House
Tim Curry * The Halloween Song
Oingo Boingo * Dead Man’s Party
Ramones * Pet Sematary
The Dickies * Killer Clowns From Outer Space
Men At Work * Dr. Heckyll & Mr. Jive
The Fall * There’s A Ghost In My House
Toto Coelo * Dracula’s Tango

We encourage you to help with our Patreon Fundraiser, where we are working with Michael Cassutt to create an audio-drama version of his lost vintage Max Headroom script, “Families.” So if you help support Austin Rich so he doesn’t have to punch a clock, then we can get more of this kind of material to you, quickly.

The Magnetic Monster & More! (Radio Riffin’ w/ Austin & Mitch, and a clip of 20 Year Old Halloween Radio)

Enjoy!

You can watch the whole movie, with our commentary, here.

Or, if you would just like a commentary track .mp3 that you can try to sync up with your copy of the film, this might work for you.

Blocks And Blocks of Monster Rocks! (Part 2 of 2) (Halloween Spooktacular 2024!)

WFMU Playlist & Archived Live Chat.

Enjoy.

Blocks And Blocks of Monster Rocks! (Part 1 of 2) (Halloween Spooktacular 2024, Three Hour Special!) w/ Human Dinosaur, LIVE!

WFMU Playlist & Archived Chat.

w/ A Live Performance by Human Dinosaur

Enjoy.

Dimestore Radio Theater Halloween Spook-tacular 2024! (Part 2)

Enjoy!

(Mini) MUTATION FEST, 2024! (w/ Ghosts of Ghosts, Four Dimensional Nightmare & Brad Anderson, LIVE!)

WFMU Playlist & Archived Chat.

Enjoy.

Dimestore Radio Theater Halloween Spook-tacular 2024! (Part 1)

Enjoy!

The People Who Died, 2024 Edition

WFMU Playlist & Archived Chat.

Enjoy!

Dimestore Radio Theater Halloween Spook-tacular 2024! (Prequel)

Enjoy!

Stereogram #9: Scarlet Begonias (w/ Arvo Zylo)

Arvo Zylo returns to the show.

Playlist & Live WFMU Chat.

Enjoy!

Ghost Stories 2023! (w/ Special Guest, Heather Zajkowski!)

Enjoy!

Dimestore Radio Theater Halloween Spook-tacular 2023! (Part 5)

Enjoy!

uBradio Salon #824: The 5th Sunday Players: Horromance!

Enjoy!

20 Minutes Into The Future: It’s Halloween In The Fringes!

It looks like Heather and Austin have decided to go… trick or treating in The Fringes!? Oh no! This can only lead to a drunken night at Caligula’s, where Heather has taken over the jukebox. Hopefully the good music will protect us from Bruegel & Mahler.

(The voice of our announcer is none other than Xeres of Xeron himself! The doorman was played by Imaginos.)

Heather’s Holiday Playlist is most definitely below.

Austin can’t even work a fake tiara on Halloween. Sigh.

That’s Halloween – Duplex Planet – Duplex Halloween Planet
Bones –The Killers – Sam’s Town
Please Mr. Gravedigger — David Bowie – David Bowie
I’m a Vampire — Future Bible Heroes – Eternal Youth
The Devil Was in my Yard – The Sleepy Jackson  – Personality–One Was a Spider, One Was a Bird
Never Kick a Black Cat – Eban Schletter – Eban Schletter Presents Michael Avallone​’​s Tales of the Frightened
Wolfman – The Real Tuesday Weld  – The Last Werewolf
I’ve Created A Monster – Eban Schletter – Eban Schletter’s Witching Hour
I Was a Teenage Werewolf – The Cramps – Songs the Lord Taught Us
Seven Little Girls – Reverend Glasseye and his Wooden Legs – Black River Falls
Hello Neighbor – The Quitters – The Quitters’ Second Album
Turn Around –They Might Be Giants – Apollo 18
Bassem Sabry – Of Montreal – Aureate Gloom
O Death – Ralph Stanley – Oh Brother Where Art Thou Official Film Soundtrack
Killing for Satan – Paul Wibier – Satan’s Sadists Official Film Soundtrack

The Magnetic Monster! (Radio Riffin’ w/ Austin & Mitch)

Enjoy!

You can watch the whole movie, with our commentary, here.

Or, if you would just like a commentary track .mp3 that you can try to sync up with your copy of the film, this might work for you.

Dimestore Radio Theater Halloween Spook-tacular 2023! (Part 4)

Enjoy!

Lost In A Haunted House w/ Xeres of Xeron!

Enjoy!

Dimestore Radio Theater Halloween Spook-tacular 2023! (Part 3)

Enjoy!

The Ghoulardi Show! (2023 Edition)

Enjoy!

What Could Be Romantic? (The Mike Watt Interview)

Enjoy!

Dimestore Radio Theater Halloween Spook-tacular 2023! (Part 2)

Enjoy!

Dimestore Radio Theater Halloween Spook-tacular 2023! (Part 1)

Enjoy!

The Mad Daddy Rides Again! (2023 Edition)

Enjoy!

Partly Cloudy w/ Arvo Zylo (A Day of The Dead, Radio Raindance)

Enjoy!

The Adventures of Marcus Little: Tall Tales & Small Rewards (Dimestore Radio Theater Halloween Spook-tacular 2022! Part 5)

Enjoy!

Luxury Library Lean-Back! (Ghost Stories 2022! Part 3)

Enjoy!

The Call of Cthulhu by H.P. Lovecraft. (Dimestore Radio Theater Halloween Spook-tacular 2022! Part 4)

Enjoy!

Groovy Graveyard Getdown! (Ghost Stories 2022! Part 2 w/ Heather Zajkowski)

Enjoy!

Dimestore Radio Theater Halloween Spook-tacular 2022! (Part 3)

Enjoy!

Haunted House Hootenanny! (Ghost Stories 2022! Part 1 w/ Heather Zajkowski)

Enjoy!

Dimestore Radio Theater Halloween Spook-tacular 2022! (Part 2)

Enjoy!

The Daona Interview, And The Nightside of Eden

Enjoy!

Dimestore Radio Theater Halloween Spook-tacular 2022! (Part 1)

Enjoy!

“Nov. 1” by Crackerbash

I listen to this song every November 1st.  It’s by Crackerbash, a little known Portland band that I only got to see twice.

But they were really, really great.

There’s some stuff available if you want to start digging.  I recommend this live set from a performance in Corvallis in 1992.

Sean Crogan is currently the front man in The Pynnacles.  They a really, really great, too.

Enjoy.

(Aired 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, & 2020.)

A Night On Horror Island

Somehow I have would up in Florida, but my good friend Bill Martin happens to own a boat there. Maybe he can help me get home, somehow, on his way to Horror Island?

b/w

The Creeping Terror!
(We take WTBC Radio to new depths of bad horror movies with this 1964 piece of schlock-o-rama.  Originally 15 October 2015, and as “#20.1” in 2016.)

Here’s everything you need to know about this movie from 1964: there is no documented evidence that the film was ever shown to anyone – anywhere – until it first appeared on Television some time in 1976.  Even then, 12 years later, the film was mocked and panned relentlessly, as anyone who came into contact with the film could only speak of its shortcomings.  Something that bad begins to attract a certain kind of reputation with a certain kind of movie fan, and in spite of the terrible reviews, the inexcusable acting, the cheapness of the monster(s), and the spareness and near-incoherence of the plot (even without the long musical interludes where nothing happens, the film clocks in at 75 minutes), it would not die!  Rather, The Creeping Terror – miraculously! – accrued a reputation that could not be forgotten, canonized as being so bad it must be seen to be believed.  As tapes of The Creeping Terror circulated to TV stations running Shock Theater! type fare, this piece of cinematic trash not only found an audience among those dedicated to the rejects of film culture, but eventually found its way to the hallowed halls of Mystery Science Theater 3000, not only keeping it forever in the public’s mind, but forever preserving it for future generations to look at and puzzle through.

Just what did they have in mind when they made this thing?

You can thank the twisted mind of Vic Savage for that.  “Director” does fully cover Vic’s role in this film, who also starred in, produced, edited, paid for, scammed other’s to participate in, and – essentially – made the movie what it is, in every sense of the word, at the age of 28.  As the story goes, Vic paid Allan Silliphant to be the writer for the film, but it was clear once production began that Vic was in over his head, and had a “unique” vision for the film that was not what Allan was prepared for.  Vic had a number of excuses time and again: the location “fell through” at the last minute, most likely something that was never secure in the first place.  An impressive monster had been made for the production, so Vic claimed, but “disappeared” before filming could take place, so Vic and a few others created the “carpet remnants” monster you see in the picture.  Supposedly the film was going to be a well-funded horror film, as Vic had sold it to everyone, but as the filming date got closer, more and more of the cast were made up of people who paid to be in the film, “funding” the production from within.  Vic’s sound crew “never showed up,” so the majority of the audio was to be recorded in post-production.  As the production went on, more and more people backed out, delaying time it was taking Vic to put the thing together.

The stories about this film don’t end there.  Vic had to use another name (for “Union Purposes,”) and “Directed” (among other things) under the name “A.J. Nelson,” which led to some confusion moments on set when a financial backer was trying to figure out who had just ripped him off.  (A mystique that Vic was hoping to maintain.)  Vic had secured a location for the film eventually – a pond that a friend of his by the name of Randy Starr – yes, THE Randy Starr that provided Charles Manson with the gun used in the Tate-LaBianca murders – had found, which stood in for Lake Tahoe in the film, and was near where the Manson Family lived at the time.  When all the footage was shot, Vic rented a motel room, “borrowed” a 30 year old movola to cut the film.  As the movola was from the silent era, the soundtrack was essentially destroyed by this move, something that Vic had not anticipated.  Some of it could be made out, but large chunks were gone now, and the edits were noticeable.  To help cover for this, Vic turned to his friend Frederick Kopp, a teacher at Los Angeles State College, who taught music composition and worked occasionally in television, though not in a “credited” capacity.  Kopp scored the entire film, his first and only composition where he was credited, and was even conned into dropping a few dollars to help the production, on the promise that his son, Pierre, could get a role in the picture.  Vic then asked Larry Burrell, then working as voice talent in radio, to narrate the film.  (Larry might be the most famous person associated with the film outside of Randy Starr, who worked on Batman, Columbo and the amazing TV movie, They Saved Hitler’s Brain.)  When Vic mixed these with what remained of the original audio bits that were worth saving, and added a few stock sound effects to pad out the sound of the monster and other bits here and there.  (Sound effects that also appeared in in Battle Beyond the Sun and Jack the Giant Killer, as well as Rosemary’s Baby, though it should be added, not intentionally.)

Vic “completed” (or, as some would say, “stopped adding to”) the film in 1964, but before he could try do anything with The Creeping Terror, everything began to fall apart.  True, Vic had a working “print” to try and sell, but actors began to demand compensation for the money they had put into the picture.  Allan Siilliphant, angry over the changes Vic made to the story, sued Vic successfully, over clear breach of contract.  Vic actually disappeared completely rather than face the financial consequences of the lawsuit, and Allan was awarded the rights to do with the film as he wished.  Allan washed his hands of it, giving it to his agent, and through a series of hand-offs that have yet to be tracked down, was eventually shelved by a TV exec who pawned the problem off on the future.  Vic spent the rest of his live in a drunken stupor, and died of liver failure in 1975.  He never attempted to return to film in the time since the disaster that was The Creeping Terror, and he died knowing that he was the only person who had seen it, and thus, know the vision he had for the film.

In this rare instance, time was a friend to Vic Savage.  Even when you fail at something so spectacularly, that failure can open up a whole world of possibility in the future.  Sure, the camp value of it is the only thing recommending The Creeping Terror to modern audiences, and even on MST3K, the film is hard to get through.  But I think that people see an artist trying to make their voice heard when they see a failure like this.  They see themselves, barely an adult at age 28, wanting to express themselves in film the way so many others have before.  Vic was willing to go out on a limb, and pay the price of that taken chance, to see his vision completed.  Sure, it was a dumb vision, but who hasn’t put all their eggs in a basket, if only to learn that lesson up close and personal?

To accompany the film, I’ve selected a sort of stream-of-consciousness set of tunes to complement this narrative mess.  The Creeping Terror barely makes any sense, so really, just absorb the ambience and the musical accompaniment, and try to imagine yourself watching late night TV in the mid-70’s, and then, suddenly, this comes on.

Enjoy!

The Creeping Terror!

Side A.

The Glowing Rocket / “Must Be An Accident Or Something.” / “Get In, Honey.” / At The Location Of The Crash / They Looked At The Rocket In Utter Amazement / “It’s No Airplane” / The Monster Attacks / “Car One, Calling In.” / A Temporary Military Headquarters / When, As, And If They Were Contacted / The First In A Series Of Tragedies / Maintaining Secrecy / If The Truth Were Known / “I’ve Heard A Lot About You.”  “Nothing Bad, I Hope?” / A Magnificent Opportunity For Mankind / In Advance Of Anything On Earth / Bachelor Buddies For Years / Dating All The Girls In Town / Married Life / Life Has It’s Way of Making Boys Grow Up / “Poor Baby.” / Come From Beyond Our Solar System 

01.) Crash! Crash! * The Agenda * Start The Panic
02.) Drug Fueled Accident * The Punks * The Punks
03.) Rocketship * The Dead Milkmen * Bucky Fellini
04.) Creeping Crawling * Guyve * Delaying The Inevitable
05.) Negative Creep * Nirvana * Bleach
06.) Truth * The Dead C * Vain, Erudite And Stupid
07.) Experiment In Terror * Fantômas * The Director’s Cut
08.) Creep In The Cellar * The Butthole Surfers * Rembrandt Pussyhorse
09.) 102 Creep [Excerpt I] * Eric Hausmann * Invisible Films

Side B.

The Trials Of Re-Entry & Impact / Failing To Establish Communication / A Frightening Theory / A Product Of Engineering / Humanity Might Be In Grave Danger / “You Stay There.  Stay Calm.” / The Remains Of A Guitar / There Must Be Another Monster / The Monster Was Moving Toward The Community Dance Hall / The Monster Next Appeared In Lover’s Lane / Enough Lives Were Being Endangered / Highly Specialized Test Animals / “Get Out Of My Way.” / The Transmitter Stopped / What Was In Store For Humanity / The Vastness of The Universe Was Incredible / Only God Knows For Sure

10.) 102 Creep [Excerpt II] * Eric Hausmann * Invisible Films
11.) Communication Breakdown * The Dickies * Stukas Over Disneyland
12.) The Creep (Twist) * Frankie Stein And His Ghouls * Monster Sounds And Dance Music
13.) The Creep * Bob Luman * Lux And Ivy’s Favorites Volume 15
14.) Exploration In Terror * The Ventures * The Ventures In Space
15.) A Fistful Of Terror * The Bomboras * Head Shrinkin’ Fun
16.) Terror * Les Baxter * RE/Search: Incredibly Strange Music Vol II
17.) Go To Hell * Railbirds * Killed By Dead Vol. 14
18.) Gotta Get Away * The Blues Magoos * Kaleidoscopic Compendium: The Best Of The Blues Magoos
19.) The Creeper * Quintron * “These Hands Of Mine”

This week we continue our Ghost Story program with special guest, Obadiah Baird, who talks about editing The Audient Void, his favorite free horror movies, and then we read some poetry that is perfect for this time of year.

In hour two, Nathan Carson and Erin Jane Laroue provide an excellent rendition of an Ambrose Bierce short story, and so much more. This is a good one!

Enjoy!

To Haunt or To Haunt Not?

HOUR 1

01.) Introduction * Austin Rich * 11 October 2019 * Mid-Valley Mutations (2019)

02.)

03.)

04.)

HOUR 2

Part IV: 

05.)

06.)

07.)

08.)

09.)

Victrola’s Tales! (or, “Cottage Street”)

While we haven’t done all that many of these Ghost Stories shows, very few people have wanted to come into the studio and tell their stories live either. But DJ Victrola is not like other DJs, hosting her very own program – The Guitar Shop – now in its 21st year, with no signs of slowing down. When she offered to come in and tell old Philly Ghost Stories, I knew we had to do this one live. And you, dear listener, get to reap the rewards.

While I don’t want to spoil too much about her stories, I will say that you should stay tuned, as she not only features appropriate tunes to complement her stories, but sets a mood that is perfect for strange happenings in a haunted house. And: Cyclopsycho composed a bespoke Ghost Tune for this broadcast, which we get into almost immediately during the show. (You should visit cyclopsychosite.com for more music, or check out the live performance on Ricardo Wang’s What’s This Called?)   Plus: we get to hear one of the all time best Lord Buckley recordings that is not only about ghosts, but spans two holidays in one.

Stay tuned to the very very end, and hear a very special treat: The Professor & Miss Rikki from Closet Radio call in. Miss Rikki, DJ Victrola and I all go back to KPSU, when we were on after each other for a spell in the days when Rikki & I hosted A Momentary Lapse of Reason. We had an excellent radio reunion on the air, and Rikki spills the beans about normal childhood happenings that absolutely count as ghost stories, even though she just shook them off.

This one has a personal touch that is well worth a listen, and we’re not even finished with the holiday season. (BTW: Shoutouts to Steve & Lisa, from Vicky.) This is a Friday The 13th that you must hear to believe.

Enjoy.

Victrola’s Tales!

HOUR 1

Part I: The Ghost of Lost Mind

01.) Austin FM Theme * Paco Jones * Austin FM Theme * Self-Released (2016)
02.) Halloween Ambience * Austin Rich / Old Records * Mid-Valley Mutations.
03.) The Ghost of Lost Mind * Cyclopsycho * The Ghost of Lost Mind * Mid-Valley Mutations (2017)

Part II: Cottage Street Parts 1 & 2.

History of The House, Disappearing Steak Sauce, The Misplaced Wallet

04.) Carol Ann’s Theme * Jerry Goldsmith * Poltergeist Original Motion Picture Soundtrack * MGM Records (1982)
05.) Wakey Wakey * Alejandro Amenábar * The Others (Music From The Dimension Motion Picture) * Sony Classical (2001)
06.) Ghost of A Texas Ladies Man * Concrete Blonde * Recollection: The Best of Concrete Blonde * I.R.S. Records (1996)
07.) Ghostwind * Steve Morse * High Tension Wires * MCA Records (1989)

Part III: Chatting With Victrola 

Part IV: Cottage Street Part 3

08.) I Do Believe It / Sheets and Chains * Alejandro Amenábar * The Others (Music From The Dimension Motion Picture) * Sony Classical (2001)
09.) Tam Lin * Fairport Convention * Liege & Lief * Island Records (1969)

Part V: Cottage Street Part 4

10.) Laugh * Danny Elfman * Original Motion Picture Soundtrack to ‘Beetlejuice’ * Geffen Records (1988)
11.) Old Times * Alejandro Amenábar * The Others (Music From The Dimension Motion Picture) * Sony Classical (2001)

HOUR 2

Part VI: Chatting With Victrola Again

Part VII: The Lady in the Hatboro House & The Bucks County Hitchhiker 

12.) They Are Everywhere * Alejandro Amenábar * The Others (Music From The Dimension Motion Picture) * Sony Classical (2001)
13.) “I Do Believe In Spooks” * The Cowardly Lion * The Wizard Of Oz * MGM Studios (1939)
14.) Scrooge * Lord Buckley * Blowing His Mind (And Yours) * World Pacific (1966)
15.) Big Joe & Phantom 309 * Tom Waits * Nighthawks At The Diner * Asylum Records (1975)

Part VIII: Victrola’s Moving Chair & Chatting With Victrola Even Yet Still

Part IX: The Professor & Miss Rikki Call-In

The Black Cat & Other Frightening Tales
(Featuring a four hour Halloween presentation of Diamanda Galás reading Edgar Allen Poe’s The Black Cat!  Originally broadcast on 30 October 2010 on KPSU, and re-aired in 2015 and 2021.)

Playlist & Footnotes:

Join me for a special extended edition of Blasphuphmus Radio, just in time for the Holidays!  That’s right, tune in for a special re-telling of Edgar Allen Poe’s “The Black Cat” (read by Diamanda Galás), mixed with Ed Wood samples, Vampires, Bob & Ray, Werewolfs, Lux & Ivy’s Favorite Hits, Ghosts, a Mad Monster Party, a handful of Zombies, a trip to the Graveyard, and four hours of Halloween madness. It’s everything you need to set your mood for the Halloween soiree in your future!

“Nov. 1” by Crackerbash

I listen to this song every November 1st.  It’s by Crackerbash, a little known Portland band that I only got to see twice.

Playlist & Footnotes:

*

But they were really, really great.

There’s some stuff available if you want to start digging.  I recommend this live set from a performance in Corvallis in 1992.

Sean Crogan is currently the front man in The Pynnacles.  They a really, really great, too.

Enjoy.

(Aired 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, & 2020.)

Somewhere In-Between: A Radio Zine: Issue #17: Ghost Houses.

Written by Robert Frost and O. Henry. Performed by Austin Rich.

Issue #17, produced in October of 2020, featuring the future apparitions of stories, like, “Ghost House,” &, “The Furnished Room.”

At The Movies w/ DJ Victrola! (Halloween Spook-tacular 2020!) (#208)

Continuing our annual tradition, DJ Victrola and I put up a piece of plexiglass between us in the radio station lobby, and watch a bunch of old horror movies, talking about some of our favorite films.

Then, keep listening, as Victrola offers up a reading of a wonderful Lovecraft story, and then in hour two, I read the chilling story, “Lost Hearts.”

Enjoy!

At The Movies w/ DJ Victrola! (Halloween Spook-tacular 2020!)

Hour 1:

01. ) The Mummy Theme (1932)
02.) The Creature From The Black Lagoon Theme (1954)
03.) The Wolf Man Theme (1941)
04.) King Kong Theme (1933)

05.) The Cats of Ulthar by H. P. Lovecraft (read by DJ Victrola)
06.) Cat People (Putting Out Fire) * David Bowie * Cat People * Backstreet Records (1982)

07.) River Hill Sheepsquatch * TerrorVision * WNUF TV28 Presents Frank Stewart Investigates * TerrorVision (2015)

08.) The Invisible Man Theme (1933)

Hour 2:

09.) The Terminator Theme (1984)
10.) Alien Theme (1979)

11.) Lost Hearts by M.R. James (read by Austin Rich)

12.) Videodrome Theme (1983)
13.) Invasion of The Body Snatchers Theme (1978)
14.) The Blob Closing Theme * The Five Blobs

15.) Tubular Bells (The Exorcist Theme) * Mike Oldfield * Tubular Bells * Virgin Records (1973)

Somewhere In-Between: A Radio Zine: Issue #16: Haunted Houses

Written by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow and Mark Twain. Performed by Austin Rich.

Issue #16, produced in October of 2020, featuring eerie structures, “Haunted Houses,” &, “A Ghost Story.”

A Night On Horror Island (#207)

Somehow I have would up in Florida, but my good friend Bill Martin happens to own a boat there. Maybe he can help me get home, somehow, on his way to Horror Island?

Enjoy!

A Night On Horror Island

01. ) Horror Island * George Waggner

02.) Quest For The Traneeneh * The Adventures of Rocky Jordan * 16 October 1949

Somewhere In-Between: A Radio Zine: Issue #15: Beyond The Wall

Written by Ambrose Bierce. Performed by Austin Rich.

Issue #15, produced in October of 2020, featuring the strange encounters, “Beyond The Wall.”

A Night On Haunted Hill (#206)

I continue my way home, through an awfully creepy forest, I stumble upon a very strange house on a Haunted Hill, where some unusual characters are having what they call a “party.”

Enjoy!

A Night On Haunted Hill

01. ) A Night On Haunted Hill * William Castle

02.) Occasional Organ * Mini-Mutations

03.) The Man With No Name * The Adventures of Rocky Jordan * 9 October 1949

Issue #14: October Everywhere

Written by Austin Rich & Richard Brautigan. Performed by Austin Rich.

Issue #14, produced in October of 2020, featuring spooky current commentary like, “Wildfires,” “Rain,” and, ”1692 Cotton Mather Newsreel.”

Musical Selections (usually in excerpt):

Eating Ash * Sadgasm

The Scream * Ralph Nielsen & The Chancellors

The Nightside of Eden (#205)

I wander through a creepy forest to the Nightside of Eden, where Daona offer a unique studio session for our program.

Enjoy!

The Nightside of Eden

HOUR 1

Part I: 

01. ) A Creepy Forest * Mini-Mutations

HOUR 2

Part II: 

02.) Nightside of Eden * Daona

Part III: Dimestore Radio Theater

03.) Pattern for Revenge * The Adventures of Rocky Jordan * 2 October 1949

It’s always nice to visit with friends when you’re having a party like this, at to wrap up our Holiday broadcasts this month, we have the incomparable DJ Victrola, joining us to help clean up the studio, and catch up regrading all things spooky.

We play lots of music and stories relating to ghosts and All Soul’s Day, and we check in with her about her program, and how you can hear it now. I love spending time with DJ Victrola, and this is an excellent and casual show that was a ton of fun.

We close with the timely, “Nov. 1st,” by Crackerbash, a song I listen to every year on Nov. 1st, for as long as I’ve known about this song.

We’re getting ready for that OTHER holiday season, so stay tuned.

Enjoy!

The End of Fake Noose 

HOUR 1

01.) Introduction * Austin Rich * 11 October 2019 * Mid-Valley Mutations (2019)

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HOUR 2

Part IV: 

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Join us for a very cool and rare treat: a re-creation of an electronic music radio program from the late ’80s and early ’90s, which was infamous for their Halloween Shows! Brian Magill is no stranger to our show, and has been making electronic music since the early ’80’s. As part of this work, Brian eventually hosted a radio program at KLCC, Another Green World, as part of their attempt to cater to the interests of electronic music fans and artists, that was on the rise.

However, once a year – on or near Halloween – Another Green World would get… weird. Long sound collages and other forms of musique concrete would take over their broadcasts, often the last things that would air on the station before it would go off the air for the night. The show quickly became infamous, and casual listeners would think something was wrong with the radio. Instead, they were merely catching a glimpse into the musical work that Brian and his co-host, Nathan Griffith, would create, in the moment, on the air.

Tonight’s show is an effort to recreate Another Green World as best as we can, just in time for the show to offer a typical Halloween show, as you might have heard almost 30 years ago. Brian brought in records from his collection, stuff that he would have played on the show then. I actually took a step back, and let him run the board; aside from an interview setting up the concept at the beginning, this is all Brian, and you get to hear something that no one else has heard in three decades.

In Hour 1, settle in for hearing what a typical episode of Another Green World might have been like 30 years ago. Then, strap in for Hour 2, where Brian takes us on a sound collage journey through his favorite artists, and what radio used to sound like.

Along the way, we get heavy doses of Fervent Torpor, AND a number of unreleased, unavailable, and previously unheard recordings by Brian from over the years. If you ever thought to yourself, “I bet that artist has a ton of other recordings I haven’t heard yet,” This is just the tip of the iceberg. Brian could have done two hours of his own unreleased material, which would have been as good as the stuff on his record, “1000 Years of Solitude.” Instead, you get to hear it in this show, tonight.

Shows like this are something special, and you cannot (and will not) hear stuff like this anywhere else. This is a very unique Halloween Performance / Broadcast, and it’s this kind of show that makes me excited to keep bringing you radio like this.

Enjoy!

The Last Radio Station On The Left

HOUR 1

01.) Introduction * Austin Rich * 11 October 2019 * Mid-Valley Mutations (2019)

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HOUR 2

Part IV: 

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This week we continue our Ghost Story program with special guest, Obadiah Baird, who talks about editing The Audient Void, his favorite free horror movies, and then we read some poetry that is perfect for this time of year.

In hour two, Nathan Carson and Erin Jane Laroue provide an excellent rendition of an Ambrose Bierce short story, and so much more. This is a good one!

Enjoy!

To Haunt or To Haunt Not?

HOUR 1

01.) Introduction * Austin Rich * 11 October 2019 * Mid-Valley Mutations (2019)

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HOUR 2

Part IV: 

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This time of year is a lot of fun when you can get some guests in the studio, and with that in mind, we got none other than Kylie Burbank, and her friend Elder Valik Grey of the local Vampire Council..

Enjoy!

To Haunt or To Haunt Not?

HOUR 1

01.) Introduction * Austin Rich * 11 October 2019 * Mid-Valley Mutations (2019)

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HOUR 2

Part IV: 

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On The Corner of Haunt & Spookyway Drive (Ghost Stories 2019 Part 1) (#169)

The Holiday season sneaks up on us sooner and sooner every year, and I almost forgot to get into the mood before October got here. Fortunately I was reminded at just the last minute, and so we have an excellent program for you this evening!

Two phone calls with spooky stories to make you shiver! Artist Jody Kat calls in to talk about a family tradition she used to participate in. And in hour two, comedian Emily Rivera calls with a couple of songs and a story about something that happened, at a certain bridge…

There’s a ton of excellent holiday fun this year, that’s just getting underway. So please, keep listening all month long. There’s plenty more Ghost Stories coming your way.

Enjoy!

On The Corner of Haunt & Spooky Drive

HOUR 1

01.) Introduction * Austin Rich * 4 October 2019 * Mid-Valley Mutations (2019)

02.) Table Talk * Jody Kat * Table Talk * Mid-Valley Mutations (2019)

03.) The Skeleton Dance * Carl Stalling * The Skeleton Dance * Walt Disney (1929)

04.) A Pair of Gloves * Vincent Price * Tales Of Witches, Ghosts, And Goblins * Caedmon Records (1972)

HOUR 2

Part IV: 

05.) Transition * Austin Rich * 4 October 2019 * Mid-Valley Mutations (2019)

06.) The Bridge * Emily Riviera * The Bridge * Mid-Valley Mutations (2019)

07.) Female Libido * Emily Riviera * Female Libido * (recorded for this broadcast) (2019)

08.) The Dunwich Horror * Suspense * 1 November 1945 * CBS Radio

09.) Dick Type * Emily Riviera * Female Libido * (recorded for this broadcast) (2019)

As the Halloween Season comes to a close, join us as we bust on vintage LPs and scary stories, told by guests to our very program!

