There are now submission guidelines linked in the navigation bar above. We’ll see how it goes.

So, I’m going to start working on February’s show and getting things back on track. I enjoy doing the show, but I have too many conditions in my mind regarding the format. I’m not going to worry about that quite so much going forward. If an episode airs without an author or without a string of weird news, then there will just be more music or some other element to fill in the gaps. I appreciate those of you that have subscribed, and hopefully in relaxing my structure a little bit I’ll be able to get back to a consistent schedule.

I hope to be able to start putting the new show together this weekend and will keep you posted as I finally get that live again. Switched computers, new computer had issues, issues fixed, and now need to get moved in and operational again. Thanks for your patience.

I also wanted to take a moment to spread the news that Wilum Hopfrog Pugmire is in hospital and not doing well. You can read the details over at Lovecraft E-Zine here.  I got to hear him read at Mythoscon I and meet him briefly, and as his reputation suggests, he is a thoughtful and genuinely nice man. Here’s hoping he comes through the other side of this, keep him in your thoughts if you are so inclined.

Take Care Mr. Pugmire

Marinus B. Dykshoorn, passed away last month. He was believed to have gift from a very early age that went beyond clairvoyance. At his funeral guests came forth with stories of his miraculous healing powers, powers he’d expressly asked them not to reveal. Dykshoorn also assisted police with various investigations and unearth buried treasure, but through it all he chose to keep a relatively low profile.

Ambrose Bierce was born in Ohio in 1842. No one is quite sure when he died or what became of him. It’s theorized he died in 1914 or 1915 before a firing squad loyal to Poncho Villa’s army, but there are conflicting reports. Between Ohio and a shallow grave in Mexico, Bierce fought for the North in the Civil War, rose through the ranks, suffered a head wound, distinguished himself repeatedly by serving three tours and returning to his brigade after his injury. He was granted the honorary title of brevet major for his service.

After the military, he worked in journalism, and in 1871 at the age of 29, his first short story was published. After a stint in England, and a brief period working as an agent tasked with fighting off thieves attempting to rob mining company shipments, he settled in the San Francisco area. Here he returned to magazine work. It’s during this time Bierce begins the penning the satirical definitions that would later become his most famous work, The Devils Dictionary.

Several books follow, many of which include supernatural tales that have gone on to become classics and continue to exert their influence. In 1913 he crosses into Mexico and that’s about the last thing any one is sure of.

This isn’t near all the interesting bits of Ambrose Bierce’s life, remarkable as it may sound. He was a character of history, beyond his literary contributions to both satire and the weird tale. I’ll end with a quote from the man.

“A writer has ever present consciousness that this is a world of… fools and rogues, blind with superstition, tormented with envy, consumed with vanity, selfish, false, cruel, cursed with illusions, and frothing mad.”

I read a short vignette by Bierce called “John Mortonson’s Funeral,” first Published in 1906.

Orrin Grey, (pictured at the left) is a rising talent in the realm of supernatural horror. His appearances in the anthologies Bound For Evil, Historical Lovecraft, The Mothman Files, Candle In The Attic Window and others earned him his first collection of short stories. Never Bet The Devil and Other Warnings, is due in the first quarter of 2012 from Evil Eye Books. Grey will be co-editing his first anthology next year, not yet titled, the collection will focus on fungal monsters.

Orrin reads his vignette, “The Big, Dark House By The Sea.”

Additionally, Orrin has a great little essay regarding his take on supernatural horror over at Strange Horizons. For more information about Orrin Grey’s work you can find him at orringrey.com

Music this time from…

SIOUXSIE & THE BANSHEES
TOM WAITS
JILL TRACY
METAL CHURCH
FANTOMAS
SHINJUKU THIEF
THE CHURCH
THE DAMNED
ATRIUM CARCERI
CARPATHIAN FOREST
THE CRAMPS
TRIAL
KING DIAMOND
THE ROHAN THEATRE BAND

Episode 028 – Spookatorium

You’ve got pumpkin on your breath,

Prof. Gruntsplatter

A recent story from Japan, points to a sect of Buddhism, Nakayamashingoshoshu, also interested in purging evil. In this case via bastardization of the “waterfall rite” known as takigyo. The victim, Tomomi Maishigi, a thirteen year old girl had a history of health concerns, both mental and physical, that doctor’s were not able to bring under control. Her father enlisted the help of Kazuaki Kinoshita, a monk. Kinoshita determined the Tomomi was possessed by evil spirits.

She was belted into a chair where water was dropped on her face from a pump 2.5 meters (about 8 feet) above her. This was an established apparatus at the temple where she was “treated,” indicating she likely wasn’t the first to undergo such a thing.  She was subjected to this over 100 times, before it killed her. She died of suffocation after losing consciousness in the chair.

A spokesperson for Nakayamashingoshoshu’s main temple indicated both the binding of the subject and use of the rite as a means of exorcism is not its intent. It is rather a means of helping one bring their wishes into reality. The participant is meant to endure the ritual standing and the water is not delivered to their face. Whether that is the case, or this exposed a process they would have preferred to keep secret, a 13-year-old girl is dead because she was believed possessed.

Here’s a video of a more traditional application of the rite. It’s easy to see how this could go sideways under the influence of someone with bad ideas.

In this episode we look at Cotard’s Syndrome a psychological affliction where the sufferer believes themselves to be dead, missing organs or simple non-existent. We’ve got some publishing news from Gray Friar Press, Dark Regions Press, Tartarus Press and the new Phantasmagoria Journal. Then it’s into the catacombs beneath Paris, and a secret workshop in the dome of the Pantheon with UX and arguably secret society urban explorers and preservationists.

Author Richard Gavin speaks on the ideas behind his bleak tale In The Shadow Of The Nodding God from his collection Omens published by Mythos Books, and gives a reading of his vignette Notes On The Aztec Death Whistle. In addition to Omens, Richard has two other collections of short stories available - Charnel Wine & The Darkly Splendid Realm are available from Dark Regions Press.

Music this time

THE BIRTHDAY PARTY
WESTERING
RASPUTINA
PAIN TEENS
CELTIC FROST
PHALLUS DEI
FAITH & THE MUSE
SLOPPY SECONDS
GOATVARGR
GOD BULLIES
ABANDONER & ANGEL OF DECAY
MALARIA!

Professor Gruntsplatter’s Spookatorium 027

Tell your friends, warn your neighbors!

Prof. Gruntsplatter

I’m starting to plan the first new episode now, Episode 027. The Spookatorium will pick up where it left off. I already owned the domain and the name still works with some of my new ideas. In the past, I was trying to maintain a schedule that was ultimately unrealistic. This time around, I’m shooting for one strong episode a month.

The show will continue to feature a variety of great music that speaks to the themes in one way or another, stories of the peculiar and bizarre, and new to this incarnation, I will be giving some attention to how these ideas surface in literature and art.

We’ll see how this goes. Stay tuned for more information as I figure it out.

Leiber stirs character, atmosphere, insight and entertainment in to a roiling cauldron of delicious poison. He makes it look easy, the stories are fluid and seamless. Even in the instances where the endings are visible on the horizon they are not a disappointment because they are inevitable. His authenticity, and the natural course of the prose validate the things you encounter along the way.

He stitches his underlying themes together in a way that is never overbearing, and for me was perhaps his most enviable trait. Leiber’s genius is no secret, he was awarded every prestigious honor through his life that was out there. I’m just late to the celebration.

While there were stories I preferred over others here, I enjoyed them all. I wouldn’t hesitate to call The Black Gondolier a masterpiece. Supernatural dread, conspiracy, and awkward friendship drape each other in this tale that remains relevant and powerful. Without going into details, Leiber infuses the world with a logic that other authors might leave open to the unknowable. Whether the logic of the enlightened or the mad, it informs the tale and makes this a potent classic I will re-read over and over both for entertainment and study.

