Terror Trax: PORN the band

Band Name: PORN 

Members/ What instrument they play.

Philippe Deschemin aka Mr Strangler : Vocals, guitar, basse, synthetiser

Who writes your lyrics?

I do, Philippe aka Mr Strangler. Our current album, The Darkest of Human Desires – Act II  February 2019,  is the second part of a trilogy. The Ogre Inside – Act I is an album about inner struggle, about dark desires, how society can opresses your will. This is a fight no one can win, the Ogre that devours you from the inside always wins. The album is an invocation, a way to set the Ogre free, embrace your ”true-self” and allow your darkest desires to express themselves. It’s an incitement to act.

In this trilogy, The Ogre Inside won this inner struggle, giving birth to Mr Strangler.
In the Act II : The Darkest of Human Desires, Mr  Strangler, by embracing his “true-self “, expresses his dark impulses without limitations and has no boundaries.  With his crew, Mr Strangler commits murders and massacres. He  also invites everyone to make a step forward and act, invites you to express your darkest desires and join his death cult. For Mr Strangler and his team, the Ogre is released! Let the massacre begin!  Let the darkest of human desires be: murder.

I am working on whats happening in the Act III, maybe the final act! But I can’t tell more about it…
We are working on a possible comic book based on Mr Strangler and his crew.
I am a writer too, wrote a syfy novel and short stories. I am working on a new novel, a prequel of my first novel: Contoyen. So, I love to create characters and build stories, even in my musical work.

Contact

https://www.facebook.com/porntheband

https://porntheband.bandcamp.com/

https://www.instagram.com/philippedeschemin/

What singers or bands inspired you growing up?

David Bowie,  Robert Smith ( The Cure ), Carl McCoy ( Fields of the Nephilim )

Who are your favorite artists today?

I have so many … Tool, Paradise Lost, The Cult, Fields of the Nephilim,

What non-musical things inspire your music?

Philosophy and psychology. The actual trilogy is all about psychology and philosophy.

Is there a place where you go to be inspired?

During my footing, I have sometimes good ideas! Sometimes!

What’s been the greatest achievement of your band?

Working with Tom Baker. The man worked on so great albums : The Downward Spiral – NIN, Antichrist Superstar – MM , Hellbilly Deluxe – Rob Zombie. We worked with Tom on the mastering of our current album: The Darkest of Human Desires – Act II.

Where was the coolest place to play? Where did you enjoy yourselves the most?

We only have played in regular venue, but we would love to play in a scary place ( castle , church…)

What are your favorite horror movies?

To many! Shining, White zombie, Carnival of Souls, Videodrome, 28 Days Later, The Fly, Dawn of the Dead,  The Thing, The Descent, Get Out

What was the scariest night of your life?

I think, this night is to come …

If you could play anywhere in the world, where would it be and who would be your opening band?

Maybe in a mythic place like Whisky a Gogo… I would love to open for Alice Cooper, Gun’s roses, The Cure…

What are you working on now for future release?

We are recording the third act of our current trilogy, to be released in 2020!

Final thoughts.

Thank you very much for the interest. We are  PORN, you are PORN!

Terror Trax: Schultz

Band Name: Schultz

Franz : Electronics and vocals

Guitarfox : Guitars and vocals

Sandy Dynamite : Live dance performance and vocals

Who writes your lyrics?

Franz for the most, Me (Guitarfox) for the last

Website

https://blcproductions.bandcamp.com/

FACEBOOK

https://www.facebook.com/SchultzNewAlbumSoon/

SOUNDCLOUD

https://soundcloud.com/schultz-shot-of-pain

 

Album/Song/Tour we are excited about right now.

Shot Of Pain by Schultz, the album we’re here to promote right now available since the 06^th May on BLC Productions

What singers or bands inspired you growing up? Growing up ?

Well…  TV cartoons generics !

Who are your favorite artists today?

Us ! The other ones are already taken.

What non-musical things inspire your music?

Bondage SM and Satanism.

Is there a place where you go to be inspired?

The internet.