Karen Holman (Hot Sheets, Cool Sheets & City of Pieces) and Denise Chelini (Holiday Special) each share their own incredible stories! This is one show you do not what to miss!

Enjoy!

Ghost Stories 2018

HOUR 1

01.) Halloween Horror * J. Robert Elliot * Halloween Horrors * A&M Records (1977)

02.) The Ghostly Hand of Spital House * Vincent Price * A Graveyard of Ghost Tales * Caedmon Records (1974)

03.) The Jogger * Karen Holman & Austin Rich * The Jogger * Live Broadcast (2018)

HOUR 2

Part IV: 

04.) Intro / The Empty House on Haunted Hill * Ball Records Staff * Ghost Stories * Ball Records (1963)

05.) Sleep Paralysis * Denise Chelini & Austin Rich * Sleep Paralysis * Live Broadcast (2018)

06.) The Legend of Sleepy Hollow * Boris Karloff * Boris Karloff Narrates “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow” / “Rip Van Winkle” * Mr. Pickwick (1977)

Dimestore Radio Theater (19 October 2018)

Presenting four pulp fiction tales from the golden age of radio.

Enjoy!

Dimestore Radio Theater

HOUR 1: Horror

01.) The Ghost Maker * The Sealed Book * 10 June 1945 * Mutual Broadcasting System (1945)

02.) The House That Time Forgot * Murder At Midnight * 18 August 1946 * Mutual Broadcasting System (1946)

HOUR 2: Horror

03.) Ancient Sorceries * Escape * 15 February 1948 * Columbia Broadcasting System (1948)

04.) Beyond The Grave * Inner Sanctum * 19 December 1949 * Blue Network (1949)

05.) Cruising Down The River * Blue Barron and His Orchestra * Cruising Down the River * MGM Records (1949)

Dimestore Radio Theater (12 October 2018)

Presenting four pulp fiction tales from the golden age of radio.

Enjoy!

Dimestore Radio Theater

HOUR 1: Horror

01.) The Devil’s Saint * Suspense * 19 January 1943 * Columbia Broadcasting System (1943)

02.) The Heart of Ethan Brand * The Weird Circle * 13 February 1944 * Mutual Broadcasting (1944)

03.) Always * Frank Sinatra * Dedicated To You * Columbia (1950)

HOUR 2: Horror

04.) The Dead Come Back * Murder At Midnight * 2 May 1947 * Mutual Broadcasting System (1947)

05.) Death Is The Judge * The Mysterious Traveler * 15 June 1947 * Mutual Broadcasting System (1947)

06.) Across The Alley From The Alamo * The Mills Brothers * Great Hits * Dot Records (1958)

Dimestore Radio Theater (5 October 2018)

Presenting four pulp fiction tales from the golden age of radio.

Enjoy!

Dimestore Radio Theater

HOUR 1: Horror

01.) The Ghost in the Garden * Inner Sanctum * 10 February 1947 * The Blue Network (1947)

02.) The Phantom Rickshaw * Favorite Show * 28 February 1948 * KFI Radio (1948)

03.) Music Music Music * Teresa Brewer *  Music Music Music * London Records (1949)

04.) I Can Dream, Can’t I? * The Andrews Sisters * I Can Dream, Can’t I? * Decca Records (1950)

HOUR 2: Horror

05.) The Oblong Box * NBC Presents Short Story * 4 July 1952 (Probably) National Broadcasting System (1952)

06.) Nightmare * CBS Radio Workshop * 5 May 1957 * Columbia Broadcasting System (1957)

07.) Nightmare * Artie Shaw & His Orchestra * Nightmare * Bluebird Records (1937)

More Stories About Shock-let & Ghouls (Ghost Stories Part IV w/ Branden Marshall, Arvo Zylo & Miss Rikki!) (#74)

Closing out our Halloween-Spook-tacular this year is a delightful trio of conversations with excellent friends, each of whom enjoy this time of year, but all things dark and eerie. There’s a bit of ennui that sets in after the last holiday broadcast of the year, and we had so much fun this time that I really didn’t want the party to stop. So two of our calls during this show are quite long, and both cover many experiences that each of gone through over the years. Additionally, two of our callers discuss a similar Chicago Landmark. And, all three are incredible additions to any broadcast, regardless of the time of year.

If you are interested in finding more information about Branden’s music, I would check out his MyFacester+ Page, or his (Aesthetic Pulses) SoundCloud Account, where there’s a fair amount of music. You can find Arvo Zylo’s music at his website, nopartofit.com. Arvo discusses a book by Sarah Wreck, too, and it’s affect on his story.

The range of stories we heard from callers this year was fantastic, and if you missed any of our four Ghost Stories programs this year (or the two we did last year), you could do a lot worse than follow this link: midvalleymutations.com/category/ghost-stories. You’ll find all six, with calls from friends and former guests on the program, all sharing real, personal experiences in the world of paranormal and unexplained events. And, if you just like Halloween, then check out Austin’s Annual Halloweeen Spook-tacular, in iTunes or in a podcast-agnostic RSS Feed. (As near as I can figure, it seems to be available in most podcasting apps, but let me know if you can’t find it.) This podcast has shows going back to 2004, and now features all of the Closet Radio Halloween broadcasts, too. All to get you into the Holiday Spirit. Please, check it out. You won’t regret it.

Now that the holiday season is over, we’ll return to live music and interviews as a more regular staple of the show. But, until next year:

A Merry Spook-tacular to you all! And to all, a Good Day!

Enjoy.

Spinitron Playlist

More Stories About Shock-let & Ghouls

HOUR 1

Part I: Introduction & Calendar

01.) Austin FM Theme * Paco Jones * Austin FM Theme * Self-Released (2016)
02.) Halloween Ambience * Austin Rich / Old Records * Mid-Valley Mutations.

Part II: Branden’s Call

03.) Live At The Space * Aesthetic Pulses * 30 July 2017 * Previously Unreleased (2017)
04.) Branden’s Call * Branden Marshall * 27 October 2017 * Mid-Valley Mutations (2017)

• Branden talks about a number of experiences, including a ghost in a Petaluma duplex, another in a house in Eugene, yet another in Anchorage, Alaska (in a warehouse he worked at), and lastly, one haunting a Processing Barge he worked on.

Part III: Terror Vision One!

05.) Phantom of The Roller Rink * Frank Stewart * WNUF TV-28 Presents: Frank Steward Investigates: Halloween * Terror Vision (2015)

HOUR 2

Part IV: Arvo Zylo’s Call

06.) One – Six * Arvo Zylo * Heavenly Sounds in Lo-Fidelity: Arvo Plays Ferrante & Teicher * Personal Archives Records (2016)
07.) Arvo’s Call * Arvo Zylo * 27 October 2017 * Mid-Valley Mutations (2017)

• First, Arvo talks about an experience in Chicago’s famous Bachelor’s Grove Cemetery, where he saw orbs flying, and a number of other incredible things during his various visits, including things he saw during a night he spent there in 2003! Then we talk about his current home in Seattle and the child Ghost that haunts it now, followed by more about his general sensitivity to spiritual and supernatural encounters.

Part V: Miss Rikki’s Call

08.) Miss Rikki’s Called * Miss Rikki * 27 October 2017 * Mid-Valley Mutations (2017)

• Miss Rikki calls to tells us more about the midwestern town she grew up in, including a hitchhiking story from Cherry Vale Road, where a hitchhiker in a prom dress is trying to get to Resurrection Cemetery. Also out on that road: The Satanists’s House. Plus a story about a department store, late-night encounter, and another brief mention of Bachelor’s Grove. 

Part VI: Skate Gator, NO!

05.) Introduction: Have You Ever Heard A Ghost? * Frank Stewart * WNUF TV-28 Presents: Frank Steward Investigates: Halloween * Terror Vision (2015)

Lavender & Marc Kate, LIVE! (#73a)

I am such a lucky radio host, in that there are a ton of groups coming through the area, and experimental music – in almost every form – is really beginning to get some notice in a way that is impressive, and very fun to watch. And, some weeks, I have a wealth of material at my fingertips to play, and it feels like there is just too much for even a two-hour show.

So, this week, in an unprecedented move, I’m including a nearly two-hour bonus episode as a companion piece to our regular show this week. Podcast only, of course, as we only get the two hours of broadcast time, but in this show, you get to hear so much incredible stuff, it is well worth your digestion.

In our regular program, we heard short performances by Lavender and Marc Kate, with a truncated interview between them. But this was only 30 minutes of the 90 minutes we recorded, included to full set performances by each group, and a 30 minute interview, too. While it was great to get such a wealth of material, I just couldn’t fit it all into a show with Kylie Burbank and friends, too. So the 90 minutes of material was winnowed down to a slim 30 on the FM.

Which is a shame, because the full performances (and interview) are a real treat, and we get into some nitty-gritty about making art, using machines, and other bits and bobs that are only available in this extended episode. If you heard the primary show this week, then there is an hour of Lavender and Marc Kate that you have not yet heard.

And, as a bonus, I’m including a Halloween installment of Dimestore Radio Theater, too. This time from Richard Diamond, giving us a spooky treat that is just perfect for this kind of broadcast.

Both Lavender and Marc Kate are consummate performers, and you owe it to yourself to dig into what they can do when they are at their best. And, even better, this stuff can only be heard here. How cool is that?

Enjoy.

Lavender & Marc Kate, LIVE!

Part I: Introduction

01.) Austin FM Theme * Paco Jones * Austin FM Theme * Self-Released (2016)
02.)

Part II: All The Way From France

03.) Live * Lavender * Live * Mid-Valley Mutations (2017)

Part III: Getting Down To It

04.) Interview * Lavender & Marc Kate * 19 October 2017 * Mid-Valley Mutations (2017)

Part IV: Today Never Knows

04.) Live * Marc Kate * Live * Mid-Valley Mutations (2017)

Part V: Outro

Part VI: Dimestore Radio Theater Presents!

04.) The House of Mystery Case * Richard Diamond, Private Detective * 10 December 1949 * NBC Radio (1949)

When This Crypt’s A-Rockin’, Don’t Bother Knockin’ (Ghost Stories Part III w/ Lavender, Marc Kate, Kylie Burbank, Emma Douglas, Austin Shippey, Miss Rikki & Jared Richert!) (#73)

Whew! This show was starting to feel a little like the Christmas At Pee-Wee’s Playhouse special, where the list of special guests is improbably long, and yet, they all actually appear in the show. Well, we managed to do this too, cramming in three different live artists performing in this two-hour block, peppered with plenty of ghost stories by in-studio guests, AND another phone call by the incredible Miss Rikki. It’s enough to make any radio enthusiast jump for joy, and this is only HALF of the audio offerings we have in store for you this week.

For the complete story, check out our supplemental episode this week, where we have over 2 Hours of bonus material, which includes almost 40 minutes of extra live music, the full 30 minute interview with Lavender & Marc Kate, and other treasures only available to the podcast audience. Hopefully you’ll listen to that show too, as it is well worth the listen, and is the only place to hear live French experimental music on the radio in the US.

But in this program, we have so much crammed in that it is a veritable Multi-Course Ghost Story Feast, and I do recommend that you listen in to hear all the details. Not only is there a ton of live music and stories, but we field calls from old friends, AND try to communicate with a spirit that we talked about on this very program last year, using a Ouija Board! It gets a little crazy, and that’s just the way we like it.

You should probably go see Kylie Burbank & Jared Richart (among others) in a local production of The Rocky Horror Picture Show. Which is basically going to be the coolest thing happening next weekend.

More links: Lavender, Marc Kate, Kylie Burbank, Austin Shippey, Emma Douglas, Jared Richart & Miss Rikki.

Both Austin & I were shooting video during the show (he was actually live-streaming it), and you can see all the videos here. Keep in mind, these are raw videos with audio from the room (there seems to be an audio crackle on Shippey’s video), but in this playlist you’ll find both songs performed by Kylie Burbank during the show, and a close up view of the Ouija Board in use!

I would also recommend checking out the show that Austin was on previously, where we talk about his experience exorcising a spirit from a house! This show will certainly make your hair stand on end, and make you laugh a little, too. So sit back with your beverage of choice, and turn the lights down low. Things are about to get a little scary.

Enjoy.

Spinitron Playlist

When This Crypt’s A-Rockin’, Don’t Bother Knockin’ 

HOUR 1

Part I: Lavender & Marc Kate 

01.) Austin FM Theme * Paco Jones * Austin FM Theme * Self-Released (2016)
02.) Halloween Ambience * Austin Rich / Old Records * Mid-Valley Mutations.
03.) Live Expert * Lavender * 20 October 2017 * Mid-Valley Mutations (2017)
04.) Interview * Lavender & Marc Kate * 20 October 2017 * Mid-Valley Mutations (2017)
05.) Live Excerpt * Marc Kate * 20 October 2017 * Mid-Valley Mutations (2017)

Part II: Kylie & Emma

06.) Kylie’s Story * Kylie Burbank * 20 October 2017 * Mid-Valley Mutations (2017)

• Kylie talks about Jeremy, the ghost in her old house in South Salem (where the Orchards used to be), and contrasted that against her grandmother’s spirit haunting Kylie’s childhood home.

07.) Emma’s Story * Emma Douglas * 20 October 2017 * Mid- Valley Mutations (2017)

• Emma Douglas shares a story about the basement in her own home, and the figure Emma saw one night.

Hour 2

Part III: Kylie Burbank LIVE

08.) Making Me Feel (Live) * Kylie Burbank * 20 October 2017 * Mid-Valley Mutations (2017)
09.) Interview * Kylie Burbank * 201 October 2017 * Mid-Valley Mutations

Part IV: Austin’s Story

10.) Austin’s Story * Austin Shippey * 20 October 2017 * Mid- Valley Mutations (2017)

• Austin talks about an experience from almost five years ago, and a ritual he performed with other witches in a field between Salem & Keizer, relating to an orphanage connected to the field nearby.

Part V: Miss Rikki Calls In

11.) Miss Rikki Calls In * Miss Rikki * 20 October 2017 * Mid- Valley Mutations (2017)

• Miss Rikki calls In to discuss Cherry Valley In Illinois, and the House With No Corners, a place near where she grew up.

Part VI: The Ouija Board

12.) The Ouija Board * Kylie Burbank, Emma Douglas & Austin Shippey * 20 October 2017 * Mid-Valley Mutations (2017)

• Kylie Burbank, Emma Douglas & Austin Shippey all use the Ouija Board live on the show, in an effort to contact a spirit from a story told by Jason Ramey last year.

Part VII: Kylie Burbank LIVE (Again)

13.) (second song) (Live) * Kylie Burbank * 20 October 2017 * Mid-Valley Mutations (2017)

Part VIII: An Exorcism?

14.) Jared’s Story * Jared Richert * 20 October 2017 * Mid-Valley Mutations (2017)

• Jared Richert tells a story about an exorcism that his father took part in as a youth pastor. 

Victrola’s Tales! (or, “Cottage Street”) (Ghost Stories Part II) (#72)

While we haven’t done all that many of these Ghost Stories shows, very few people have wanted to come into the studio and tell their stories live either. But DJ Victrola is not like other DJs, hosting her very own program – The Guitar Shop – now in its 21st year, with no signs of slowing down. When she offered to come in and tell old Philly Ghost Stories, I knew we had to do this one live. And you, dear listener, get to reap the rewards.

While I don’t want to spoil too much about her stories, I will say that you should stay tuned, as she not only features appropriate tunes to complement her stories, but sets a mood that is perfect for strange happenings in a haunted house. And: Cyclopsycho composed a bespoke Ghost Tune for this broadcast, which we get into almost immediately during the show. (You should visit cyclopsychosite.com for more music, or check out the live performance on Ricardo Wang’s What’s This Called?)   Plus: we get to hear one of the all time best Lord Buckley recordings that is not only about ghosts, but spans two holidays in one.

Stay tuned to the very very end, and hear a very special treat: The Professor & Miss Rikki from Closet Radio call in. Miss Rikki, DJ Victrola and I all go back to KPSU, when we were on after each other for a spell in the days when Rikki & I hosted A Momentary Lapse of Reason. We had an excellent radio reunion on the air, and Rikki spills the beans about normal childhood happenings that absolutely count as ghost stories, even though she just shook them off.

This one has a personal touch that is well worth a listen, and we’re not even finished with the holiday season. (BTW: Shoutouts to Steve & Lisa, from Vicky.) This is a Friday The 13th that you must hear to believe.

Enjoy.

Spinitron Playlist

Victrola’s Tales!

HOUR 1

Part I: The Ghost of Lost Mind

01.) Austin FM Theme * Paco Jones * Austin FM Theme * Self-Released (2016)
02.) Halloween Ambience * Austin Rich / Old Records * Mid-Valley Mutations.
03.) The Ghost of Lost Mind * Cyclopsycho * The Ghost of Lost Mind * Mid-Valley Mutations (2017)

Part II: Cottage Street Parts 1 & 2.

History of The House, Disappearing Steak Sauce, The Misplaced Wallet

04.) Carol Ann’s Theme * Jerry Goldsmith * Poltergeist Original Motion Picture Soundtrack * MGM Records (1982)
05.) Wakey Wakey * Alejandro Amenábar * The Others (Music From The Dimension Motion Picture) * Sony Classical (2001)
06.) Ghost of A Texas Ladies Man * Concrete Blonde * Recollection: The Best of Concrete Blonde * I.R.S. Records (1996)
07.) Ghostwind * Steve Morse * High Tension Wires * MCA Records (1989)

Part III: Chatting With Victrola 

Part IV: Cottage Street Part 3

08.) I Do Believe It / Sheets and Chains * Alejandro Amenábar * The Others (Music From The Dimension Motion Picture) * Sony Classical (2001)
09.) Tam Lin * Fairport Convention * Liege & Lief * Island Records (1969)

Part V: Cottage Street Part 4

10.) Laugh * Danny Elfman * Original Motion Picture Soundtrack to ‘Beetlejuice’ * Geffen Records (1988)
11.) Old Times * Alejandro Amenábar * The Others (Music From The Dimension Motion Picture) * Sony Classical (2001)

HOUR 2

Part VI: Chatting With Victrola Again

Part VII: The Lady in the Hatboro House & The Bucks County Hitchhiker 

12.) They Are Everywhere * Alejandro Amenábar * The Others (Music From The Dimension Motion Picture) * Sony Classical (2001)
13.) “I Do Believe In Spooks” * The Cowardly Lion * The Wizard Of Oz * MGM Studios (1939)
14.) Scrooge * Lord Buckley * Blowing His Mind (And Yours) * World Pacific (1966)
15.) Big Joe & Phantom 309 * Tom Waits * Nighthawks At The Diner * Asylum Records (1975)

Part VIII: Victrola’s Moving Chair & Chatting With Victrola Even Yet Still

Part IX: The Professor & Miss Rikki Call-In

The Call Is Coming From Inside The Podcast! (Ghost Stories Part I) (#71)

When October rolls around,  a long-held tradition on the program is to roll out all the old Halloween music and records that I know and love so much. But last year we stumbled upon a great idea: to tell Ghost Stories on the radio, in honor of my favorite time of year. This worked out to our advantage this time around, as so many people turned out that we are able to offer calls all through the month of October – some via Skype and some via the phone – that chronicle some of the most unusual supernatural experiences that have ever occurred.

With that in mind, we have four calls from four people who have each had an experience that you NEED to hear about. Some of these calls are from people who are appearing on the show for the first time. Others are from friends of the show, and previous guests who have a story to tell that fits in with this time of year. In every case, I have not coaxed these stories out of anyone, nor have I edited the calls or tampered with their narratives. This is what happened. And I urge you to listen, and allow the spirit of the season greet you this time of year.

Enjoy.

The Call Is Coming From Inside The Podcast!

Part I: Introduction

01.) Halloween Ambience * Austin Rich / Old Records * Mid-Valley Mutations.
02.) Austin FM Theme * Paco Jones * Austin FM Theme * Self-Released (2016)

Part II: Mustin Douch of Nasalrod

Mustin Douch is on Social Media
And you should pre-order the Nasalrod album. I think you’re gonna love it.

Part III: Heather Zajkowski of The Sound of Tomorrow

Heather Zajkowski appears on The Sound of Tomorrow every week.  This show airs on WAYO in Rochester, New York on 104.3 FM at 4 PM on Wednesdays. It is also available as a podcast in all of your usual stores and services.

Part IV: Austin Shippey

You can find Austin Shippey at austinshippey.com, which resolves to cunningcraftspiritualservices.com, where you can find Austin and his services, as well as Praesidium: A handbook of magical defense and protection.

Part V: Jeremy Hight

I have to say, I’ve been doing Halloween Radio for years now, but these Ghost Stories episodes are some of the most fun things I’ve ever done for any radio program.  There was something about the idea of people calling in to talk about their own experiences that I knew would go over well, but I had no idea what it would be like until we were live.  In a way, that’s the beauty of radio; you never know, until its happening, what you’re going to get.

However, we starting things off this week on a somber note, even for a Halloween Broadcast, as we must tend the horror business of John Zacherle himself passing from this universe on Thursday Evening.  While dying at the age of 98 after a long and incredible career such as his is certainly not a tragedy – and The Cool Ghoul himself would probably make some tasteless jokes about his own passing – it does mark the end of an era, for sure.  Zacherle was not only the second ever horror host in the late ’50s (of which you can see some samples over here), but a key figure in Halloween Music, almost creating the genre with his novelty record, “Dinner With Drac.”  To kick off the show, I bring you a mini-mutation of my favorite Zacherle tracks.  While I don’t usually like to get political on this program, I do urge you to vote Zacherle in the coming election, and remember the Cool Ghoul the way we all should: laughing at a crude monster joke he just made on the spot.

But that’s not all!  The meat of this program are a pair of phone calls.  One, from our good friend horridus of devilsclub, who calls to offer two true stories of experiences he had that must be heard to be believed.  horridus is a good friend of the program, and is always welcome, especially if we get stories like this.  I would also urge people to see him perform LIVE, in Salem Oregon at The Space, along with Uneasy Chairs, Remy Gnol, Justin Smith, and Nathan Pepperoni w/ CEOs Incorporated.  This is a show like no other, and it would be a bummer to miss it.

Our second call is from James Warren, a regional ghost hunter who has been investigating in the area for three years.  James started Oregon Paranormal Pack out of interest in what else is out there, and we barely scratched the surface in terms of what he would have talked about, and other true stories of experiences he’s looked into.  You can find out more information, and see videos of their work, over here on their page.  When it comes to Ghost Stories, and the unexplained, James came to mind almost immediately, and I was very pleased to get him on the program.

All that, and we touch base with Uneasy Chairs again.  What a great way to celebrate the season!

We dropped a wide range of retrocasts and other Holiday Programming all throughout the month of October, and we have one more on Monday Night, proper, before we leave the Spook-tacular Season behind us.  If you want to catch up on all the programs this month, this handy link allows you to peruse at your leisure, and find one that is best suited to the party you’re having.  I guarantee that all of them will work as the perfect soundtrack to any party you might want to attend.

Enjoy!

Spinitron Playlist.

Ghost Stories II: Aircheck of The Damned

Part I: It’s Time To Start Telling Stories

01.) Austin FM Theme * Paco Jones * Austin FM Theme * Self-Released (2016)
02.) Let It Go To Hell * Uneasy Chairs * EXIT * Bandcamp.com (2016)

Part II: A Tribute To Zacherle, The Cool Ghoul (The People Who Died) (A Mini-Mutation)

03.) Dinner With Drac * John Zacherle * Dinner With Drac * Cameo Records (1958)
04.) Zacherle For President * John Zacherle * Spook Along With Zacherle * Elektra Records (1960)
05.) Happy Halloween * John Zacherle * Scary Tales Featuring John Zacherley * Parkway Records (1962)

Part III: Austin Is Fine

06.) Halloween Sound Collage [Excerpt I] * Arvo Zylo * Halloween Sound Collage * Self-Released (2016)
07.) The Right Shadow * The Giant Worm * 26 June 2015 Olympia Experimental Music Fest, Eagle’s Ballroom * Self-Released (2015)

Part II: horridus of devilsclub

08.) Live At Occult Sciences * devilsclub * 1/3/15 at Josephine, Seattle, WA. * Soundcloud.com (2015)
09.) The horridus Phone Call

Part III: Present At A Hanging

10.) Halloween Ambience (Remix) * Austin Rich * Halloween Ambience (Remix) * Self-Released (2015)
11.) Universal Telephone Ring Sound Effect * Universal Sound Effects Department * Universal Telephone Ring Sound Effect * Universal Studios (1970)
12.) The Weather Computer Phone Call (Again)
13.) Present At A Hanging * Austin Rich * The Ways of Ghosts * WTBC Records (2015)

Part III: James Warren of Oregon Paranormal Pack

14.) Halloween Ambience (Remix) * Austin Rich * Halloween Ambience (Remix) * Self-Released (2015)
15.) The James Warren Phone Call

Part IV: This Is Certainly Austin Rich

16.) Ghosts (New York, 1964) [Excerpt] * Albert Ayler * Holy Ghost * Revenant Records (2004)
20.) The Uneasy Chairs Phone Call
21.) To Raise The Dead * Vincent Price * Tales Of Witches, Ghosts And Goblins * Caedmon Records (1972)
22.) The Austin Rich Phone Call?

This week we pull out all the stops for a Halloween broadcast the likes of which you have never heard before!  It is one thing to play Halloween Music on the radio, and I’ve been doing that since 2003.  But this week I decided that it would make more sense to tell ghost stories, the true essence of Halloween.

Fortunately for me, a number of friends and fans of the show called in to help contribute to the show.  Both Ricardo Wang & Uneasy Chairs call in, marking both of their second appearances on the program.  (Stay tuned for a live Uneasy Chairs performance on the program on November 11th!)  And, Geekly-Update host Jason Ramey calls with a particularly scary story about the very radio station I was broadcasting from!  (I hope he’s okay.)  The problem is, if the station is haunted, will I even survive the show?  There’s only one way to find out…

The centerpiece of this show is an interview with Bob Bucko Jr., not only a friend of the show, but the man behind Personal Archives Records, a label that has been very kind to Mid-Valley Mutations, and kind to music in general.  Bob in a wonderful person who makes deeply personal music, and it a sight to see on stage.  I met him a while back when we got to play a show together, and I have been a die-hard fan every since.  Since I’ve been plugging the tours and playing his records on the show, it made sense to have a chat, and pal around with a guy I haven’t seen in a while.  Plus: he has a great ghost story about staying at the Chelsea Hotel!

We had so much fun with this program that we may well do more Ghost stories next week, so stay tuned.  In the meantime, what is up with this ghost that keeps popping into the KMUZ studio?

Enjoy!

Spinitron Playlist.

Ghost Stories

Part I: For Boys & Girls

01.) Austin FM Theme * Paco Jones * Austin FM Theme * Self-Released (2016)
02.) Interview [Excerpts] * Bob Bucko Jr. & Ricardo Wang * What’s This Called? * KPSU Radio (4 April 2015)
03.) Excerpt I * Alfred Hitchcock * Ghost Stories For Boys & Girls * Golden Records (1962)
04.) Side A [Excerpt] * Sex Funeral * Eradicator * Personal Archives (2016)
05.) Machine In The Ghost * Thollem * Machine In The Ghost * Personal Archives (2016)

Part II: The Phantom DJ

06.) Halloween Sound Collage [Excerpt I] * Arvo Zylo * Halloween Sound Collage * Self-Released (2016)
07.) The Jason Ramey Phone Call

Part II: The Phantom Roommate

08.) Excerpt II * Alfred Hitchcock * Ghost Stories For Boys & Girls * Golden Records (1962)
09.) Ten [Excerpt I] * Arvo Zylo * Heavenly Sounds in Lo-Fidelity: Arvo Plays Ferrante & Teicher * Personal Archives (2016)
10.) The Ricardo Wang Phone Call
11.) Halloween Sound Collage [Excerpt II] * Arvo Zylo * Halloween Sound Collage * Self-Released (2016)

Part III: The Bob Bucko Jr. Interview

12.) Ten [Excerpt II] * Arvo Zylo * Heavenly Sounds in Lo-Fidelity: Arvo Plays Ferrante & Teicher * Personal Archives (2016)
13.) Excerpt III * Alfred Hitchcock * Ghost Stories For Boys & Girls * Golden Records (1962)
14.) How To See Ghosts (Or Surely Bring Them To You) * Vincent Price * A Hornbook For Witches * Caedmon Records (1976)
15.) Improv [Excerpts] * Bob Bucko Jr. * Crank Spirit * Personal Archives (2015)
16.) The Bob Bucko Jr. Phone Call

Part III: Uneasy Chairs

17.) Halloween Ambience (Remix) * Austin Rich * Halloween Ambience (Remix) * Self-Released (2015)
18.) The Uneasy Chairs Phone Call

Part IV: The End?

19.) The Weather Computer Phone Call
20.) A Wireless Message * Austin Rich * The Ways of Ghosts * WTBC Records (2015)
21.) Excerpt IV * Alfred Hitchcock * Ghost Stories For Boys & Girls * Golden Records (1962)

The Delerious Insomnica Free Form Radio Show (#21) 

I will by honest: Arvo Zylo and I have never met.  And, furthermore, I was unfamiliar with his work – or the releases on his label, No Part Of It – until I heard it on Ricardo Wang’s What’s This Called?  But a good thing is hard to resist, and soon enough I received an excellent package of material from his label.  As it turns out, Mr. Zylo also used to host a radio program, and one thing led to another, and then… well, you’re hearing the results, right now.