Other highlights: The Dreams Of Albert Moreland,  Lie Still, Snow White, Spider Mansion, The Dead Man, The Secret Songs and others.

More Please.

Cross-posted from The Aberrant Laboratory

I stumbled on a used copy of the Night Shade hardcover edition, in great shape, for $10 a few months ago and snatched it up. I’d draw it from the shelf now and then to admire the title and Caniglia cover art, then put it back for another day.

An opportunity to have a story critiqued by Mr. Piccirilli is what got me to excavate it from the “to be read” pile. I had only read a handful of his short stories, and I wanted to get a better idea of where his vision was coming from before I saw his critique.

It’s an impressive vision. A Choir Of Ill Children takes place deep in the superstitious bayou. It’s a degenerate world of swamp witchery, the ghosts and demons of family, and transcendent loyalty.

It’s Piccirilli’s sense of place and characterization that impressed me. He’s sculpted a rich world steeped in the sense of history that’s so important to the numerous story threads.  His character’s, each of them haunted in their own way, are authentic. The story weaves in a lot of things I have a personal affection for  – bog witches, the resonance of landmarks, the inherent creepiness of small towns, shabby carnivals, and so on – Piccirilli paints them with vivid colors.

The story is dense, some threads that seem crucial at the beginning end up not being as significant as the book evolves. They are introduced as catalysts for something else, and then fade into the background. If I had a gripe, it would be that. There is more that could have been done with some of the threads, or they could have been removed if they weren’t as important as suggested. They do add to the texture of the world and the personality of the large cast though, and that texture and personality is how A Choir Of Ill Children worms into your guts.

Piccirilli’s vision and captivating prose, earns A Choir Of Ill Children a home among other notable Southern Gothics. There are various editions that have been released since it was first published, and I’m not sure what’s in print and what’s not, but you should go find out.

Cross-p0sted from The Aberrant Laboratory

Readings I attended:
Wilum Hopfrog Pugmire – Read three sonnets from his forthcoming 37,000 word response to Lovecraft’s Fungi From Yuggoth. Here is some more info on the complete work from Wilum’s site. His presentation was engaging and personal with some entertaining asides, really enjoyable.

Richard Gavin - Richard read The Abject, a new piece slotted to appear in S.T. Joshi’s forthcoming Black Wings II. I look forward to reading this powerful piece in print to fully absorb the atmosphere, powerful visuals and isolation presented in the reading.

Simon Strantzas – Simon read In The Air, A poignant story of grief and loss from the recent reissue of his first book Beneath The Surface from Dark Regions Press. It was nice to hear this read as I had recently finished Beneath The Surface.

Matt Cardin – presented The Stars Shine Without Me from his collection Dark Awakenings issued by Mythos Books. This tale of alienation, the power of absent minded creativity and corporate horror was one of my favorites from his collection, and was a treat to hear read in person.

Michael Cisco – Michael Cisco is someone I hadn’t read going in, but expected I would like once I had. His reading was the highlight of the convention for me. He read, I believe, Violence, Child of Trust from the anthology Black Wings (I know it was from Black Wings, but I didn’t note if it was from the original or the forthcoming edition). It was nearly a one man show in presentation. The delivery and content were as dramatic and emotional as a I think one person sitting behind a small table could be. He was riveting and the prose infectious, I left there knowing I needed to read as much of his work as I can get my hands on.

Rick Dakan – Rather than a reading, Rick spoke of his process of writing and gathering experiences for his novel The Cthulhu Cult: A Novel Of Lovecraftian Obsession that was funny and impressive in its scope. Check out Rick’s Lovecraftian Obsession Podcast if you haven’t for some nice interviews with the likes of Wilum Pugmire, Laird Barron and others.

Panels I Attended:
Contemporary Mythos Fiction I – Featured Wilum Pugmire, Cody Goodfellow, Robert M. Price and Ann Schwader.  They gave folks like Joe Pulver, Sr. Stanley Sargent & Lin Carter a lot of love in their panel.

Contemporary Mythos Fiction II – This featured Richard Gavin, Simon Strantzas, Rick Dakan and Lois M. Gresh. This was another highlight for me (even at 9am Sunday morning). They dealt with the subtler influences of Lovecraft. Gavin sparked a great discussion by raising Alan Moore’s concept of Ideaspace. This was a discussion I was hoping to hear, and one that made a greater impression on me than simply retreading the Mythos and the minutiae of Lovecraft’s life.

Small Press Panel I & II – I was hoping for a little more vision from these panels. There was more mistrust of technology f than I expected and from some members a feeling that the major publishing houses focus on blockbuster books was a good thing for the small press. I’m not sure I agree with that, particularly that limited (expensive) books will keep their niche safe. There wasn’t a lot of talk about reaching out and trying to grow the small press aside from the Perilous Press folks who seem to have a really good perspective on what they are doing. (hmm – tried to link the Perilous Press site and apparently it’s down)

Personal Highlights:

This was the first Mythoscon, and while I suspect the organizers would have liked a larger turnout, Adam Niswander and his crew put together a great event. Adam was a gracious host, and personally stopped 2-3 times just to make sure my wife and I were enjoying ourselves. It was my first convention and his team made created something memorable.

I was able to speak with some of my favorite authors, each of whom were gracious and tolerant of me… stood next to Ramsey Campbell at the buffet… got to see the original artwork for Laird Barron’s Occultation in person… picked up some great books (Centipede Press’s table was as delectable as I feared)

I left feeling invigorated, inspired, and eager to tell stories. I’m hopeful that some of the acquaintances I made or reinforced will continue, and I’m pleased to have had the chance to see first hand the passion for weird tales is alive and well.

Cross-Posted from The Aberrant Laboratory

In the last few months I have read two novels and a collaborative novel written with his wife Melanie Tem. You can find their joint website here.

I started with the collaborative novel. The Man On The Ceiling was originally released as a novella that went on to win a World Fantasy Award,  Bram Stoker Award and an International Horror Guild Award in 2000. The version I picked up was the  expanded novel released by Wizards Of The Coast Discoveries. It is part biography, part fiction and as the authors remind us frequently all of it is true. I believe them. The surreal emotional dread is authentic.

The fluidity of imagination and jagged reality is handled so well, it’s perhaps the thing that best represents what kind of writer Tem is. The visceral fear he strips naked is rooted in parental anxiety.  Our inability to protect that which is most important turns to poison with the glide of a shadow on the wall. Imagination, fear, disaster fantasies and unconditional love wrestle on the cliffs of psychosis when one is open to feel all that there is to feel.

Next I went to The Book Of Days, published by Subterranean Press. The tale again deals with the theme of parental anxiety and personal insecurities. The protagonists flees his family to his familial cabin in the woods.  What follows is a tale told in the framework of a short story every day as the main character struggles to fend off madness. This set up allows Tem to rip wide his vivid perspective on the nature of pain. All the horror in the world is just behind your eyes.

Finally, I just wrapped up Excavation released in eBook format by Crossroad Press & Macabre Ink Digital, 0riginally released in 1997. Parental anxiety again plays a role in his tale of a man who returns to the isolated coal mining town where he grew up. The town suffered a flood that killed his family and numerous others after he left, but the sickness and rage that led him to flee that life is right where he left it.

That Tem can write about such personal, crippling fear with such freedom of ideas is perhaps my favorite quality in his inspired work. I don’t get a sense of self consciousness in the writing despite the self consciousness and, arguably, even narcissism of his protagonists. He goes where the trapped and paranoid mind goes.

Tem has countless short stories out there as well. With any luck a big, fat collection is forthcoming from somewhere (I haven’t seen any indication of that though). Centipede Press recently released a collection of all of Steve and Melanie’s collaborative fiction titled In Concert that I hope to get my hands on before too much longer.

He’s a writer with enviable skills. If you enjoy emotional, psychological prose that slithers between boundaries into the overlooked crevasses of our internal reality Steve Rasnic Tem is probably for you.It’s been a true pleasure and inspiration to explore his work.

