Mourning Waits CD Booklet/Cover Design

While putting together AR's new compilation, The Comp 2, I was tapped to design a CD cover and booklet for Mourning Waits, an awesome band from NJ, whose front man used to play in WTAF. I had a lot of fun putting it together and it was great to talk to Blaze again. Here's the finished cover, and the artwork that serves as the booklet cover sans type. Aside from picking up The Comp 2 when it drops, you should pick this up as soon as possible, and friend them on myspace here: http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendID=49584518 or by clicking the title link.

Pills, Pills, Pills/Vector Illustration.

Something told me to make this today, not wanting to argue, I did it.

Jesse James Meets Frankenstein's Daughter

Here's Jesse James Meets Frankenstein's Daughter, (if you can't play it, then go to the source: http://www.archive.org/details/jesse_james_meets_frankesteins_daughter) which is a movie that should only be watched with Drunken Zombie's Commentary, available at www.drunkenzombie.com be warned, this movie sucks.

Update: I took down the embedded video because it was causing some folks and some browsers a disturbance, those of you interested in watching the movie just follow the link.

Old Rasputin: An Imperial Stout that'll knock you out.

Thanks to an episode of Drunken Zombie where the crew was sluggin' down some Old Rasputin, I just had to go check it out. It seemed like they were just having so much drunken goodness, and I wanted to partake, the name of the Old Rasputin stuck. To much of my dissatisfaction, I couldn't find the old bastard anywhere. It became elusive, like a girl with green eyes, and I just had have it. So, I turned to Whole Foods Jim, to see if they carried it, and sure as shit they did. Let me tell you, Old Rasputin tastes like it sounds, it's bitter and unrelenting, but if you spend some time with the old man, he'll tell you some tales. Be prepared to spend time with this one, it doesn't go down easy, but in the end it's worth it, kind of like weathering the storm.

BBQ of Felons/CD Design.

This weekend the "lovely" town of South Amboy is hosting the BBQ of Felons, in memory of Eddie Shots. James Caldwell of WTAF fame was a long-time friend and band mate of Eddie and asked if I wanted to do a CD cover for a greatest hits of sorts for the event. Of course I said yes, unfortunately they needed it asap, so I got a few low res pics in an email and had to bang out a cover on the fly. The CD contains tracks from Define, The Ex-Presidents, and Band of Felons, donations are going to be accepted for a copy of the cd and will be donated to one of two organizations of whose names I cannot recall. Here's what I came up with.

Podcast of Note: The Midnight Podcast, The Splattercast, The Cadaver Lab.

The Midnight Podcast: Over a hundred episodes strong, TMP has taken on a brave new direction. This cast has been at it for a while and with new host Corey Grant, hopefully, it will go on for another hundred episodes. With Grant’s first solo episode as host, he has certainly met expectations, but I’m in it for the long haul and can’t wait to hear what he can do once he spreads his wings and gets out of the large shadow cast by the original host Root Rot (who hopefully will return in some manner).
http://midnightpodcast.com/

The Dead Lantern Splattercast: Another cast I’ve listened to but never mentioned, partly because I had to catch up on the back casts and mostly because I wasn’t sure if I liked the show. Well, the verdict is in, and I do like the show. What makes the Splattercast unique is the group of guys that pitch in, Steve, Jeff, Brady, T.J., Deejay, and Spooky McPhee. They don’t always appear on every episode, sometimes there’s only a skeleton crew, but their opinions are often so vastly different from one another, that I will find myself listening just to see whose side I fall on. They have a rating system for their reviews and often debate each other on any given film. The most entertaining member of the cast would have to be deliberately drunk Deejay. The biggest drawback to the cast is the amount of “Skype” heavy casts, which tends to cut out, though for Podcasting it’s become par for the course. All in all, a solid cast worthy of your download.
http://www.deadlantern.com

The Cadaver Lab Horror Podcast:
With only 6 episodes under their belt, The Cadaver Lab is a cast to watch out for. Their production quality is darn good, and their attitudes are usually fun, they come across light-hearted and are just easy to listen to. Go check them out right now.
http://www.cadaverlab.com

Drunken Zombie Hosts Horror Double Feature At Willow Knolls Theater Oct. 9th.