These kinds of collaborations not only come easy, but are the backbone of good radio.  Collectors are always putting together their own collections of incredible music, and it would be pretty ridiculous to claim that only I could ever understand what listeners want.  Arvo’s label is not only entirely unique it the releases they put out, but his personal taste in music is also incredibly fantastic.  It didn’t take many e-mails before we had sorted out what we wanted to do, and the added bonus was that this all lined up in October, so we could present it as part of our annual “Halloween Spook-tacular!”

For this show, we’re doing something a little different.  Podcast listeners will get to hear a special, two-hour show that the broadcast listeners did not get to hear.  If you tuned in on the radio, you heard Arvo’s Halloween music selections, culled from his personal collection, and perfect for this time of year.  Podcast listeners will be treated to an extra hour of Halloween Music, all from No Part Of It Records releases, also perfect for the holiday season.  There’s just so much good music coming from him, that it was silly to not take advantage of this.  In the end, dear listener, you always come out ahead.  In fact, you can hear the hour-long broadcast version here, if there’s a demand for that.

I really enjoy doing radio like this, where it is not only my voice that winds up on the show.  No Part Of It is a wonderful label that not only presents music that is often overlooked, but has a vision and mission statement that is incredibly personal, and a pleasure in this era of cookie-cutter music.  We hare proud to have them be supporters of our program, and we look forward to having their music on the program.

Enjoy!

Spinitron Playlist.

The Delerious Insomnica Free Form Radio Show 

HOUR 1

Part I: Satan Takes A Holiday

01.) Satan Takes A Holiday * Hans Grusel * Delirious Music For Delirious People * No Part Of It (2016)
02.) Sweet Breeze * Diatric Puds & The Blobettes * Delirious Music For Delirious People * No Part Of It (2016)
03.) Night of The Vampire * Istvan & His Imaginary Band * Delirious Music For Delirious People * No Part Of It (2016)
04.) Never Fuck In The Woods * Blood Rhythms * Heuristics * No Part Of It (2016)
05.) Maggot’s Drag * Blood Rhythms * Heuristics * No Part Of It (2016)

Part II: A Wandering Echo

06.) A Wandering Echo * Wilt * Nocturnal Requiem * No Part Of It (2015)
07.) Skin Walker * Architeuthis Dux * Submergence * No Part Of It (2016)

Part III: Machine Listener 

08.) Suite III from 0RT0 (excerpt) * Somnoroase Păsărele * 0RT0 (I-IV) * No Part Of It (2016)
09.) Primeval Forest Sentinel * Machine Listener * Sentient System * No Part Of It (2014)

HOUR 2

Part IV: Ghostly Sounds

10.) Ghostly Sounds [Excerpt] * Gershon Kingsley & Peter Waldron * Ghostly Sounds * Peter Pan Records (1975)
11.) One, Two, Three * Groovie Goolies * Groovie Goolies * RCA / Victor (1970)
12.) I Wish Everyone Was Born This Way * Bob Mosher & Jack Marshall * At Home With The Munsters * Golden Records (1964)
13.) Hurry, Bury, Baby * Zacherley * “Hurry, Bury, Baby” b/w “Dinner With Drac” * Parkway Records (1962)
14.) She’s Fallen In Love (With The Monster Man) * Screamin’ Lord Sutch And The Savages * Til The Following Night * EMI (1991)
15.) The Voodoo Walk * Sonny Richard’s “Panics” w/ Cindy & Misty * “The Voodoo Walk” b/w “Skinnie Minnie Olive Oil” * Chancellor Records (1962)
16.) Witch Woman * Nightmare * “Great Balls of Fire” b/w “Witch Woman” * RCA (1979)

Part V: The House Is Haunted

17.) The Witch * The Rattles * The Witch * Philips Records (1971)
09.) Children’s Day At The Morgue * Sheldon Allman * Sing Along With Drac * Del-Fi Records (1961)
18.) Drac The Knife * Gene Moss * Dracula’s Greatest Hits * RCA / Victor (1964)
19.) Grave In The Desert * Sebastian Peabody * Wavy Gravy * Beware Records (1988)
20.) The House Is Haunted * Glen Grey & His Casa Loma Orchestra * 30’s & 40’s Era Halloween * Red Devil Records (2012)
21.) There’s A Ghost In My House * R. Dean Taylor * “There’s A Ghost In My House” b/w “Let’s Go Somewhere” * Rare Earth Records (1974)
22.) It’s Your Voodoo Working * Charles Sheffield * “It’s Your Voodoo Working” b/w “Rock And Roll Train” * Excello Records (1961)

Part VI:  A Wicked Thought

23.) Soul Dracula * Hot Blood * “Soul Dracula” b/w “Sans Dracula” * ERA Records (1975)
24.) Spooky Scary Skeletons * Andrew Gold * Andrew Gold’s Halloween Howls * Music For Little People (1996)
25.) Boris The Spider * The Who * A Quick One * Decca Records (1966)
26.) Big Fat Spider * Heinz And The Wild Boys * That’s The Way It Was * Rock Machine Records (1986)
27.) Night Of The Vampire * Roky Erickson & The Aliens * Roky Erickson & The Aliens * CBS Records (1980)
28.) A Wicked Thought * Zacherley * Spook Along With Zacherley * Elektra Records (1960)
29.) Halloween Spooks * Lambert, Hendricks & Ross * High Flying * Columbia Records (1961)

It’s A Manual Pledge Drive (w/ Manual Sex Drive, LIVE!) (#20)

When you do enough radio, you meet some incredible people who stick with you over the years.  I met Monty O’Blivion, Nick Feratu and NickDave when they toured through Closet Radio in 2012.  (Those three also play in an incredibly psychobilly group, The Limit Club.)  For a long time I thought it was going to be a one-off thing, and this happens a lot in radio.  You have a great afternoon, you share some drinks and maybe talk shop, then you’re MyFacester+ or Twinstablr friends for the rest of your lives.  I had heard tale of the other group they play in – Manual Sex Drive – and hoped that they would hit the road eventually so I could see Monty’s brainchild.  And this time, I also got to meet their other band members, Jhef Zurx & Aaron Hjalmarson.

As it so often happens, time passed.  Then I got a ring from Monty: we’re on tour in the Fall, and passing through Salem on a Friday.  He asked if I was interested in trying to set something up.

Was I interested?

What we have for you in this episode is a radio free-for-all, two hours long, where you get to experience the glory that is Manual Sex Drive.  In this 120 minutes, you get two live sets by the group, get to hear a number of tracks from their forthcoming new record – Music Is Dead – that is not available anywhere by on THIS PROGRAM (and from the band itself) until October 14th, when it finally hits stores.  We also chat with the group about making music, touring, and what it is all about.

The after-party, unfortunately, is not included.

Shows like this are always special to me, because getting to spend time with artists is a rare treat.  Not only that, but this group of friends are very similar to the kinds of people I spent a lot of time with when I was in bands.  Not only that, but any night you get to stay up late and talk about the secret true history of rock and roll, you know you are in for a good time.

This one is raw and un-edited, live and loud, and a good representation of what this band is like.

This is also our Pledge Drive Special, and KMUZ did an incredibly job or raising money to keep community radio on the air.  I like to think that I helped in some way, by getting a great band and throwing a good “bash” at the end of the drive.  The fact that we blew away our goal and raised over $10,000 is nothing to sneeze at.  I like to think that having these guys on the show was definitely a part of it.

Enjoy!

Spinitron Playlist.

MyFacester+ Twinstagramblr Photoset (photos by Tina Erickson)

It’s A Manual Pledge Drive

HOUR 1

Part I: Cutthroat Business

01.) Austin FM Theme * Paco Jones * Austin FM Theme * Self-Released (2016)
02.) Seven Figures * Manual Sex Drive * Music Is Dead * Self-Released (2016)
03.) Too Much Hate * Manual Sex Drive * Shindig Shakedown * WTBC Records (2014)
04.) Cutthroat Business * The Limit Club * This Is Cutthroat Business * Phantom Cat Records (2011)
05.) 21 Yr. Blues * Manual Sex Drive * Illumiphobia * Phantom Cat Records (2012)
06.) I’m Generic * Manual Sex Drive * Music Is Dead * Self-Released (2016)
07.) Breath In * Sex Funeral * Your Heaven Sucks * Personal Archives Records (2016)

Part II: Manual Sex Drive, LIVE!

06.) Manual Sex Drive, Live Set 1
07.) Your Heaven Sucks * Sex Funeral * Your Heaven Sucks * Personal Archives Records (2016)

HOUR 2

08.) Manual Sex Drive Interview
09.) Serf Rock * Manual Sex Drive * Music Is Dead * Self-Released (2016)
10.) Manual Sex Drive, Live Set 2

Part III: To Hell With Poverty 

11.) To Hell With Poverty * Gang Of Four * Another Day / Another Dollar * Warner Bros. Records (1982)
12.) The Muse Is Dead * Manual Sex Drive * Music Is Dead * Self-Released (2016)

The Final Houdini Séance!

As a kid in the ’80’s, if you had any nerd proclivities, you go through a phase where you tinker with magic.  My dad had a book with a section about many of the great magicians of the 19th and early 20th Century, and between pouring over that book, learning a trick from my dad’s friend Lance (who had performed at my school as a magician), and not having many friends in those days, I became very interested in magic.  I was never any good at it, could never pull off a trick with any flair, and never attempted to become a magician, but biographies of magicians became my bread and butter.

As Halloween was approaching in 1987, I was – at 12 – feeling self-conscious about going out in a costume again, and since there was candy around the house, I dressed up as a wizard and helped my parents give out candy that night.  Which resulted in their letting me handle the treaters while they got some much-needed time to themselves.  But there was another, ulterior motive for wanting to stay home: USA was airing a program hosted by William Shatner called The Search For Houdini, and I was gonna watch them perform a séance in an attempt to contact Houdini, dammit!

Houdini’s connection to Halloween predated his death in 1926.  As a Supernatural Investigator, he had encountered all manner of spirit mediums, and had proved fairly conclusively that there was no afterlife, no realm of the spirits, and not for a lack of trying.  His attempts to contact his mother were legendary, and if anyone wanted to believe, it was Harry. But time and again he had established that every time someone claimed to contact the realm of ghosts, Houdini could recreate their effects through trickery.

His partner in this quest was his own wife “Bess” Houdini, and they had promised to make a show of trying to contact each other when one of them passed.  Unfortunately, it was Harry who died as a result of J. Gordon Whitehead punching Houdini in the stomach, a blow that Houdini would regularly endure by clenching his muscles, something he’d picked up as a performer over the years.  But Houdini did not have time to prepare for the blow, and aggravated his already enflamed appendix.  He passed away at 1:23 PM on Halloween, 1926.

Bess attempted to contact Houdini every year, on Halloween, as per their agreement prior to his death.  Bess and Houdini has worked out a code, and she knew that if a spirit could reproduce this code, Houdini was in fact communicating with her from the spirit realm.  This became an annual tradition among magicians and other performers, who took the opportunity of Halloween and a legendary performer like Harry to stage an old fashioned séance for paying customers.  While many had claimed to make contact, Bess was never convinced, as part of their arrangement was that Houdini would reach out to the one he loved most, and not some other medium from the middle of nowhere.  Plus, no one ever managed to crack the code.

In 1936 – ten years to the date – Bess performed the séance one last time, with Dr. Edward Saint (her manager) leading the ceremony.  Engraved invitations were sent out, and luminaries from the world of magic as well as other distinguished guests were invited to join them on the roof of the Knickerbocker Hotel in Los Angeles.  The event garnered a ton of press, and was THE thing on the lips of everyone in the entertainment industry.  Regardless of the turnout, no matter what happened, this moment would be remembered forever.

And, in 1959, a recording of that evening was made available to the public.  The Final Houdini Séance is, most likely, not the actual recording of the séance.  All accounts of the evening report that it was cold a little windy that night, and that after the ceremony it rained on the guests who were outside, on the roof.  Most likely, Bess and Edward “re-recorded” the event, word for word, which might explain some of the stilted ways certain parts of the ceremony.  However, there is no proof either way, and the recording was certainly made no later than 1942, when Bess passed away.  It is – unmistakably – her voice, near the end of the record.

The LP that was released is absolutely a Halloween record if I ever heard one, and the only weakness is the Narration by George Boston.  Not only does he repeat much of what is already said in the ceremony itself, but he infers more than either Edward or Bess suggest in the recording, and like many people, only perpetuated the notion that Houdini’s ghost might still be out there.  And perhaps that is ultimately harmless.  Houdini’s work is, in many ways, a direct ancestor of the work James Randi has been doing for decades, and the annual tradition of trying to contact Houdini is another fun way to pass the night.

It sure was for me in 1987.

To flesh out this episode, I’ve also included a little-known radio program from 1936: Unsolved Mysteries.  This program ran for many years, and was presented as a 15 minute broadcast.  They actors would introduce a mystery, then reveal the answer at the end of the show.  One episode purported to know how Houdini performed a trick, where he was escaping from a box underwater to a crowd that could not believe what they’d seen.  However, Unsolved Mysteries admits that their answer is the only one that the could imagine working, and other magicians close to Houdini have since debunked the validity of their claim.  Still, this is an interesting opportunity to hear an actor play Houdini, and makes for a good chance to segue into the second half of the show.

And now, I present to you, a special radio seance, just for this special holiday occasion.  Make sure to listen, this Halloween!

Enjoy!

*

The Final Houdini Séance!

Side A

“”

01.) Incantation For Tape (1953) * Otto Luening and Vladimir Ussachevsky * An Anthology of Noise & Electronic Music, Second A-Chronology: 1936 – 2003
02.) The Final Houdini Seance * George L. Boston * 1959
03.) Ghosts: First Variation * Albert Ayler Trio * Spiritual Unity
04.) The Magician * Rhys Chatham * Outdoor Spell
05.) Challenge To Death * Unsolved Mysteries w/ Stanley Peyton (on WLW, the Mutual Network) (1936)
06.) That’s How I Escaped My Certain Fate * Mission of Burma * Vs.
07.) Magic Power * Opal * Happy Nightmare Baby
08.) Blackmagic * TSOL * Change Today?

Side B

“”  

09.) Spook * Galaxie 500 * This Is Our Music
10.) Escape * Levator * Jackson Hwy. Barnes Drive
11.) The Escape Artist * My Dad Is Dead * Let’s Skip The Details
12.) Séance * Metanoia * Metanoia
13.) The Séance * Danny & The Nightmares * Danny & The Nightmares 7”
14.) Swingin’ At The Seance * Glen Miller & Orchestra * Halloween Stomp
15.) Y Brawd Houdini * Meic Stevens * Welsh Rare Beat
16.) Edison Machine Rehearsal Cylinder * Harry Houdini * 1914

Closet Radio Episode 194: Space Terrors – Rikki Horror Picture Show 2015 pt.4

(10-27-15)

Playlist:

*

“Moon Mist” – Blue Jeans – 1961
*
“Girls In Orbit” – Messer Chups – The Surf Zombies
“Amazons From Outer Space” – Batmobile – Amazons From Outer Space
“Planet X Marks The Spot” – Dr. Steel – People of Earth
*
*
“Ship of The Dead” – Nurse With Wound – Spiral Insana
*
“Crime Of The Century” – eX-Girl – Back To The Mono Kero!
“The Willing Well II: Fear Through The Eyes of Madness” – Coheed & Cambria – Good Apollo, I’m Burning Star IV
*
“The Star We Spin Around” – George Sarah – Timelapse
“Attack Of The Space Invaders” – The Horibillies – Horrible Rockabilly Punx
“War of the Worlds” – Plan – Manmade Monster
*
*
“Teenagers From Mars” – The Hellacopters –
“Return Of The Son Of Monster Magnet” – Mothers of Invention – Freak Out!
“The Edge” – Spectrum & Silver Apples – A Lake Of Teardrops
*
“Space Prophet Dogon” – Grails – The Burden of Hope
“Planet On The Prowl” – The Negatives – Lethal Weapons – Suicide Records
*
“Astralplane” – Blue Pills – Bliss
“10th Planet” – Solid Space – Space Museum
“The Moon” – Nick Cave
“Star Charmer” – Grinderman – Heathen Child Limited Edition 12″
*
“Invasion On The Black Skies” – The Koolaid Electric Company – Black EP
“The Descent” – Helios Creed – X- Rated Fairy Tales

Roughly Translated, “Book of The Dead”

Playlist & Footnotes:

There would be very few things anyone could say about The Evil Dead that hasn’t been week chronicled elsewhere, and if you don’t know the story, it’s worth seeking out the detailed (and extrapolated) version.  These guys – Robert Tapert, Sam Raimi & Bruce Campbell – had been making movies on their own for years, showing them to friends and on college campuses, and largely recouping their investments.  It seemed plausible that they could make a feature, and raised all the money themselves, sealing every deal along the way to get funding and distribution for an essentially “home-made” film that has their DNA and fingerprints all over every inch of the final product that made it into theaters.  

The miraculous component is that, in spite of everything, they managed to get some genuine scares into a pictures that was, essentially, a far-from-Hollywood production.  I believe this is owed largely to the sound of the film, mixed and produced by the same creative core, and included atmosphere and texture that some creators overlook.  They knew where their strengths and weaknesses lay, and with a few well-timed scares, a good soundtrack to keep everything moving forward, and plenty of fake blood, they had a little hit on their hands, and now the franchise has not only spawned remakes and sequels, but an upcoming TV show that will continue the story of these hapless characters that wound up in the wrong place at the wrong time.  

However, there is something special about this first film.  Where all the other films that followed had a very ’80’s feel to the work, this movie is 100% rooted in the spirit and feel of the ’70’s.  Every inch of the aesthetic screams that decade, and the bits that these three are inspired by are the low-budget movies that were being churned in the wake of the Hammer Horror films that were making the circuits in those days.  Looking at The Evil Dead is like looking at a time capsule of a sensibility of a time long since past.  The tree-rape scene is something that would be hard to get into a modern film without a lot of push-back, and most likely the creators of something like that would not go on to direct three Spider-Man movies.  It is telling that a movie like this was updated for comic effect in the sequels.  Where the terror of this film is brutal from start to finish, their comedic beats were stronger, and made for something that really had never been seen on film before or since.

For this program, I selected a number of “evil” and “dead” songs to complement the story.

Enjoy!

*

Roughly Translated, “Book of The Dead”

Side A

“Which Would Put Us…” / “Join Us!” / “What’s This Place Like?” / The Drive In / “There’s Something Down There.” / “Listen To This” / “The Ruins of Kandar.” / “A Volume of Ancient Sumerian Burial Practices & Funerary Incantations” / “I Just Don’t Want To Hear It Anymore, That’s All.”

01.) Better Off Dead * The Wipers * Better Off Dead 7″
02.) See No Evil * Television * Marquee Moon
03.) Dawning of The Dead * Dead Moon * Dead Ahead
04.) Young Men Dead * The Black Angels * Passover
05.) Evil * Horde Of Two * Guitar & Bass Action

Side B

“Hey, C’mon.  I Just Want To Hear The Rest Of It.”  / “Shut It OFF!” / “She Acts Like She’s Three Years Old Or Something.” / “Is Anybody Out There?” / “Whatever I Have Resurrected Will Come Calling For Me” / “One By One We Will Take You!” / “I Don’t Think I Can Wait That Long.” / “For God’s Sake, What Happened To Her Eyes!?” / “We’re Got To Bury Her Now.” / “Where Did I See That Box of Shells?”  

06.) Everyone I Went To High School With Is Dead * Mr. Bungle * Disco Volate
07.) Dead Souls * Nomeanso * The Day Everything Became Nothing
08.) Better Off Dead * Piglet * Not Ralphing At Your First Keg Party
09.) In Love With The Dead * Behead The Prophet No Lord Shall Live * Behead The Prophet No Lord Shall Live 7″
10.) Where Dead People Live * Sun City Girls * Carnival Folklore Resurrection Vol 1: Cameo Demons and Their Manifestations
11.) Bury Your Dead * Orkestar Zirkonium * Orkestar Zirkonium
12.) Day Of The Dead * Lester Bangs & The Delinquents * Jook Savages On The Brazos
13.) Pretty Chords For Evil Sleep People * Bishop Of Battle * Prequel Plus
14.) Evil Will Prevail * The Flaming Lips * Clouds Taste Metallic

Closet Radio Episode 193: The Only Good Cowboy – Rikki Horror Picture Show 2015 pt. 3

(10-20-15)

Playlist:

“Moon Over Asbury” – Bouncing Souls – Maniacal Laughter
“Hangin’ Me Tonight” – Bloodshot Bill – Trashy, Greasy, Rockin’ Billy
“Now He’s Dead” – Hank Williams III – This Ain’t Country
“Shoot First And Run Like Hell” – Nashville Pussy – High as Hell
“Dead Man” – Die Hunns – Long Legs
“Goodbye Johnny” – Flytrap – Salvo of 24 Gunshots

*

“10 Pasos De La Muerte” – Twintones – Demo
“The Legend of God’s Gun” – Spindrift – The Legend of God’s Gun
“Vaalley of Death” – Last Drive – Underworld Shakedown
“Eldorado” – Basil Rathbone – Edgar Allen Poe Audio Collection
“Cask” – Cemetery – Demo
“Gold Rush pt.2″ – Asteroids Galaxy Tour – Out of Frequency
“Wet Dead Horses” – Narrow Terence – Narcos Corridos
“Sandman” – America – History
“Lonely Night” – D.G. Scherrer – Turn Back O’ Man Demos

*

“Hello Nightmare” – Mountain Con
“Long Black Veil” – The Corn Sisters – The Other Women

*

“Man In The Long, Black Coat” – Mark Lanegan –
“Death By Drowning” – The Birthday Party – Hee Haw
“The Night Bell With Lightning” – David Lynch – Crazy Clown Time
“Be Mean” – Lost Cities – Demo
“Drown In The River” – Those Poor Bastards –
“Secret Fires” – The Gun Club – Las Vegas Story
“Death Is Hanging Over Me” – Nikki Sudden And The Jacobites – Texas
“Black Dress” – O Death – Outside
“Redemption” – Dex Romweber Duo – Is That You In The Blue?

*

“No Way Out But Down” – Graham Lindsey – For A Decade of Sin
“Dirtnap Stories” – Lee Hazlewood – For Every Solution, There’s A Problem

Closet Radio Episode 192: In The Underground – Rikki Horror Picture Show 2015 pt. 2

(10-13-15)

“Dead and Happy” – Scarecrow – Maggotbox – 82 Records
“A Dark Place” – The Hell Caminos – Lust
“Young Men Dead” – The Black Angels – Passover
“Dead Cool” – Chrome Cranks – Dead Cool

*

“Ghost From My Grave” – Catholic Spray – Fruits Of The Moon
“Dirges Are Downers” – The Black Lipstick – Converted Thieves
“Deep Sleep” – Chance Halladay – Home Run – Bulldog
“Deep Deep Down” – The Mr. T Experience – Love Is Dead
“Lotion” – The Greenskeepers –
“Vegan Zombie” – Zach Selwyn – Demo
“Deathbed Confession” – Chain & The Gang – Down With LIberty

*

“Spiderhole” – The Mission Creeps – In Sickness and In Health
“Mountains Of Madness” -Cubby Preachers – CPV
“Downstairs To Hell” – Lover! – No Dreams Please
“Oh Death” – Dock Boggs –
“Flames” – The Sawyer Family – The Burning Times

*

“I Was The Murderer” – Eat Your Make Up – First Dinner
“Eternity” – Zombeast – Zombeast
“At The Crossroads” – Crime & The City Solution – Just South of Heaven
“Resurrection Mary” – Ex-Voto – Goth Box Disc 3
“Coffin Maker” – 13th Chime – The Singles
“Midnight Graveyard” – Mother Sunday
“Dirt” – Revolting Cocks – Linger Fickin’ Good

The Creeping Terror!

Here’s everything you need to know about this movie from 1964: there is no documented evidence that the film was ever shown to anyone – anywhere – until it first appeared on Television some time in 1976.  Even then, 12 years later, the film was mocked and panned relentlessly, as anyone who came into contact with the film could only speak of its shortcomings.  Something that bad begins to attract a certain kind of reputation with a certain kind of movie fan, and in spite of the terrible reviews, the inexcusable acting, the cheapness of the monster(s), and the spareness and near-incoherence of the plot (even without the long musical interludes where nothing happens, the film clocks in at 75 minutes), it would not die!  Rather, The Creeping Terror – miraculously! – accrued a reputation that could not be forgotten, canonized as being so bad it must be seen to be believed.  As tapes of The Creeping Terror circulated to TV stations running Shock Theater! type fare, this piece of cinematic trash not only found an audience among those dedicated to the rejects of film culture, but eventually found its way to the hallowed halls of Mystery Science Theater 3000, not only keeping it forever in the public’s mind, but forever preserving it for future generations to look at and puzzle through.

Just what did they have in mind when they made this thing?

You can thank the twisted mind of Vic Savage for that.  “Director” does fully cover Vic’s role in this film, who also starred in, produced, edited, paid for, scammed other’s to participate in, and – essentially – made the movie what it is, in every sense of the word, at the age of 28.  As the story goes, Vic paid Allan Silliphant to be the writer for the film, but it was clear once production began that Vic was in over his head, and had a “unique” vision for the film that was not what Allan was prepared for.  Vic had a number of excuses time and again: the location “fell through” at the last minute, most likely something that was never secure in the first place.  An impressive monster had been made for the production, so Vic claimed, but “disappeared” before filming could take place, so Vic and a few others created the “carpet remnants” monster you see in the picture.  Supposedly the film was going to be a well-funded horror film, as Vic had sold it to everyone, but as the filming date got closer, more and more of the cast were made up of people who paid to be in the film, “funding” the production from within.  Vic’s sound crew “never showed up,” so the majority of the audio was to be recorded in post-production.  As the production went on, more and more people backed out, delaying time it was taking Vic to put the thing together.

The stories about this film don’t end there.  Vic had to use another name (for “Union Purposes,”) and “Directed” (among other things) under the name “A.J. Nelson,” which led to some confusion moments on set when a financial backer was trying to figure out who had just ripped him off.  (A mystique that Vic was hoping to maintain.)  Vic had secured a location for the film eventually – a pond that a friend of his by the name of Randy Starr – yes, THE Randy Starr that provided Charles Manson with the gun used in the Tate-LaBianca murders – had found, which stood in for Lake Tahoe in the film, and was near where the Manson Family lived at the time.  When all the footage was shot, Vic rented a motel room, “borrowed” a 30 year old movola to cut the film.  As the movola was from the silent era, the soundtrack was essentially destroyed by this move, something that Vic had not anticipated.  Some of it could be made out, but large chunks were gone now, and the edits were noticeable.  To help cover for this, Vic turned to his friend Frederick Kopp, a teacher at Los Angeles State College, who taught music composition and worked occasionally in television, though not in a “credited” capacity.  Kopp scored the entire film, his first and only composition where he was credited, and was even conned into dropping a few dollars to help the production, on the promise that his son, Pierre, could get a role in the picture.  Vic then asked Larry Burrell, then working as voice talent in radio, to narrate the film.  (Larry might be the most famous person associated with the film outside of Randy Starr, who worked on Batman, Columbo and the amazing TV movie, They Saved Hitler’s Brain.)  When Vic mixed these with what remained of the original audio bits that were worth saving, and added a few stock sound effects to pad out the sound of the monster and other bits here and there.  (Sound effects that also appeared in in Battle Beyond the Sun and Jack the Giant Killer, as well as Rosemary’s Baby, though it should be added, not intentionally.)

Vic “completed” (or, as some would say, “stopped adding to”) the film in 1964, but before he could try do anything with The Creeping Terror, everything began to fall apart.  True, Vic had a working “print” to try and sell, but actors began to demand compensation for the money they had put into the picture.  Allan Siilliphant, angry over the changes Vic made to the story, sued Vic successfully, over clear breach of contract.  Vic actually disappeared completely rather than face the financial consequences of the lawsuit, and Allan was awarded the rights to do with the film as he wished.  Allan washed his hands of it, giving it to his agent, and through a series of hand-offs that have yet to be tracked down, was eventually shelved by a TV exec who pawned the problem off on the future.  Vic spent the rest of his live in a drunken stupor, and died of liver failure in 1975.  He never attempted to return to film in the time since the disaster that was The Creeping Terror, and he died knowing that he was the only person who had seen it, and thus, know the vision he had for the film.

In this rare instance, time was a friend to Vic Savage.  Even when you fail at something so spectacularly, that failure can open up a whole world of possibility in the future.  Sure, the camp value of it is the only thing recommending The Creeping Terror to modern audiences, and even on MST3K, the film is hard to get through.  But I think that people see an artist trying to make their voice heard when they see a failure like this.  They see themselves, barely an adult at age 28, wanting to express themselves in film the way so many others have before.  Vic was willing to go out on a limb, and pay the price of that taken chance, to see his vision completed.  Sure, it was a dumb vision, but who hasn’t put all their eggs in a basket, if only to learn that lesson up close and personal?

To accompany the film, I’ve selected a sort of stream-of-consciousness set of tunes to complement this narrative mess.  The Creeping Terror barely makes any sense, so really, just absorb the ambience and the musical accompaniment, and try to imagine yourself watching late night TV in the mid-70’s, and then, suddenly, this comes on.

Enjoy!

*

The Creeping Terror!

Side A.