Cross-Posted from The Aberrant Laboratory

I picked this up based on the title, a reference to a Yeats poem, “The Stolen Child.” The World More Full Of Weeping falls somewhere between a long short story and a novella.

The story follows a young boy from a fractured, loving family as he seeks solace and freedom in the expansive woods behind his house. In the woods, he’s befriended by a young presence who reveals the mysticism of the forest to him. The relationship between the boy and the presence develops like two children slowly becoming best friends. It’s natural and well done.

The mystic parts of the woods are handled simply, focusing on beauty and appreciation rather than throwing back the veil and revealing a wild phantasmagoria. I liked that, that discretion runs through the whole tale.
When the boy fails to return home a search is undertaken and his father  realizes he’d also been befriended by the presence in his youth.

I’m not going to get into the ending, but to say it was multi-layered and satisfying. This is a simple tale of guilt and loss and wonder, made rich by Wiersema’s character development, setting and eloquent prose.

I spent a lot of time in the woods as a kid in a town not terribly unlike the one in this story. It held a certain nostalgia for me that could only be conjured by someone who had the same intimate knowledge of those places and the people that populate them. To that end, this volume also includes an essay exploring how fictional environments become doppelgangers of their real counterparts.

I snagged this for an afternoon read on the Kindle and discovered a writer I will keep an eye on going forward.

Cross-Posted From The Aberrant Laboratory

It was a search for Ruppert that led me to Cardin’s blog, The Teeming Brain, the first time. As I combed the archives, it became clear that the intellect and reason with which he wrote was far above the other places where Ruppert’s name turns up. It also became clear that his passion for supernatural literature, creative thinking, religion and a host of other intriguing topics would make it a place I’d return often.

I have yet to read Matt’s first book Divinations Of The Deep, released on Ash-Tree Press in 2002, but when Dark Awakenings was released by Mythos Books this year I snatched it up. 2/3rd’s of the book is short fiction, while the final third consists of three essays.

Cardin’s work is often mentioned along side such pillars as Lovecraft and Ligotti. It is said, that he (among a select few others) is the progeny of the dread those authors have sown. It is a fair assessment, however I don’t feel comfortable directly comparing them. Those writers leave you with a distinct feeling, a feeling that is an abundance of their appeal. Cardin does this as well, but it is unique to that of the above mentioned, to anyone I have read really.

This is intellectual, introspective, shamanic horror. The black things crawl through the psychic ditches of our world but in Cardin’s writing they are tethered more concretely to a sense of humanity. This is, in part, due to the scholarly inclusion of religion that he weaves through his tales. Let me be clear, these are not religious stories in any sense that would lead readers of this site to be apprehensive. The stories here incorporate undiscussed elements of religion that illustrate both a connection to something bigger and a reminder of the dark things hidden in the heavy language of gods.

While I quite enjoyed the entire collection, if forced to pick a single stand out it would be “The God Of Foulness” (of which you can read a small excerpt here.) The tale explores a growing cult of those who cherish disease, shun treatment and accept their withering as a form of body sacrifice to their God. I’m not going to pore over the details of this or the other stories now though.

The three essays that close the tome deal with the history of angels and demons, the  curious spiritual resonance of George Romero’s Living Dead films, and the reading of The Book Of Isaiah as a work of horror. Each of these was interesting, academic but not cumbersome, and a welcome inclusion.

Dark Awakenings is a very strong collection of work, and I hope it won’t be another eight years before he makes another collection available. I would also encourage you to check out Demon Muse his other blog focusing on “the nature and role of the unconscious mind as symbolized by the ancient Greeks and Romans in the form of the daimon, muse, and personal genius.” Oh yeah, he does music too.

Cross-Posted from The Aberrant Laboratory

In that last year I started keeping a list of short stories that made a real impression on me. Outstanding Short Stories (OSS). The list is not just people who are no longer with us, but Edward Lucas White fits the bill. He died in 1934. I plan to do posts like this one periodically and maybe turn people towards something they didn’t know about.

Edward Lucas White – “The Tooth”
It is not available online, but I did find this which is pretty great… Looks like “The Tooth” is in box 51

I read the story in his the collection Sesta and Other Strange Stories released by Midnight House. It appears to be out of print now. I bought it on a whim (and a sale at The Horror Mall) not knowing anything about the author or his work.

There is something about teeth that fascinates me. I don’t have any particular dental phobias, I just find them to be effective as imagery. As a friend of mine says, “It’s the only place where our skeleton shows.”

“The Tooth” is a tale of mysterious dentistry, curious trinkets, matrimonial bargains and a curse that leads to insanity and death. It was among the most unusual of White’s stories in the collection. There were other stories I really enjoyed, but “The Tooth” achieves a transcendent weird that has stayed with me since my first reading.

Dr. Lefferts, a renown dentist with an aversion to pulling teeth, has set a prohibitive price for tooth extractions. This puts him in the service of the wealthy who demand his fine skills and price is no object.

A wealthy heiress, for whom he has a long-standing infatuation, Miss Ingleton appears one day demanding his services. She insists she has a bad tooth that he can find nothing wrong with. Over a period of weeks he works on her mouth exclusively. Ultimately she demands the tooth be removed and he replaces it with a false tooth, never having found anything wrong with the original.

In the course of their working together she requests to see his personal collection of miniatures, curios and ivories for which he has some standing as a collector. She comes across as unimpressed and once her dentistry concerns are resolved he doesn’t see much of her. Enter Chow Ma, who carries in his mouth an artificial tooth that is giving him problems.

He demands it be pulled but the extraction must leave the tooth undamaged. Upon removing the tooth Dr. Lefferts discovers that it bears an intricate carving. Ma concedes that it is no ordinary tooth, it has been handed down through generations of his family with several of them having used it. Lefferts covets the piece for his collection.

This leads to a meeting in a ramshackle Armenian ghetto that reveals a rival bidder for the piece to be. . . the heiress, who has a collection of her own. It is not sold and sometime later Chow Ma returns to the good dentist with a proposal that he can have the artifact cheaply on the condition he marry anyone but Miss Ingleton.

Lefferts doesn’t believe he has a chance with the heiress, but is outraged that some mug would tell him to get married. Later the trio meet by coincidence at the shore, a disagreement occurs that leads to the offended Chow Ma to cast the tooth into the sea so that neither of them may ever possess it as a he utters a cryptic curse.

Suffice to say, that is not that last of the tooth. . .

I debated giving away the end since it’s out of print, but I’m not going to do that. The ending is, perhaps, predictable in some regards, but it’s done with a level of dread, paranoia and body horror that put’s “The Tooth” on my list of memorable, and outstanding short stories.

Cross-posted from The Aberrant Laboratory

His work has been compared to such shambling giants of the macabre as H.P. Lovecraft,  and Edgar Allan Poe and Thomas Ligotti and Omens deserves such comparisons. It’s not as nihilistic as Ligotti, or as cosmic as Lovecraft. Of the three, I’d place it closest to Poe. The pervasive creep factor that each of those writers possess is present in Richard Gavin.  His imagination is impressive and unique, and he does a really nice job of overlaying that strange darkness into a modern setting.

I’m always looking for more writers that capture this side of horror. The current crop of writers that are making waves seem more straight forward. That is not to say they are unskilled or not to be enjoyed.  I have just always favored more obscure tales of secrets, nightmares, and oddities and Gavin impressed me.

He has a brand new collection entitled The Darkly Splendid Realm (published by Dark Regions) that I’m anxious to get my hands on. The introduction was written by Laird Barron (who I swear I will do a post on one of these days). It was Barron’s involvement that brought Richard Gavin’s name to my attention and I’m grateful for it.

http://www.richardgavin.net/

Cross-posted from The Aberrant Laboratory

The stories are so tightly written and his voice is unique. While I am not as well versed in horror as I could be, I haven’t read anything that feels quite like Fry’s work. The stories work your intellect as well as your imagination. I  appreciate those underlying messages and bits of sociological commentary a lot. It’s something I try and include in my own work, and it’s something that is always there in my music.