Local internet radio show Drunken Zombie will be hosting a horror movie double feature on October 9th at Willow Knolls theater. The movies start at 7PM. Since the Halloween season is upon us come and enjoy the scares as we screen the films IT'S MY PARTY AND I'LL DIE IF I WANT TO and ZOMBIE APOCALYPSE. There will be door prizes, short films between the features, and movie trailers for other low budget horror films. Through this event we hope to introduce the audience to some films that they might not have heard about before. Tickets are $10 at the door but can be bought for $8 at the local comics shop Acme Comics. Wear your Halloween Costumes and come join us for what is going to be a great night of blood, popcorn, and creature features!

IT'S MY PARTY AND I'LL DIE IF I WANT TO is an award winning horror film from Chicago area native Tony Wash. Wash graduated from the Tom Savini school of special effects where he met most of his crew. They decided to form a group that specialized in the type of horror films they loved as youngsters. PARTY is about a group of teenagers who decide to have a surprise party in the local abandoned house. Little do they know that the evil that lives in that house has been reawakened and it's hungry. Look for thrills, chills, and a hot redhead with a sword! To learn more go to www.scotchworthy.com.

ZOMBIE APOCALYPSE is making its world debut at this event! When college roommates Mark and Tom go out for a night at the bar, the last thing they expected to find was a machete wielding stranger and a horde of the undead. With the help of amateur photographer and video store clerk Raven, the unlikely party fights their way into an epic conflict between the living and the dead. Come see the world premiere of ZOMBIE APOCALYPSE! To learn more go to www.zombieapocalypsemovie.com.

DRUNKEN ZOMBIE is an internet radio show based out of Peoria, IL. The weekly broadcast show features reviews of horror movies and other horror media from all over the spectrum. The four co-hosts (Dave Gibbons, Wes Thompson, Randy Witte, and Bryan Wolford) offer a show that many have described as 'like sitting around talking with your friends about horror movies.' The show won an award from Deadlantern.com in their first annual Splatcademy Awards as Favorite Podcast. They have been blessed to be able to offer up many insightful interviews with horror legends such as Tony Todd, Danny Trejo, Dee Wallace Stone, Gunnar Hansen, and Doug Bradley. For more info go to www.drunkenzombie.com, call our voicemail at 206-338-5566, or email us at DZCREW@DRUNKENZOMBIE.COM.

Lost Boys 2: The Tribe/Movie Review

Coming off lettering Lost Boys: Reign of Frogs, the Wildstorm comic that bridges the gap between the original Lost Boys film and it’s most recent sequel, I had some pre-conceived notions and expectations of what I was in-store for. Luckily for me I had seen it a few weeks after it initially hit. The internet vampires had already torn it to shreds, and anybody I talked to about it had nothing good to say. So, I went in expecting the worst, and to tell you the truth, I was entertained! Sure it had a lot of problems, sure it was cashing in on the name of the original, but I truly believe that the filmmakers behind it were passionate about the movie, it was technically sound and visually a very nice looking film, and it had an adequate soundtrack and adequate acting. The Tribe lacked almost everything that made the original film such a classic, but I felt it gave the proper nods to it and at the very least attempted to create something for today’s kids. Not that this is a kids movie by any means, but I felt the humor was genuine and reflective of today’s youth, the effect of extreme sports in popular media is evident and I feel totally unnecessary but believable within the confines of the movie. The vampires themselves are mostly cannon fodder, basically everything is generic to some extent but it’s usually fun, so long as you’re not taking it too seriously, The Emerson’s were probably the strongest part of this film. They were charismatic, Autumn Reeser is just drop-dead gorgeous, and worked well together, there was however, a huge chunk of story missing that is barely touched upon in the comics and in the The Tribe and that is; what the hell happened to Michael and Star, the Emerson’s in The Tribe seem older than they should be, and once you really start to think about it a lot of question arise. However, if you just watch this movie as a stand-alone I think you will find it’s certainly not that bad, there is at least a certain quality to it. A very positive note about this movie, the one true thing that ties this movie to the original is the Frog Brothers, mostly Edgar, played by Corey Feldman. His over-the-top performance and corny delivery, intentional or not, usually had me rolling (let me just say “Frog Juice”), it brought me right back to the original film, although it sounds as if his throat is filled with rocks, I think without Feldman in it, the The Tribe would have suffered immensely. Although I wouldn’t say that I recommend this movie, I will say that both I and my wife were entertained from start to finish and we both agree that Autumn Reeser is gorgeous. My younger sister Sandy also saw it and liked it, even though I think this movie had too much sexuality in it for a girl her age (as if I didn’t see worse as a child of the 80’s) and did I mention Tom Savini is in this flick?