The Glowing Rocket / “Must Be An Accident Or Something.” / “Get In, Honey.” / At The Location Of The Crash / They Looked At The Rocket In Utter Amazement / “It’s No Airplane” / The Monster Attacks / “Car One, Calling In.” / A Temporary Military Headquarters / When, As, And If They Were Contacted / The First In A Series Of Tragedies / Maintaining Secrecy / If The Truth Were Known / “I’ve Heard A Lot About You.”  “Nothing Bad, I Hope?” / A Magnificent Opportunity For Mankind / In Advance Of Anything On Earth / Bachelor Buddies For Years / Dating All The Girls In Town / Married Life / Life Has It’s Way of Making Boys Grow Up / “Poor Baby.” / Come From Beyond Our Solar System 

01.) Crash! Crash! * The Agenda * Start The Panic
02.) Drug Fueled Accident * The Punks * The Punks
03.) Rocketship * The Dead Milkmen * Bucky Fellini
04.) Creeping Crawling * Guyve * Delaying The Inevitable
05.) Negative Creep * Nirvana * Bleach
06.) Truth * The Dead C * Vain, Erudite And Stupid
07.) Experiment In Terror * Fantômas * The Director’s Cut
08.) Creep In The Cellar * The Butthole Surfers * Rembrandt Pussyhorse
09.) 102 Creep [Excerpt I] * Eric Hausmann * Invisible Films

Side B.

The Trials Of Re-Entry & Impact / Failing To Establish Communication / A Frightening Theory / A Product Of Engineering / Humanity Might Be In Grave Danger / “You Stay There.  Stay Calm.” / The Remains Of A Guitar / There Must Be Another Monster / The Monster Was Moving Toward The Community Dance Hall / The Monster Next Appeared In Lover’s Lane / Enough Lives Were Being Endangered / Highly Specialized Test Animals / “Get Out Of My Way.” / The Transmitter Stopped / What Was In Store For Humanity / The Vastness of The Universe Was Incredible / Only God Knows For Sure

10.) 102 Creep [Excerpt II] * Eric Hausmann * Invisible Films
11.) Communication Breakdown * The Dickies * Stukas Over Disneyland
12.) The Creep (Twist) * Frankie Stein And His Ghouls * Monster Sounds And Dance Music
13.) The Creep * Bob Luman * Lux And Ivy’s Favorites Volume 15
14.) Exploration In Terror * The Ventures * The Ventures In Space
15.) A Fistful Of Terror * The Bomboras * Head Shrinkin’ Fun
16.) Terror * Les Baxter * RE/Search: Incredibly Strange Music Vol II
17.) Go To Hell * Railbirds * Killed By Dead Vol. 14
18.) Gotta Get Away * The Blues Magoos * Kaleidoscopic Compendium: The Best Of The Blues Magoos
19.) The Creeper * Quintron * “These Hands Of Mine”

Closet Radio Episode 191: Running The Hunted – Rikki Horror Picture Show 2015 pt. 1

(10-6-15)

“Flypaper” – Kid Congo & The Pink Monkey Birds – Gorilla Rose
“Hallowed Be My Name” – Alice Cooper –
“Necrotina” – Motorpsychos –
“Bad Things” – Andrew Jackson Jihad – People Who Can Eat People Are The Luckiest People In The World
“When The Wolf Comes” – The Kill Devil Hills –
“Maw” – Chelsea Wolfe – Abyss
“Tell Tale Heart” – Edgar Allen Poe – Read by James Mason
“Deep In The Woods” – The Birthday Party – Bad Seed E.P.
“When The Evening Comes”- The Undead – Live Slayer
“Creep” – The Carpettes – Early Years
“Stalking” – Bruce McCulloch – Shame Based Man
“Skincrawl” – Chesty Malone & The Slice ‘Em Ups – Now We’re Gonna See What Disaster Really Means
“Nightmare” – Go Katz – Real Gone Katz
“Love You To Death” – The Massacres – Redemption – Bouncing Betty
“Cruella De Ville” – Alex Perros & The Lone Stars –
“Axe Murderer” – Bloody Hollys – Plane Crash E.P.
“The Lunacy Of Mr. Cadaver” – Cryptkeeper Five – Dear Dr. X… I Wanna Be The Creature
“Trigger Happy Jack” – Poe – Hello
“Time Will Tell” – Susan Anton – Wizards OST
“Eye” – The Scarring Party – A Concise Introduction
“Monstrously Refined Tastes” – Archbishop Jason Polland – Inexorable Paths
“I Know Where You Sleep” – Emilie Autumn – Opheliac
“Look Away My Love” – Advent Sleep – Egos and Eros – Pink Cathedral
“In The Shadows” – Cult Of The Psychic Fetus – She Devil
“Devil Is On His Way” –  Joe Buck Yourself – Piss and Vinegar
“Shadow: A Parable By Edgar Allen Poe” – The Mission Creeps
“Somebody’s Knocking” – The Voodoo Organist –  The Serpent’s Dance
“Slaughterhouse” – The Video Nasties – Demo
“Prey” – DJ Food f/ J.G. Thirlwell – Ninja Tune

The Return of The Living Dead!

Any good Spook-tacular! needs to be willing to kick things into high gear, to set the tone and style for the rest of the month.  Aside from rock music circa 1955 – 65, the second period that really “got” monster music as a metaphor that reflected their own interests was punk rock.  The Return of The Living Dead! not only synthesized much of the aesthetic appeal of monsters and punk rock (humorously “forgetting” to include anything by The Misfits, a jab surly suggesting that it wasn’t just a gimmick, but something that other bands considered ideology).  Zombies WERE the perfect metaphor for America, and the distractions we all have in front of us are getting in the way of seeing the world for what it really is.  (A theme that is explored again in Repo Man, and more pointedly in They Live!, both punk rock masterpieces of the mid ’80’s.)  Return of The Living Dead was a much needed injection of the punk aesthetic in horror films, and delivered a sense of humor as good as the soundtrack.

It’s not just that Return delivers on the B-Movie promises of the movie poster (punks, zombies, zombie punks, and the trappings of all three are present), but the film included enough nudity to guarantee a word of mouth audience reaction, and the effects paid off enough to offer a counterpoint to the bad acting and corny dialog.  For my money, the meta-text of the film is a joy to read: the premise is that the events of Night of The Living Dead were real.  The main characters are punks, and every horror movie from the late ’70’s and ’80’s usually included a token punk or two, in the background, to add texture to “urban” environments.  To have these Rosencrantz & Guildenstern style characters at the center of the story was a clever nod by screenwriter Dan O’Bannon, who layered in a further joke by suggesting that Louisville, Kentucky had a fairly diverse and sophisticated punk scene, but not so much that the government wouldn’t think twice about wiping the city of the map.

I’ve written about my interest in Vampire Punks from Swamp Thing, and I always think that the casual and silly way that punks are painted in film make them a good thing to look for when the opportunity comes up.  But, in some ways, Return gets punks better than most films do, and the give-away is the soundtrack.  I’ve featured most of those songs in more-or-less their complete form in this episode, and really made the music the center of this story.  The “plot” of Return is secondary anyway, and it’s just a mechanism for the girl to take her clothes off, have the punks dance around, or have the zombie effects come on the screen again.  With that same spirit, I’ve edited down the film to just the best bits, so I can cram in more tunes.  I’ve filled out the show with plenty of other “zombie” tunes, and I think I got most of the best lines from the film in about 60 minutes.  Not bad, if I do say so myself.

A couple more things about Return before I get on with the show.  In one of those weird twists of fate that is always so inexplicable in Hollywood, John Russo somehow walked away from the Night of The Living Dead franchise with the rights to any use of the phrase “…Living Dead” in a film.  Russo had written a novel of a loose story idea for Return, and when that was picked up, he turned to Tobe Hooper to direct.  But Tobe had other plans, and soon the hired gun – Dan O’Bannon – was offered a chance to direct.  Dan took it, on the condition that he could re-write the film extensively to separate it from Romero‘s films, who had created a new franchise with Dawn Of The Dead.

Dan O’Bannon was originally just hired to do a script polish, but during this re-write, made a number of changes to give Return its punch.  The substantial shift was that “zombies eat brains,” something that originates in this film, the popularity of which led to a new cultural shorthand that people use to describe zombies.  Up until this point, zombies had really only eaten “human flesh,” but O’Bannon saw that it was the rotting of the mind that punk rock was concerned with, and that having the spread of punk and the spread of a zombie virus linked to “brains” was the masterstroke that made Return a classic.  Additionally, much of the “unkillable” qualities of zombies came from this film, a gag that zombie filmmakers have since used over and over again.  And while O’Bannon sort of offers a few clues as to what makes a zombie a zombie, he also adds in characters who are too dumb or do not care about the truth enough to convey it to the audience.  Really, their indifference about the problem is second to them just wanting to leave, another genius detail.

Dan also structured the story using a much more “comic book” approach to the scenes and dialog, setting up moments and jokes that seemed written for the page turn more than the screen.  This led to the zombies almost “mugging” for the camera, calling in more paramedics so they can eat more brains, and then having one describe the pain of the undead transformation, to help us gain a little sympathy when the make the attack.  These and other examples of strange sub-plots and digressions would play out as fun two-pagers in a comic book, but give the movie a strange rhythm that adds to the eeriness.  Everything about it is wrong, in just the right way.  This gave the film a sort of idiosyncratic look and feel that is obvious when you watch it.  When layered with meta-jokes and gory make-up effects, it only adds to the charm that can’t exactly be replicated with modern film techniques.  Return launched a whole series of sequels, comic adaptations, and other paraphernalia that, in many ways, helped popularize the zombie fad that has penetrated our culture so completely in the here and now.

But really, you don’t care about this, either.  You want to PARTY!  And so do we, so here’s Return of The Living Dead.  

Enjoy!

*

Return of The Living Dead

Side A.
Based On A True Case / Are We Gonna Party Tonight Or What? / It’s Party Time! / I Don’t Think It’s Such A Good Idea / This Place Is A Mess / Do You Ever Fantasize About Being Killed? / It’s Acid Rain! / No, I’m Not Into Drugs, Just Let Me In! / Who’s There?  Brains! / People Coming Out Of The Ground! / I Think Things Are Getting Outta Hand. / More Brains

01.) Zombie Warfare (can’t let you down) * Chrome * Half Machine Lip Moves
02.) Nothing For You * TSOL * The Return Of The Living Dead Soundtrack
03.) Party Time * 45 Grave * The Return Of The Living Dead Soundtrack
04.) Eyes Without A Face * The Flesh Eaters * The Return Of The Living Dead Soundtrack
05.) Tonight (We’ll Make Love Until We Die) * SSQ * The Return Of The Living Dead Soundtrack
06.) Love Under Will * Jet Black Berries * The Return Of The Living Dead Soundtrack
07.) Deadbeat Dance * The Damned * The Return Of The Living Dead Soundtrack
08.) Zombie Stomp * The Del-Airs * Lux and Ivy’s Favorites Volume 13
09.) Big Zombie * The Mekons * The Edge of The World

Side B.
First I Got A Really Fucked Headache / It Looks Like Riga Mortis Is Setting In / Send… More… Paramedics / You’re Dead! / The Pain Of Being Dead / I Can Feel Myself Rot / You Can’t Kill Those Mother’s.  They’re Already Dead / Stand By While We Investigate / This Place.  Everybody That Comes In Gets Swallowed Up / I’m Calling The Number On The Side Of The Canister / They’ve Been Waiting For This To Happen / What Is This Plan?

10.) Watusi Zombie * Jan Davis * Boss Guitar
11.) Zombie * Los Sleepers * Zombie
12.) Take A Walk * Tall Boys * The Return Of The Living Dead Soundtrack
13.) Burn The Flames * Roky Ericson * The Return Of The Living Dead Soundtrack
14.) The Living Dead * The-Front * “Bad Boy” b/w “The Living Dead” 7″
15.) Zombie Lover * The Insults * “Population Zero” b/w “Zombie Lower” 7″
16.) Tina * The Quincy Punx * We’re Not Punks…But We Play Them On TV
17.) Zombie * Screeching Weasel * BoogadaBoogadaBoogada
18.) Night Of The Living Dead * Misfits * Walk Among Us
19.) Zombie Rockin’ * Mad Kenny’s Midnight Drinkers
20.) Surfin’ Dead * The Cramps * The Return Of The Living Dead Soundtrack

The Daily NewsBlas 31 October 2014: Happy Halloween!

This Halloween Season was fantastic, and I really enjoyed all of the excellent places we have gone over the last month.  I will be honest: this shorter format was a lot of fun to play with, and I really got to introduce people to some of my favorite Halloween Ephemera.

As my gift to you, I’ve put together a four-hour Halloween Music Presentation, that you can download and play at your party.  Ladies and Gentlemen, I give you:

The Halloween Spook-tacular 2014!

This is a collection of 95 tracks by artists recording some serious monster rock.  This music in this collection all comes from the crucial 1920 – 1969 period, and are culled from a variety of sources and compilations that are readily available from a variety of sources.  Quite a few of these have appeared in previous episodes, by many are new to me, and have never aired on our program.  My gift, to you, this holiday season, is some serious party music you can dance to.

We’ve offered quite a few incredible Holliday Treats, and to summarize, here’s a run-down of some of the features we’re had this month:

Haunted House Ambience Mix 2014 
This is a mix of various “Spooky Sounds” LPs from my private collection, that runs a full 60 minutes.  Great atmosphere for trick or treaters!

The Ways of Ghosts by Ambrose Bierce (as read & produced by Austin Rich)
At the end of the summer I found an Ambrose Bierce book in a used bookstore, and found this story that was broken into small stories about different encounters.  I read three of them, set to effects and sounds I mixed in the studio.  This link takes you to all three.

The Water Ghost of Harrowby Hall (read by Vincent Price)
During the week of October 20th – 24th, we ran a serialized version of this story, from on of those 1970’s Caedmon Records that are fantastic holiday treats.  You can find all five parts of the story from this link.

There were a number of other great NewsBlas this month, and you can find all of our Halloween Programming (going back to 2004) here:

Blasphuphmus Radio’s Halloween Spook-tacular!

This includes all of our shows, and Halloween episodes of What’s This Called?, Closet Radio & The Guitar Shop.  It’s just another way that we deliver unique programming to our listeners.

While it is sad to crawl back into the crypt for another year, we know that it can’t be Halloween the whole year through.  Otherwise, it wouldn’t be as cool as it is.

Happy Halloween.

Enjoy.

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The War Of The Worlds (Retrocast)
(Where I rebroadcast the Mutual Network’s classic October 30th, 1938 episode of The Mercury Theater on The Air featuring Orsen Welles!)

Halloween is just starting to take off, and stay tuned next week for one of my favorite Halloween Theme Shows: Lost In The Punk-In Patch!

See ya in seven.

Playlist

01.) War Of The Worlds * The Mercury Theater * 30 October 1938

NewsBlas 30 October 2014: The War of The Worlds Trailer (BlasphuphmusRadio.com Edit)

This edit highlights some of my favorite moments from the original show.  Welles really pushed to make his program as much like a radio broadcast as possible for the first two-thirds of the show, and these are some of the best moments, in my mind.

On 10 October 2009 I aired the entire “War of The Worlds” broadcast as part of a three hour mega-mix of Halloween treats that day.  This, among many other means online, are the best way to enjoy the entire show.

I really encourage listening to and researching the show.  The story behind this broadcast is as compelling as the show itself.  Not only has it be re-interpreted a number of times over the years, but the affect of the broadcast was covered in depth in a fantastic Radiolab Episode.

Enjoy.

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The Daily NewsBlas 29 October 2014: Haunted House Ambience Mix

From my crypt to yours, I offer the 2014 Haunted House Ambience Mix, constructed from a variety of “Spooky Sounds” LPs from my private collection.  While today’s NewsBlas is merely a sampling, I am offering to everyone a 60 minute mix using these LPs as the basis for the mix.  This is great for playing in the background to create a spooky environment for any home, porch, or place where trick-or-treaters may arrive.

Haunted House Ambience Mix 2014 

These are records that I return to again and again, and they all seem to take the same format.  Side One is a mix of spooky sounds, culled from a variety of sound effects that are taken from a specific library.  Side Two is always those raw effects, unmixed.  What I always found interesting about this is that in a pre-digital era, having an LP for these effects is almost useless outside of radio nerds and other effects aficionados, making the audience for these kinds of records very tiny indeed.

When CDs became the format du jour, I was excited to find entire discs of these kinds of mixes done by modern mixers who could create an entire hour (or more) of material.  However, I never managed to find a CD that didn’t just loop a short mix, usually taken from one of the classic LPs.  Anyway, I have always wanted to make a good, 60 minute mix of the best Halloween Atmosphere albums.  And now, you can have one, too.

(Pssst: Also, here’s links to the vinyl rips I made of these albums.  Enjoy them while the links are up.)

Sounds To Make You Shiver

Side A

Side B 

Ghostly Sounds 

Side A

Side B

Haunted House

Side A

Side B

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The Daily NewsBlas 28 October 2014: An Arrest

This is a selection from the Ambrose Bierce collection, “The Ways of Ghosts.”  These stories are now in the public domain, and make for excellent holiday reading.

Various effects edited and created by Austin Rich.

Enjoy.

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NewsBlas 27 October 2014: Chilling, Thrilling Sounds of The Haunted House

“Chilling, Thrilling Sounds of The Haunted House”

Released by Disneyland Records.

Narrated by Laura Olsher

This link will remain active for a short period of time.

And this link goes with the former.

A simple Google Search reveals a whole range of other listening options.  (And I recommend the image search view to check out the variety of album covers over the years.)

I imagine I will be receiving some e-mail from some of you, so again: austinrich@gmail.com.

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NewsBlas 24 October 2014: The Water Ghost of Harrowby Hall (Part V of V, read by Vincent Price)

A Hornbook for Witches by Leah Bodine Drake (1950)

Read by Vincent Price

Taken from the LP released by Caedmon Records in 1976.

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NewsBlas 23 October 2014: The Water Ghost of Harrowby Hall (Part IV of V, read by Vincent Price)

A Hornbook for Witches by Leah Bodine Drake (1950)

Read by Vincent Price

Taken from the LP released by Caedmon Records in 1976.

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NewsBlas 22 October 2014: The Water Ghost of Harrowby Hall (Part III of V, read by Vincent Price)

A Hornbook for Witches by Leah Bodine Drake (1950)

Read by Vincent Price

Taken from the LP released by Caedmon Records in 1976.

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NewsBlas 21 October 2014: The Water Ghost of Harrowby Hall (Part II of V, read by Vincent Price)

A Hornbook for Witches by Leah Bodine Drake (1950)

Read by Vincent Price

Taken from the LP released by Caedmon Records in 1976.

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NewsBlas 20 October 2014: The Water Ghost of Harrowby Hall (Part I of V, read by Vincent Price)

A Hornbook for Witches by Leah Bodine Drake (1950)

Read by Vincent Price

Taken from the LP released by Caedmon Records in 1976.

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NewsBlas 17 October 2014: Halloween Nuggets!

You can purchase the album at Amazon.com.

You can stream the entire thing at Spotify.  (I think you need to be logged in for that link to work.)

It is also available in a number of other places, too.

Watusi Zombi * Jan Davis * Halloween Nuggets
Graveyard * The Phantom Five * Halloween Nuggets
Scream * Ralph Neilsen & The Chancellors * Halloween Nuggets

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Mad Monster Party?! (Retrocast) 

Mad Monster Party? on Wikipedia

Mad Monster Party?!

01.) Mad Monster Party Part I
02.) What Kind Of Ghoul Am I (Mashed Potato) * Frankie Stein And His Ghouls * Ghoul Music * Power Records
03.) Mad Monster Party Part II
04.) Wolfman * The Shindigs
05.) Mad Monster Party Part III
06.) Mummy Walk * Thee Phantom 5ive * Mondo Drive-In

07.) Mad Monster Party Part IV
08.) The Giggler * Pat And The Wildcats
09.) The Ghoul From Ipanema * Goodman and Ramal * The Monster Album
10.) Mad Monster Party Part V
11.) Deathrace 2000 * Commercial * Forbidden City Dog Food
12.) A Hard Days Night * Goodman and Ramal * The Monster Album
13.) Mad Monster Party Part VI
14.) Voodoo Voodoo * LaVern Baker * Lavern Baker Collection

15.) Zombie * Gene Kardos & Orchestra * Halloween Stomp
16.) Mad Monster Party Part VII
17.) Devil Train * The Ramblers * Lux and Ivy’s Favorites Volume Fourteen
18.) Monster Talk * Goodman and Ramal * The Monster Album
19.) She’s My Witch * Kip Tyler * Lux and Ivy’s Favorites Volume Fifteen
20.) GhoulardiSurf * Ghoulardi * Lux and Ivy’s Favorites Volume Fourteen
21.) Shake, Rattle & Roll * Bob McFadden & Dor * Songs Our Mummy Taught Us
22.) Mummy’s Ball * Verdicts * Doo Wop Halloween
23.) The Mummy * Maury Laws * Mad Monster Party

24.) The Creep * Bob Luman * Lux and Ivy’s Favorites Volume Fifteen
25.) Mad Monster Party Part VIII
26.) The Dracula Trot * Hans Conreid & Alice Pearce * Monster Rally
27.) Mad Monster Party Part IX
28.) Children’s Day At The Morgue * Sheldon Allman * Sing Along with Drac
29.) Mad Monster Party Part X

30.) Instrumental * Instrumental * Lux and Ivy’s Favorites Volume Fifteen
31.) Mad Moster Party Part XI
32.) I’m In The Ground For Good * The Newports * Doo Wop Halloween
33.) Mad Monster Party Part XII
34.) Look Out, There’s A Monster Coming * Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band * Gorilla
35.) Mad Monster Party Part XIII
36.) Rockin’ In The Graveyard * Jackie Morningstar
37.) Mad Monster Party Part XIV

28.) Hangman Handten * The Ghastly Ones * A-Haunting We Will Go-Go
29.) Mad Monster Party Part XV
30.) The Boogie Man * Todd Rollins & Orchestra * Halloween Stomp
31.) Mad Monster Party Part XVI
32.) In The Vampire’s Lair * Al Zanino * The Vampire Speaks (1957)
33.) Mad Monster Party Part XVII
34.) Finale * Maury Laws * Mad Monster Party

NewsBlas 16 October 2014: Mad Monster Party?

Mad Monster Party? on Wikipedia

Blasphuphmus Radio Broadcast from 22 October 2011

Mad Monster Party Trailer [Excerpt]
The Baron * Maury Laws * Mad Monster Party Soundtrack
Mad Monster Party [Excerpt] * Ethel Ennis w/ Maury Laws * Mad Monster Party Soundtrack
Pills Will Save The Day * Film [Excerpt]
Waltz For A Witch [Excerpt] * Maury Laws * Mad Monster Party Soundtrack
Mad Monster Party Trailer [Excerpt]

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NewsBlas 15 October 2014: Johnny Takes A Dare

Johnny Takes A Dare (The More The Merrier) [Edit] * John Allen * Ghost Stories For Young People (Golden Records, 1960)

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NewsBlas 14 October 2014: Frankie Stein And His Ghouls!

Stoned (Monkey, Watusi) [Excerpt] * Frankie Stein And His Ghouls * Shock! Terror! Fear! (1964)
Mummy’s Little Boy (Monkey, Twist) * Frankie Stein And His Ghouls * Ghoul Music (1965)
Dance Of Doom (Monkey, Watusi) * Frankie Stein And His Ghouls * Monster Sounds And Dance Music (1965)

Their page on discogs.com

Roger’sBasement.com.  (A fan site from the ’90’s / early ’00’s that details every scrap of information anyone can find / has / knows about Frankie Stein.)

Amazon.com sometimes has a remastered CD containing most (but not all) of the Frankie Stein songs.

I recommend a Google Search, which yields some pretty good download results for the dedicated and diligent fan.

These albums were originally released on Power Records, and subsidiary of Peter Pan Records.

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NewsBlas 13 October 2014: A Cold Greeting

This is a selection from the Ambrose Bierce collection, “The Ways of Ghosts.”  These stories are now in the public domain, and make for excellent holiday reading.

Violin music provided by Béla Bartók, and performed by Gyorgy Pauk & Kazuki Sawa.

Various effects edited and created by Austin Rich.

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Closet Radio Episode 153: Six Six Six Sister – Rikki Horror Picture Show 2014 Part 1

(10-11-14)

Carl Stalling -“Satan’s Waiting”

****

Steve King – “Satan Is Her Name”
Jean Knight – “I’m Evil Tonight”
Regurgitator – “Devil Spell”
Tom Waits – “Hell Broke Luce”
Carole Bennett – “Haunted Lover”

****

THAT Damned Band – “Blue Spirit Blues”
Robert Johnson – “Preaching The Blues (Up Jumped The Devil)”
Bessie Smith – “Devil’s Gonna Get You”
Dock Boggs – “Pretty Polly”
Leandra – “Inverted Mirrors Of Decay”
Devil Doll – “You Put A Spell On Me”
SWANS – “Power And Sacrifice”

**** –

Wayne County & The Electric Chairs – “Evil Minded Mama”
Lunachicks – “Pin Eye Woman 665”

***

Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds – “Curse Of Milhaven”
The Ex-Girlfriends Club – “Devil Eyes”
The Bloody Hollies – “Satanic Satellite”
Cryptkeeper Five – “Scream, She Devil, Scream”
Manual Sex Drive – “The Hatching Of The Phoenix”
Lydia Lunch – “Black Juju”
Thee Oh Sees – “Night Crawler”

****

The Voluptuous Horror of Karen Black – “I Believe In Halloween”

Coming Soon: The Water Ghost of Harrowby Hall (read by Vincent Price)

October 20th – October 24th

NewsBlas 035 – 039.

Tune In as part of our HalloweenSpooktacular 2014 for the entire third week of October!

Only on BlasphuphmusRadio.com.

NewsBlas 9 October 2014: Tarantula Ghoul & Her Gravediggers!

Tarantula Ghoul & Her Gravediggers! (discogs.com)

Tarantula Ghoul discussion board (with articles and links) (monsterkidclassichorrorforum.yuku.c0)

“Pity the ghoul who’s never seen Tarantula Ghoul” (The Oregonian)

 Tarantula Ghoul (facebook.com)

An Image Search for Tarantula Ghoul yields excellent results.

And yet another good Image Search turns up here.

House of Horror! (KPTV website detailing Tarantula Ghoul’s show.)

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NewsBlas 6 October 2014: Present At A Hanging

This is a selection from the Ambrose Bierce collection, “The Ways of Ghosts.”  These stories are now in the public domain, and make for excellent holiday reading.

Ambient music by Cindytalk, using excerpts from their song “Of Ghosts And Buildings” from their album, The Crackle of My Soul.

Various effects edited and created by Austin Rich.

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NewsBlas 1 October 2014: Halloween Spook-tacular 2014! (Prelude)

We offer our yearly Halloween Spook-tacular programming, and this is the perfect time to subscribe to our Halloween Podcast Feed, which now contains more spooky radio than ever before!  Not only do you get every Blasphuphmus Radio podcast complete and unedited, we’ve also included every Halloween broadcast by What’s This Called? and Closet Radio, wonderful additions to our humble network.  There are a number of listening options:

BlasphuphmusRadio.com/HalloweenSpook-tacular
(Every episode is available, going back to 2004.)

We’re Also In iTunes
(Because nothing is scarier than iTunes.)

Here’s The Direct Podcast Feed
(Past it into your podcatcher of choice.)

The Night Shift
(A podcast dedicated to all things dark and spooky, hosted by Miss Rikki.)

The Haunting [Edited] * Gayle House Records * The Haunting (1971)
[Edited effects From] * Haunted House Music Co. * Haunted House (1985)

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The Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar
(Featuring Halloween selections from the early 1960’s and an audio version of a story from Vincent Price’s Tales of Terror.)

As we close this year’s Halloween Spook-tacular we do it with two guest stars that make any Halloween gathering well worth the effort: Basil Rathbone & Vincent Price!  Those two alone almost make anything worthy of Halloween viewing, no matter what the premise, and in this case, reenacting a story by Edgar Allen Poe only seals the deal.  Minus some bad acting, this is a great way to close out the spooky season, as we segue into overeating and songs about snow.

While I do make fun of the acting in this movie, this era of horror films were absolutely seminal in the world of horror films and horror music.  Roger Corman’s studios made so many movies – many from excellent source material – that occasionally a real gem will get lost in the mix.  Price and Rathbone’s overacting is only half the fun, and the clips from this movie make for some compelling audio theater.  Plus, there’s plenty of early sixties monster songs to keep everything flowing smoothly.

I really love putting together these shows, and Halloween music is some of my favorite music.  Plus, my Horror Host – who has really transformed into a sort of Ghoulardi character at this point – is a lot of fun to do.  Hopefully, you’re enjoying it too.

Lots of cool stuff on the horizon.  But until then, take care, okay.

Happy Halloween!

The Fact in the Case of M. Valdemar

Part I: To Escape A Pitiful & Painful Decline To Death!
01.) “The Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar” Part I
02.) The Mad Scientist * The Zanies * 1958
03.) Graveyard * The Phantom 5 * 1966
04.) “The Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar” Part II
05.) Nightmare * Scottie Stuart * 1960
06.) “The Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar” Part III
07.) The Whip * The Creeps * 1959
08.) “The Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar” Part IV
09.) Midnight Stroll * The Revels * 1959

Part II: The Time Has Come.
10.) “The Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar” Part V
11.) Down In The Basement * The Munsters * 1964
12.) “The Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar” Part VI
13.) Igor’s Lament * Tony’s Monstrosities * 1960
14.) “The Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar” Part VII
15.) Cha-Cha With The Zombies * The Upperclassmen * 1959
16.) “The Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar” Part VIII
17.) Dead * The Poets * 1958

Part III: You Do But Sleep!
18.) “The Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar” Part IX
19.) The Monster Hop * Bert Convy * 1958
20.) Spooky * George Barnes * 1959
21.) “The Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar” Part X
22.) Rockin’ Zombie * The Crewnecks * 1961
23.) “The Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar” Part XI
24.) Frankenstein Stomp * Lorry & The Biters * 1965
25.) “The Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar” Part XII
26.) Wombie Zombie * Billy Taylor * 1959
27.) “The Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar” Part XIII
28.) The Lurch * Ted Cassidy * 1966
29.) “The Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar” Part XIV
30.) The Boogie Man * The Cadillacs * 1960
31.) The Blob * The Five Blobs * 1958

32.) Frankie And Igor At A Rock ‘N’ Roll Party * Bob MicFadden * 1959

(10-26-13)

DJ DIrty Mollie calls in LIVE from SteamCon in Seattle to bring some of the newest and greatest steampunk bands. Featuring a few words from Frenchy and The Punk, and a handful of Steamy friends and fans at the Con. Hour 2 features a set of Tunacan’s favorite old-fashioned Halloween tunes for your spiritual pleasure.