The cover to the left is from his first collection, The Impelled and Other Head Trips, which is the one I am just finishing up. He has a couple newer releases, the most recent of which Mindful of Phantoms I am looking forward to checking out. In addition he runs Gray Friar Press with a number of good looking titles I expect to pick up as I can.

Cross-posted from The Aberrant Laboratory

Ligotti  most often gets compared to Poe and Lovecraft, but from the stories I have read thus far it is a tonal comparison more than a stylistic one. Within his body of work he has  visited the Lovecraft Mythos a bit from what I understand, but it is by no means is a focal point. His prose is tight and descriptive with out being overwhelming and superfluous. Ligotti’s stories evoke a vivid environment of apocalyptic dread, anxiety and madness that is truly potent.

His work is one of the very few that I have read that produced a “where have you been all my life” epiphany. The stories in Teatro, particularly “The Red Tower” and “In A Foreign Town, In A Foreign Land,”  capture so much of what I have tried to do in Gruntsplatter that seeing it on the page was striking. It was encouraging as well to see that those kind of stories have an audience.

Ligotti has also contributed to Current 93, on the albums “In A Foreign Town, In A Foreign Land”, “I Have a Special Plan For This World” and “This Degenerate Little Town.” I haven’t heard any of those releases. I’m not the biggest of Current 93 fans (David Tibet’s voice is annoying, sue me) but I am interested in seeing how his words play against their style of music.

I’m sure this won’t be the last time you see Ligotti’s name mentioned here, particularly since I have an unopened book of his work waiting for me.  Here is an interview from 2004 with Ligotti that is definitely worth reading. If you like dark fiction, short stories or any of the music I have done, I can’t recommend him enough. A lot of the stuff is out of print now sadly, but Virgin Books issued Teatro Grottesco and a collection of three novellas called My Work Is Not Yet Done that which I still need to get, and those shouldn’t be too hard to find. Fox Atomic comics has also issued two graphic novels called The Nightmare Factory based on Ligotti’s stories.

Cross-posted from The Aberrant Laboratory

Next we take a look at electro-magnetic fields as they relate to investigating the paranormal. Looking at the reality of what the fields are, and the leap of faith required to draw some of the conclusions that investigators seem to draw from them. Aside from that there is just a whole lot of music.

Tunes this time out from the likes of…

1. PESSARY (1:05)
2. DECEASED (4:23)
3. GOTHICA (9:38)
4. THE PROTAGONIST (18:26)
5. MERCYFUL FATE (23:44)
6. NIGHTMARE LODGE (28:36)
7. BENESTROPHE (32:14)
8. THE ROHAN THEATRE BAND (46:44)
9. STEROID MAXIMUS (51:47)
10. DEATHSPELL OMEGA (55:30)
11. HOCICO (60:00)
12. THE ACCUSED (66:45)
13. THE BLEEDING LIGHT (67:54)
14. MEGAPTERA (76:45)
15. BAUHAUS (83:30)

Professor Gruntsplatter’s Spookatorium 026

Cheers,
Prof. Gruntsplatter

They headline it that searchingforbigfoot.com “uncovered the truth”. They are taking the position that they were duped by Whitton and Dyer, and were not intentionally complicit in the fraud. That seems unlikely, but if it is the truth then their investigative instincts are lacking. To wrap themselves up in something like this without vetting the situation fully shows little regard for their already spotty reputation. Tom Bascardi has been involved in a similar situation previously, so either he is incredibly naive or as he stated in the press conference on the 15th is looking to make as much money as possible.

I don’t have time a the moment to finish my thoughts on this, I will have more on the next show I suspect, the press release is below…

THE FOLLOWING IS PART OF THE NEWS RELEASE GIVEN TO FOX NEWS

Good afternoon. I am Steve Kulls Executive Director of Squatchdetective.com and Host of Squatchdetective Radio. I am here with Bob Schmalzbach, Vice President of Searching for Bigfoot, Inc. I had been invited to be a witness of the thawing of the alleged Bigfoot Body by the Searching for Bigfoot team. As an independent researcher, it has been Squatchdetective.com’s goal to obtain proof positive in all cases when either trying to substantiate a claim or debunk it, so as there is no question to the matter’s certainty. Having worked in the past, with Searching for Bigfoot, Inc., I understand that it has always been their corporate goal, “to tell it like they see it, as it happens, and when it happens”. In my organization’s limited involvement with Searching For Bigfoot, Inc. it is and has been the goal of both organizations to obtain the truth in this and all matters.

On July 9th, 2008, Matthew Whitton and Ricky Dyer placed a video on Youtube making the claim they had recovered the body of a Bigfoot body. Their website, Bigfoottracker.com also echoed the sentiment. At that time I had doubts and followed the story for two weeks when on July 25th, 2008 I placed a video response to challenge them to come on to Squatchdetective Radio on July 28th , 2008.

On July 14th, 2008 an article was published where Whitton released a statement to his local newspaper, the Clayton Times Daily stating that they had recovered the body of a Bigfoot.

The afternoon of July 28th, 2008, Ricky Dyer asked if I would call him and after interviewing him using various forensic interviewing techniques, which I have been trained on, I could not get an accurate read on him as I was seeing deception on numerous things, but insisted he had a body in his possession. At one point he asked me who Tom Biscardi was. I immediately surmised however their motive was financial.

After concluding my one plus hour long phone call with Dyer I called the CEO of Searching for Bigfoot, Tom Biscardi, and we discussed the matter. We, at that time decided it best to turn the investigation over to Mr. Biscardi and his team. My involvement in the remainder of the process was as an independent observer.

The following are my observations and the facts as I understand and know them:
On August 1st, 2008 Tom Biscardi traveled to Georgia and on August 2nd was given a sample, allegedly, from the corpse, for DNA testing. The DNA was hand delivered to Dr. Curt Nelson of Michigan and a chain of custody of the said sample was maintained from the time it was received from Ricky Dyer and Matthew Whitton.

On August 4th, 2008 both Matthew Whitton and Ricky Dyer entered a legally binding contract with Searching For Bigfoot, Inc .recognizing the fact that Searching for Bigfoot, had absolutely nothing to do in the demise or storage of the corpse until such time as it was transferred to Searching For Bigfoot for the benefit of scientific study, marketing and promotion.

On August 10th, 2008 Tom Biscardi received an email from Dr. Nelson that after the amplifications of two of the three samples, that the size of the DNA was consistent with human/ape DNA.

On or about August 12th, 2008, Matthew Whitton and Ricky Dyer requested an undisclosed sum of money as an advance, expected from the marketing and promotion, and as a good faith gesture of the contract.

On August 14th, 2008, after signing a transfer receipt for the amount money requested and counting said money, Matthew Whitton and Ricky Dyer led the Searching for Bigfoot Team to a location and turned over a freezer with something appearing large, hairy, and frozen in ice.
On August 15th, 2008, Tom Biscardi, Ricky Dyer and Matthew Whitton held a press conference at the Cabana Hotel in Paolo Alto, California, announcing that the corpse of a creature fitting the description known as “Bigfoot” had been discovered. A police officer of seven years, on medical leave, labeled as a hero for being wounded in the line of duty, got up in front of the world and told the world of how he and Ricky Dyer uncovered this creature. This has since been proven a lie. It is notable that Rick Dyer insisted on this press conference and told Tom Biscardi he would not release the “body” unless the conference was held on this specific date.

On August 16th, 2008 the freezer containing the alleged corpse arrived with the Searching For Bigfoot Team. I arrived on location at 6PM to provide initial verification examination, biohazard control and consult for security measures at the location. At that time the ice was being thawed slowly without aid, to prevent any decomposition of the alleged corpse. We estimated that the freezer and its contents weighed over 1500 pounds and it would take several days or longer to thaw completely.

