My First Horror Score Ever

You may have noticed that my posts have dropped off...*ahem*...slightly...in recent months. Well, I've got a good reason this time, I swear. There's this project I've been working on since about mid-April and it was finally unveiled this past Wednesday. I am very pleased and tremendously excited about the results.

I've been doing something I've dreamed of doing for a very, very long time: I've been composing and recording a horror score.

You might recall a few posts back I featured a piece of mine called "Phantom Satellite". It was a little synthesizer-based composition in the creepy, ambient vein based on a story concept I've been kicking around for a while. Well, to my surprise and joy, that piece was pretty well received. The MP3 got a lot of plays and there were some really nice comments. From those comments emerged a very interesting conversation between myself, bean and Pumpkinrot. The topic was the possibility of creating music for Mr. Rot's splendid 2008 Halloween video, The Hollowmen (this link will take you to his original version of the video with amazing music from Larry Fessenden's The Last Winter).

After putting on dry pants, I pretty much immediately went to work. The last couple of months have been spent watching the video over and over and over and over and over again, taking notes and scratching out little themes and choosing just the right sounds and...oh, by the way: learning how to use the equipment needed to actually record the thing. That's mostly why it took so long. I didn't have a clue really what the hell I was doing with the software and equipment I was trying to use.

But, MAN, did I ever have a good time doing this! It was so much fun I didn't notice the time passing. The technical challenges along the way seemed like nothing. It was a total blast living out my little fantasy of being like John Carpenter, Alan Howarth, Elliot Goldenthal, Ennio Morricone and all the countless other film composers I've worshipped over the years. This little, four-minute video represents my first baby steps in the shadow of these god-like figures. What great, great fun.

So, now that I've explained my absence, I offer you the results of my little sabbatical:

The Hollowmen: Burning Smile Remix

I want to thank my wife for her incredibly helpful input during the creation of this piece. She really helped me bring balance to the overall structure and gave me some much needed perspective when I got too immersed to pick a direction.

Thank you to my very good friend, the incredibly talented Dan Jenkins for contributing all the vocals, the acoustic guitar and for helping to shape the overall composition. Dan and I have been collaborating musically for over a decade and this was just another example of why I love making music with him.

Thank you to bean for her words of encouragement and for the "lyrics". The whispering voices you hear are actually speaking words that she wrote for The Hollowmen pictorial on Pumpkinrot's main site. I thought they were perfect for the piece and outright ganked them because they're awesome.

Lastly, thank you to Pumpkinrot for letting me be a part of what he does, which is to make awesomely scary shit for no reason other than the sheer love of doing it, which is what it's all about and what makes his stuff so special. He rules. I hope we can do this again very soon.

Go Tell Pumpkinrot to Write His Book

I've been in a funk about Halloween lately. Normally by this time I have some sketches and notes about my Halloween display. This year: nothing. Well, okay, that's not entirely true. I did come up with one guideline for myself. This year I'm trying to avoid using any humanoid forms. But apart from that I'm basically at the starting line.

Those of you who aren't into prop-building and yard haunts yourselves probably will wonder why it's such a big deal that I haven't started yet. The rest of you who share this strange hobby understand. These things take thought, planning, effort and, above all, time. Depending on your level of addiction, a single prop might take months to complete. I've read of folks who spend 9 months or longer on their setups. Granted, those are far more elaborate than mine, but when you factor in the mutations that my handful of monsters undergo during construction--either organically or due to some unexpected hurdle--it can easily take me the entire Spring and Summer just to prepare my humble display.

It can be a little discouraging to reach this point in the year and feel like you are behind schedule in a big way with no idea how to catch up. There's some temptation to bag out and resign to carving a few pumpkins and recycling the old props. That's when, for me and so many other Halloween and Horror enthusiasts out there, having a guy like Pumpkinrot around is invaluable.

Unless you're new here you know who Pumpkinrot is and you know that I hold both him and his work in very high regard. He's a quality cat who does exceptional work with prop building and Halloween displays. Not only that, his presentation of that display in photo and video form is unparalleled in the world of home haunting. The guy knows how to create atmosphere. He's passionate about perfecting Horror. To top it all off, he is a prolific blogger who often shares his knowledge, observations and opinions about Halloween, Horror and this peculiar little pastime called the yard haunt.