***

***

VooDuo – Maddest Story Ever Told
Crispin Glover – Ben
The Nourishment – Paranormal Pair O Pants
Sharron Kraus – “Song of the Hanged Man”
Round Robin – “I’m The Wolfman”
Dandilion Junk Queens – “Halloween”
Nu Trends – Spooksville
Rube Bloom and His Bayou Boys – St. James Infirmary (feat. Rube Bloom and his Bayou Boys) (3:16)
Artie Shaw – Skeleton in the Closet (feat. Artie Shaw) (2:42)
Arden & Ohman – Dancing the Devil Away (feat. Arden & Ohman) (3:02)
Rosemary Clooney – The Wobblin Goblin (feat. Rosemary Clooney) (3:18)
Glenn Miller – The Little Man Who Wasn’t There (feat. Glenn Miller) (3:00)
Jim Stafford – Swamp Witch
The American Quartet – The Skeleton Rag (feat. The American Quartet) (2:06)
Buddy Moss – Undertaker Blues (feat. Buddy Moss) (3:09)
Alvino Rey – The Bat (feat. Alvino Rey) (1:55)
Jack Turner – Nightmare (feat. Jack Turner) (2:04)
Halloween Radio Spot – Bing Crosby (feat. Halloween Radio Spot) (0:58)
Screamin’ Jay Hawkins – Little Demon (feat. Screamin’ Jay Hawkins) (2:24)
Walt Disney Studios – The Unsafe Bridge (1:18)
The Five Jones Boys – Mr. Ghost is Going to Town (feat. The Five Jones Boys) (2:56)
Revels – Dead Man’s Stroll (2:32)
Jelly Roll Morton – Dead Man Blues (feat. Jelly Roll Morton) (3:19)
Duponts – Screamin’ Ball (2:20)
The New Orleans Owls – White Shivers (feat. The New Orleans Owls) (2:46)
Walt Disney Studios – The Martian Monsters (1:41)
Bing Crosby & Boris Karloff – The Halloween Song (feat. Bing Crosby & Boris Karloff) (2:32)
Cab Calloway – Nightmare (feat. Cab Calloway) (2:41)

(10-26-13)

Joined by Tunacan Jones, we discuss Portland State of Mind, the origins and current status of A-HA, The Red God of Sex, Donald Sutherland’s scream and so much more!

The Montesas – “Oh Death”
The Creepshow – “Take My Hand”
The Revillos – “Graveyard Groove”
Oingo Boingo – “Dead or Alive”
Southern Culture on the Skids – “Devil’s Stomping Ground”
The Gravetones – “On A Pale Horse”
Circus – “Burn Witch Burn”
The October Country – “My Girlfriend is a Witch”
The Lollipop Shoppe – “SIn”
The Reg Guest Syndicate – “Underworld”

*

The Incredible Staggers – “Zombies of Love”

*

Manual Sex Drive – “The Living Dead”
Bill Cardille – “Chilly Billy’s Vamp”
The Deviants – “Billy the Monster”
Bobby Gray – “Devil Eyes”

*

Blue Faces – “Nights Out In The Graveyard”
Link Wray – “The Shadow Knows”
Nu Trends – “Spooksville”

*

The Only Ones – “The Beast”
The Stranglers – “Death and Night and Blood”
Roky Erikson – “Night of the Vampire”
Nick Cave and Warren Ellis – “The Cannibals”
Bessie Smith – “Devil’s Gonna Get You”
The Damned – “Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde”

Monster Movie Party!
(Featuring Halloween selections from the early 1960’s, mixing our annual Halloween Spook-tacular with Blasphuphmus Radio Goes To The Movies!)

I am always looking for ways to mash-up my own themes and tropes, and when it dawned on me to do a Halloween Spook-tacular AND a new installment of Blasphuphmus Radio Goes To The Movies, it was hard not to follow this idea to its most logical conclusion.  With that in mind, I put together three Audio Essays, each focused on a different Famous Monster from the classic era of Hollywood Horror.  Vampires!  Frankenstein!  The Werewolf!  They’re all right here, in this Monster Movie Party!

Credit must be given where credit is due: this show is also inspired by the Wavy Gravy compilations that were put out by Beware Records.  Starting in the late 80’s and early 90’s, this label was putting out compilations of hard-to-find rock and roll gems, interjecting trailers for b movies.  This was clearly inspired by the mix tapes that Lux Interior had been making since the ’70’s, and of course, the radio work of The Mad Daddy.  Since these records were released in a pre-Internet era, it can’t be stressed how strange and incredible these albums were, when this kind of stuff was hard to find.  It was their idea of including trailers that has really swept the radio landscape for DJs and oddballs who are into this kind of music, and since I was mining that period in rock history for this show, it only makes sense to do the same.

The early ’60’s – my cut-off date for this show – is a very interesting period in rock music.  The beginning sounds of what would become Garage Rock is starting to take shape, but the sound is still heavily rooted in that late ’50’s naiveté.  But Shock Theater is starting to take over late night television, and the shape of things to come is just as scary.  I really enjoyed putting this show together, and I hope you did it as much as I do.

Enjoy!

Monster Movie Party!

Part I: Vampires!
01.) “Atom Age Vampire” Trailer * Anton Giulio Majano * 1963
02.) Vampira * Bobby Bare * 1958
03.) Vampire * The Crystals * 1960
04.) “Macabre” Trailer * William Castle * 1958
05.) Screamin’ Ball (At Dracula Hall) * The Duponts * 1957
06.) “Dracula” Trailer * 1931
07.) Graveyard Cha Cha * The Three D’s * 1959
08.) “The Vampire & The Ballerina” Trailer * 1960

Part II: Frankenstein!
09.) “I Was A Teenage Frankenstein” * Herbert L. Strock * 1957
10.) At The House Of Frankenstein * Big Bee Kornegay * 1958
11.) Satan Takes A Holiday * Tommy Dorsey * 1937
12.) “Frankenstein” Trailer * James Whale * 1931
13.) Frankenstein Rock * Eddie Thomas * 1958
14.) “The Brain That Wouldn’t Die” Trailer * 1963
15.) You Can Get Him Frankenstein * Castle Kings * 1961
16.) “Calling Dr. Death” Trailer * 1943
17.) Don’t Meet Mr. Frankenstein * Carlos Casual Jr. * 1962
18.) “Frankenstein’s Daughter” Trailer * 1958

Part III: The Werewolf!
19.) Dead Man Blues * Jelly Roll Morton * 1926
20.) “The Werewolf” Excerpt * Alan Smithee * 1935
21.) The Werewolf * Carl Bonafede * 1960
22.) “I Was A Teenage Werewolf” * 1956
23.) Werewolf * Garry Warren * 1958
24.) “The Curse of The Werewolf” Trailer * 1961
25.) Mr. Werewolf * The Kac Ties * 1963
26.) “The Wolf Man” Trailer * 1941
27.) Monster Party * Bill Doggett * 1959

28.) “The Mummy” Trailer * 1932

10/19/13

The Halloween madness continues with an EPIC 5 hour episode over three KPSU shows brought to you by your local Closet Radio DJs!

***

Hour 1 :

1. ClosetRadio – LimitClub (0:17)
2. Cody Rich – CLoset Radio Warning (0:30)
3. Groovie Ghoulies – Vampire Girl (2:14)
4. Morgus & the Daringers – Morgus Creep  (2:35)
5. Gene Moss – “I Want to Bite Your Hand  (2:26)
6. Soupy Sales – My Baby’s Got A Crush On Frankenstein (2:00)
7. Kitty Cat Spy Club – Hot Lava Monster (1:57)
8. Greenskeepers – Lotion (Radio Edit) (3:46)
9. Wayne Bell & Tobe Hooper (1974) –  Texas Chainsaw Massacre – Opening Titles (3:22)
10. Zombina & the Skeletones – The Kids Are All Dead (2:14)
11. The AQUABATS! – Tarantula (3:42)
12. Los Gatos Locos – Headhunters (2:46)
13. Messer Chups – Vincent Price Bible (4:29)
14. Sufjan Stevens – John Wayne Gacy, Jr. (3:19)
15. Route 66 Killers – Ghoul Tango (2:40)
16. The Poets – Dead-Poets (2:07)
17. Bloody Hollies – Satanic Satellite (3:07)

Hour 2:

1. Cody Rich – Closet Radio Warning (0:30)
2. Dr. Phibes trailer (2:33)
3. The Moon-Rays- Skeletoons In The Closet (3:09)
4. The Chimps – It’s The Mummy (2:31)
5. Hellcat and the Prowl – Betty Bones (3:00)
6. Frantic Flintstones – Rock ‘N Roll Zombie (2:02)
7. Jamie Horton – Robot Man (1:49)
8. Monotones – LEGEND OF SLEEPY HOLLOW – 1958 (2:11)
9. The Slow Poisoner at UCSF Mission Bay Halloween 2012 (2:34)
10. Weird Al Yankovic – Attack Of The Radioactive Hamsters From A Planet Near Mars (3:28)
11. Blood Feast (1963) – Trailer (2:23)
12. Blair Crimmins and The Hookers – A Demon Like Me (3:25)
13. Stephen Lynch – Halloween (2:47)
14. The Stranglers – Waltz In Black (3:36)
15. Wild Evel and the Trashbones- It’s A Monster (2:28)
16. Civet – Horror Business (3:01)
17. Theo & The Skyscrapers – Spider (2:42)
18. Screeching Weasel – Chainsaw (1:57)
19. Happy Halloween- Silver Shamrock Commercial (1:35)

Night Shift: 10/19/13:

1. Nine Inch Nails – Sin (remastered) (4:22)
2. Nekromantix – Where Do Monsters Go (3:21)
3. Creature Feature – A Corpse In My Bed (3:24)
4. Dr. Steel – Bikinigram From Satan (5:43)
5. crisis captin howdy (3:36)
6. Faith And The Muse – Through The Pale Door (The Haunted Palace) (4:09)
7. Lebanon Hanover – Cadaverously Quaint (3:44)
8. LYDIA LUNCH & CLINT RUIN – DON’T FEAR THE REAPER (5:16)
9. Midnight Configuration – Decline & Fall (The Fall Of The House Of Usher) (6:17)
10. Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds – Black Crow King (5:05)

Hour 4:

1. Kolchak- The Night Stalker(opening intro) (1:01)
2. Woolworth Woolco Halloween Commercial 1978 (0:29)
3. Eels – Fresh Blood (4:25)
4. Jellyfish – The Ghost at Number One (3:36)
5. Dead Kennedys – Halloween (3:35)
6. The Sonics – The Witch (2:40)
7. Screaming Lord Sutch – Jack The Ripper – SPECIAL version (2:43)
8. Buck Owens – It’s A Monster’s Holiday 1974 Original version of the Halloween song (2:33)
9. Blood Feast (1963) – Trailer (2:23)
10. Tobin Sprout – Cereal Killer (3:18)
11. The Specials – Ghost Town (4:06)
12. The Orwells – Halloween All Year (3:36)
13. Jack Blanchard – Dance of the Living Dead Chickens (2:05)
14. Stanley Holloway -With Her Head Tucked Under Her Arm  (4:42)
15. Half Japanese – Ouija Board Summons Satan (1:00)
16. Squirrel Nut Zippers – Hell (live) (3:14)
17. Pan’s Labyrinth – Lullaby (Music Box) (1:17)

Hour 5 (chiptune):

1. Dr. Von Pnok – Welcome to Microhorror (1:34)
2. 8-bit- Gwar – Sick of you (3:05)
3. Albino Ghost Monkey – Halloween (3:24)
4. This is Halloween – The Chiptune (2:58)
5. Dethklok – Hatredcopte 8-bit (2:54)
6. Dot.ay – Zombie face eaters (3:49)
7. Gargoyle’s Quest – Introduction (1:30)
8. Alice Cooper – Only Women Bleed (8 Bit) (5:53)
9. Mark Cooksey – Ghosts’n Goblins (3:51)
10. letavetatu – Gravestone Troupe (1:20)
11. Death – Evil Dead 8-bit (2:29)
12. Nordloef – Trick and/or Treat (the candy raid is on!) (2:42)
13. MonsterVision – Ode to Father Dagon (4:08)
14. Rob Zombie – Dragula (8 Bit) (3:42)
15. 1978 Halloween Theme 8-Bit (2:57)

Chance of A Ghost!
(Featuring Halloween selections from the 1950’s and earlier as we continue this years Halloween Spook-tacular!)

I often associate Peter Lorre with this time of year, as his voice is forever associated with the 100s of imitators who would do his voice as a Halloween Shorthand when I was growing up.  His career in film is incredibly well known, but his radio career is less familiar.  So I was happy to find a program he hosted that fits the Halloween theme perfectly: Nightmare, a supernatural anthology show that presented a different story every week, hosted by the Master of Macabre, Peter Lorre himself.  For this particular broadcast, I chose an episode from the mid-1950’s, and decided to pair it with a fair amount of period music to bring the point home.

As was typical for these kinds of Ghost Stories, there is only the smallest hint that something supernatural has happened during the tale, and even that is handwaved by the participants at the very end.  However, as we can see in comparison to last week’s program, rather than report something “supposedly true,” we are starting to get to the point where radio was dramatizing the story, in a way that sets a very good Halloween mood.  Considering that the 1950’s saw a resurgence of the Universal Horror Pictures – coupled with The Shock Theater TV package of horror movies that was sold to most stations in the mid-50’s – horror was starting to take hold of the public at large.  (Horror comics started to sell like crazy in these days, too.)  However, this was a budding genre, and there were still a lot of “mood” pieces that were not so much scary, but evoked the imagination.  This is exactly where Nightmare fits in.

Finding musical accompaniment  for this episode was harder than I thought it would be.  While there is plenty of music that is labeled “1950’s Horror,” when you start to actually compare dates, many of these songs are from 1960 or later.  The musical “monster craze” really doesn’t get started until 1957, when Shock Theater was nationwide, and people were seeing horror on TV late at night.  However, there were enough songs to help flesh out the show, and in some cases, foreshadow bits and pieces of the story.  I was pretty pleased with the evolution of music from last week to this week, and hopefully we’ll continue this evolution as we begin to enter the 1960’s, when the Monster Song genre really began to take off.

Among the selections from this show include a few really excellent gems worth mentioning: Tarantual Ghoul And Her Gravediggers!  While I had heard this song on a few compilations prior to this show, in researching this artist I discovered that she was actually a Horror Host here in Portland Oregon in 1957 – 1959 on KPTV!  You can find a few images of her here, and I would recommend searching around for other images and the flip side of her 45, “King Kong.”  Clearly influenced by Vampira and the other Horror Hosts of the era, this is a great discovery for me, and I’m very excited to learn more about her.  Novelty Record nerd will also like to hear that “The Casual Three” is actually a Dickie Goodman production, of the incredibly duo “Buchanan & Goodman,” most well known for their hit, “The Flying Saucer.” While it was common for people to work under a number of names in those days, I thought I knew just about everything there is to know about those guys.  Always something new to learn.

Stay tuned, as we will be edging our way into the 1960’s, with more of our Halloween Spook-tacular, 2013!

Enjoy!

Chance of A Ghost!

Part I: Nightmare In A Haunted House!
01.) Chance of A Ghost * Peter Lorre * Nightmare (31 March 1954) (Throughout The Show)
02.) Nightmare Hop * Earl Patterson * 1959
03.) Skeleton In The Closet * Artie Shaw & His Orchestra * 30 October 1936
04.) The Ghost Song * Salty Holmes * 1954
05.) Dead * The Poets * 1958
06.) Haunted House * Cris Kevin And The Comics * 1959
07.) Mad House Jump * The Daylighters * 1959

Part II: In The Graveyard!
08.) Satan Takes A Holiday * John Cali & Tony Guttuso * 1937
09.) Graveyard Rock * Tarantual Ghoul And Her Gravediggers * 1958
10.) Graveyard Boogie * Buster Doss & His Arkansas Playboys * 1948
11.) Nightmare * Jack Turner * May 1955
12.) Midnight Monster’s Hop * Jack And Jim * 1959

Part III: What Is And Isn’t There!
13.) White Ghost Shivers * The New Orleans Owls * 1926
14.) He’s A Vampire * Archie King * 1959
15.) The Invisible Thing * The Casual Three * 1958
16.) The Rockin’ Ghost * The Modernaires * 1962
17.) Nightmares * John Lowell
18.) The Monster * Bobby Please * 1959
19.) Swingin’ At The Seance * The Deep River Boys * 1940
20.) Ghost Satellite * Bob & Jerry * 1958

Closet Radio Episode 102: Red Skies at Night

(10-12-13)

Creepy hallows without the usual dose of Tuna! We’re heading down the rabbit hole armed with a chainsaw and some dude name Kolchak.

***

***

The Video Nasties – “The Hills Have Eyes”
The Moontrekkers – “John Brown’s Body”
The N’Betweens – “Evil Witch Man”
Louis & Bebe Barron – “Theme From Forbidden Planet”
Strawberry Alarm Clock – “Curse of the Witches”
Names & Faces – “The Killer”
Mr. Undertaker – “Here Lies My Love”
The Fleshtones – “You Can’t Get Him Frankenstein”
Kolchak – “Spanish Moss Murders Epilogue”
Warsaw – “Gutz”
John Carpenter & Alan Howarth – “Hello Grandma”
The Changeling
Hollywood Flames – “Frankenstein’s Den”
Satan’s Pilgrims – “Haunted House of Rock”
The Tomkos -“The Spook”
THAT Damned Band – “Blue Spirit Blues”
The Scarring Party – “Monsters”
The Kinks – “Wicked Annabella”
GST Mugwump – “Apathy For The Devil”
Nick Cave & The Dirty Three – “X-Files Theme”
The Toy Dolls -“Spiders In The Dressing Room”
Duane Eddy – “Stalkin’”
Link Wray – “Hillbilly Wolf”

*

The Cramps – “Aloha From Hell”
Jack Turner – “Nightmare”
Bloody Hollys – “Nosferatu”
The Novas – “The Crusher”
King Horror – “Loch Ness Monster”
Maximillian – “The Twistin’ Ghost”
The Bostweeds – “Faster Pussycat! Kill! Kill!”
Marc Bolan – “You Scare Me To Death”

The Ghost of General Moulton!
(Featuring Halloween selections from the 1940’s and earlier as we begin this years Halloween Spook-tacular!)

Since 2003 I’ve been actively collecting Halloween music and recordings, and since 2004 I’ve been hosting this annual Halloween Spook-Taculars on my program.  What can I say?  This is my favorite time of year, and my favorite kind of music.  I’ve been listening to Halloween Music for the last few months, in and effort not only to get into the spirit, but to continue the quest to find new and exciting music.  And this year is no exception, as I found a huge treasure-trove of Halloween goodies that I cannot wait for you to hear!

Using a somewhat chronological format for presentation this year, this first show is offering music from the Pre-1940’s ear of Halloween Music.  Halloween is a very old celebration, but the music side of this holiday has often been suppressed, or relegated to the “novelty” portion of any record collection.  This is a shame, as music like this is really evocative, and presents a kind of musical narrative that is absent from so many other kinds of music.  It’s always a pleasure to find a new song about ghosts and monsters, especially from this early period when the “novelty hit” hadn’t quite made it possible to make a whole career out of spooky songs.

To complement today’s selection of songs, we have a period radio broadcast of the Yankee Yarns series, a show hosted by Alton Blackington, who would present a story rooted in Americana in some form or another.  For this particular episode – The Ghost of General Moulton – he retells the life story of Johnathan Moulton, and the spooky tale surrounding his life (and death).  It not only fit the theme and the mood of our annual Spook-taculars, but is a very curious piece of radio history, making it doubly relevant to our interests.

I’m going to make every effort to bring you a show every week this month, and for next week’s program we’ll be creeping into the 1950’s.  Welcome to Blasphuphmus Radio’s Halloween Spook-tacular 2013!

Enjoy!

The Ghost of General Moulton!

Part I: Ghost Dance

01.) “A Welcome Date On Our Calendar” * Bing Crosby * Philco Radio Time 30 October 1946
02.) The Halloween Song * Bing Crosby & Boris Karloff * Philco Radio Time  29 October 1947
03.) Ghost Dance * Truett & George * 1927
04.) The Ghost of General Moulton * Yankee Yarns w/ Alton Blackington * 13 October 1943 (throughout the program)
05.) Ghost In The Graveyard * The Prairie Ramblers * 1938
06.) I’m A Ghost * Scrappy * “Scrappy’s Ghost Story” Cartoon 1935
07.) Haunted House * Ray Noble & His All Stars * 1931
08.) The Skeleton Rag * The American Quartet * 1912

Part II: T’ain’t No Sin

09.) T’aint No Sin * Fred Hall & His Sugar Babies * 1928
10.) The Bat * Alvino Rey & His Orchestra * 1959
11.) The Skeleton In The Closet * Putney Dandridge * 1936
12.) The Wobblin’ Goblin * Rosemary Clooney * 1950
13.) Haunted House * Betty Grable & Dan Dailey * “My Blue Heaven” 1950
14.) Halloween Spooks * Lambert, Hendricks & Ross * 1962
15.) The Boogie Man * Todd Rollins & His Orchestra w/ Chick Bullock * 1934

Part III: The House Is Haunted

16.) Haunted Blues * Memphis Minnie * 1937
17.) Nightmare * Artie Shaw * 1938
18.) With Her Head Tucked Underneath Her Arm * Rudy Vallee and His Connecticut Yankees * 1937
19.) The House Is Haunted (By The Echo of Your Last Goodbye) * Glen Gray & The Casa Loma Orchestra * 1937
20.) Skeleton In The Closet * Louis Armstrong * 1936
21.) The Ghost Walk * Borrah Minnevitch * 1933

Closet Radio Episode 101: Jars of Spooks – Rikki Horror Picture Show 2013

(10/05/13)

Joined by Tunacan Jones, The Professor, and even Miss Suzie to kick off the Halloween celebrations! This episode begins the month-long explosion of spooky tune-age!

We discuss the origins of Halloween, Sarah Silverman, Tuncan’s Robert Smith hair, how Miss Suzie met Tuna, The Professor’s inability to keep clothes on, what color a proper rickety van should be, and so much more!

***

***

Danny Elfman – “The Incantation”
The Birthday Party – “Release The Bats”
The Masonics – “Down Among The Dead Men”

*

Hotrod Frankie- “Arising From My Grave”
Murder By Death – “Knife Goes In, Guts Come Out”
The Damned – “Dr. Woofenstein”
Super Heroines – “Night Stalker”
Zacharie – “Sinister Purpose”
Groovie Goolies – “Noises”
Famous Monsters – “Outerspace Deathrace”
Richard Delvecchio – “Green Slime”
Revelevens – “Zombie Chicken”
Gravetones – “Still Screaming”
Stellar Corpses – “Leave A Stellar Corpse”
Calabrese – “Saturday Night of the Living Dead”
The Revillos – “Caveman Raveman”
The Lancasters – “Satan’s Holiday”
Alice Cooper – “Science Fiction”
Blue Oyster Cult – “Don’t Fear The Reaper”
James White & The Blacks – “Hot Voodoo”

KPSU Playlist

The Embassy
(Featuring a re-telling of the 1955 X-Minus One broadcast hosted by none other than Detective Dexter Roland, Private Investigator!  Originally podcast on 30 October 2012 on BlasphuphmusRadio.com, and in 2016 as “#21.1”)

In our final Halloween Spook-tacular this season, we pull out all the stops and bring you a story straight out of Astounding Science Fiction magazine. As an experienced Private Dick, Dexter Roland has been involved in a number of cases that have often put him in contact with a number of surprising and unusual situations. He’s worked with Humphrey Bogart, presenting the story of The Maltese Falcon, and Peter Lorre, during this Holiday tale Back For Christmas. But this may well be his strangest case yet, as he discovers the horrific events surrounding the disappearance of his friends over at The Broderick Detective Agency. Tune in for an incredible Hard Boiled, Sci-Fi epic as we bring you the tale of The Embassy, where professional PI Broderick is hired to locate the secret base of operations for… a Martian Invasion!

Dexter Roland has been kicking around since the early ‘90’s, trading slugs and shots with the criminal underworld in an effort to right the wrongs that police are unable to involve themselves. Bridging the gap between Philip Marlowe, Sam Spade, Johnny Dollar, Dirk Gently & Mike Hammer, Detective Roland’s adventures have appeared in a number of quick-and-dirty publications, and most recently in a novel entitled Noir Time Like The Present. But his meta-textual nature, magical realist perception of the universe, and penchant for getting into situations he has no business getting into has made him the perfect radio personality, and his work on this show is always a treat. When he told me about this story, I knew we had to bring it to the air.

I’ve been a fan of X-Minus One since just after High School, when I first came across a collection of cassettes that contained a selection of Sci-Fi programs from the golden age of radio. Of course, it hasn’t been until the last several years that this material has been easily accessible. While there are a number of website that offer a number of old time radio programs for download, I recommend The Twilight Zone Network who offer regular podcasts containing these classic shows as they were heard by audiences in the ‘50’s. It’s nice to be listening to your regular selection of Radiolabs and Planet Moneys, and then have one of these vintage programs pop up in the mix. It offers a good counterpoint to the kinds of radio that exist now, and makes me long for the days when radio brought you narrative programs.

This particular episode – The Embassy – was originally broadcast on Dimension X radio on 3 June 1950. Dimension X was the program that preceded X Minus One, and a number of the same staff, writers and voice actors worked on the program. The story was originally penned by Donald Wollheim for Astounding Science Fiction Magazine, which has sustained a few name changes over the years, and is now known as the well-read Analog. Wollheim was one of the founding Futurians, a group of left-wing science fiction fans (as well editors and writers like Isaac Asimov and Frederik Pohl), and is probably best known the organizer of the first Sci-Fi convention. The Embassy was originally published in March of 1942, and while it was not his most famous story, it is a well-known one among Sci-Fi Radio nerds like me.

The story was “adapted for radio” by George Lefferts, one of the staff writers for both Dimension X and X Minus One. Lefferts had a fascinating and unusual career, that spanned from the ‘40’s into the ‘80’s. He worked for television, film, radio, newspapers, magazines, and documentaries, primarily as a writer, but also as a producer and behind-the-scenes staffer. I know him primarily from the credits of these programs, but his work is so diverse that it makes sense that he would be attracted to a strange story like this. It contains all the usual trappings of a Hard Boiled detective story – a murdered partner, beautiful girls, a client who turns on him, getting drugged and trying to find out why, a run-in with the police – and yet all these elements are completely turned upside down, and the scary, Sci-Fi tinges really sell this episode in a big way. Like a lot of great media, there are parts when you think this could very well just be an exaggerated detective program that will have a sort-of Scooby Doo ending. However, it makes a good hard turn into X Minus One territory in the second act, and as a show that pretends to be one thing and is, actually, another, it seems perfect for Halloween.

I’ve had an incredible holiday season this year, and produced some really excellent shows of which I am proud. Halloween means a lot to me, and shows like this really allow me to indulge in my own interests, tell a story that I find unique, and present radio that is both fun and seasonally appropriate, all at the same time. Thanks again for bringing me to your ears, and supporting something as strange and unusual as I can possibly manage. You guys are amazing, really.

See ya real soon!

The Embassy

Part I:
01.) The Embassy Part I * X Minus 1 Radio * 28 July 1955
02.) High Terror * Eddie Warner * Cops Crooks and Spies * L’Illustration Musicale Records
03.) The Embassy Part II * X Minus 1 Radio * 28 July 1955
04.) Divide And Conquer * Hüsker Dü * Flip Your Wig * SST Records
05.) The Embassy Part III * X Minus 1 Radio * 28 July 1955
06.) Shot by Both Sides * Magazine * Real Life * Virgin Records
07.) The Embassy Part IV * X Minus 1 Radio * 28 July 1955
08.) Find A Hidden Door * The Misunderstood * Before The Dream Faded * Cherry Red
09.) The Embassy Part V * X Minus 1 Radio * 28 July 1955
10.) The Sky Is Falling, And I Want My Mommy (Falling Space Junk) * Jello Biafra With Nomeansno * The Sky Is Falling And I Want My Mommy * Alternative Tentacles Records

11.) The Embassy Part VI * X Minus 1 Radio * 28 July 1955
12.) Body Twist * Frankie Stein And His Ghouls * Monster Sounds And Dance Music * Power Records

Part II:
13.) Postludio Alla Terza Moglie (from Barbalu) * Ennio Morricone * Crime And Dissonance
14.) The Embassy Part VII * X Minus 1 Radio * 28 July 1955
15.) The Call * Straitjacket * Modern Thieves * Jonny Cat Records
16.) The Embassy Part VIII * X Minus 1 Radio * 28 July 1955
17.) Little Drop Of Poison * Tom Waits * Orphans: Brawlers, Bawlers & Bastards * ANTI- Records
18.) The Embassy Part IX * X Minus 1 Radio * 28 July 1955
19.) I Walk Among Them * MX-80 Sound * Out Of The Tunnel * Ralph Records
20.) The Embassy Part X * X Minus 1 Radio * 28 July 1955
21.) Fascist Cops * The Kids * The Kids * Philips Records
22.) The Embassy Part XI * X Minus 1 Radio * 28 July 1955

23.) Grave Mistake * David And Jad Fair * Halloween Songs * Thick Syrup Records

Part III:
24.) Diabolo’s Theme * The Ghastly Ones * A-Haunting We Will Go-Go * Zombie-A-Go-Go Records
25.) The Embassy Part XII * X Minus 1 Radio * 28 July 1955
26.) Keep Talking * The Love Me Nots * In Black & White * Atomic A Go Go Records
27.) The Embassy Part XIII * X Minus 1 Radio * 28 July 1955
28.) Human Cattail * Last Of The Juanitas * In The Dirt * Wäntage Records
29.) The Embassy Part XIV * X Minus 1 Radio * 28 July 1955
30.) The Plan * Richard Hell And The Voidoids * Blank Generation * Sire Records

31.) The Embassy Part XV * X Minus 1 Radio * 28 July 1955
32.) Detective Theme * Eddie Warner * Cops Crooks and Spies * L’Illustration Musicale Records
33.) The Invasion is Coming * The Invasion * Lux and Ivy’s Favorites Volume Fourteen * http://kogarsjunglejuice.blogspot.com/

Episode 190: The Embassy
(Featuring a re-telling of the 1955 X-Minus One broadcast hosted by none other than Detective Dexter Roland, Private Investigator!)