On August 17th, 2008 Searching for Bigfoot Team Director of Field Operations, TJ Biscardi and myself, were up early to discover that some hair was now exposed. I extracted some from the alleged corpse and examined it and had some concerns. Bob Schmalzbach arrived and concurred. We burned said sample and said hair sample melted into a ball uncharacteristic of hair.

At that time we contacted Mr. Biscardi who gave us permission to begin an expedited melting process. We set up a salamander heater to heat the freezer. Within one hour we were able to see the partially exposed head, as I was now able to touch it, I was able to feel that it seemed mostly firm, but unusually hollow in one small section. This was yet another ominous sign. Within the next hour of thaw, a break appeared up near the feet area. As the team and I began examining this area near the feet, I observed the foot which looked unnatural, reached in and confirmed it was a rubber foot.

At that point we immediately contacted, Tom Biscardi and advised him of the situation and he began to take action on his end. Later that day, Tom Biscardi informed us that both Matthew Whitton and Ricky Dyer admitted it was a costume. They reportedly agreed to sign a promissory note and admission of what they had done, and set a meeting in their hotel room in California for 8AM on August 17th, 2008.

At that time I drew up the documents for Mr. Biscardi. On August 17th, 2008 Tom Biscardi went to the hotel where Dyer and Whitton were staying and found that they had left. At this time action is being instigated against the perpetrators of this fraud. Tom Biscardi asked us to contact you, the press, and share all that we have discovered.

The motives behind this fraud are still unknown at this time. It is still unclear why Whitton who, being a police officer for the Clayton County Police Department in Georgia got up before the world and lied and was complicit in a scheme to defraud in a felonious manner.

At this time the victim of this series of deceptions, Searching for Bigfoot, Inc., is seeking justice for themselves and for all the people who were deceived by this deception. Due to this event peoples lives have been disrupted and many people, so wanting vindication about there prior experiences were hurt. Let us all try to be mindful of such.

On behalf of myself I can say with certainty Matthew Whitton and Ricky Dyer not the best Bigfoot trackers in the world!

Thank you.

Immediately after the press conference a colleague received a text message from someone who attended, his full report on the event can be seen here. The text message was related to the DNA evidence. Of the three samples, one inconclusive, one human and one opossum. Not exactly a bombshell. There were three pieces of evidence handed out to the press, two photos, and an email printout from the person that reportedly did the DNA testing. Those can be seen at the link above.

As the day went on the reports began to appear on the various sites and in the mainstream media all of which seem to say it was unconvincing and many willing to call it a hoax. The Bigfoot Field Researchers Organization (BFRO) has released a strong statement on the matter here. (Thanks to Skincarver Jeff for pointing that out I hadn’t found it yet) They feel they have soundly debunked the body as a costume. The costume theory doesn’t really appear to be a slam dunk to me, but there are no doubt similarities. The “evidence” is all laid out on a message board post by someone named “Navigator.” I’m not saying it isn’t a hoax, but I would expect something a little more formal than that with more direct evidence. The bravado of the debunking is not too distant from the bravado of the other side.

The press conference itself contains, contradictions, not only within the event today but also against the information they have been putting out since this began. When the questions get more pointed Tom Bascardi, seems to interrupt and try and refocus. I find it amusing that they keep saying it will be reviewed by “scientists” without being terribly specific about what that means. The email regarding the DNA is from a Curt Nelson of the University of Minnesota, he is listed as being a Senior Scientist of the Department of Entomology on the U of M site. I’m not sure about the qualifications an Entomologist has for sequencing DNA.

When they are pressed on why they didn’t call someone of science or authority when they found this, they claim they had no idea who to call or trust. However, Whitton is an active duty police officer and Dyer has been reported as being a former corrections officer, though the BFRO story seems to question that.

The “clear videos and photos” have not been released, the DNA evidence is inconclusive (if we are generous) and rules out an unknown hominid (if we are not being generous.) After watching the press conference and their avoidance to come out with anything substantive or allow some sort of independent analysis for what they have or don’t have it seems rather clear that these guys are milking a phantom.

My original story for the podcast went into some of these inconsistencies and doubts more so than the one that aired. I recorded the revised version right after the press release and photo came out and at the time felt like that took enough gravitas to make that announcement that maybe I would reserve final judgement a bit longer. After seeing the opportunity to astound the world squandered today, and the continued dance of egoism and non specifics the only thing I am really curious about at this point is how they are going to get themselves out from under this when it’s proven they are yanking peoples chains.

The press conference is in a few hours.

Out of the gate we discuss the bizarre affliction that has come to be known as Morgellons disease. This condition, as yet unrecognized by the medical establishment, includes such symptoms as the growth of multi-colored fibers from the body that have been reported to move autonomously, and strange crystalline or granular residue that appears within lesions all accompanied by the feeling of insects crawling under the skin. The CDC has begun looking into it after several years of requests from those that suffer from it. However in some medical circles it continues to be looked at as a psychological rather than physiological condition. Then there are those that see the condition as a result of something more nefarious.

After that we take a look at a set of core components by which hauntings might be judged in order to come up with some type of standardized scientific perspective on what occurs in a haunting scenario. Along the way we touch a bit on Patternology and the Fortean perspective of holistic review rather than compartmentalized observation.

Finally, a piece I had to re-record after some breaking news today altered the story dramatically. Bigfoottracker.com, now working in cooperation with Searchingforbigfoot.com have announced that they have a Bigfoot corpse in their possession, and will be presenting their collected evidence on August 15th at a press conference in Palo Alto, CA. The creature is said to have been discovered in Northern Georgia, and additionally live creatures were also seen in the area at the time. This has been a twisted tale that first appeared on Cryptomundo.com about a month ago. Since that time several evidence free, taunting videos were posted and removed by the members of Bigfoottracker, and the alleged pathologist they had reviewing the corpse was found to be a fraud. The group admitted to hoaxing the pathologist story, but maintained they did have a body. Today a press release was issued fleshing out that claim, and there has been a leak of a photo. The story was covered by local papers but I didn’t see much else in the way of mainstream coverage, but I suspect that will be changing very soon. The photo is compelling, and I look forward to hearing more details from the press conference.

Music this time from the likes of…

AVRIGUS (1:05)
JOY DIVISION (5:30)
TSOL (10:12)
BLACK MESSIAH (20:12)
SCRAP.EDX (23:04)
BEYOND DAWN (27:00)
NICK CAVE & THE BAD SEEDS (37:37)
EISREGEN (41:48)
GOD (45:56)
INADE (49:52)
FRONT 242 (64:20)
NAILBOMB (68:43)
DEATH IN JUNE (71:23)
NACHTMYSTIUM (76:03)

Background:
NAMANAX
DUAL

That’s all for now, I will hopefully have some additional information on the Sasquatch story in the coming days. I’m also hoping to clear out some of my back log of stories by updating the site more frequently between episodes of the show.

Professor Gruntsplatter’s Spookatorium 025

Cheers,
Prof. Gruntsplatter

Svetlana Avakina, the sculptor, declares of the work, “This device is eternal, it will never change…” Its base of three angels is based on the iconic work of Alessandro Botticelli, and resting upon the backs of the cherubic babes rests an 800 pound enema bulb.

“There is no kitsch or obscenity, it is a successful work of art,” Alexander Kharchenko, the director of Mashuk-Akva Term told The Associated Press. “An enema is almost a symbol of our region.”

Next time you are in Southern Russia, don’t for get to have your picture taken with this beauty and take up the cause…

“Let’s beat constipation and sloppiness with enemas.”