What’s been the greatest achievement of your band?

Finishing this album

Where was the coolest place to play? Where did you enjoy yourselves the most?

There was the Volume in Nice, a nice place for gigs, but it closed definitely.

What are your favorite horror movies?

Rocky Horror Picture Show, and Pink Flamingos

What was the scariest night of your life?

The night before the baccalaureate

If you could play anywhere in the world, where would it be and who would be your opening band?

Any stadium in the world, they all look the same, wherever the place… Ministry, Rammstein, Revco…

What are you working on now for future release?

Promoting our album. For the rest, we’ll see later.

Final thoughts / Anything you want to tell the listeners?

Listen to our album, and buy it if you like. We needs your support.

Terror Trax: Jon O’Bergh

Band Name: Jon O’Bergh

Members/ What instrument they play.

Jon O’Bergh / keyboards

Who writes your lyrics?

Jon O’Bergh (although many of my albums are instrumental)

https://obergh.net

Twitter: @jon_obergh

Facebook

YouTube

 

Album/Song/Tour we are excited about right now.

Ghost Story (album):  “Catacombs / Appian Way” (song)

 

What singers or bands inspired you growing up?

Meshell Ndegeocello, Tori Amos, Steely Dan, Jethro Tull, Nine Inch Nails, Herbie Hancock

Who are your favorite artists today?

Janelle Monae, Todrick Hall, Beck, Little Dragon

What non-musical things inspire your music?

Horror movies, ghost stories, science fiction

Is there a place where you go to be inspired?

Nowhere in particular.

What’s been the greatest achievement of your band?

Getting to meet horror director Guillermo del Toro and sharing with him a copy of the album Ghost Story.

Where was the coolest place to play? Where did you enjoy yourselves the most?

Playing on top of a mountain. This was with the band I had in college. We had to load our equipment into a gondola which ascended to the peak and swung in the wind. But the most enjoyable gig was playing for the Special Olympics. I’ve never experienced a more appreciative, enthusiastic audience.

What are your favorite horror movies?

The Conjuring. The Others, with Nicole Kidman. And two foreign movies: a Thai movie titled Shutter and the Japanese classic Onibaba.

What was the scariest night of your life?

Late one October night coming home from a gig. I parked the car and struggled to unload my synthesizer while the dry, demonic Santa Ana winds gusted. I was completely unaware that a few yards away from me, a serial killer crouched waiting to murder his next victim. The next day we found out he had broken into that neighboring apartment and murdered a young woman as she came home from a party.

If you could play anywhere in the world, where would it be and who would be your opening band?

I’d like to play in the ruins of an ancient coliseum. My opening band would be Little Dragon.

What are you working on now for future release?

I recently completed an album of horror-themed songs written by one of the characters in a companion horror novel. Each song represents a classic horror character: zombie, vampire, witch, etc. The album will be released in tandem with the publication of the novel.

Final thoughts / Anything you want to tell the listeners?

My albums span a variety of musical styles. The albums I think will especially interest patrons of Horror Addicts are 1) Specters of Twilight, an experimental electronic album inspired by Nine Inch Nails; 2) Tales from the Underground Bazaar, a collection of strange, true stories reminiscent of Laurie Anderson; and 3) Ghost Story, featured here.

Ghost Of Manor House: A Review

Ghosts of Manor House by Matt Powers

Review by Stephanie Ellis

This novel was received free in return for an honest review.

A ghost story in October, what better time to read one than when the nights are drawing in and the wind howls mournfully outside. For such nights, of Ghosts Of Manor House is perfect. Between these pages, you will find the Haunted House and its equally disturbed companion, the old oak, Mr. Travels. Together they have been the site of many an unfortunate death and judicial hanging over the centuries.

It is to this house that Edmund and Mary Wilder and their surviving child, Stephanie, go in order to come to terms with the death of their son Tommy, Stephanie’s twin. What Edmund doesn’t realize, however, is the arrangement Mary has entered into with the house in order to reunite her family. Once there, life becomes vague and Edmund’s sense of reality is distorted by both house and tree. He believes himself to be alone, working on a novel, awaiting his wife’s arrival unaware she is already there somewhere. The innkeeper, Lucas and ancient housekeeper, Mrs. Krane play their parts, convincing him he can never leave until eventually, Edmund realizes the step he must take to be with his family once more.