In our final Halloween Spook-tacular this season, we pull out all the stops and bring you a story straight out of Astounding Science Fiction magazine. As an experienced Private Dick, Dexter Roland has been involved in a number of cases that have often put him in contact with a number of surprising and unusual situations. He’s worked with Humphrey Bogart, presenting the story of The Maltese Falcon, and Peter Lorre, during this Holiday tale Back For Christmas. But this may well be his strangest case yet, as he discovers the horrific events surrounding the disappearance of his friends over at The Broderick Detective Agency. Tune in for an incredible Hard Boiled, Sci-Fi epic as we bring you the tale of The Embassy, where professional PI Broderick is hired to locate the secret base of operations for… a Martian Invasion!

Dexter Roland has been kicking around since the early ‘90’s, trading slugs and shots with the criminal underworld in an effort to right the wrongs that police are unable to involve themselves. Bridging the gap between Philip Marlowe, Sam Spade, Johnny Dollar, Dirk Gently & Mike Hammer, Detective Roland’s adventures have appeared in a number of quick-and-dirty publications, and most recently in a novel entitled Noir Time Like The Present. But his meta-textual nature, magical realist perception of the universe, and penchant for getting into situations he has no business getting into has made him the perfect radio personality, and his work on this show is always a treat. When he told me about this story, I knew we had to bring it to the air.

I’ve been a fan of X-Minus One since just after High School, when I first came across a collection of cassettes that contained a selection of Sci-Fi programs from the golden age of radio. Of course, it hasn’t been until the last several years that this material has been easily accessible. While there are a number of website that offer a number of old time radio programs for download, I recommend The Twilight Zone Network who offer regular podcasts containing these classic shows as they were heard by audiences in the ‘50’s. It’s nice to be listening to your regular selection of Radiolabs and Planet Moneys, and then have one of these vintage programs pop up in the mix. It offers a good counterpoint to the kinds of radio that exist now, and makes me long for the days when radio brought you narrative programs.

This particular episode – The Embassy – was originally broadcast on Dimension X radio on 3 June 1950. Dimension X was the program that preceded X Minus One, and a number of the same staff, writers and voice actors worked on the program. The story was originally penned by Donald Wollheim for Astounding Science Fiction Magazine, which has sustained a few name changes over the years, and is now known as the well-read Analog. Wollheim was one of the founding Futurians, a group of left-wing science fiction fans (as well editors and writers like Isaac Asimov and Frederik Pohl), and is probably best known the organizer of the first Sci-Fi convention. The Embassy was originally published in March of 1942, and while it was not his most famous story, it is a well-known one among Sci-Fi Radio nerds like me.

The story was “adapted for radio” by George Lefferts, one of the staff writers for both Dimension X and X Minus One. Lefferts had a fascinating and unusual career, that spanned from the ‘40’s into the ‘80’s. He worked for television, film, radio, newspapers, magazines, and documentaries, primarily as a writer, but also as a producer and behind-the-scenes staffer. I know him primarily from the credits of these programs, but his work is so diverse that it makes sense that he would be attracted to a strange story like this. It contains all the usual trappings of a Hard Boiled detective story – a murdered partner, beautiful girls, a client who turns on him, getting drugged and trying to find out why, a run-in with the police – and yet all these elements are completely turned upside down, and the scary, Sci-Fi tinges really sell this episode in a big way. Like a lot of great media, there are parts when you think this could very well just be an exaggerated detective program that will have a sort-of Scooby Doo ending. However, it makes a good hard turn into X Minus One territory in the second act, and as a show that pretends to be one thing and is, actually, another, it seems perfect for Halloween.

I’ve had an incredible holiday season this year, and produced some really excellent shows of which I am proud. Halloween means a lot to me, and shows like this really allow me to indulge in my own interests, tell a story that I find unique, and present radio that is both fun and seasonally appropriate, all at the same time. Thanks again for bringing me to your ears, and supporting something as strange and unusual as I can possibly manage. You guys are amazing, really.

See ya real soon!

The Embassy

Part I:
01.) The Embassy Part I * X Minus 1 Radio * 28 July 1955
02.) High Terror * Eddie Warner * Cops Crooks and Spies * L’Illustration Musicale Records
03.) The Embassy Part II * X Minus 1 Radio * 28 July 1955
04.) Divide And Conquer * Hüsker Dü * Flip Your Wig * SST Records
05.) The Embassy Part III * X Minus 1 Radio * 28 July 1955
06.) Shot by Both Sides * Magazine * Real Life * Virgin Records
07.) The Embassy Part IV * X Minus 1 Radio * 28 July 1955
08.) Find A Hidden Door * The Misunderstood * Before The Dream Faded * Cherry Red
09.) The Embassy Part V * X Minus 1 Radio * 28 July 1955
10.) The Sky Is Falling, And I Want My Mommy (Falling Space Junk) * Jello Biafra With Nomeansno * The Sky Is Falling And I Want My Mommy * Alternative Tentacles Records

11.) The Embassy Part VI * X Minus 1 Radio * 28 July 1955
12.) Body Twist * Frankie Stein And His Ghouls * Monster Sounds And Dance Music * Power Records

Part II:
13.) Postludio Alla Terza Moglie (from Barbalu) * Ennio Morricone * Crime And Dissonance
14.) The Embassy Part VII * X Minus 1 Radio * 28 July 1955
15.) The Call * Straitjacket * Modern Thieves * Jonny Cat Records
16.) The Embassy Part VIII * X Minus 1 Radio * 28 July 1955
17.) Little Drop Of Poison * Tom Waits * Orphans: Brawlers, Bawlers & Bastards * ANTI- Records
18.) The Embassy Part IX * X Minus 1 Radio * 28 July 1955
19.) I Walk Among Them * MX-80 Sound * Out Of The Tunnel * Ralph Records
20.) The Embassy Part X * X Minus 1 Radio * 28 July 1955
21.) Fascist Cops * The Kids * The Kids * Philips Records
22.) The Embassy Part XI * X Minus 1 Radio * 28 July 1955

23.) Grave Mistake * David And Jad Fair * Halloween Songs * Thick Syrup Records

Part III:
24.) Diabolo’s Theme * The Ghastly Ones * A-Haunting We Will Go-Go * Zombie-A-Go-Go Records
25.) The Embassy Part XII * X Minus 1 Radio * 28 July 1955
26.) Keep Talking * The Love Me Nots * In Black & White * Atomic A Go Go Records
27.) The Embassy Part XIII * X Minus 1 Radio * 28 July 1955
28.) Human Cattail * Last Of The Juanitas * In The Dirt * Wäntage Records
29.) The Embassy Part XIV * X Minus 1 Radio * 28 July 1955
30.) The Plan * Richard Hell And The Voidoids * Blank Generation * Sire Records

31.) The Embassy Part XV * X Minus 1 Radio * 28 July 1955
32.) Detective Theme * Eddie Warner * Cops Crooks and Spies * L’Illustration Musicale Records
33.) The Invasion is Coming * The Invasion * Lux and Ivy’s Favorites Volume Fourteen * http://kogarsjunglejuice.blogspot.com/

Closet Radio Episode 054: Getting Down In The Underworld (Rikki Horror Picture Show Part 4)

(10-27-12)

***2012 Rikki Horror Picture Show part 4***

Spindly fingers tap a tick-tock rapping to the beat in a perfect square to awaken that which had slipped through the cracks of perception. There is dirt under your nails and blood in your seams with limbs all akimbo conveying subtleties of breakdown in unison. A scan of the peripheries proves playing possum is the true opiate of the masses, so when they figure us out, just torch the whole thing to ashes.

“Theme” – The Outer Limits OST
“In A Strangeland” – Talk Normal
“Party Of The First Part” – Bauhaus
“Death Is A Star” – The Clash
“Nightmares In Red” – The Brain
“The Whip” – The Creeps
“City Hobgoblins” – The Fall
“Hell-A-Vision Shock” – Mad Sin
“Prince of Darkness” – Electric Hellfire Club
“God of All Spiders” – Ken Nordine
“Mickey Mouse & The Goodbye Man” – Grinderman
“One Step Beyond” – Madness
“Trick Or Treat” – Mr. Jelly
“Monster Man” – DEVO
“Lowest of the Low” – Peculiar Purple Pieman of Porcupine Peak f/ Sour Grapes
“All Hallows Eve” – Blood Junkies
“Paranormal Pair O Pants” – The Nourishment
“Punky Punkin” – Fran Alison
“Son Of The Mummy” – Bob McFadden and Dor
“Werewolf” – Five Man Electrical Band
“Graveyard Rock” – Tarantula Ghoul & Her Gravediggers
“I Love My Monsters” – The Voronas
“Things That Scare Me” – Neko Case
“Devil In My Car” – The B-52’s
“Do The Ripper” – The Incredible Staggers
“Where Wolves Drink” – The Girls
“The Hills Have Eyes” – The Video Nasties
“Jabberwocky” – Cruxshadows
“The Name Is Nothing” – Thomas Ligotti
“Down, Down To Goblin Town” – The Hobbit OST
“Black Widow” – Alice Cooper
“St James Infirmary” – Standells
“The Horrors of The Museum” – Rudimentary Peni

KPSU Playlist

An Evening With Vincent Price!
(Featuring the master of horror readings himself, Mr. Vincent Price, performing classic tales from his Caedmon Records releases.  Originally podcast 23 October 2012, re-aired in 2015, and as “#22.1” in 2016.)

There are a number of people who have become so associated with horror and the macabre that they become culturally associated with Halloween, a holiday that celebrates not only ghosts, vampires and monsters, but these kinds of celebrities as well.  While he was most certainly not the first to achieve this kind of notoriety, Vincent Price managed to use this association to his advantage, building a career that spanned stage, screen, radio, television and LP.  His singular looks, commanding voice, and overall sense of theater and drama made him perfectly suited to wear capes and speak knowingly about the undead and the midnight hour.  While his dedication to the craft was always apparent in everything he produced, his sense of humor was always lurking just beneath, and one need only look at his appearance on The Muppet Show for proof of that.  It is with no small amount of fanfare that we bring you an entire hour dedicated to the man himself, presenting his own voice reading stories and poems about ghosts, witches, goblins, and all things creepy as part of our annual Halloween Spook-tacular!

Beginning his career in the late 1930’s, Vincent Price’s horror film debut was with Boris Karloff and Basil Rathbone in 1939 in The Tower Of London, but the role that really established his career was 1944’s Laura, a film noir by Otto Preminger, and adapted from the novel of the same name.  In 1947 he took on the role of Simon Templar in the radio program The Saint, a heroic adventure program where he solved crimes in much the same manner of The Green Hornet, The Avenger, or The Whistler (a program that shared a similar introduction).  He appeared in horror, film noir, and radio programs, and a comedy here and there, throughout the ’40’s and ’50’s.  By the 1960’s he was known to many as the character of Egghead in the television adaptation of Batman.  However, his work with Roger Corman not only made him permanently associated with horror films (and in particular, screen adaptations of Edgar Allen Poe short stories), but made him a go-to actor when filmmakers wanted to use his incredible voice, or lend a moody atmosphere to the production.  Throughout the remainder of his career he worked for a number of director’s, lent his voice to animated films, and hosted endless programs, including PBS’s Mystery! from ’81 – ’89.  He passed from this dimension in 1993, but his long career and spectacular command of drama has made him a Halloween icon, and one who I enjoy every year around this time.

One aspect of his career that is often overlooked is his work for Caedmon Records (now Caedmon Audio).  Founded in 1952 by Barbara Holdridge and Marianne Roney, Caedmon focused on all manner of spoken word albums, which included authors and poets reading their own work, presentations of speeches or stage performances, poetry collections, children’s stories, and any number of literary works on LP (their slogan: “A Third Dimension for the Printed Page”).  They managed to amass an impressive roster of artists, featuring albums by Robert Frost, T. S. Eliot, Ernest Hemingway, Gertrude Stein, e.e. cummings, Richard Burton, Albert Finney, Vanessa Redgrave and Basil Rathbone just to name a few.  These LPs were particularly popular among the hip college crowd in the ’60’s and ’70’s, and offered a new means for listeners to experience well known literary works, often read by the original writers, or at least, consummate performers.  Caedmon still releases audio books and literary recordings to this day, though now on CD and in other digital forms, leaving behind the excellent LPs that made their work unique and popular, and today they are thought of as a merely an audiobook production company.  It is with this organization that Vincent Price recorded several albums, reading a number of stories totally appropriate for the Halloween season.  These albums contained stories about ghosts, goblins, monsters of all variety, and on one record, a series of spells for witches, with their ingredients described in detail.  While he recited his share of Edgar Allen Poe stories too, today’s program features stories from his other recordings.

Ghost stories have a long and wonderful tradition that goes back to an time when people primarily heard them around the campfire, and there is something about hearing someone tell you a story that is absolutely mesmerizing.  I have fond memories listening to a few scary stories on records when I was a kid, and when I hear recordings like this, I am easily transported to a time when a four minute ghost story would leave me in awe.  Putting one of these records on is a fantastic showcase of the different kinds of literary thrills and chills that Vincent Price was so good at delivering, and it seemed appropriate to offer a sort of mix-tape of some well-known moments.  I intentionally left out his renditions of Poe works, not only because we featured The Tell-Tale Heart last week, but I wanted to offer some of the other kinds of narratives heard on records like this.  Accompanying these stories are the sounds of one of my favorite scary sounds LPs, Haunted House, an Italian record from 1985 with some hilarious typos on the back cover, and an excellent presentation on Side A.

It is sad that, now, both Vincent Price and stories like this are no longer popular, and have been replaced instead with the Horror Movie format as people loose their interest in  primary source of Halloween scares like these.  Ghost Stories seem permanently lodged in the past, somehow, and while I can easily become excited by work like this, it is very clearly a relic now.  This show is a sort of snapshot of the way this holiday used to be celebrated, and one that I wish would come back.  The real focus of today’s program are tales read by the immortal Vincent Price, and that should be something that is timeless.

So: light some candles, curl up in a blanket with your loved ones, and enjoy an hour of fantastic tales guaranteed to set the mood for any party.  Let’s just hope that you live through the entire show!

An Evening With Vincent Price!

Part I: “Listen, Won’t You?”

01.) Take A Trip Through The Haunted House If You Dare! * Haunted House * Haunted House Music Co.

02.) All-Saints’ Eve * Vincent Price * A Hornbook For Witches * Caedmon Records

Published in 1950 by Leah Bodine Drake in a collection of poems entitled A Hornbook for Witches: Poems of Fantasy, this is perhaps one of the rarest collections of poetry published by a fairly large publisher, Arkham House Press.  According to one story, Leah Drake had to shoulder the cost of printing the book, and just over 500 were pressed.  300 were given to the poet for her troubles, and the remainder were sent to distributors.  While it is unclear if the book sold well at all when it was published, copies now go for over $500, mostly because of the spooky content and eerie quality to the verse.  Most people know these poems from Price’s LP, A Hornbook of Witches, containing a few of the gems from this rare book.

03.) The Lone Grave * Vincent Price * Tales Of Witches, Ghosts, And Goblins * Caedmon Records

This story appeared in a 1956 collection of stories by Carl Carmer entitled The Screaming Ghost And Other Stories.  Published as a collection for young adults and illustrated by “Irv Docktor” (a pseudonym if I’ve ever seen one), this is one of the many American folktales and stories Carmer collected and remade for kids.  These stories have taken on a number of forms and versions over the years, and made its way into similar collections by other authors, but Vincent Price (and Caedmon Records) seemed to have a fondness for Carmer’s version.  This particular story originates from Kentucky, and probably has some basis of fact buried within this frightening tale.

04.) The Phantom Merry-Go-Round * Vincent Price * Tales Of Witches, Ghosts, And Goblins * Caedmon Records

Another story from Carmer’s The Screaming Ghost And Other Stories collection, this one tells the story of the deadly hurricane of 1856, and how it destroyed the resort town of Isle Dernière, near New Orleans.

Part II: “Welcome To Gobbleknoll.”

05.) The Smoker * Vincent Price * Tales Of Witches, Ghosts, And Goblins * Caedmon Records

A story from A Book of Goblins, published in 1969 and edited by Alan Garner for young adult readers.  On the Caedmon LP, this story is listed as “freely adapted from an Iroquois legend.”  This is entirely possible, and Garner was merely the editor of this collection of stories.  I have yet to track down a copy of this book, so tracing the origins of these stories is entirely dependent on the data available via the Inter-Web-A-Tron.

06.) Don’t * Vincent Price * A Hornbook For Witches * Caedmon Records

This piece was written by Maria Leach, author of the story collection The Thing At The Foot Of The Bed And Other Scary Stories.  Originally published in 1959, it saw a number of young adult editions over the years, but is now out of print.  Maria Leach, in this collection, took a number of classic folktales and campfire stories and re-told them (similar to the style of Carl Carmer).  This was a popular tactic in the ’50’s, ’60’s and ’70’s, as people were less concerned with copyright and the origins of stories like this were never entirely clear anyway.  Other stories from this book were often used for Halloween Records, but Vincent’s delivery usually sells the story.

07.) The Leg of Gold * Vincent Price * A Graveyard of Ghost Tales * Caedmon Records

Vincent Price liked his authors British, and Ruth Manning-Sanders was a popular fairy tale collector in the UK.  Mostly known for her collections of children’s stories, Ruth would travel the world and collect a variety of stories from different countries, then retell them in her own style for English audiences.  One collection in particular – A Book of Ghosts & Goblins – became rather popular in 1969 when it was published, an stories from it have been entertaining people this time of year ever since.   This particular tale is of French origin, but the book is worth tracking down due to the wide variety of stories from all over the world.

08.) Gobbleknoll * Vincent Price * Tales Of Witches, Ghosts, And Goblins * Caedmon Records

Also known by the title “Gobble Knowll,” this story is also taken from A Book of Goblins, edited by Alan Garner (also known as The Hamish Hamilton Book of Goblins in the UK).  On the Caedmon LP, this story is listed as being “Transposed from a Sioux legend,” which could very well be the case, but most sources agree that Garner’s writing draws from English folktales and stories near where he grew up in the English countryside.  Part of the Gobbleknowll story seems to have been used in Garner’s The Weirdstone of Brisingamen book that he became famous for, and this fame most likely led to him getting the editing job, too.

Part III: “The Calamander Chest”

09.) The Calamander Chest * Vincent Price * Goblins at the Bath House and the Calamander Chest * Caedmon Records

Originally published in Weird Tales magazine in January of 1954, this story by Joseph Payne Brennan became one of his more popular stories, and might be one of the few included in this presentation that was not originally written for young adults.  (Though the audience for Weird Tales definitely skewed young.)  Brennan’s work is largely out of print in the modern age, but his stories are considered classic pieces of horror among many authors, including Stephen King.  Brennan often used strange and disturbed loners as characters in his work, and was a proponent of the paranormal detective character, which dominated much of his work in the ’60’s.  This story is an excellent example of his work, and a great way to close today’s program.

10.) The Broomstick Train * Vincent Price * Tales Of Witches, Ghosts, And Goblins * Caedmon Records

This is a small excerpt from a longer poem by none other than Oliver Wendell Holmes, taken from his collection The One Hoss Shay, illustrated by Howard Pyle.  Holmes was a physician and lecturer, and kept company with the likes of Ralph Waldo Emerson & Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, among other well known luminaries and poets.  This collection was originally produced in 1858, though it was revised a number of times during his life.  While the poem is actually about the introduction of electrified street cars in US cities, Holmes strength was in his ability to draw comparisons and connections between the world around him and the supernatural world of the past.

Episode 189: An Evening With Vincent Price!
(Featuring the master of horror readings himself, Mr. Vincent Price, performing classic tales from his Caedmon Records releases.)

There are a number of people who have become so associated with horror and the macabre that they become culturally associated with Halloween, a holiday that celebrates not only ghosts, vampires and monsters, but these kinds of celebrities as well.  While he was most certainly not the first to achieve this kind of notoriety, Vincent Price managed to use this association to his advantage, building a career that spanned stage, screen, radio, television and LP.  His singular looks, commanding voice, and overall sense of theater and drama made him perfectly suited to wear capes and speak knowingly about the undead and the midnight hour.  While his dedication to the craft was always apparent in everything he produced, his sense of humor was always lurking just beneath, and one need only look at his appearance on The Muppet Show for proof of that.  It is with no small amount of fanfare that we bring you an entire hour dedicated to the man himself, presenting his own voice reading stories and poems about ghosts, witches, goblins, and all things creepy as part of our annual Halloween Spook-tacular!

Beginning his career in the late 1930’s, Vincent Price’s horror film debut was with Boris Karloff and Basil Rathbone in 1939 in The Tower Of London, but the role that really established his career was 1944’s Laura, a film noir by Otto Preminger, and adapted from the novel of the same name.  In 1947 he took on the role of Simon Templar in the radio program The Saint, a heroic adventure program where he solved crimes in much the same manner of The Green Hornet, The Avenger, or The Whistler (a program that shared a similar introduction).  He appeared in horror, film noir, and radio programs, and a comedy here and there, throughout the ’40’s and ’50’s.  By the 1960’s he was known to many as the character of Egghead in the television adaptation of Batman.  However, his work with Roger Corman not only made him permanently associated with horror films (and in particular, screen adaptations of Edgar Allen Poe short stories), but made him a go-to actor when filmmakers wanted to use his incredible voice, or lend a moody atmosphere to the production.  Throughout the remainder of his career he worked for a number of director’s, lent his voice to animated films, and hosted endless programs, including PBS’s Mystery! from ’81 – ’89.  He passed from this dimension in 1993, but his long career and spectacular command of drama has made him a Halloween icon, and one who I enjoy every year around this time.

One aspect of his career that is often overlooked is his work for Caedmon Records (now Caedmon Audio).  Founded in 1952 by Barbara Holdridge and Marianne Roney, Caedmon focused on all manner of spoken word albums, which included authors and poets reading their own work, presentations of speeches or stage performances, poetry collections, children’s stories, and any number of literary works on LP (their slogan: “A Third Dimension for the Printed Page”).  They managed to amass an impressive roster of artists, featuring albums by Robert Frost, T. S. Eliot, Ernest Hemingway, Gertrude Stein, e.e. cummings, Richard Burton, Albert Finney, Vanessa Redgrave and Basil Rathbone just to name a few.  These LPs were particularly popular among the hip college crowd in the ’60’s and ’70’s, and offered a new means for listeners to experience well known literary works, often read by the original writers, or at least, consummate performers.  Caedmon still releases audio books and literary recordings to this day, though now on CD and in other digital forms, leaving behind the excellent LPs that made their work unique and popular, and today they are thought of as a merely an audiobook production company.  It is with this organization that Vincent Price recorded several albums, reading a number of stories totally appropriate for the Halloween season.  These albums contained stories about ghosts, goblins, monsters of all variety, and on one record, a series of spells for witches, with their ingredients described in detail.  While he recited his share of Edgar Allen Poe stories too, today’s program features stories from his other recordings.

Ghost stories have a long and wonderful tradition that goes back to an time when people primarily heard them around the campfire, and there is something about hearing someone tell you a story that is absolutely mesmerizing.  I have fond memories listening to a few scary stories on records when I was a kid, and when I hear recordings like this, I am easily transported to a time when a four minute ghost story would leave me in awe.  Putting one of these records on is a fantastic showcase of the different kinds of literary thrills and chills that Vincent Price was so good at delivering, and it seemed appropriate to offer a sort of mix-tape of some well-known moments.  I intentionally left out his renditions of Poe works, not only because we featured The Tell-Tale Heart last week, but I wanted to offer some of the other kinds of narratives heard on records like this.  Accompanying these stories are the sounds of one of my favorite scary sounds LPs, Haunted House, an Italian record from 1985 with some hilarious typos on the back cover, and an excellent presentation on Side A.

It is sad that, now, both Vincent Price and stories like this are no longer popular, and have been replaced instead with the Horror Movie format as people primary source of Halloween scares.  These stories seem permanently lodged in the past, somehow, and while I can easily become excited by work like this, it is every clearly a relic of the past.  This show is a sort of snapshot of the way this holiday used to be celebrated, and one that I wish would come back.  The real focus of today’s program are tales read by the immortal Vincent Price, and that should be something that is times.

So: light some candles, curl up in a blanket with your loved ones, and enjoy an hour of fantastic tales guaranteed to set the mood for any party.  Let’s just hope that you live through the entire show!

An Evening With Vincent Price!

Part I: “Listen, Won’t You?”

01.) Take A Trip Through The Haunted House If You Dare! * Haunted House * Haunted House Music Co.

02.) All-Saints’ Eve * Vincent Price * A Hornbook For Witches * Caedmon Records

Published in 1950 by Leah Bodine Drake in a collection of poems entitled A Hornbook for Witches: Poems of Fantasy, this is perhaps one of the rarest collections of poetry published by a fairly large publisher, Arkham House Press.  According to one story, Leah Drake had to shoulder the cost of printing the book, and just over 500 were pressed.  300 were given to the poet for her troubles, and the remainder were sent to distributors.  While it is unclear if the book sold well at all when it was published, copies now go for over $500, mostly because of the spooky content and eerie quality to the verse.  Most people know these poems from Price’s LP, A Hornbook of Witches, containing a few of the gems from this rare book.

03.) The Lone Grave * Vincent Price * Tales Of Witches, Ghosts, And Goblins * Caedmon Records

This story appeared in a 1956 collection of stories by Carl Carmer entitled The Screaming Ghost And Other Stories.  Published as a collection for young adults and illustrated by “Irv Docktor” (a pseudonym if I’ve ever seen one), this is one of the many American folktales and stories Carmer collected and remade for kids.  These stories have taken on a number of forms and versions over the years, and made its way into similar collections by other authors, but Vincent Price (and Caedmon Records) seemed to have a fondness for Carmer’s version.  This particular story originates from Kentucky, and probably has some basis of fact buried within this frightening tale.

04.) The Phantom Merry-Go-Round * Vincent Price * Tales Of Witches, Ghosts, And Goblins * Caedmon Records

Another story from Carmer’s The Screaming Ghost And Other Stories collection, this one tells the story of the deadly hurricane of 1856, and how it destroyed the resort town of Isle Dernière, near New Orleans.

Part II: “Welcome To Gobbleknoll.”

05.) The Smoker * Vincent Price * Tales Of Witches, Ghosts, And Goblins * Caedmon Records

A story from A Book of Goblins, published in 1969 and edited by Alan Garner for young adult readers.  On the Caedmon LP, this story is listed as “freely adapted from an Iroquois legend.”  This is entirely possible, and Garner was merely the editor of this collection of stories.  I have yet to track down a copy of this book, so tracing the origins of these stories is entirely dependent on the data available via the Inter-Web-A-Tron.

06.) Don’t * Vincent Price * A Hornbook For Witches * Caedmon Records

This piece was written by Maria Leach, author of the story collection The Thing At The Foot Of The Bed And Other Scary Stories.  Originally published in 1959, it saw a number of young adult editions over the years, but is now out of print.  Maria Leach, in this collection, took a number of classic folktales and campfire stories and re-told them (similar to the style of Carl Carmer).  This was a popular tactic in the ’50’s, ’60’s and ’70’s, as people were less concerned with copyright and the origins of stories like this were never entirely clear anyway.  Other stories from this book were often used for Halloween Records, but Vincent’s delivery usually sells the story.

07.) The Leg of Gold * Vincent Price * A Graveyard of Ghost Tales * Caedmon Records

Vincent Price liked his authors British, and Ruth Manning-Sanders was a popular fairy tale collector in the UK.  Mostly known for her collections of children’s stories, Ruth would travel the world and collect a variety of stories from different countries, then retell them in her own style for English audiences.  One collection in particular – A Book of Ghosts & Goblins – became rather popular in 1969 when it was published, an stories from it have been entertaining people this time of year ever since.   This particular tale is of French origin, but the book is worth tracking down due to the wide variety of stories from all over the world.

08.) Gobbleknoll * Vincent Price * Tales Of Witches, Ghosts, And Goblins * Caedmon Records

Also known by the title “Gobble Knowll,” this story is also taken from A Book of Goblins, edited by Alan Garner (also known as The Hamish Hamilton Book of Goblins in the UK).  On the Caedmon LP, this story is listed as being “Transposed from a Sioux legend,” which could very well be the case, but most sources agree that Garner’s writing draws from English folktales and stories near where he grew up in the English countryside.  Part of the Gobbleknowll story seems to have been used in Garner’s The Weirdstone of Brisingamenbook that he became famous for, and this fame most likely led to him getting the editing job, too.