- Prof. Gruntsplatter

First up, we revisit the legend of “Oriuagor,” a tome purported to drive insane those who dare read it. First touched upon in Episode 19, an email submission cracks this one open again. I had largely written it off as a marketing gimmick for someone seeking to fabricate a new Necronomicon, but a submitter from Denmark suggests that the legends at least are known there, and the work of fiction we discussed previously was born of those legends.

Next up we look at reports of a lake monster in Minnesota’s Lake Pepin, quaintly, if not predictably, known as Pepie. A local paddle boat operator is offering $50,000 for evidence of Pepie’s existence. I’m sure he’d be happy to sell you a boat ride to go have a look. Next in Pennsylvania there have been at least four reports of a large bird or bat like creature stalking the back roads over the last year. The descriptions vary slightly, but the witness reports are pretty interesting.

Finally, we brush upon the subject of Demonology, and the its inherent bias and delusion when approaching the paranormal. There is an excellent article from noted Parapsychologist Loyd Auerbach on a similar tract that can be found here. Beyond that the balance of skepticism and belief is looked at as well as the definition of skepticism as it relates to the unknown. For me skepticism is an informed state of indecision, however much of the skeptical community seems just as zealous in the their disbelief as those who think every orb caught on film is the ghost of some thing or other. Intellectual curiosity gets pushed from the equation and genuine research suffers when your mind is already made up and it’s detrimental to the greater understanding that I hope most people involved in such things are seeking.

Music this time supplied by…

MASCHINENZIMMER 412 (1:05)
CLOCKDVA (5:50)
SIOUXSIE & THE BANSHEES (9:54)
LUDICRA (21:15)
DEAD WORLD (25:29)
HAUS ARAFNA (29:49)
TIGER LILLIES (33:23)
BLOOD AXIS (44:08)
CHRISTIAN DEATH (48:16)
DISGRACE (52:14)
HELTIR (60:47)
NOISE UNIT (64:29)
OLD MAN GLOOM (69:20)
GGFH (72:46)

With background accompaniment from
LAIBACH

Professor Gruntsplatter’s Spookatorium 024

Happy Friday the 13th,
Prof. Gruntsplatter

While I’m here please enjoy this touching tale of 3 young men in Texas. The mischievous lads found themselves in an old cemetery, and saw fit to dig up a corpse over the course of two days. Once they had reached the body, a light bulb went off over their sweaty little heads… I can almost hear their exhausted excitement now.

They used their shovel to remove the head of the corpse and determined it would make an most outstanding bong. I’m not sure exactly what sort of drug addled engineering was involved in the mechanics of their undertaking (sic) but the story came out when they were arrested on another matter and confessed to this as well. The police initially didn’t believe it, but gathered enough evidence to conclude that the scamps were likely telling the truth.

The grave is believed to have belonged to an 11 year old boy named Willie Sims who died in 1921. The skull has not been recovered, and somehow rain has kept the investigators from determining if the body and coffin are still in the grave. We can film the sunken Titanic in Hi Def, but they can’t find a headless cadaver in a puddle. At the very least, you’d hope, they could persuade people this stupid to tell them where the skull is. Since there is, as yet, no confirmed corpse or skull, and the boys told different stories on how the corpse was beheaded some still question if all of this really happened. It’s a hell of a thing to make up. All three were home schooled, imagine their parents surprise when they turn in their “What I did on Spring Break” papers…

From there we peek behind the curtain of opportunist psychiatry and look at the phenomenon of Spirit Release, the process of psychiatric exorcism. In fairness to the recent stories I’ve done on the exorcism/possession upswing (here’s another one), I thought we’d look at some charlatans of a different color. As well as a brief overview we look at the case of Askinra, a spirit that reportedly tormented a man who was possessed by the spirit when he was murdered in a past life.

Finally we look at the Mormon theory that Bigfoot is actually the earthly incarnation of the biblical Cain. It is accepted among some within the church that Bigfoot is in fact the doomed Cain milling about the earth as penance for the murder of his brother forever wracked with misery and virtually immortal.

Music this time supplied by…

HARVESTMAN (1:05)
BAD SECTOR (4:38)
HOLLENFURT (8:24)
GARMONBOZIA (17:35)
BELBORN (20:48)
FRONT LINE ASSEMBLY (23:44)
IMPETIGO (28:50)
LAMENT CONFIGURATION (40:19)
GOLIAH (44:16)
SOMEWHERE IN EUROPE (47:58)
BETHLEHEM (55:35)
DIE VERBANNTEN KINDER EVAS (60:36)
GAURITHOTH (63:23)
RUHR HUNTER (67:54)

With background accompaniment from
HYBRYDS

Professor Gruntsplatter’s Spookatorium 023

That’s it until next time…

Prof. Gruntsplatter

Then we travel to Ohio to review the story of the Loveland Frog. A 3-4 foot bipedal frog like creature allegedly spotted on the back roads around Loveland, Ohio in 1955 and 1972. While evidence is limited to eye witness testimony and there are reports that at least some of it may have been exaggerated or hoaxed it remains one of my favorite crypto tales.

Finally we take a look at the discredited work of Dr. Johann Beringer. He believed in the early 1700’s that fossils were in fact cast off ideas carved by the hand of God. His collection grew to encompass bizarre specimens like birds with fish heads, and even stones that bore the name of God.

It was later revealed he was duped by colleagues and they were all forgeries, but not until Beringer had published his work. Humiliated, he supposedly spent his remaining days and fortune trying to buy back copies of his book, Lithographia Wirceburgensis, which you can view through the link. His story is, perhaps, a cautionary tale for those Intelligent Design fans out there.

The sounds this time around are supplied by…

CHAOS AS SHELTER (1:05)
WYRD (4:36)
NOVY SVET (9:53)
SISTRENATUS (25:31)
BODY CHOKE (28:25)
NEW MIND (32:18)
MOTH MASQUE (36:38)
BACKWORLD (45:19)
AGNES BERNELLE (49:55)
KHOLD (53:28)
SKINNY PUPPY (60:15)
BRUTAL TRUTH (63:55)
CAUL (66:45)
NEFILIM (70:19)

With background accompaniment from
BURZUM & NOCTURNAL EMISSIONS

Professor Gruntsplatter’s Spookatorium 022

Thanks as always for tuning in… and congrats to Aspen, the winner of the Blood of the Black Owl “S/T” CD in our first drawing.

- Prof. Gruntsplatter

Jose Alvarez who shot the cell phone video had this to say… “One of my friends was so scared after seeing that thing that we had to take him to the hospital.”

I will try and keep an eye out for follow ups on this. Pretty awesome story, true or not, and the video is a great addition to what will no doubt become a legend with some legs in the area.

- Prof. Gruntsplatter

This “truth serum”, which is unnamed in the article, caused these memories to come rushing back, and he realized he had a wife and two kids in his previous life as Don LaRose. Williams said he left his wife and kids to protect them from the Satanists and changed his name and started a new life.

The ReligionNews Blog details the story further, their take is slightly different and fills in some of the back story. LaRose became Pastor of a Hessville Baptist church in 1978. At some point he told his parishioners that he was abducted by a cult in in Maine, New York back in 1975 for “blaspheming Satan”. He says they gave him multiple shock treatments to erase his memory and took him from Maine to Minneapolis and dumped him off. In 1980 he began acting strangely and telling people the Satanists were after him again for criticizing cults. He claims to have seen one of the Satanists through the window of the church while delivering a sermon, no one present at the sermon saw anyone suspicious. The next day LaRose did a runner and disappeared.

He floated around for a few years before settling in Arkansas, and ultimately wound up a multi-term mayor in Centerton under his new identity, an identity he stole from a man who died in 1958.

LaRose/Williams now claims, at least to some media, it was an underworld crime organization rather than a Satanic cult that was or is after him. He is quoted here as saying that he lived in fear of being found out ever since, and now that he’s been outed feels he may be in danger again. This suggests he didn’t need the “truth serum” to recall any of this and his Grandson isn’t buying the tale at all.