A Farewell to Root Rot of The Midnight Podcast.

With episode 100, Root Rot, the host of The Midnight Podcast has announced his leaving the land of Podcasting to return to his normal life as Aaron. I must say I’m very bummed out about this, for those who read my blog you know that I listen to a lot of horror podcasts and I usually end up reviewing them. Well, I never reviewed The Midnight Podcast, but I listened to all 100 episodes. At times I hated the show and Root Rot, at other times I loved it, some days I just didn’t care, I never really felt like I could pin down the show, but I always tuned in. When Halal left, a regular on the show, I was bummed, it was at a time where I was really into the show, they were like Peanut Butter and Jelly. Root Rot tried a bunch of different things to fill the void, some of which worked, but it was all just a band aid, Root Rot was becoming burned-out and he was legitimately upset. All this caused the show to suffer, then Corey Graham, his latest co-host came along, and the show started getting really good, it got into a rhythm and seemed like all was honky dory, until episode 100, where Root Rot “passed the torch” to Corey Graham. It really came as a shock; Root Rot has built a true-to-form horror personality, and almost notoriety amongst podcasters just to give it up. I do hope that he will come back in some manner, even sporadically, it seems like such a waste, don’t get me wrong I know the guy has a life beyond the The Midnight Podcast but I’d hate to see him fade into the fray. Either way, The Midnight Podcast will continue beyond episode 100 with Corey Graham at the helm, I’ll be listening, as I’m sure fans of the show will as well.

Stop by the website at: http://midnightpodcast.com/

Jack Ketchum’s The Lost/Book Review

Jack Ketchum’s The Lost is a hellish read, it’s the first, and so far only, book I’ve picked up from the author and let me tell you I couldn’t put it down. It takes place during the late 60’s, a time of interest for me being that I’m intrigued by the “Manson Murders”, and yes, there are few nods to that within the book. The story opens up with a bang, and within the first couple pages you know what you’re in for, a foul-mouthed, blood-soaked, leave-you-feeling-dirty experience from start to finish. I’d heard of Ketchum before, and didn’t pay the hype any attention, a lot of hoopla over his book and film adaptation of The Girl Next Door. He and his work didn’t seem to appeal to me, it all sounded very exploitive in nature, and that’s really not bag, I’m more of a monster and zombie man with a slight affinity toward true crime, than I heard him on a favorite podcast of mine, Dread Media, where he was being interviewed by host Desmond Reddick. Ketchum had the opportunity to explain his work and he did so in such a humble fashion that I instantly found myself drawn to it, how could this humble guy have such a horrifying imagination? I had to find out, so I picked up The Lost. Ray Pye, the worst of the worst, a character you couldn’t stand and at times couldn’t help but relate to, his quirks unique, and his aim dead on. Ray Pye is not the only character in this devastating tale, he’s surrounded by two flunkies whose tales are just as worthy to read, Pye’s victims as well, are fully fleshed out characters that you care about, they are not just typical cannon fodder but unique individuals to experienced. The good-guys in this story are a bit clichéd but are so well-done it’s easily forgivable. The Lost is certainly worth a read, and Ketchum is a horror heavy-weight who has managed to knock me out with only one blow. I’ll be getting back in the ring with him soon; I’m in this fight till the end.

Fluorescent Black is on my radar.

I came across a cool site, the portal of a new graphic novel: Fluorescent Black. Written and Illustrated by M.F. Wilson and Nathan Fox as well as edited by up and coming writer Justin Robinson. The site is nifty and worth a look at the least, from what I can tell the GN is being published partially or across a few issues of Heavy Metal, I got my eye on this! It looks very promising, you can check out the site by using this: http://www.freethegene.com or by clicking the title of this post (it's linked to the site.

Tattoo Sketch/Theatre Masks

My sister Jessica wanted me to draw the happy and sad theatre masks for a new tattoo she wants to get. Which I'm against, because she's too young, and I feel weird about my work being on someone's skin forever, but being that I know she'll do it anyway I figured the least I can do is give her something solid to bring to the tattoo artist, so here it is, let me know what you think, or what you think about tattoos or whatever.