Within the past year or so, a series has emerged from his blog entitled "Haunt Theory". Every now and again he'll write a piece that discusses something about making your haunt more effective, ranging from the importance of small details like scattering dead leaves to more technical elements like the application of lighting. These posts read more like a manual for stage and set design than someone writing about their favorite hobby. The level of depth says so much about why his work is as good as it is. He really is that passionate and it's infectious. Reading his blog has helped me on many occasions, including my most recent bout of creative paralysis.

Some months ago I commented on one of the "Haunt Theory" posts (this one, in fact) saying that I would love to buy a book with those words on the cover. The thought of it genuinely excited me. There was an idea I'd never heard before: a book dedicated to helping people create amazing yard haunts and build awesome Halloween props, but with an approach more in line with that of a set designer or artist. A how-to guide from one of the best out there. I imagined something like a tabletop book with lots of nice, big photos in it. Then I started wanting it.

Well, there seems to be reason to be hopeful. That wish may actually have a chance of coming true. In the latest installment of the series (see comments), Pumpkinrot seems to have hinted that it's something he's actually considering.

Here's the thing: I need this book to happen. I need this book in my library. If I'm ever stuck on a prop but can't get online for some reason I need a backup plan. Any parent will tell you it's important to have a backup plan. So, I need to ask you a favor. I need you to go to Pumpkinrot's blog and tell him that you want him to write his book. Or tell him that you're doing it for me. That's okay, too. Just be polite. Polite but insistent. That would probably work best.

By the way, he didn't put me up this. I don't shill for anyone. This is completely my own self-serving scheme. If I had to guess I'd say this will probably embarrass him. But don't worry about that. Just complete the mission.

Photo credit: "Ghost Dead" and "Pumpkin Face" by Pumpkinrot.

Garbage Planet

Articles about a gigantic, floating mass of garbage have been making the rounds on the Internet. In an area of converging currents known as the North Pacific Gyre, a sludge of discarded plastic and other debris roughly the size of Texas is floating in the water, doing unprecedented damage to the ecosystem.

Disgusting. Disheartening. Tragic.

It has a lot of people worried about what we're doing to the Earth. I think differently. I take a cue from George Carlin on the subject. Our arrogance doesn't end with thinking we can dump our shit wherever we want without fear of consequences. We're also arrogant enough to think that we could threaten the very existence of life on this planet.

We are killing ourselves. Plain and simple. Earth will outlive us. We may take a few more species out in the process, but ultimately this is a suicide. Not that that's any reason to allow something this disgusting to happen. It's just a shame we humans don't know enough to recognize our own fragility.

But Earth? No worries. There are microorganisms that eat iron and excrete sulfuric acid. There are others that thrive in radioactive environments that are 200 times the levels that would kill a person.

Life will go on. We won't.

If you want to learn more about this topic there's video series on it here which includes actual footage.

I wonder who will present humanity with its posthumous Darwin Award? I hope it's the dolphins.

Phantom Satellite

I have a great love of film scores, especially Horror film scores. One of my dreams has been to create my own. Now, equipped with a little knowledge of music, a computer and some halfway decent gear, I'm able to make it happen. Technical challenges aside it's proving to be more fun than I could have imagined. Not only am I having a great time, I'm also working toward adding another dimension to my Halloween display by (hopefully) compiling enough pieces to create a full score for my haunt this year.

This piece is called "Phantom Satellite" and it's based on a story concept of mine which I one day hope to actually write (that's another battle).

Phantom Satellite

Some music I make for myself. Some music I try to sell. Some music I give away. As with the last piece that I posted here, I offer this one freely. The only condition is that you kindly observe the Creative Commons license at the bottom of this page.

In a nutshell, feel free to use it as you like as long as it's not for monetary gain or commercial application of any kind. Want to use it for your own home haunt? Rock on with your bad self. Want to use it for your YouTube video of that fleshy growth on your uncle Rupert's neck? Fine by me. Just give me credit and throw me a link or something.

And thank you for listening.

Resolution #12058514

No more barking up the wrong trees.

Especially when there's a whole field full of perfectly good frisbees and tennis balls just beyond said tree.

It's a life thing. It'll matter to you or it won't.

A Quote, Apropos of Nothing (in Particular)

"All great truths begin as blasphemies." - George Bernard Shaw

A Touch of Nihilism

New banner courtesy of BOY.

I thought the site could use a little sprucing up, so I enlisted the aid of a friend to help give the place that special, anti-social charm.

And now, for your amusement and edification, a short film:

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