Here’s a peek at “Satanic Panic: The Creation Of A Contemporary Legend” on GoogleBooks if you are unaware of the of the Satanic Panic movement. A more concise summary can be seen here courtesy of the Skeptics Dictionary. The media space this idea consumed in the 80′s really was absurd. Geraldo Rivera pretty much built a career off of it as well as numerous moth like pop-psychologists drawn to the fictional satanic flame. There was never any evidence uncovered that organized and violent Satanic Cults existed.

Following this we look at the hoax of the Jenny Haniver. Oddly named this crytpotaxidermy beast constructed from dried, rays, skates and cuttlefish has been passed off as a bona fide monster since the 16th Century, and continues to be despite widely being dubbed a hoax from early on. You can buy one right here.

Finally a look at the fascinating Charles Bonnet Syndrome. The condition in which those with failing vision find their lives interrupted by elaborate hallucinations. I hadn’t heard of this until reading a great piece in the book Dark Lore Vol. 1 which I would recommend.

In addition this time we are having a little drawing from which the winner will receive a copy of Blood of the Black Owl’s self titled record on Bindrune Recordings. Details are in the show…

Music this time from the likes of…

BLIXA BARGELD (1:05)
CARPATHIAN FOREST (5:00)
TULUS (10:45)
THE ACCUSED (26:33)
HARMONY GARDEN (28:55)
MALHAVOC (32:51)
DARKTHRONE (37:14)
BABYLAND (43:23)
SUBTERANNEAN MASQUERADE (46:56)
EMBER (52:45)
DESSAU (54:57)
COIL (65:17)
NICK CAVE & THE BAD SEEDS (71:15)
NEVER PRESENCE FOREVER (76:25)

With background accompaniment from
DEL

Professor Gruntsplatter’s Spookatorium 021

That is it this time, leave a comment or drop an email ya ingrates.

- Prof. Gruntsplatter

While I’m here, here’s an older story I have been holding onto for awhile. Back in September it was announced that Japanese scientists had created a transparent frog. Their reasoning for prompting the transparency mutation was so that the organs would be visible without dissection for educational purposes and general coolness. Professor Masayuki Sumida whose team bred the frogs has hopes that with further experimentation they will be able to create a frog that will glow when it develops cancer. Sumida plans to patent the transparent frog technology.

The latest exorcism death comes to us from Texas where a 60 year old man killed his 59 year old wife. His claim is that he was attempting to perform an exorcism when the devil entered HIS body and the devil killed her. He told the police he was pinning her face down on the carpet when she died. When the police arrived he’d wrapped the body in the a sheet and placed a cross and a sword on the body. I haven’t seen any reports on the autopsy yet in regards to what actually killed her, suffocation sounds like a real possibility. Hubby was charged with murder. I believe this was the 4th exorcism death I have seen a report on in the last month.

The other part of the story from the show was in regard to the Catholic Church and their renewed focus on exorcism and satanic fear mongering. This story from the BBC struck my curiosity… during the reign of Pope John Paul II enrollment in the religious orders fell 25%, and just between 2005 and 2006 it dropped an additional 10%. So, the ranks and influence of the Church and its full time adherents seems to be hemorrhaging and has been for sometime. It could be suggested that the Vatican may be trying to spice up the prospect of a life within the Church. In this day and age with the knowledge we have of science, the evolution of myth and archetypes, with the politicization of religion and zealotry on the upswing in some circles the Catholic Church doesn’t have the presence it once had. They are seeking the resurrection of the bogeyman.

Additionally, the Washington Post picked up the story on the possession treatment center in Poland we covered in the last show. Here’s their piece on that one. There is a bit more detail in this one than the originally translated Polish article I mentioned, and it offers a bit of a larger picture.

Rev. Amorth, who is considered the “Exorcist In Chief” for the Vatican says, “People don’t pray anymore, they don’t go to church, they don’t go to confession. The devil has an easy time of it,” Amorth said in an interview. “There’s a lot more devil worship, people interested in satanic things and seances, and less in Jesus.”

According to Rev. Jankowski, one of the folks working at the center those at risk include “include people who turn away from the church and embrace New Age therapies, alternative religions or the occult. Internet addicts and yoga devotees are also at risk.”

Yoga is potentially Satanic, but raping children isn’t on their list for some reason. However a woman who was seeking a divorce and began to hate her husband is most likely possessed as the story linked indicates.

They are resurrecting the bogeyman to validate themselves. This message is filtering down to those who… don’t have a real good sense of discretion, and as I said this is the 4th exorcism death I have seen in a month.

- Prof. Gruntsplatter

This time we take a look at a rise in reports of possession, exorcisms and the mark of the beast in the news, and some things the Catholic church are doing to that end, including a treatment center for demonic possession being built in Poland.

Next up we take a look at the legacy of John “Goat Gland” Brinkley. Brinkley was a medical huckster that made a fortune off the idea that goat testicles were an excellent cure for virility issues. He became a multi-millionaire during the Great Depression peddling this idea, and even made a couple failed attempts at the Governorship of Kansas.

Finally, we look at George Daynor’s Palace of Depression in New Jersey. It’s tale of determination built from scraps in a swampy auto graveyard that became a monument to perseverance and hard work during the Great Depression. Its eccentric creator however ended up in a paupers grave, the victim of his own ambition and promotional vision.

The sounds this time around are supplied by…

BIG BLACK (1:05)
CAZZODIO (3:19)
DOUBTING THOMAS (7:07)
BLACKHOUSE (21:14)
FUNERAL DINER (23:06)
DEINONYCHUS (26:16)
ECHO & THE BUNNYMEN (30:00)
IMPALED NAZARENE (41:51)
16 VOLT (45:25)
HAGALAZ RUNEDANCE (49:40)
BLACK FLAG (58:33)
PINE TREE STATE MIND CONTROL (61:38)
DIVINUS BAAL & RUNA (64:23)
NEUROSIS (68:06)

With background accompaniment from
NECROPHORUS
HOLLOW EARTH

Thanks again as always for tuning in, if you have anything to say or any good stories to share feel free to leave a comment or send over an email.

Professor Gruntsplatter’s Spookatorium 020

- Prof. Gruntsplatter

The phenomenon was news to me… There is actually a fair amount of material on this out there and I am surprised I haven’t seen any of it before. Geller has an article on his site about it which you can check out. He seems to focus simply on the number 11, more than anything, and takes ample opportunity to make points about September 11th that seem completely out of place. He does include a few numerology equations as well, some of which seem to have more relevance than others, but this part of the article I found somewhat interesting…

“If you multiply 1111 by 1111 you get 1234321, representing a pyramid, and number 11 is a sacred number of the pyramid with the proportions of the great pyramid being of the ratio 7:11. Eleven is also a number harmonious with Pi. Therefore, it seems that number eleven is of central importance in understanding the mathematical infrastructure of the universe.” – Uri Geller

His is certainly not the only interpretation though, there are those that link it to the Mayan Calendar and the prophetic speculation linked to 2012. It is at 11:11 Universal or Greenwich Mean Time depending on the report that the calendar ceases on 12/21/12. Here’s a sensationalistic video to illustrate that point of view.

So there is a mess of information out there related to 11:11, but no definitive explanation or even real common ground has been found to explain the prevalence the number seems to have in so many peoples lives.

Prof. Gruntsplatter

Next we review the life and death of Anna Goldi who was immortalized as “The Last Witch of Europe” after her execution 1782 on bogus allegations of witchery in a small Swiss town.

Lastly, we look into two fabled giant serpents, the Lindorm in Scandinavia, and the Tatzelwurm reported to live in the Alps throughout Bavaria, Austria and Switzerland. For a comprehensive look at the Tatzelwurm evidence and lore check out the feature over at Cryptomundo.com.