Part III: “The Calamander Chest”

09.) The Calamander Chest * Vincent Price * Goblins at the Bath House and the Calamander Chest * Caedmon Records

Originally published in Weird Talesmagazine in January of 1954, this story by Joseph Payne Brennan became one of his more popular stories, and might be one of the few included in this presentation that was not originally written for young adults.  (Though the audience for Weird Tales definitely skewed young.)  Brennan’s work is largely out of print in the modern age, but his stories are considered classic pieces of horror among many authors, including Stephen King.  Brennan often used strange and disturbed loners as characters in his work, and was a proponent of the paranormal detective character, which dominated much of his work in the ’60’s.  This story is an excellent example of his work, and a great way to close today’s program.

10.) The Broomstick Train * Vincent Price * Tales Of Witches, Ghosts, And Goblins * Caedmon Records

This is a small excerpt from a longer poem by none other than Oliver Wendell Holmes, taken from his collection The One Hoss Shay, illustrated by Howard Pyle.  Holmes was a physician and lecturer, and kept company with the likes of Ralph Waldo Emerson & Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, among other well known luminaries and poets.  This collection was originally produced in 1858, though it was revised a number of times during his life.  While the poem is actually about the introduction of electrified street cars in US cities, Holmes strength was in his ability to draw comparisons and connections between the world around him and the supernatural world of the past.

Closet Radio Episode 053: The Afterlife of Automatons (Rikki Horror Picture Show Part 3)

10-20-12

***2012 Rikki Horror Picture Show part 3***

Snap and pop into the ashes beyond your dark windows when the unexpected invites itself in. The numbers click back until our bluest spectre whispers that unconscious fishes cannot differentiate between the uninspired sleepwalkers and idle fans refusing to spin.When that chip on your block shocks and flatlines, we become merely ghosts of the machine.

“We Kept Our Kitchen Clean and Our Dreaming Quiet” – Castanets
“Still Around” – The Scarring Party
“Something Wicked (That Way Went)” – The Vernian Process
“Clowny Clown Clown” – Crispin Glover
“Don’t Make Me Kill You Again” – Kepi Ghoulie
“Coraline” – Rasputina
“Circus Apocalypse” – Vermillion Lies
“Headless Ghost” – Nightmares
“Minister To A Diseased Mind” – The Bachs
“The Girl Who Was Death” – The Prisoner
“I Was A Teenage Creature” – Lord Luther & The Kingsmen
“The Ghost Song” – Salty Holmes
“We’re Comin’ To Kill Ya’” – Zachariah
“Vampire From Outerspace” – The Independents
“Wolfskin Killer” – Zombeast
“Cannibal” – Scratch Acid
“Rosemary’s Baby” – Mia Farrow
“Satan” – Paul Wibier
“Captain Howdy” – Twisted Sister
“Vampire Carpets” – Son of Svengoolie
“Riboflavin-Flavored, Non-Carbonated, Polyunsaturated Blood” – Don Hinson & His Rigamorticians
“The Bunyips” – Dot & The Kangaroo
“Nightbreed End Title Theme” –
“The Night” – Toni Basil
“Svengoolie Street” – Screaming Yellow Theater
“It” – Regulaires
“Draculena” – Aaron McNeill
“Bloodstains” – L7
“Sleeping in Blood City” – The Fatals
“John Hardy” – Gun Club
“Nature’s Dark Passion” – The Damned
“Goodbye Horses” – Venus Infers

KPSU Playlist

Episode 188: The Tell-Tale Heart
(A journey into the Punk-In Patch, featuring Iggy Pop reading Edgar Allen Poe’s “The Tell-Tale Heart”! Re-aired in 2015, too.)

The Grumpy Punk hates most holidays, and on the whole has trouble wanting to wish anyone a happy anything, no matter what the circumstances might be. However, our annual Halloween Spook-tacular is something not even The Grumpy Punk can resist, and at least once during the season he likes to take a stroll out into the Punk-In Patch, to bring you a creepy selection of candy-chomping rockers about monsters, the living undead, and the occasional creepy story. It is this in mind that we have turned to our good friend Iggy Pop, the grandfather of punk rock himself, to bring you his rendition of the immortal Edgar Allen Poe short story, The Tell-Tale Heart, a story so closely associated with the season that it regularly shows up on Halloween Records in a number of forms.

In selecting the songs for this particular romp through the Punk-In Patch, I am aided by our good friend Miss Rikki Lee of Closet Radio. While we were unable to secure her to assist us with the recording of this episode, she contributed a number of selections that wound up in the presentation featured today. Not only a fellow traveler of all things Halloween and Punk Rock, her program has been featuring some fantastic Halloween Programming this month, and for the few of you who are not already obsessively listening to everything she broadcasts, you may want to work your way over to her show and check it out. She has made a number of appearances on our fine program, and she is currently celebrating her one year radio anniversary. Show her some love.

In a number of ways, Edgar Allen Poe embodies so much that is Halloween. While his stories and poems contained a wide range of subject matter and characters – including one of the first detective characters in published fiction – there is a creepiness and eeriness that set the done for horror fiction, and only Nathaniel Hawthorne was able to match this tone in the years previous. Poe’s own life was full of tragedy and sorrow, and for someone who had trouble integrating himself into the world he lived in, he had no trouble creating moods and literary landscapes where someone like himself would feel right at home. Reading his stories now has a very unusual effect on readers, as his command of language and the structure of his most famous stories feel like they are a part of the very fabric of scary, campfire narratives.

It is not surprising that Iggy Pop should read this particular selection. Iggy himself loves to mine the world of the horrific for his own narrative purposes, and all of his music has a dark and wonderfully creepy undertone that fills me with both joy and discomfort at the same time. Like Poe, who was developing a tone and style that would become Horror Fiction, Iggy developed what would become Punk Rock, building on a foundation that few before him had already begun, but a number of others afterward would pick up and use ever onward. The merger of these two artists is one that continues to impress me, and when you read the text along with Iggy’s performance, you realize how dedicated he was to this story. His pauses, the lines he emphasizes, and the rise and fall of his delivery flow along with the original text in a way that is completely faithful, and as today’s show unfolds, you’ll find him building to a fantastic crescendo that only someone as masterful as Mr. Pop can deliver. It also illustrates the incredible through-line that exists between this era in literature, and Punk Rock itself.

For those of you unfamiliar with the recording in today’s presentation, it comes from a fantastic double-CD entitled Closed On Account Of Rabies, a collection that I have drawn upon before for this very holiday. It was produced and released by Hal Willner, and if you don’t recognize that name, I am not surprised. His work has been primarily in the realm of tributes and film collaborations, releasing only one album of his own work.  His efforts are incredibly diverse, producing tributes to the music of Federico Fellini films, Charles Mingus, Leonard Cohen, Tim Buckley, Randy Newman, Shel Silverstein, Allen Ginsberg, Carl Stalling, and William S. Burroughs, among others. This particular album of Poe stories and poems contains some incredible (and wonderfully strange) performances by the likes of Diamanda Galás, Dr. John, Christopher Walken, Gabriel Byrne and Deborah Harry. Wilner’s production and musical accompaniment is nuanced, and even sounds like a Halloween Record at times. But the effect when combined with Iggy’s throaty, harsh tones not only sound as if it might be Poe’s voice himself, but has a musicality to it that only reveals itself near the end of the tale.

But don’t take my word for it. Sit down and enjoy yet another journey into The Punk-In Patch, as we bring you another Halloween Spook-tacular here on Blasphuphmus Radio.com!

Enjoy!

The Tell-Tale Heart!

Part I: “True! – nervous – very, very dreadfully nervous”
01.) The Tell-Tale Heart (Part I) * Iggy Pop * Closed On Account Of Rabies
02.) Halloween * Siouxsie & The Banshees * Juju
03.) Haunted House Of Rock ’95 * Satan’s Pilgrims * Soul Pilgrim
04.) The Tell-Tale Heart (Part II) * Iggy Pop * Closed On Account Of Rabies
05.) Splatterhouse * The Koffin Kats * Straying From The Pack
06.) The Tell-Tale Heart (Part III) * Iggy Pop * Closed On Account Of Rabies
07.) Monsters * Scratch Acid * The Greatest Gift
08.) Dead Souls * Nomeansno * The Day Everything Became Nothing
09.) The Tell-Tale Heart (Part IV) * Iggy Pop * Closed On Account Of Rabies
10.) In Love With The Dead * Behead The Prophet No Lord Shall Live * Soul System Blackout 7″
11.) The Tell-Tale Heart (Part V) * Iggy Pop * Closed On Account Of Rabies
12.) Raise Up The Dead * Dead Moon * Destination X

Part II: “The old man sprang up in bed, crying out – ‘Who’s there?’ “
13.) The Tell-Tale Heart (Part VI) * Iggy Pop * Closed On Account Of Rabies
14.) King Of The Monsters * Man… Or Astro-Man? * Experiment Zero
15.) The Tell-Tale Heart (Part VII) * Iggy Pop * Closed On Account Of Rabies
16.) The Living Dead * The-Front * “Bad Boy” b/w “The Living Dead”
17.) Back From The Dead * Black Eyes And Neckties * Stiletto
18.) The Tell-Tale Heart (Part VIII) * Iggy Pop * Closed On Account Of Rabies
19.) Blood Visions * Jay Reatard * Blood Visions
20.) Dracula * Sawyer Family * Scary As Hell
21.) The Tell-Tale Heart (Part IX) * Iggy Pop * Closed On Account Of Rabies
22.) Fearless Vampire Killers * Bad Brains * Bad Brains
23.) The Tell-Tale Heart (Part X) * Iggy Pop * Closed On Account Of Rabies
24.) Dead Or Alive * G.G. Allin & The Motor City Bad Boys * Always Was, Is And Always Shall Be

Part III: “If, still, you think me mad, you will think so no longer”
25.) Mummy’s Little Monster * Frankie Stein And His Ghouls * Monster Sounds And Dance Music * Power Records
26.) The Tell-Tale Heart (Part XI) * Iggy Pop * Closed On Account Of Rabies
27.) Monsters * Mad Marge And The Stonecutters * Mad Marge And The Stonecutters
28.) The Tell-Tale Heart (Part XII) * Iggy Pop * Closed On Account Of Rabies
29.) I’m A Mummy! * The Fall * Levitate
30.) I Was A Teenage Werewolf * The Cramps * Songs The Lord Taught Us
31.) The Tell-Tale Heart (Part XIII) * Iggy Pop * Closed On Account Of Rabies
32.) Heartaches * Ted Weems And His Orchestra * The Purple Knif Show
33.) Tell Tale Heart * The Gravetones * On The Edge Of Madness
34.) Undermutter’s Monster Update * The Firesign Theater * All Things Firesign

Episode 188: The Tell-Tale Heart
(A journey into the Punk-In Patch, featuring Iggy Pop reading Edgar Allen Poe’s “The Tell-Tale Heart”!)

The Grumpy Punk hates most holidays, and on the whole has trouble wanting to wish anyone a happy anything, no matter what the circumstances might be. However, our annual Halloween Spook-tacular is something not even The Grumpy Punk can resist, and at least once during the season he likes to take a stroll out into the Punk-In Patch, to bring you a creepy selection of candy-chomping rockers about monsters, the living undead, and the occasional creepy story. It is this in mind that we have turned to our good friend Iggy Pop, the grandfather of punk rock himself, to bring you his rendition of the immortal Edgar Allen Poe short story, The Tell-Tale Heart, a story so closely associated with the season that it regularly shows up on Halloween Records in a number of forms.

In selecting the songs for this particular romp through the Punk-In Patch, I am aided by our good friend Miss Rikki Lee of Closet Radio. While we were unable to secure her to assist us with the recording of this episode, she contributed a number of selections that wound up in the presentation featured today. Not only a fellow traveler of all things Halloween and Punk Rock, her program has been featuring some fantastic Halloween Programming this month, and for the few of you who are not already obsessively listening to everything she broadcasts, you may want to work your way over to her show and check it out. She has made a number of appearances on our fine program, and she is currently celebrating her one year radio anniversary. Show her some love.

In a number of ways, Edgar Allen Poe embodies so much that is Halloween. While his stories and poems contained a wide range of subject matter and characters – including one of the first detective characters in published fiction – there is a creepiness and eeriness that set the done for horror fiction, and only Nathaniel Hawthorne was able to match this tone in the years previous. Poe’s own life was full of tragedy and sorrow, and for someone who had trouble integrating himself into the world he lived in, he had no trouble creating moods and literary landscapes where someone like himself would feel right at home. Reading his stories now has a very unusual effect on readers, as his command of language and the structure of his most famous stories feel like they are a part of the very fabric of scary, campfire narratives.

It is not surprising that Iggy Pop should read this particular selection. Iggy himself loves to mine the world of the horrific for his own narrative purposes, and all of his music has a dark and wonderfully creepy undertone that fills me with both joy and discomfort at the same time. Like Poe, who was developing a tone and style that would become Horror Fiction, Iggy developed what would become Punk Rock, building on a foundation that few before him had already begun, but a number of others afterward would pick up and use ever onward. The merger of these two artists is one that continues to impress me, and when you read the text along with Iggy’s performance, you realize how dedicated he was to this story. His pauses, the lines he emphasizes, and the rise and fall of his delivery flow along with the original text in a way that is completely faithful, and as today’s show unfolds, you’ll find him building to a fantastic crescendo that only someone as masterful as Mr. Pop can deliver. It also illustrates the incredible through-line that exists between this era in literature, and Punk Rock itself.

For those of you unfamiliar with the recording in today’s presentation, it comes from a fantastic double-CD entitled Closed On Account Of Rabies, a collection that I have drawn upon before for this very holiday. It was produced and released by Hal Willner, and if you don’t recognize that name, I am not surprised. His work has been primarily in the realm of tributes and film collaborations, releasing only one album of his own work.  His efforts are incredibly diverse, producing tributes to the music of Federico Fellini films, Charles Mingus, Leonard Cohen, Tim Buckley, Randy Newman, Shel Silverstein, Allen Ginsberg, Carl Stalling, and William S. Burroughs, among others. This particular album of Poe stories and poems contains some incredible (and wonderfully strange) performances by the likes of Diamanda Galás, Dr. John, Christopher Walken, Gabriel Byrne and Deborah Harry. Wilner’s production and musical accompaniment is nuanced, and even sounds like a Halloween Record at times. But the effect when combined with Iggy’s throaty, harsh tones not only sound as if it might be Poe’s voice himself, but has a musicality to it that only reveals itself near the end of the tale.

But don’t take my word for it. Sit down and enjoy yet another journey into The Punk-In Patch, as we bring you another Halloween Spook-tacular here on Blasphuphmus Radio.com!

Enjoy!

The Tell-Tale Heart!

Part I: “True! – nervous – very, very dreadfully nervous”
01.) The Tell-Tale Heart (Part I) * Iggy Pop * Closed On Account Of Rabies
02.) Halloween * Siouxsie & The Banshees * Juju
03.) Haunted House Of Rock ’95 * Satan’s Pilgrims * Soul Pilgrim
04.) The Tell-Tale Heart (Part II) * Iggy Pop * Closed On Account Of Rabies
05.) Splatterhouse * The Koffin Kats * Straying From The Pack
06.) The Tell-Tale Heart (Part III) * Iggy Pop * Closed On Account Of Rabies
07.) Monsters * Scratch Acid * The Greatest Gift
08.) Dead Souls * Nomeansno * The Day Everything Became Nothing
09.) The Tell-Tale Heart (Part IV) * Iggy Pop * Closed On Account Of Rabies
10.) In Love With The Dead * Behead The Prophet No Lord Shall Live * Soul System Blackout 7″
11.) The Tell-Tale Heart (Part V) * Iggy Pop * Closed On Account Of Rabies
12.) Raise Up The Dead * Dead Moon * Destination X

Part II: “The old man sprang up in bed, crying out – ‘Who’s there?’ “
13.) The Tell-Tale Heart (Part VI) * Iggy Pop * Closed On Account Of Rabies
14.) King Of The Monsters * Man… Or Astro-Man? * Experiment Zero
15.) The Tell-Tale Heart (Part VII) * Iggy Pop * Closed On Account Of Rabies
16.) The Living Dead * The-Front * “Bad Boy” b/w “The Living Dead”
17.) Back From The Dead * Black Eyes And Neckties * Stiletto
18.) The Tell-Tale Heart (Part VIII) * Iggy Pop * Closed On Account Of Rabies
19.) Blood Visions * Jay Reatard * Blood Visions
20.) Dracula * Sawyer Family * Scary As Hell
21.) The Tell-Tale Heart (Part IX) * Iggy Pop * Closed On Account Of Rabies
22.) Fearless Vampire Killers * Bad Brains * Bad Brains
23.) The Tell-Tale Heart (Part X) * Iggy Pop * Closed On Account Of Rabies
24.) Dead Or Alive * G.G. Allin & The Motor City Bad Boys * Always Was, Is And Always Shall Be

Part III: “If, still, you think me mad, you will think so no longer”
25.) Mummy’s Little Monster * Frankie Stein And His Ghouls * Monster Sounds And Dance Music * Power Records
26.) The Tell-Tale Heart (Part XI) * Iggy Pop * Closed On Account Of Rabies
27.) Monsters * Mad Marge And The Stonecutters * Mad Marge And The Stonecutters
28.) The Tell-Tale Heart (Part XII) * Iggy Pop * Closed On Account Of Rabies
29.) I’m A Mummy! * The Fall * Levitate
30.) I Was A Teenage Werewolf * The Cramps * Songs The Lord Taught Us
31.) The Tell-Tale Heart (Part XIII) * Iggy Pop * Closed On Account Of Rabies
32.) Heartaches * Ted Weems And His Orchestra * The Purple Knif Show
33.) Tell Tale Heart * The Gravetones * On The Edge Of Madness
34.) Undermutter’s Monster Update * The Firesign Theater * All Things Firesign

Closet Radio Episode 052: No More Room In Hell (Rikki Horror Picture Show Part 2)

***2012 Rikki Horror Picture Show part 2***

(10-13-12)

Looking into empty reflections searching for any sign of life. Remember to breathe when the lungs collapse, the brain shuts down ticking off glass-eyed marbles on the spinning wheel of preservation merely locked in a jar on the doctor’s shelf. We must recapture what never was.

“Epitaph” – Robert Corbert Orchestra f/ Jonathan Frid
“Old Snake Road” – Hell Caminos
“Shallow Grave” – Mad Marge & The Stonecutters
“On A Pale Horse” – The Gravetones
“Curse of The Hearse” – Haunted Cologne
“On The Coattails Of A Dead Man” – Primus f/ Tom Waits
“Psychodead” – Dead Skeletons
“The Fourth Horseman” – Aphrodite’s Child
“They’re All Dead” – The Prostitutes
“Raise The Dead” – Caravan of Thieves
“Fire & Brimstone” – Ralph Stanley
“Wayfaring Stranger” – 16 Horsepower
“Billy’s Dead” – Deadbolt
“(Not Adam)” – Foetus
“Gallows Twist” – Manual Sex Drive
“Scarecrow” – Ministry
“Dead Puppies” – Ogden Edsl
“Stone Dead Forever” – Motorhead
“The Immortal Death” – Crass
“La Danse Macabre” – Le Bass Harmonistes
“The Ghost With The Most” – The Almighty Defenders
“Buried Deep” -Petra Schelm
“Ragdoll Physics” – Diablo Swing Orchestra”
“I Hold Your Hand In Mine” – Tom Lehrer
“Undertaker” – Southern Culture on The Skids
“Ain’t No Grave (Can Hold My Body Down)” – Johnny Cash

KPSU Playlist

Frankenstein’s Monster Talks!
(Featuring the complete 1963 story, “Frankenstein’s Monster Talks!” written by Cherney Berg and performed by Hal Johnson &  Gabriel Dell.  Originally podcasted 9 October 2012, re-aired in 2015, and again in 2016 as “#20.2.”)

Dr. Victor Frankenstein was a scientist of some renown during the early 1800’s, and was not only responsible for the study of a number of fascinating aspects of medicine and biology, but also developed an extremely crude form of sound recording nearly 40 years before the technology was even conceived of by other inventors.  Probably his most famous – and dangerous – creation is the Modern Prometheus, the monster that terrorized the world until it was presumedly destroyed in a mysterious fire.

What was not known until the early 1960’s is that Dr. Frankenstein’s monster used this primitive recording technology to document his side of the story.  These recordings have been circulated over the last 50 years not only as a document of one of the oldest known recordings to exist, but offer a fascinating look into the life of this creature that terrified people until its tragic demise.  (Or so we have been told.)

Now, as part of our annual Halloween Spook-tacular, we present these recordings without any alteration or editing, to give you a chance to decide for yourself the intentions of this often misunderstood creature.  Dr. Frankenstein, for many years, has offered his version of these events in prose (as told to an unlucky sailor whom he met just prior to his demise).  Now, it’s is the Monster’s turn to talk.  To accompany these recordings, we’ve included music in tribute to The Monster, and the time of year associated with him.  Brace yourself for a tale too chilling for broadcast radio, entitled “Frankenstein’s Monster Talks!”

As I’ve said numerous times in the past, there is something about Halloween Records that strike a chord and fills me with a certain kind of joy that is hard to explain.  Perhaps it is because they embody novelty, a D.I.Y. spirit, childish glee and sense of nostalgia that is fully concerned with the kinds of stories you tell around a campfire, late at night, at the end of summer when you’re trying to build the courage to face the impending winter.  There’s probably more to it, too, that any number of psychologists could elucidate   I have a few fond memories of listening to Halloween Records as a kid, but to be honest, I never owned any until I was in my early 20’s, and didn’t start collecting with a serious fervency for a few years more.

The golden age of Halloween Records began in the 1950’s and ran through the 1970’s.  There were a number of scary and spooky novelty records before that, and they were certainly popular.  But in the post-war era the US had a number of things working for it: Television, the LP as a format for music and a burgeoning youth culture with an interest in things esoteric and unique.  With the introduction of Shock Theater in 1957 (and Son Of Shock a year later), TV stations had access to over 70 classic horror movies they could package and use to fill air time in the evenings, where Horror Hosts of every variety dressed up in kooky costumes and waxed poetic about Edgar Allen Poe and Universal Studios.

This was also a period of social change in a number of ways.  Culture was homogenizing as the family unit began to solidify and suburbia began to develop.  The holiday of Halloween began to morph, and instead of carrying regional variety for reckless, drunken, and sometimes violent adults, became a candy-centric children’s romp with neighbors and at parties, the kind of holiday that middle America craved.  The stage was set for Halloween merchandise of every variety to become the seasonal backbone of any company that wanted to manufacture costumes, candy, and of course, novelty records.

The correlation between rock music and Halloween Records seems to be almost too good to be true.  Their origins stem from the same post-war realities, their audiences seem to be more or less the same, and when they work in concert with each other, the results are incredible.  While the Misfits are an amazing modern example of what can be done when you blend rock music and horror themes, almost as soon as there was rock and roll, there were musicians singing about monsters, graveyards, and prowling the streets at night.  It is no wonder that it is a trope that people return to again and again, and one of which I can’t seem to get enough.  I have hours and hours (and hours) of Halloween music and scary sounds albums, and every time I think I’ve plumbed the depths, each year I uncover a new batch of things that get me excited about doing Halloween shows like this one.

This particular record, Famous Monsters Speak!, has been reprinted a number of times since its original release in 1963, and is now available in iTunes (and on CD).  The production on it is actually quite good for the time, and is above average for Halloween Records in general.  Hal Johnson created all the sound effects, about whom it is hard to find any biographical information.  (It is safe to assume that he probably worked at A.A. Records, who released the album for Famous Monsters of Filmland magazine, through which you could order the LP when it first came out.)  All of the voices, however, were performed by Gabriel Dell, a member of the Dead End Kids, a group of New York actors who appeared in a series of plays in the mid-to-late 30’s, and then movies through Universal Studios.  His career included a number of films, a stint on Broadway, and quite a few TV shows until until the late ’70’s.  He died of leukemia in 1988, and while my Grandmother still waxes poetic about how great the Dead End Kids movies were, I will always remember him fondly from this recording.  I was convinced that the other voices were done by different actors, and was pleasantly surprised to find that he’s just that good.

The writer of this particular story is Cherney Berg, someone with a level of fame between that of Hal Johnson and Gabriel Dell.  Cherney wrote story adaptations for records, including two other Halloween Records, and two other story records (according to his “discogs.com” page linked above).  While I can’t say that the writing stands out here (the great parts of this story are still owed to Mary Shelly), there is a certain style to adapting stories to an audio format that Mr. Berg certainly has dialed in.  The B-Side of this record, “Dracula Returns!” is like this too, and sounds more like a one-person radio play making it particularly suited to this program.

Sadly, as the ’70’s wore on, Halloween Records began to decline quite drastically.  Scary Stories appeared less frequently on albums, and Scary Soundscapes began to dominate before disappearing entirely.  Fewer Monster Songs were recorded by artists to the point where they became actual novelties worse than “The Monster Mash,” performed only by novelty acts who specialized in z-level quality.  As companies like K-Tel and Pickwick began to move into the market, re-issues and re-makes began to become the standard for this genre and fewer new compositions were entering into the market.  By the ’80’s all you had left were bands like The Misfits and The Cramps keeping the spirit of Halloween Records alive.

The occasional band in the ’90’s and 2000’s (Satan’s Pilgrims, The Bomboras, The Ghastly Ones) worked to right this wrong, and no less an artist than Rob Zombie produced a fabulous Halloween Record featuring one of the most important figures in this genre, Zacherle himself (perviously known as Roland in his Horror Host days in the ’50’s).  Now, with bloggers and websites working overtime to help gather material both new and old for modern consumers, the mode and media have changed dramatically, but the genre is sort of back on track.  It seems that you can easily find any number of quality songs, new and old, that pay reverential homage to this by-gone era.  It’s my dream that, in the not so distant future, the spirit of this Golden Age will return, and spooky compilations and audio oddities will return to the marketplace with the same creepy attitude these records used to embody.

In the meantime: Blasphuphmus Radio will bring you their Halloween Spook-taculars to help fill the void.

See you in seven!

Frankenstein’s Monster Talks!

Part I: Crude Recordings
01.) Frankenstein’s Monster Talks! (Part I) * Famous Monsters Speak!
02.) Doom At Midnight * Frankie Stein And His Ghouls * Shock! Terror! Fear!
03.) Frankenstein’s Monster Talks! (Part II) * Famous Monsters Speak!
04.) Over At The Frankenstein Place * The Rocky Horror Picture Show
05.) Frankenstein’s Monster Talks! (Part III) * Famous Monsters Speak!
06.) Monster Swim * Bobby “Boris” Picket & The Crypt-Kickers * “Monster Swim” b/w “Werewolf Watusi”
07.) Frankenstein’s Monster Talks! (Part IV) * Famous Monsters Speak!
08.) Graveyard * Leroy Bowman * Monster Bop
09.) Frankenstein’s Monster Talks! (Part V) * Famous Monsters Speak!

Part II: From Which Graves Did I Come?
10.) Frankenstein * Jad And David Fair * Sing Your Little Babies To Sleep
11.) Frankenstein * Edgar Winter Group * They Only Come Out At Night
12.) Frankenstein’s Monster Talks! (Part VI) * Famous Monsters Speak!
13.) Frankenstein Walk * Gene “Bowlegs” Miller * “Frankenstein Walk” b/w “Everybody Got Soul”
14.) Frankenstein’s Monster Talks! (Part VII) * Famous Monsters Speak!
15.) Midnight Monsters Hop * Jack And Jim * Midnight Monster Hop
16.) Frankenstein’s Monster Talks! (Part VIII) * Famous Monsters Speak!
17.) Frankenstein’s Den * Hollywood Flames * Doo Wop Halloween
18.) Frankenstein’s Monster Talks! (Part IX) * Famous Monsters Speak!

Part III: Frankenstein Conquers The World!
19.) Frankenstein Conquers The World * Jad Fair & Daniel Johnston * It’s Spooky
20.) The Black Cat * Ozzie Nelson & Orchestra * Halloween Stomp
21.) Frankenstein’s Monster Talks! (Part X) * Famous Monsters Speak!
22.) Frankenstein Meets The Beetles * Goodman and Ramal * The Monster Album
23.) Frankenstein’s Monster Talks! (Part XI) * Famous Monsters Speak!
24.) The Boogy Man Is Here * Tom Gerun & Orchestra * Halloween Stomp
25.) Frankenstein’s Monster Talks! (Part XII) * Famous Monsters Speak!
26.) Main Title (Theme From “Young Frankenstein”) * John Morris * “Young Frankenstein” Original Soundtrack
27.) Frankenstein’s Monster Talks! (Part XIII) * Famous Monsters Speak!

Episode 187: Frankenstein’s Monster Talks!
(Featuring the complete 1963 story, “Frankenstein’s Monster Talks!” written by Cherney Berg and performed by Hal Johnson &  Gabriel Dell.)

Dr. Victor Frankenstein was a scientist of some renown during the early 1800’s, and was not only responsible for the study of a number of fascinating aspects of medicine and biology, but also developed an extremely crude form of sound recording nearly 40 years before the technology was even conceived of by other inventors.  Probably his most famous – and dangerous – creation is the Modern Prometheus, the monster that terrorized the world until it was presumedly destroyed in a mysterious fire.

What was not known until the early 1960’s is that Dr. Frankenstein’s monster used this primitive recording technology to document his side of the story.  These recordings have been circulated over the last 50 years not only as a document of one of the oldest known recordings to exist, but offer a fascinating look into the life of this creature that terrified people until its tragic demise.  (Or so we have been told.)