This chilling tale serves as a nicely done homage to the authors own heroes which include Stephen King and Shirley Jackson.

https://www.ghostsofmanorhouse.com/

 

David’s Haunted Library: Kind Nepenthe and The Lucky Ones Died First

 

Deep in the wilderness of Humboldt County in Northern California lies a pot farm where a young woman named Rebecca wants to teach her five-year old daughter how to live off the land. Along with her boyfriend Calendula, they are helping a man named Coyote who is growing marijuana and is in need of help harvesting it. Calendula and Rebecca are hoping to live the hippie lifestyle and get enough money together from the harvest to buy their own farm.

It won’t be an easy task, living close by is Diesel Dan who helped start the farm and Coyote owes money to. Dan lost everything due to drugs and a stint in prison, but now he looks to make amends for his past and set an example for his soon to be born granddaughter. Coyote is strung out on pills and barely keeping his head above water and he wonders if he can come up with the money to pay everyone. To make matters more complicated the farm is home to an old legend and the ghost of a boy who is looking for a playmate.

Kind Nepenthe by Matthew Brockmeyer is a story about what happens when you dream big and reality slaps you in the face. All of the characters in this story make decisions that they hope will make their lives better but each decision comes with drastic consequences. For instance, we have Rebecca and Calendula who are working hard to get the money together for a farm but they have to deal with things like Coyote disappearing and threatening not to pay them and several other problems. They both get to the point where they wonder if all of this is worth it and their personalities start to change with Rebecca wondering if she ever cared for Calendula in the first place.

Another interesting character is Coyote who is regularly thinking of the wife and kids he left and you see how the drug lifestyle he has led has ruined him. I also enjoyed the relationship between Diesel Dan and his son. Dan is hoping he doesn’t follow in his footsteps as a drug dealer but the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree even though Dan is trying hard to change. My favorite part of this book was watching all of the characters deal with the pressure of their lives falling apart.

Whether you like Kind Nepenthe depends on what you are looking for in a story. As a human drama, this book is excellent, I loved all the characters including the ones that do bad things such as Diesel Dan’s son. The book is sold as a ghost story though and it felt like that was an unnecessary part of the book. While there is a ghost and some elements of horror here it didn’t add anything to the plot and I felt that if you took out the supernatural parts it would have been better. All in all, though this was a really good read and I’m looking forward to more from Matthew Brockmeyer in the future.

In the English countryside lies the small town of Hambleton where tourists come to get away from the big city. Life changes for the village when an earthquake awakens a hungry and horny cryptid from a 60+ year hibernation. Now the monster is killing everyone in its path and the only ones who may be able to stop it are a group of potheads, a former Nazi, and a bigfoot hunter.

The story in The Lucky Ones Died First by Jack Bantry is a pretty simple one, a creature is on the loose and no one seems to be able to stop it. The descriptions I read this book called it splatterpunk and compared it to the work of Richard Laymon, who was one of my favorites. Going into it I thought that the whole point of this story was to be as gross and offensive as possible. The problem is that the book isn’t descriptive enough to be that offensive. The story has several characters and a monster that aren’t described in much detail. The plot moves along at the speed of a freight train and it’s over before you know it. It felt more like a detailed outline than a real story.

I’m not saying that The Lucky Ones Died First is a bad book, I’m just saying that it could have been a lot better if the characters were given more description. I didn’t know enough about anyone in this story to feel emotion for them. It kind of felt like the author was embarrassed and didn’t want to go into a lot of detail, so the sex and death scenes suffered for it. There was a lot of potential in this story and if it had another 100 pages or so it could have been a great horror tale.