The sounds this time around are supplied by…

NAIANDRA MURIATICA
ECONOCON
KAPO!
IBURN
HEAD OF DAVID
VENOM
NAPALM DEATH
EINSTURZENDE NEUBAUTEN
VEIN CAGE
DEF.MASTER
GODFLESH
TEAR GARDEN
GROTUS
DREAM INTO DUST

With background accompaniment from
AESTHETIC MEAT FRONT
NOS
DEVILLOCK

Thanks as always for checking out the show, feel free to comment and don’t forget to check out the Flickr group and other features of the site.

Professor Gruntsplatter’s Spookatorium 019

- Prof. Gruntsplatter

This time out we look at the legacy of Mary Toft, she was involved in a hoax in 1726 that drew the attention of the King of England and inspired perhaps the most famous of any trick in a magicians repertoire. Her story is outlined further in the book “The Girl Who Gave Birth To Rabbits: A True Medical Mystery,” which I am hoping to check out before too long.

Next we take a trip down south to check in on a couple of mysterious creature sightings. One is believed to be a possible Skunk Ape and the other dubbed the Beast of Bolivia, is killing dogs in South Carolina. In addition LiveScience.com ran a recent article on the possibility of using hi resolution satellite imagery to search for elusive breeding colonies of various cryptids.

Finally we take a look at the theory of palingenesy, the alchemical idea inspired by the work of Greek philosopher Lucretious that sought to explain ghosts and apparitions chemically, rather than metaphysically. The thought was that a body’s form resided in its salts, and by applying heat to those salts, you could regenerate the form of a dead or destroyed plant or animal as an apparition. This one is pretty interesting and I have been meaning to cover it for a few weeks so I hope you find it curious.

The sounds this time around are supplied by…

DISHARMONIC ORCHESTRA
DAZZLINGKILLMEN
MISSING FOUNDATION
SNOG
BLANCHE
CLAN OF XYMOX
DESCENDENTS
NAVICON TORTURE TECHNOLOGIES
VO.I.D
FLUISTERWOUD
TODAY IS THE DAY
THE JESUS & MARY CHAIN
BRUTE FORCE
CHARNEL VALLEY

With background accompaniment from
NAJ
CORPOPARASSITA

Thanks as always for checking out the show…

Professor Gruntsplatter’s Spookatorium 018

- Prof. Gruntsplatter

In this man’s case however he has an immune system that isn’t able to contain the warts, and they have blossomed root like branches that have pocked his body and entirely consumed his hands. It has cost him his family and ability to work, and it would seem from looking at him many other simple activities in life. Now an American doctor is hopeful that a treatment of synthetic Vitamin A will get the warts under control.

Edit: Unfortunately on reviewing the archive it appears the original pictures and video are no longer available.

This episode looks into ghostly sightings and communication with the dead through various gadgetry. Our first stop is among the urban legends and paranormal sightings on a secluded lane known as Zombie Road in western St. Louis County. And looks briefly at investigations by missourighosts.net and the Missouri Paranormal Research Group.

Then it is off to 1930’s Britain for a peek at the contraptions of the Askir-Jobson Trianion Guild, who with information they claim to have received from a deceased colleague created devices to facilitate communication with spirits.

Another person who more recently claims to have received instructions from entities on building a device to communicate with the dead is Frank Sumption. His creation, quaintly called “Frank’s Box” or “The Ghost Box” uses more modern electronics to create what he believe is a live EVP receiver. You can check out the schematics for the device here, Coast to Coast AM did a show on the subject as well that you can check out here, and I have included a video of the device in action for you to judge for yourself.

Finally, we take a look at the theories behind the talking board, or Ouija board, from the Spiritualist and Atomatistic points of view. You can find a mess of Ouija stories and transcriptions here at the Grave Addiction site and I’d recommend checking out the Museum Of Talking Boards for a great photo gallery of various talking boards over the years.

In addition the ghastly harmonies of the following break up the sound of my voice…

LOUIS ARMSTRONG
THE ROHAN THEATRE BAND
BLACK MAYONNAISE
HADIT
THE DEAD BROTHERS
ULTHAR
MERCYFUL FATE
GOATVARGR
BAUHAUS
MONDBLUT
SCHLOSS TEGAL
DARVULIA
THE HANDSOME FAMILY
THOSE POOR BASTARDS
SIOUXSIE & THE BANSHEES
HEID
AH CAMA-SOTZ

With background accompaniment from
GEOMATIC
A MURDER OF ANGELS
INNANA
BRIGHTER DEATH NOW

Thanks again for having a listen, my apologies for the lateness of the episode. The next one should come much faster, and I have a few stories saved up for the site as well.

Professor Gruntsplatter’s Spookatorium 017

- Prof. Gruntsplatter

Their premise is that frequently it is simply disease that give normal animals the appearance of something extraordinary. It’s a theory that I have held in relation to the myths of “monsters” through history as well. How often were the horrible creatures of legend simply regular people afflicted with some sickness, mutation or deficiency that science was unaware of and the general populace had never witnessed? The examples I could give might seem insensitive now, but in times of limited knowledge and dubious science those things we empathize with now could certainly have been perceived as monstrous.

- Prof. Gruntsplatter

Looking at the photos, the front legs look like they have been broken severely and healed poorly. In that situation a feral animal would learn to move with it’s hind legs, I’ve seen domestic animals do the same thing. So the anatomy of shorter front legs when compared to the chupa-mythos on this animal leaves a little to be desired for me. It’s certainly a curious specimen, and the interview is intriguing, but it seems a lot of potential research wasn’t done for what may or may not be legitimate reasons.

Here’s another one that is a bit more amusing than anything else….

Reported on the 18th of October out of Charleston, South Carolina a woman called 911 to report that she may have just hit a giraffe… in South Carolina. The caller says there were two crossing the road, she tried to avoid them and struck one damaging the side mirror of her car. She believed it to be a giraffe because it was “”bigger than a horse.” Police who spoke to the woman felt it “may have been a large deer,” the caller did not want to file an official report. There is an audio clip of the 911 call with the article. It is highly unlikely that there were two giraffe roaming along the highway in South Carolina that day, the eye witness reports it was larger than a horse, and the police admit all they have to go on is the witness account. I haven’t seen any follow up on this, or even if the police did investigate what she may or may not have run into.

John Wood had to have his leg amputated following a plane crash that killed three members of his family in 2004, including his father. If the story ended there we’d all stop for a second to feel for the guy and go back to what we were doing. The story however does not stop there.

When the leg was amputated Mr. Wood put in a request with the hospital that he wanted the leg after it was removed. It was his wish to have the bones to hold onto so that when he eventually died he could be cremated as a “full man.” To his surprise, he was presented, not with the bones, but with the fleshy leg and foot combo by the funeral home attending to the matter. He kept the leg in his freezer and despite becoming a bit of a macabre joke, all was well.

Then Mr. Wood got behind on his bills and his electricity was shut off. It was decision time for Mr. Wood, but after the plane crash, loss of family and amputation he wasn’t going to take another hit from the power man. He cut the screen from his front door, wrapped the leg in it and tied it to a a couple posts to let it dry in the sun. Once it dried he put the remains inside his barbecue smoker for safe keeping.

He eventually became homeless and was living out of a van which he also ultimately lost. His family had put all of his belongings in storage for him while he dealt with his situation. Eventually the bill for the storage space went unpaid and the contents of his storage space were put up for auction. Including the barbecue.

Enter Shannon Whisnant, the buyer of the smoker from the storage auction. He found the leg, and notified the police. Wood’s family saw the story on the news and came forward with their story. Crazy eh? Well… there is more. After surrendering the leg to police Wishnant has since changed his mind and decided he paid for the leg and wants it back to use in a Halloween display in intends to charge admission to and is willing to go to court to fight to have it back. The police have said “he doesn’t have a leg to stand on”. (yes, the police really did say that) they will return the leg to Mr. Wood to hang on his rear view mirror or whatever his next great idea is.

- Prof. Gruntsplatter