Throw Up the Horns
Throw Up the Horns
How Heavy Metal Influenced This Horror Writer
Heavy metal and horror go together like milk and cookies. In both, there’s an underlined theme of darkness and an unapologetic exploration of the taboo. While rock ’n roll is widely embraced now, it was considered “devil’s music” when it began. A few decades later, heavy metal embraced that stigma as if to say, “you’re damn right we’re devil’s music.” Some people consider horror movies and books just a notch above pornography, with many titles being censored or outright banned in multiple countries—including America—to this very day. The union of hard rock and scary entertainment happened organically, a marriage of blood and screaming and razor blades that was simply meant to be.
The bands I loved in my youth played a huge role in shaping me as a horror writer. In my last newsletter, I mentioned two of my favorite dark rockers, Glenn Danzig and Alice Cooper. As a kid, Judas Priest, Dio, Motley Crüe, The Misfits, and of course Ozzy further led me into the deafening fires of hell. Furthering my evil descent, my teen years were spent/wasted in Florida, the hub of the 1990s American death metal scene. Cannibal Corpse, Deicide, Morbid Angel, Obituary—these purveyors of hellish hymns helped spark my interest in extreme horror, for better or worse, as did their brilliantly grotesque album covers (all hail Vince Locke).
Musical influences from my 20s range from Nick Cave (arguably my biggest influence at that point in my life, due to the morbid poetry of his lyrics) to Screamin’ Jay Hawkins to Scott Walker. Even now that I’m in my 40s, I continue to draw inspiration from the music I listen to.
Soused, Scott Walker’s album with Sunn O))), is what I listened to most while writing Full Brutal. Elements of my werewolf westerns The Thirteenth Koyote and Ballad of the Werevixens were loosely inspired by the Danzig songs “Thirteen” and “Killer Wolf”. The Night Stockers is me and fellow metalhead Ryan Harding’s loving tribute to death metal. Gone to See the River Man and its sequel, Along the River of Flesh, were heavily influenced by a hundred years’ worth of blues musicians (I consider Howlin’ Wolf, Junior Kimbrough, and Jimmy Duck Holmes the soundtracks for these books), and the haunted history of the Mississippi Delta blues directly inspired the titular character. However, the title to the first book is derived from the folk song River Man by the late Nick Drake (although his ethereal lyrics and the content of my novel couldn’t be more in contrast). I made playlists for both novels, which you can check out here and here.
I don’t listen to rock music while writing, but I do listen to it while coming up with story ideas, outlining, and editing. While doing the actual writing, I often sit in silence, but sometimes I listen to film scores and underground synth that sounds as if it were intended for a horror movie. I have a mix I made just for writing horror to. You can check it out here. Yes, it’s loaded with John Carpenter and Goblin, but you’ll also find Makeup and Vanity Set, Slasher Dave, Umberto, and Carpenter Brut, among others.
My favorite music has also influenced my merchandise. My official logo is based on those death metal band fonts that always look like a pile of blood-soaked tree branches. This was a deliberate homage to my days in the diabolical Florida death metal scene, where I got to see Carcass, Napalm Death, GWAR, and others play live in dive bars (R.I.P The Power Station).
Now, just in time for Halloween, I’ve decided to do a limited run of shirts using my homage to one of the musicians that influenced me the most and remains one of my favorites of all-time—Danzig.
I’ve been listening to the guy since I was fourteen, back when only the first Danzig album existed (along with the work of his previous incarnations Samhain and The Misfits). It was the bluesy, cowboy-warlock metal sound of the first four Danzig albums (with the band’s original line-up) that really spoke to me as a youth, and they continue to get my head banging three decades later. Not only did I wear Danzig shirts back then (and admittedly still do) but I also wore a pewter Danzig skull on a necklace. I have a fond memory of the skull being imprinted on the breast of a girl I’d fucked when we were sixteen, the image pressed there by the friction of our bodies sandwiching the necklace between us. As a teenage metalhead, I did a lot of fucking to Danzig’s music (and admittedly still do).