The Lucky Ones Died First does have some fun moments though, for instance, the two closing scenes put a huge smile on my face. This book has the feel of a cheesy blood-soaked monster movie. If it was a movie I would have loved it but as a book, I wanted more. All this being said there were enough good ideas in this book to make me want to read whatever novel Jack Bantry comes up with next.

An Interview With A. Craig Newman

Our featured author for Epispde 128 of the HorrorAddicts.net podcast is A. Craig Newman. He grew up in the suburbs of Philadelphia and was raised on the works of Stephen King. Recently A. Craig Newman answered a few questions about his writing:

What is your story for episode 128 about?

“Randall’s Visit” is about a man who is talking to his therapist while being plagued by the spirit of a little girl.

When did you start writing?

I’ve been writing since 1984 when I was 10. I was telling my dad a story one day and he told me to write it down so he could get some sleep. Been writing ever since.

What are your favorite topics to write about?

Insanity is a frequent feature in many of my stories. I also like to explore sex, religion, power, and the abuse of all three. I like twist endings that makes the reader want to go back and see what clues they missed. Hence, I say my stories are written to be read twice.

Who or what inspires you?

I draw a lot of inspiration from my life. I’ve been the guy on their therapist’s couch working out his demons. I hope to help the reader escape from their reality for brief moments and enjoy a trip down the rabbit hole.

What do you find fascinating about the horror genre?

Horror seems to be a warped take on many concepts found in faith and religion. As a man who grew up in the church and even wanted to be a minister at one point, I find it fascinating to explore the flip side of belief.

What are some of the books you have available?

Burn” is about a man in pain who takes drugs to relieve his suffering. But he isn’t careful and with this relief comes new consequences for his actions.
“Dierste Hamelin and the Pied Piper” is my update to the old fairy tale. Dierste hires Piper to take care of a pest. All goes well until she has to pay.
“Wages of Sin” is about a future were the punishments for certain crimes are more creative than today. The reader sees two women punished for the crime of loving each other

Soon to be available ( hopefully by the time this airs) is my first published full length novel, “The Apocalypse Plan”. Michael and Liz are FBI agents on the task force investigating the destruction of the United Nations building. As they follow the trail, they come face to face with their own demons and secrets and End Times Prophecy .

Where can we find you online?

Here, my books can be purchased and more information about me can be found. https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/ACraigNewman

http://www.acraignewman.com/

Horror Addicts Guide to Life Author Spotlight: Sumiko Saulson

Sumiko Saulson has written several horror novels and has been featured on the horror addicts podcast before. For Horror Addicts Guide To Life  she wrote an article called The Addicts Guide To Cats. In it Sumiko gives us some hints on what not to do with your kitty. One thing you definitely don’t want to do is bring your cat back from the dead.  To read Sumiko’s article along with several other articles on living the horror lifestyle, pick up a copy of Horror Addicts Guide To Life. Recently Sumiko was nice enough to tell us what she likes about horror:

What do you like about the horror genre?

The horror genre addresses our deep, dark fears of the unknown. Many horror stories are about surviving or at least attempting to survive the worse. Often, they are stories about why we fight to survive against all odds. Sometimes, they are stories about the underdog overcoming, but even when our brave heroes and heroines die, they are valiant in the struggle. I’m not sure if all human beings are deeply concerned with their own mortality, but I certainly was, from an early age. How can we enjoy our life story when we know it inevitably ends in death? Or does it? Perhaps there is an afterlife. Perhaps we can continue as the Undead. If we can’t continue, perhaps our brief lives can still have meaning. I think all horror addresses some visceral fear of the unknown, where death is the greatest unknown of them all.

What are some of your favorite horror movies, books or TV shows?

My first horror novel was Peter Straub’s “Ghost Story,” which I read when I was 11 years old. My first favorite horror novel was Stephen King’s “The Stand.” I don’t think “Dune Messiah” by Frank Herbert was a horror novel, but it probably should have been. It certainly gave me nightmares. Both of Christopher Rice’s horror novels, “The Heavens Rise” and “The Vines” were excellent, but I’m not sure when the will be a new one, since he’s writing porn.. uhm I mean erotica, lately.