Now, as part of our annual Halloween Spook-tacular, we present these recordings without any alteration or editing, to give you a chance to decide for yourself the intentions of this often misunderstood creature.  Dr. Frankenstein, for many years, has offered his version of these events in prose (as told to an unlucky sailor whom he met just prior to his demise).  Now, it’s is the Monster’s turn to talk.  To accompany these recordings, we’ve included music in tribute to The Monster, and the time of year associated with him.  Brace yourself for a tale too chilling for broadcast radio, entitled “Frankenstein’s Monster Talks!”

As I’ve said numerous times in the past, there is something about Halloween Records that strike a chord and fills me with a certain kind of joy that is hard to explain.  Perhaps it is because they embody novelty, a D.I.Y. spirit, childish glee and sense of nostalgia that is fully concerned with the kinds of stories you tell around a campfire, late at night, at the end of summer when you’re trying to build the courage to face the impending winter.  There’s probably more to it, too, that any number of psychologists could elucidate   I have a few fond memories of listening to Halloween Records as a kid, but to be honest, I never owned any until I was in my early 20’s, and didn’t start collecting with a serious fervency for a few years more.

The golden age of Halloween Records began in the 1950’s and ran through the 1970’s.  There were a number of scary and spooky novelty records before that, and they were certainly popular.  But in the post-war era the US had a number of things working for it: Television, the LP as a format for music and a burgeoning youth culture with an interest in things esoteric and unique.  With the introduction of Shock Theater in 1957 (and Son Of Shock a year later), TV stations had access to over 70 classic horror movies they could package and use to fill air time in the evenings, where Horror Hosts of every variety dressed up in kooky costumes and waxed poetic about Edgar Allen Poe and Universal Studios.

This was also a period of social change in a number of ways.  Culture was homogenizing as the family unit began to solidify and suburbia began to develop.  The holiday of Halloween began to morph, and instead of carrying regional variety for reckless, drunken, and sometimes violent adults, became a candy-centric children’s romp with neighbors and at parties, the kind of holiday that middle America craved.  The stage was set for Halloween merchandise of every variety to become the seasonal backbone of any company that wanted to manufacture costumes, candy, and of course, novelty records.

The correlation between rock music and Halloween Records seems to be almost too good to be true.  Their origins stem from the same post-war realities, their audiences seem to be more or less the same, and when they work in concert with each other, the results are incredible.  While the Misfits are an amazing modern example of what can be done when you blend rock music and horror themes, almost as soon as there was rock and roll, there were musicians singing about monsters, graveyards, and prowling the streets at night.  It is no wonder that it is a trope that people return to again and again, and one of which I can’t seem to get enough.  I have hours and hours (and hours) of Halloween music and scary sounds albums, and every time I think I’ve plumbed the depths, each year I uncover a new batch of things that get me excited about doing Halloween shows like this one.

This particular record, Famous Monsters Speak!, has been reprinted a number of times since its original release in 1963, and is now available in iTunes (and on CD).  The production on it is actually quite good for the time, and is above average for Halloween Records in general.  Hal Johnson created all the sound effects, about whom it is hard to find any biographical information.  (It is safe to assume that he probably worked at A.A. Records, who released the album for Famous Monsters of Filmland magazine, through which you could order the LP when it first came out.)  All of the voices, however, were performed by Gabriel Dell, a member of the Dead End Kids, a group of New York actors who appeared in a series of plays in the mid-to-late 30’s, and then movies through Universal Studios.  His career included a number of films, a stint on Broadway, and quite a few TV shows until until the late ’70’s.  He died of leukemia in 1988, and while my Grandmother still waxes poetic about how great the Dead End Kids movies were, I will always remember him fondly from this recording.  I was convinced that the other voices were done by different actors, and was pleasantly surprised to find that he’s just that good.

The writer of this particular story is Cherney Berg, someone with a level of fame between that of Hal Johnson and Gabriel Dell.  Cherney wrote story adaptations for records, including two other Halloween Records, and two other story records (according to his “discogs.com” page linked above).  While I can’t say that the writing stands out here (the great parts of this story are still owed to Mary Shelly), there is a certain style to adapting stories to an audio format that Mr. Berg certainly has dialed in.  The B-Side of this record, “Dracula Returns!” is like this too, and sounds more like a one-person radio play making it particularly suited to this program.

Sadly, as the ’70’s wore on, Halloween Records began to decline quite drastically.  Scary Stories appeared less frequently on albums, and Scary Soundscapes began to dominate before disappearing entirely.  Fewer Monster Songs were recorded by artists to the point where they became actual novelties worse than “The Monster Mash,” performed only by novelty acts who specialized in z-level quality.  As companies like K-Tel and Pickwick began to move into the market, re-issues and re-makes began to become the standard for this genre and fewer new compositions were entering into the market.  By the ’80’s all you had left were bands like The Misfits and The Cramps keeping the spirit of Halloween Records alive.

The occasional band in the ’90’s and 2000’s (Satan’s Pilgrims, The Bomboras, The Ghastly Ones) worked to right this wrong, and no less an artist than Rob Zombie produced a fabulous Halloween Record featuring one of the most important figures in this genre, Zacherle himself (perviously known as Roland in his Horror Host days in the ’50’s).  Now, with bloggers and websites working overtime to help gather material both new and old for modern consumers, the mode and media have changed dramatically, but the genre is sort of back on track.  It seems that you can easily find any number of quality songs, new and old, that pay reverential homage to this by-gone era.  It’s my dream that, in the not so distant future, the spirit of this Golden Age will return, and spooky compilations and audio oddities will return to the marketplace with the same creepy attitude these records used to embody.

In the meantime: Blasphuphmus Radio will bring you their Halloween Spook-taculars to help fill the void.

See you in seven!

Frankenstein’s Monster Talks!

Part I: Crude Recordings
01.) Frankenstein’s Monster Talks! (Part I) * Famous Monsters Speak!
02.) Doom At Midnight * Frankie Stein And His Ghouls * Shock! Terror! Fear!
03.) Frankenstein’s Monster Talks! (Part II) * Famous Monsters Speak!
04.) Over At The Frankenstein Place * The Rocky Horror Picture Show
05.) Frankenstein’s Monster Talks! (Part III) * Famous Monsters Speak!
06.) Monster Swim * Bobby “Boris” Picket & The Crypt-Kickers * “Monster Swim” b/w “Werewolf Watusi”
07.) Frankenstein’s Monster Talks! (Part IV) * Famous Monsters Speak!
08.) Graveyard * Leroy Bowman * Monster Bop
09.) Frankenstein’s Monster Talks! (Part V) * Famous Monsters Speak!

Part II: From Which Graves Did I Come?
10.) Frankenstein * Jad And David Fair * Sing Your Little Babies To Sleep
11.) Frankenstein * Edgar Winter Group * They Only Come Out At Night
12.) Frankenstein’s Monster Talks! (Part VI) * Famous Monsters Speak!
13.) Frankenstein Walk * Gene “Bowlegs” Miller * “Frankenstein Walk” b/w “Everybody Got Soul”
14.) Frankenstein’s Monster Talks! (Part VII) * Famous Monsters Speak!
15.) Midnight Monsters Hop * Jack And Jim * Midnight Monster Hop
16.) Frankenstein’s Monster Talks! (Part VIII) * Famous Monsters Speak!
17.) Frankenstein’s Den * Hollywood Flames * Doo Wop Halloween
18.) Frankenstein’s Monster Talks! (Part IX) * Famous Monsters Speak!

Part III: Frankenstein Conquers The World!
19.) Frankenstein Conquers The World * Jad Fair & Daniel Johnston * It’s Spooky
20.) The Black Cat * Ozzie Nelson & Orchestra * Halloween Stomp
21.) Frankenstein’s Monster Talks! (Part X) * Famous Monsters Speak!
22.) Frankenstein Meets The Beetles * Goodman and Ramal * The Monster Album
23.) Frankenstein’s Monster Talks! (Part XI) * Famous Monsters Speak!
24.) The Boogy Man Is Here * Tom Gerun & Orchestra * Halloween Stomp
25.) Frankenstein’s Monster Talks! (Part XII) * Famous Monsters Speak!
26.) Main Title (Theme From “Young Frankenstein”) * John Morris * “Young Frankenstein” Original Soundtrack
27.) Frankenstein’s Monster Talks! (Part XIII) * Famous Monsters Speak!

Closet Radio Episode #51: Going In For The Kill (Rikki Horror Picture Show Part 1)

10-6-12

***2012 Rikki Horror Picture Show part 1***

With the spark of an eye, this stranger is marked by the temperatures of light. Her heart ticks to a syncopated beat as sharp as the blade in her hand. Silenced by fear of no bumps in the night when a dark reflection of what no longer ceases to be seen.

“Tricks and Treats” – Lux Interior
“Helter Skelter” – The Beatles
“Woman of Mass Destruction” – Woolly Bandits
“Where Evil Grows” – The Gore Gore Girls
“Lady Scarface” – Lydia Lunch
“Kill You” – Tioni and The Tomcats
“Satan Is Her Name” – Steve King
“The First Mrs. Jones” – Bill Anderson
“Stab Stab Stab” – Screeching Weasel
“Crizila” – Calabrese
“The Velorium Camper III: Al The Killer” – Coheed & Cambria
“Pretty Baby” – Lords Of The New Church
“Ted Bundy Was A Ladies Man” – Des Roar
“The Electrocutioner” – The Residents

“Janie’s Got A Dissolvo Ray” – Zombina & The Skeletones
“Uncle’s Got A Sweetheart pt.2” – Madeline
“French Wife” – Daryl Scairiot
“Leroy” – The Fibonaccis
“Fever” – The Cramps
“Pretty Little Girl” – The Pine Box Boys
“Impaler” – The Sawyer Family
“Knife Fight” – Katastrophy Wife
“Belladonna” – Siouxsie & The Banshees
“Lovely Creature” – Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds

KPSU Playlist

Darkness Descends!
(Featuring songs about darkness and the night to kick off our annual Halloween Spook-tacular, already in progress!  Orignally Podcast on 2 October 2012, and again in 2015.) 

Playlist & Footnotes:

Every year about this time, I feel a slight chill enter my bones, a feeling that sinks into my very thought processes and stays with me well into the winter months.  The days are shorter, colder, and cause a little more pause when the sun has set and there is nothing but the darkness behind you.  It’s at that time of year that I can think of nothing else but the greatest holiday our fair program celebrates: Halloween!  And with this show, we kick off five full weeks of programming as part of our annual Halloween Spook-tacular, the backbone of any year here it BlasphuphmusRadio.com.

It’s hard for me to exert any amount of reserve once October rolls around, and before the week is out I’m listening to non-stop monster songs until sometime in December.  What can I say?  I’m a sucker for it.  But this year, instead of jump the gun when it still feels like the end of summer outside, I instead opted to ease our way into this most sacred of holidays, with a show that dramatically presents the night as it begins to take over our lives, and the effect that darkness has on us all.  It seems like a happy medium; rather than blow my wad on songs about zompires and vampwolves this early in the game, I thought I would set the scene first, before jumping out of the darkness and saying, “Boo!”

For those of you who want to stay on top of our Halloween Broadcasts – and relive our past triumphs – this handy link will allow you to subscribe to these shows in iTunes, where all the magic will appear on your computer as these shows come out.  Last year I produced a number of great programs that I think are among the best ones I’ve ever done, and there are several in the archives that are bound to set the mood for any kind of party you may be hosting this year.  I will be adding a few more shows to this archive throughout the month, so now is a perfect time to fire up the old iTunes and find out what we’ve been up to all these years.

Stay tuned, as there will be plenty of Monster Mash’s and rattling chains for the next several weeks.  I get so excited this time of year, I can hardly contain it!  Fortunately for you, it comes in the form of listening pleasures the likes of which you will rarely hear anywhere else.

Talk to you next week.

Darkness Descends!

Part I: Don’t Be Afraid Of The Dark
01.) Don’t Be Afraid Of The Dark * The Sonics * Boom
03.) Night Beat * The Phantoms * Lux and Ivy’s Favorites Volume Eight
04.) Dark Thoughts * New Dawn * Love, Peace & Poetry: American Psychedelic Music
05.) Dark Entries * Bauhaus * In The Flat Field
06.) Thru The Night * The Estranged * Singles
07.) Thanks For The Night * The Damned * “Thanks For The Night” b/w “Nasty”

Part II: Paging Doctor Dark
08.) In Dark Tree’s * Brian Eno * Another Green World
09.) One More Night * CAN * Ege Bamyasi
10.) Oh, Deadly Nightshade * The New Bloods * 09/29/06 In-Studio Performance
11.) Doctor Dark * Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band * Lick My Decals Off Baby
12.) Relief Of The Night * Jandek * Living In A Moon So Blue
13.) Heart of Darkness * Pere Ubu * Terminal Tower

Part III: Darkness, Darkness, Darkness
14.) Nochnaya Melodiya (Night Melody) * Orkestar Vyacheslav Mescherin * Orkestar Vyacheslav Mescherin
15.) Late Night * Syd Barrett * The Madcap Laughs
16.) Night Of The Lotus Eaters * Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds * Dig, Lazarus, Dig!!!
17.) Dark Lights The Dark * Bishop Of Battle * Prequel Plus
18.) Night Rain * Deuter * Cloud Cuckooland
19.) And Last Night? * The Enablers * End Note
20.) Midnight Raffle * Langston Hughes * The Voice Of The Poet

Episode 186: Darkness Descends!
(Featuring songs about darkness and the night to kick off our annual Halloween Spook-tacular, already in progress!) 

Every year about this time, I feel a slight chill enter my bones, a feeling that sinks into my very thought processes and stays with me well into the winter months.  The days are shorter, colder, and cause a little more pause when the sun has set and there is  nothing but the darkness behind you.  It’s at that time of year that I can think of nothing else but the greatest holiday our fair program celebrates: Halloween!  And with this show, we kick off five full weeks of programming as part of our annual Halloween Spook-tacular, the backbone of any year here it BlasphuphmusRadio.com.

It’s hard for me to exert any amount of reserve once October rolls around, and before the week is out I’m listening to non-stop monster songs until sometime in December.  What can I say?  I’m a sucker for it.  But this year, instead of jump the gun when it still feels like the end of summer outside, I instead opted to ease our way into this most sacred of holidays, with a show that dramatically presents the night as it begins to take over our lives, and the effect that darkness has on us all.  It seems like a happy medium; rather than blow my wad on songs about zompires and vampwolves this early in the game, I thought I would set the scene first, before jumping out of the darkness and saying, “Boo!”

For those of you who want to stay on top of our Halloween Broadcasts – and relive our past triumphs – this handy link will allow you to subscribe to these shows in iTunes, where all the magic will appear on your computer as these shows come out.  Last year I produced a number of great programs that I think are among the best ones I’ve ever done, and there are several in the archives that are bound to set the mood for any kind of party you may be hosting this year.  I will be adding a few more shows to this archive throughout the month, so now is a perfect time to fire up the old iTunes and find out what we’ve been up to all these years.

Stay tuned, as there will be plenty of Monster Mash’s and rattling chains for the next several weeks.  I get so excited this time of year, I can hardly contain it!  Fortunately for you, it comes in the form of listening pleasures the likes of which you will rarely hear anywhere else.

Talk to you next week.

Darkness Descends!

Part I: Don’t Be Afraid Of The Dark
01.) Don’t Be Afraid Of The Dark * The Sonics * Boom
03.) Night Beat * The Phantoms * Lux and Ivy’s Favorites Volume Eight
04.) Dark Thoughts * New Dawn * Love, Peace & Poetry: American Psychedelic Music
05.) Dark Entries * Bauhaus * In The Flat Field
06.) Thru The Night * The Estranged * Singles
07.) Thanks For The Night * The Damned * “Thanks For The Night” b/w “Nasty”

Part II: Paging Doctor Dark
08.) In Dark Tree’s * Brian Eno * Another Green World
09.) One More Night * CAN * Ege Bamyasi
10.) Oh, Deadly Nightshade * The New Bloods * 09/29/06 In-Studio Performance
11.) Doctor Dark * Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band * Lick My Decals Off Baby
12.) Relief Of The Night * Jandek * Living In A Moon So Blue
13.) Heart of Darkness * Pere Ubu * Terminal Tower

Part III: Darkness, Darkness, Darkness
14.) Nochnaya Melodiya (Night Melody) * Orkestar Vyacheslav Mescherin * Orkestar Vyacheslav Mescherin
15.) Late Night * Syd Barrett * The Madcap Laughs
16.) Night Of The Lotus Eaters * Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds * Dig, Lazarus, Dig!!!
17.) Dark Lights The Dark * Bishop Of Battle * Prequel Plus
18.) Night Rain * Deuter * Cloud Cuckooland
19.) And Last Night? * The Enablers * End Note
20.) Midnight Raffle * Langston Hughes * The Voice Of The Poet

Closet Radio Episode 003: The Rikki Horror Picture Show pt. 2

(Originally Broadcast: 31 October 2011.)

Wrapping up the Halloween creeps, I present you with part two of the Rikki Horror Picture Show! More morbid mayhem this week along with our very special (and hopefully recurring) guest, Claudiu, new DJ Chris popped in for a bit to hang out and we had some technical difficulties to boot since it wouldn’t be a true trickery season without. Let’s get undead!

The Rikki Horror Picture Show pt. 2

Hour 1

01.) “Time to get this party started.”

02.) “Death Party” – The Gun Club
03.) “Dog Will Hunt” – Choptop and Stretch
04.) “Seven Rusty Blades” – The Limit Club

05.) ”Suspiria Theme” – Goblin
06.) “All Hell Breaks Loose” – Mad Sin
07.) “Billy’s Dead”- Deadbolt
08.) “I Got The Creeps” – Big John Bates and The Voodoo Dollz
09.) “I Kick Ass For The Lord.”

10.) “We Watch A Lot Of Movies” – Murder By Death
11.) “I Don’t Hate Shit, God Does” – All Leather ** (request)
12.) “Came Out Of A Lady” – Rubblebucket ** (request)

13.) “Dead Or Alive” – Oingo Boingo
14.) “Delirium Trigger” – Coheed and Cambria
15.) “Nasty” – The Damned
16.) “The Witch” – The Sonics

Hour 2

17.) “Intermission” – Murder By Death
18.) “Fun In The Dark” – Kepi Ghoulie
19.) “The Forest Is Full Of Spiders” – Manual Sex Drive
20.) “Dead Man’s Suit” – The Chrome Cranks
21.) “Halloween” – The Ghost
22.) “Drive-In Oath” –Joe Bob Briggs

23.) “Another Bag of Bones” – Kevin Devine and the Goddamned Band

24.) “Hand Me Some Chew” – Zachariah
25.) “Beelz” – Stephen Lynch
26.) “Under A Funeral Moon” – Darkthrone
27.) “Go-Go To The Graveyard” – The Deadlines
28.) “Eaten By The Monster Of Love” – Sparks

29.) “Speak No Evil” – Clint Howard
30.) “Blue Spirit Blues” – THAT Damned Band
31.) “Gorey Demise” – Creature Feature
32.) “The Black Widow” – Alice Cooper w/ Vincent Price

33.) “Piano Duet” – Danny Elfman
34.) “In Olde Yellowcake” – Rasputina
35.) “Don’t Fear The Reaper” – Blue Oyster Cult

KPSU Playlist

Episode 138: The Potters of Firsk (A Halloween Spook-tacular!)

The Potters of Firsk * Dimension X * NBC * 28 July 1950

Part I
01.) Yellow * Ken Nordine * RE/Search: Incredibly Strange Music Vol II
02.) Speedy Car * Stereolab * Aluminum Tunes
03.) New New * DNA * Dna
04.) Exotic Two (Excerpt) * Sun Ra * We Travel the Spaceways Bad and Beautiful

Part II
05.) Opal (October) * Emil Richards * New Sound Element “Stones”
06.) Mad * Social Outcasts * Lux and Ivy’s Favorites Volume 12: The Lux Interior Memorial Edition: Journey into Outer Space
07.) The Duke Arrives / Barricade * John Carpenter * Escape From New York
08.) Controller * Infinitirock * Music For Primordial Recollection
09.) Where Dead People Live * Sun City Girls * Cameo Demons And Their Manifestations: Carnival Folklore Resurrection Vol. 1
10.) The Lie That Liars Know About * Half Eye * The Rose Mary Murders

Part III
11.) Phantom Market (Later Version) (Excerpt) * Power Circus * Power Circus
12.) Hall Of The Mountain King * The Who * The Who Sell Out
13.) Brief Encounter (Excerpt) * Trey Gunn Band * Live Encounter
14.) Suspense * Jib Kidder * Library Catalog Music Series: Music For Hypnotized Minds
15.) Trouble On The Way * Kalahari Surfers Vol. 1: The Eighties

Part IV
16.) Long Gone * Syd Barrett * The Madcap Laughs
17.) Forbidden Planet: Main Titles – Overture * Louis And Bebe Barron * Brain In A Box: The Science Fiction Collection
18.) Eternal Waltz (Excerpt) * Jandek * White Box Requiem * Corwood 0763
19.) Spirits Drifting * Brian Eno * Another Green World

Part V
20.) Atomic Bomb (Edit) * Deadless Muss * Attack (1987)
21.) Bone Chain * Tom Waits * Orphans: Brawlers, Bawlers & Bastards
22.) Death Moon Reprise * Winter Drones * Blood In The Coffin
23.) Beware Of Death * Gricer * Gricer
24.) Yellow Blues * Charles Manson * Commemorating Sixty Years Of Struggle Against Cowardice, Stupidity And Lies
25.) Autumn Leaves * Grex * Live At Home

Part VI
26.) Space Blue * Suicide * Suicide
27.) Big Trak Attack * Man… Or Astro-Man? * Experiment Zero
28.) Frank Talk About Mutants * Men’s Recovery Project * Frank Talk About Humans
29.) Contract With Depravity * Kenyon Hopkins * Crime Jazz: Music In The First Degree
30.) The Twilight Zone * The Ventures * The Ventures In Space
31.) The Great Pumpkin * Vince Guaraldi

The Potters of Firsk
(Featuring an episode of X-Minus 1, remixed, originally broadcast on KPSU on 29 October 2011, and again in 2015.)

Playlist & Footnotes:

In this two-hour Halloween finale from the end of the 2011 season of our show was unusual for the Halloween shows I did at the time, being not only a Science Fiction program, but also featuring a number of songs that were more narratively focused, rather than strictly horror-related.  However, at the core of “The Potters of Firsk” – one of the least catchy titles, if there ever was one – is a horror story, and I do my best to prolong the reveal at the end, but to prove a good selection of music to compliment the strange and unique tone to the story.

To do so, I wound up picked a tremendous number of experimental and, otherwise, strange tunes.  Experimental music is, in many ways, about exploring the scarier side of the musical world, and I tried to mix a lot of really strange songs in with a few rockin’ tunes to provide the right mix or pop and ponder.  This show was wrapped up at the end of a very exhausting run of shows, and I took a big break after this show if I recall.

Enjoy!

The Potters of Firsk * Dimension X * NBC * 28 July 1950

Part I
01.) Yellow * Ken Nordine * RE/Search: Incredibly Strange Music Vol II
02.) Speedy Car * Stereolab * Aluminum Tunes
03.) New New * DNA * Dna
04.) Exotic Two (Excerpt) * Sun Ra * We Travel the Spaceways Bad and Beautiful

Part II
05.) Opal (October) * Emil Richards * New Sound Element “Stones”
06.) Mad * Social Outcasts * Lux and Ivy’s Favorites Volume 12: The Lux Interior Memorial Edition: Journey into Outer Space
07.) The Duke Arrives / Barricade * John Carpenter * Escape From New York
08.) Controller * Infinitirock * Music For Primordial Recollection
09.) Where Dead People Live * Sun City Girls * Cameo Demons And Their Manifestations: Carnival Folklore Resurrection Vol. 1
10.) The Lie That Liars Know About * Half Eye * The Rose Mary Murders

Part III
11.) Phantom Market (Later Version) (Excerpt) * Power Circus * Power Circus
12.) Hall Of The Mountain King * The Who * The Who Sell Out
13.) Brief Encounter (Excerpt) * Trey Gunn Band * Live Encounter
14.) Suspense * Jib Kidder * Library Catalog Music Series: Music For Hypnotized Minds
15.) Trouble On The Way * Kalahari Surfers Vol. 1: The Eighties

Part IV
16.) Long Gone * Syd Barrett * The Madcap Laughs
17.) Forbidden Planet: Main Titles – Overture * Louis And Bebe Barron * Brain In A Box: The Science Fiction Collection
18.) Eternal Waltz (Excerpt) * Jandek * White Box Requiem * Corwood 0763
19.) Spirits Drifting * Brian Eno * Another Green World

Part V
20.) Atomic Bomb (Edit) * Deadless Muss * Attack (1987)
21.) Bone Chain * Tom Waits * Orphans: Brawlers, Bawlers & Bastards
22.) Death Moon Reprise * Winter Drones * Blood In The Coffin
23.) Beware Of Death * Gricer * Gricer
24.) Yellow Blues * Charles Manson * Commemorating Sixty Years Of Struggle Against Cowardice, Stupidity And Lies
25.) Autumn Leaves * Grex * Live At Home

Part VI
26.) Space Blue * Suicide * Suicide
27.) Big Trak Attack * Man… Or Astro-Man? * Experiment Zero
28.) Frank Talk About Mutants * Men’s Recovery Project * Frank Talk About Humans
29.) Contract With Depravity * Kenyon Hopkins * Crime Jazz: Music In The First Degree
30.) The Twilight Zone * The Ventures * The Ventures In Space
31.) The Great Pumpkin * Vince Guaraldi

(Originally Broadcast: 24 October 2011 on KPSU.)

We’re upon the witching season. Get into it with some good old fashioned songs about monsters, murders, mayhem, morbid meanderings and more! Next week’s episode (Saturday @ 5pm PST) will fill you up with the ghastly spirit of evil even more! If nothing else, it will provide you with an arsenal of songs that are fun to sing at family gatherings!

Rikki Horror Picture Show pt. 1:

Hour 1

01.) “Stanley’s Death Park” – Thomas Dolby
02.) “Zombie Dance” – The Cramps

03.) “Twin Peaks Theme” – Angelo Badalamenti

04.) “Dr. Plainfield” – Stellar Corpses
05.) “I’m Aware That I’m A Werewolf” – Tom Basden
06.) “Zombie Raid” – The Arrivals

07.) “Henry Lee” – Peggy Seeger
08.) “Buried Alive” – The Sawyer Family
09.) “The Graveyard Tree” – Koffin Kats
10.) “Curse of Millhaven” – Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds

11.) “Devil’s Work Day” – Modest Mouse
12.) “Revelator” – The Scarring Party
13.) “Bikinigram From Satan” – Dr. Steel
14.) “Tromatic Events”- Slime & The Boobytramps
15.) “Rats In The Cellar”  – Baby Jane and Blanche
16.) “The Fly” – The Mummies
17.) “Trouble With Cannibals” – Chesty Malone & The Slice ‘Em Ups

Hour 2

18.) “Alice” – Sisters of Mercy
19.) “Rue Morgue Radio” – The Creepshow

20.) “Monster Speech” – Peter Lorre/ Fritz Lang
21.) “Spider” – Theo & The Skyscrapers
22.) “Ghostbusters” – Ray Parker Jr.
23.) “Memphis Exorcism” – Squirrel Nut Zippers
24.) “Psycho Sick Demons”- Phantom Rockers
25.) “Moundshroud” – Cinema Strange
26.) “Demons Wear Spurs” – The Gravetones
27.) “The Hills Have Eyes” – The Meteors
28.) “Frankengirl” –Screeching Weasel f/ Dr. Frank
29.) “Cemetery Polka” – Tom Waits
30.) “Nobody Likes You When You’re Dead” – Zombina & The Skeletones
31.) “All Serial Killers Go To Heaven”- The Video Nasties
32.) “The Kid With The Replaceable Head” – Richard Hell & The Voidoids
33.) “Death’s Coming” – Hour Of The Wolf
34.) “Monster (Massive Return)” – The Mission Creeps
35.) “Blood In My Eyes” – Calabrese
36.) “Bela Lugosi’s Dead” – Bauhaus

Mad Monster Party?! 

Mad Monster Party? on Wikipedia

Mad Monster Party?!

01.) Mad Monster Party Part I
02.) What Kind Of Ghoul Am I (Mashed Potato) * Frankie Stein And His Ghouls * Ghoul Music * Power Records
03.) Mad Monster Party Part II
04.) Wolfman * The Shindigs
05.) Mad Monster Party Part III
06.) Mummy Walk * Thee Phantom 5ive * Mondo Drive-In

07.) Mad Monster Party Part IV
08.) The Giggler * Pat And The Wildcats
09.) The Ghoul From Ipanema * Goodman and Ramal * The Monster Album
10.) Mad Monster Party Part V
11.) Deathrace 2000 * Commercial * Forbidden City Dog Food
12.) A Hard Days Night * Goodman and Ramal * The Monster Album
13.) Mad Monster Party Part VI
14.) Voodoo Voodoo * LaVern Baker * Lavern Baker Collection

15.) Zombie * Gene Kardos & Orchestra * Halloween Stomp
16.) Mad Monster Party Part VII
17.) Devil Train * The Ramblers * Lux and Ivy’s Favorites Volume Fourteen
18.) Monster Talk * Goodman and Ramal * The Monster Album
19.) She’s My Witch * Kip Tyler * Lux and Ivy’s Favorites Volume Fifteen
20.) GhoulardiSurf * Ghoulardi * Lux and Ivy’s Favorites Volume Fourteen
21.) Shake, Rattle & Roll * Bob McFadden & Dor * Songs Our Mummy Taught Us
22.) Mummy’s Ball * Verdicts * Doo Wop Halloween
23.) The Mummy * Maury Laws * Mad Monster Party