Horror and Music

By Casandra Vicario

There are many bands and solo artists who reference the world of horror in their music. Shake that macabre skeleton Lucifer gave us! Chop… Chop…

THE JASONS

Hailing from Crystal Lake, this independent punk rock band is ready to give your senses a good time. What makes them special? Of course, their name, and the fact that they all wear the mask of the Friday the 13th killer.

Its members are: Jason V, as vocalist and guitarist. Jason 3D, on bass and backing vocals. Jason Hell on drums and also backing vocals. Jason R, also on guitar and backing vocals.

On their Facebook page they describe themselves as 4 brothers who annoy people with their immature attitudes while playing bloody American punk rock.

By the way, they have 3 albums: “Slashology,” “The Jasons,” and “Stalk and Slash Summer”, all of them without the backing of a major record label, and completely sold out.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6mJFGqVp0eI (abre en nueva pestaña)

MERRIN

An English project that takes its name from one of the priests who casts the demon out of an innocent young girl's body.

“Merrin” was born in October 2008. They describe their music as “Horror/Doom/ Movie Soundtrack.”

Made up of 4 young people who love music and horror films. Those who have had the chance to see them live say that during their shows the stage turns into a horror movie.

Their first recorded material is an EP titled “Doom Cinema,” released in 2013; in 2014, live material was put out, and this 2015 they are more than ready to record their first full album.

Their influences? “Jaws,” “An American Werewolf in London,” “John Carpenter,” “absinth” and of course “The Exorcist”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5bV4nRQgcWQ (abre en nueva pestaña)

SLASHER DAVE

Very few know who is behind the project “Slasher Dave,” but we can tell you he's from Detroit, loves horror films, and his music is perfect for that kind of movie.

Purely instrumental, he lists John Carpenter, Jay Chattaway, and Goblin among his influences.

In 2013, Slasher Dave released his first album titled “ Spookhouse”, which includes 13 songs.

2014 would be the time for “Tomb of Horror”, also made up of 13 new tracks full of horror and dark atmospheres.

This 2015, he puts out “Chubbies”, with 12 songs, and “Lunatic”, an EP with 4 pretty enjoyable tracks.

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_kxzPmpmlXVygXH5zhpCmH6QtX0jhoPiCE (abre en nueva pestaña)

WHITE ZOMBIE

A classic band devoted to horror, born in 1985 and disbanded in 1998, “White Zombie” actually takes its name from the film starring Bela Lugosi in 1932.

White Zombie's musical legacy is made up of 5 studio albums: “Soul- Crusher” from 1987, “Make then Dies Slowly” from 1989, which reminds us of a cannibal film of the same name directed by Umberto Lenzo and banned in many parts of the world. “La Sexorcisto: Devil Music Vol 1” from 1992, “Astro Creep 2000” from 1995, and lastly “Super Sexy Swinging Sounds”.

Although the band has been gone for several years now, its leader and vocalist Rob Zombie did not step away from the music scene—on the contrary, monsters, horror references and the like continue to enliven the lives of many of us.

We also can't fail to mention that Mr. Zombie has become a legend of horror cinema by becoming a major film director.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BvsMPOfblfg (abre en nueva pestaña)

5.-MISFITS

Another band well known for its great punk music and its love of horror films in all their forms.

“The Misfits”, began its story in 1976. They have 8 full albums, 22 EPs, and with so many years of history, members have come and gone, yet the band's spirit is more alive than ever.

Their logo, the one that has made them so famous around the world, was taken from a 1960s television series called “The Crimson Ghost”.

One of their leaders and founders, still a member of the band, is bassist and vocalist Jerry Only, who has never stopped believing in and enjoying this project.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BGUWla4OVrY (abre en nueva pestaña)

HAUNTED GARAGE

Meet this metal punk band influenced by horror films.

They write and compose their own songs based on their fictional horror movies.

Hailing from Los Angeles, California, they are known on the underground scene for their stage show—there are body parts everywhere, blood splattering the audience, sex, sadomasochism, wrestling, and much more.

They're a band with history, born in the 80s, and they've opened for Sccreaming Jay Hawkins, Butthole Surfers, and The Cramps, to name the best known.

With many years in the business, they have an odd discography, since they only have 3 EPs and 1 studio album called “Possession Park”, although they have taken part in various compilations and soundtracks.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cp_iiq7V6wM (abre en nueva pestaña)

GEORGEOUS FRANKENSTEIN

Doyle Wolfgang Von Frankenstein, a former member of The Misfits, is behind this musical creation.

Hailing from New Jersey, the band gets its name from a blend of its founder's name and his wife's.

They have an album of the same name, with 8 songs titled “Man or Monster”, “Devil Girl” and “Made in Hell” that they put out in 2007.

“Abominator” is the name of the band's second album, in 2013.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KM7o8abJo2w (abre en nueva pestaña)

9.- DEVILL DOLL

A true musical delight is the progressive vision of Mr. Doctor fronting this Italian-and-Slovenian project known as “Devill Doll”.

They have 5 studio albums: “The Mark of the Beast”, of which only one copy exists in the whole world. “The Girl Who Was... Death”, “Eliogabalus”, “Sacrilegium”,

“The Sacrilege Of Fatal Arms” and “Dies Irae”.

They were born in 1987 and, as a curious fact, we can tell you that in 1989, 500 copies of “The Girl who Was……Death” were released and the band performed this album live for the second time, with a surprise for those in attendance, since 150 copies were handed out among the audience, each with a different design created by Mr. Doctor himself. (It's said that some carried his own blood.)

Another interesting fact is that for a long time, the band worked partly in Italy and partly in Slovenia, until 1991, when, after the fall of the Soviet Union and Slovenia's independence, the 2 lineups merged into one.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AYdcApobjTY (abre en nueva pestaña)

ROSEMARY´S BABIES

Honestly, I think it's a great name for a punk band. These little hellraisers made music from 1980 to 1983.

It was made up of J.R, Post Mortem, Richie, and Eeeie Von; some of them went on in the world of music with other projects.

The band's first recorded material came out in 1983 under the name “Blood Lust” EP 7″ with 11 songs, (more than an EP in my humble opinion) and in 2004, out of nowhere, material titled “Talking to the dead”, with more than 20 songs, among which stand out: “Sounds of Dead”, “Becky Bondage”, “Sex Maniac” and one of my favorites “Alice in Murderland”.

They don't have an official website, but look them up online and learn more about this now-defunct band.

And so, crawling to the beat of “Rosemary´s Babies”, we wish you the best of nights. Music and monsters, nothing can go wrong…

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qtXZA3mBumY (abre en nueva pestaña)