I know this is kind of weird but, “Bones”- that fifteen year old horror film with Snoop Dog – is in fact, one of my favorite horror movies. I also love the Tony Todd film “Candyman” – and generally, I adore Tony Todd. “Bride of Chucky” and “Spawn of Chucky,” and “Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors” are other favorites, as are the original three Raimi “Evil Dead” films, particularly “Army of Darkness.”

As far as TV shows go, Supernatural.

In what way do you live the horror lifestyle?

When I had a 93 Crown Vic I used to pretend it was a Chevy Impala and I was Dean Winchester while bumping some old ass 70s tunes on the radio, does that count?

I think I’m a standard issue old school goth chick, and I have headstone book ends all over my house and a coffin-shaped jewelry box.

What are you currently working on?

I’m editing “Insatiable,” the third book in the Somnali trilogy. The first was “Happiness and Other Disease,” the the second “Somnalia.” They are dark fantasies based in Greco-Roman mythology, but the third book also has Hawaiian mythology, which makes some sense since the central protagonist is half Hawaiian. I can’t really say much more without giving spoilers for the first two books, but let me just say that things get really bad for mankind in this third book and I really feel for the humans. And there is a lot of weird, transgressive sex involved.

Where can we find you online?

sumikosaulson.com

https://www.facebook.com/authorsumikosaulson

https://twitter.com/@sumikoska

Review: Liv, Forever by Amy Talkington

I was pleasantly surprised by Liv, Forever by Amy Talkington. With everyone jumping on the YA Horror bandwagon, I wasn’t expecting much, but Liv, Forever is original and refreshing.

Olivia Bloom, an outcast in life as well as at the school, has an understandably tough time fitting in. When she falls for one of the most popular guys in school and pisses off the most popular girl, you can kinda see how things will progress.

However, the author surprised me by creating characters that won me over. Olivia was much deeper than a lot of today’s heroines. She was smart and knew a lot about art. Gabe, Olivia’s classmate who can “see dead people” is entertaining. He’s not your average sixth senser and adds a lot to the story.

Since the book blurb gives away that Liv is murdered, I don’t think I’ll spoil anything by telling you she’s the best ghost character I’ve read in awhile. The author’s take on the ghost world is different and exciting to read. She added a lot of new elements to being dead that interested me.

Each ghost that Olivia runs into is her own, fully developed character and I liked reading their vignettes. I think I was most impressed by the author’s knowledge and use of art in the book. Being and artist, I hate reading books where the love of art and the artist’s viewpoint is phoned-in. This was not one of those books. It is clear the author either is an artist herself, or did extensive research about how artists see the world and how we react to seeing pieces of beauty that touch us.

Not only was this a great read, but in the end, the secrets are unwound in such a great way. I read the last few chapters on the edge of my seat. You might think that with murder involved, it might be depressing and it does have sad parts, but it ends nicely with all loose ends tied up and oddly (for a book full of murder and evil plans) upbeat.

Loved the sweet love affair Liv has with iTunes accompanied walks, secret rendezvous, and painting each other. Sexy, but in a sweet, loving way.

Good Ghost Gone Bad

What would it be like to roam the earth and not be seen or heard? You could see your loved ones, but they wouldn’t know you were there. Everyone is going on with their lives and all you can do is observe. That may be what ghosts feel like, they are shadows of their former selves and not a part of society anymore. They see everything and have nothing but time on their hands. This is the idea behind Good Ghost Gone Bad by Janiera Eldridge.

Brianna Moreno was a normal 22-year-old woman. She had a family, bills to pay and was trying to start a career. That all changed when she was murdered walking through the park one evening. Brianna’s killer is the only one that can see her and he’s happy to know she will be walking the earth unseen for eternity. She wanders the  streets feeling lonely and wanting revenge, but she doesn’t know how to get it.

Just when Brianna thought things couldn’t get worse, she discovers her killer also plans on murdering her sister.  Brianna has no clue on how she can save her, until she meets her killer’s other victims. The ghosts get together and learn how to use their powers to make their killer pay. Vengeance comes with a price though and Brianna may not like what she becomes.