But while those first four albums (and the three tracks from the Thrall EP) are widely considered his best work, I’m not just a fan of the hits. More recent albums like Deth Red Sabaoth and Black Laden Crown get plenty of airplay in my music room too, and this time of year I revel in revisiting Samhain’s November-Coming Fire. I mean, what would Halloween be without their song Halloween II? It’s been a holiday staple for me for so long I can’t imagine Halloween night without it.
It’s so surreal to me that bands I grew up with are now Gen Z’s version of classic rock. Where my generation thought of The Doors and Led Zeppelin as oldies, kids today remember Danzig’s biggest hit “Mother” from playing Guitar Hero when they were little. And Glenn Danzig’s legacy has been stained by his reputation for being a misanthropic dick, a slew of mocking memes about cat litter and bricks, and one very unfortunate viral video of him being punched in the face (though many videos of him punching others also exist). All I know is, my life would’ve been a lot less fun without his music, and my writing may have been a lot different if not for his early influence on my imagination. Along with Henry Rollins, Danzig also inspired this once scrawny teen to start lifting weights. See, sometimes you must separate the art from the artist. I’ve never met Glenn, so I can’t comment on the man’s character. As with John Carpenter (who also has a reputation for being gruff and crusty), I don’t want to meet him because I’d hate for a bad experience to taint my love for his work. To me, the art is what’s important.
This is why I decided to do an homage to the famous bull’s skull using my big ol’ bearded face. Huge thanks to C.V. Hunt for putting the design together for me, since I am almost completely inept at computer art. This logo started as a sticker and button, but the image was instantly popular with my readers, so I decided to do a limit run of the t-shirts you’ve all been asking for. They’re up for preorder on my website—the only place you’ll be able to get them. This item is limited to just 100 shirts and come in sizes ranging from small to XXX large. Each order includes the sticker and button. Snag one while you can and throw up the horns for your favorite horror author!
Funny enough, for the Danzig skull logo as well as The Misfits one, Glenn Danzig actually “borrowed” from other sources. The famous skull was taken from the short-lived Marvel comic book The Saga of Crystar which, much like Masters of the Universe, was created for the sole purpose of selling action figures. The cover to issue #8 was done by artist Michael Golden, and what would later become the Danzig skull is clear to see.
The font used on most Danzig stuff was lifted from the movie poster for The Giant Gila Monster. The font for The Misfits was taken from the magazine Famous Monsters of Filmland, and the band’s mascot, The Fiend, is a clone of the character from the 1930s horror film serial The Crimson Ghost. So Danzig is no stranger to homages like the one I’m now doing to him. It comes from a place of love and respect, Glenn, so if you ever see it, please don’t sue me. I’m pretty sure this falls under the parody/free use category anyway.
Halloween is just around the corner, though you’d never know it from this wretched heatwave we’ve been experiencing on the east coast. At least things are supposed to get back to normal this week, with highs in the 50s and 60s again. The New England foliage is breathtaking, but it doesn’t pair well with the shorts and tank tops I’ve had on these past few days (when I’m not rockin’ my TRIANZIG shirt, of course).
Temperatures aside, this week is the most wonderful time of the year for horror hounds like us. I just returned from the Merrimack Valley Halloween Book Festival in Haverhill, MA, and it was another grand celebration of ghosts and goblins in literature. Kudos to Melissa Sherlin for organizing the event and huge thanks to all the kick-ass readers who came out to see me. With the last stop on my 2024 book tour finished, I’m ready to spend some quality time with my old friends Michael Myers, Sammi Curr, and The Simpsons to get the holiday viewing started.
As I said in my last newsletter, you only get so many Octobers, and this one is almost gone. Use what remains wisely, my fellow fiends. Make me and Glenn proud and bang your head in the name of horror.
Your pal,
Kris