Good Ghost Gone Bad hits on some interesting themes such as loneliness, love, vengeance and not taking anything for granted. I love the way this story begins, the author makes you feel Brianna’s loneliness by describing her walking down the streets and the wind blowing through her. Then she recounts her brutal murder and how her hopes and dreams came to an end. I liked hearing Brianna tell all the little things she missed about being alive such as reading and sleeping. There is a lot of depth to all the characters in this story and some good action sequences.

There were some grammatical errors in this book that took a little away from the story. Also there were some things that didn’t make sense,  like when the ghosts find a victim being held captive by their killer and don’t seem to care. Than later on a ghost saves a person even though his struggle with the killer had already summoned help. I would have liked to know what happened to the people who came to help.

The positives out weigh the negatives in the story.  The killer’s revelations towards the end really made me think and they were a surprise coming from a murderer. I also found the killer’s double life interesting, along with his wife’s attitude towards him. It was also interesting to see how Brianna changed as a person throughout the book and the decisions she makes towards the end.

There is a lot going on in this novella and Janiera Eldridge does a great job of telling a good story and creating memorable characters. This book may have had some flaws but it was a good read and I found myself looking into Janiera’s other works as soon as I finished. Good Ghost Gone Bad is a different kind of ghost story and a good example of how much depth a horror story can have.

Free Fiction Friday: The Weeping Woman

For this week’s Free Fiction Friday selection we have Patricia Santos Marcantonio’s, The Weeping Woman. We have two copies of this great paranormal mystery to give out. All you need to do is be one of the first two people to leave a comment on this blog post and the book is yours. Here is a reprint of my review if you need me to persuade you to get your free copy:

Every culture has their ghost stories and one Mexican legend is the tale of La Llorona, The Weeping Woman. There was once a beautiful woman named Maria who had two children but was never married. She fell in love with a man but he did not want her kids, so Maria drowned them in the river. God punished her by taking away her beauty and leaving her to wander the earth yelling “where is my children.” To this day, kids  scare each other by saying “if you don’t watch out La Llorona will get you.”

This is the legend behind Patricia Santos Marcantonio’s The Weeping Woman. In San Antonio, children are going missing and detective Blue Rodriguez believes someone is copying the story of La Lorona.  Blue is a cop with a tortured past and when she is close to a dead body she has the ability to see what they saw and feel what they felt before they died. The kidnappings are taking place in her old neighborhood and to make matters worse, there is also an arsonist torching the city. Blue gets paired up with FBI agent Daniel Ryan and together they investigate several false leads before they figure out who is kidnapping the children. The kidnapper has powers of her own and has a connection to Blue. Blue has to face down her demons and come to terms with her past in order to save the children from The Weeping Woman.

What really made this book good was the characters, they are all three-dimensional with good back stories. The main theme of The Weeping Woman is that everyone has secrets in their past and even though you may try to hide them, they effect everything you do. The way the author proves her point is by showing how all the characters are all tortured  by their past .

For example, the arsonist wants to burn buildings down but you start to feel sorry for him as you hear why he does it. Also there is a drug dealer and you see how bad he is, but as you get into his background, you understand him and feel for him. Also the reaction he had when he helps lead the detectives to the missing kids, proves he is not all bad. There was also a suspect in the beginning whose last moments are described and you can’t help to feel compassion for him even though he was a bad person. Patricia Santos Marcantonio must have done a lot of research for her characters because they all seemed very real to me. Blue’s abusive mother and the arsonist’s drug addicted sister were excellent characters and I loved how Blue’s mother reacts when Blue stands up to her.

There were several sub plots in the story and Patricia does a great job weaving them together. There is also a point about loosing faith and getting it back again that I liked.  The Weeping Woman is an excellent tale that masterfully combines horror and mystery. The characters are great and the story line is like a Criminal Minds episode geared towards a horror fan. If you like a mystery with a paranormal twist, check this one out.

If you want a free copy of The Weeping Woman, please leave a comment below.