No One Makes It Out Alive – An End of the World Anthology

I’m not sure if I’ve mentioned this before, but in my opinion, horror anthologies are the bees knees! No matter where you are, no matter how much time you have, you can pick one of these bad boys up and just start reading. This is especially the case with this ‘End of the World’ anthology. Over the past week I have dipped in and out of this book during my hectic life (concluding with my little trip to jail – ouch!) and each time I did I was more and more impressed.

There are twelve stories in total (thirteen if you include the foreword) and all at varying lengths. There’s no way I’d be able to pick my favourite as all tend to instill a fear of what the end of the world will bring. Authors include: Hydra M. Star (who also edited the book), Andrea Dean van Scoyoc, Garth von Buchholz, Joseph DeRepentigny, Josephine Seven, Ken Knight, Larry Lefkowitz, Magan Rodriguez, Tibbie X and W. Freedreamer Tinkanesh. All of these authors were new to me (but may not be to others) and I can honestly say I was impressed with each and every one. Each brings a unique element to the book so it doesn’t just feel like the same armageddon ploy on each page. There’s differing dynamics, pace and plot which makes the book an entertaining read.

This book has everything from zombies to greek mythology, mind-numbing horror to sheer comedy. What else could you ask for?

Want to know more?

This book is sold in quite a few different places. Check out the links below for full details. The price varies depending on whether your want it as an e-book or paperback etc. Whichever you choose you will have made a sound purchase. No One Makes It Out Alive is one of a kind and you will be mad to miss it.

Kindle version, $0.99; http://www.amazon.com/One-Makes-Out-Alive-ebook/dp/B0074PLVMU/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1328272935&sr=8-2

The print edition, $9.99 (this will soon be listed on Amazon as well, but isn’t at the moment); http://www.lulu.com/product/paperback/no-one-makes-it-out-alive-an-end-of-the-world-anthology/18862589

A PDF version, $2.99; http://www.lulu.com/product/ebook/no-one-makes-it-out-alive-an-end-of-the-world-anthology/18862585

And finally on Nook, also only $0.99; http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/no-one-makes-it-out-alive-hydra-m-star/1108620914

The Timeslip

 

Recently I had the chance to review a short film by the Chance Brothers titled The Timeslip. Verdict; Brilliant!

Ordinarily I’m not a fan of horror shorts. I find that the majority are made with very basic camera equipment, average acting and basic plot. So when I watched The Timeslip, I was pleasantly surprised.

A business man crosses a busy city street … and awakes trapped in another time. London is gone, along with the buildings, cars and people. All he can see is a never-ending forest. Seemingly alone, the man wanders the wilderness without food or shelter.

Days pass before he realises that he may not be the only one in the forest after he discovers strange markings that adorn the trees. Before long it becomes apparent that he is not alone.

The movie has everything; comedy, suspense and genuine terror. Sure it’s not perfect – There are problems with continuity (e.g. blood drops) and issues surrounding budget like the number of actors etc. (Although this can’t really be helped – If the budget is not there, it’s not there.

Here’s a sample just for you

The Chance Brothers have a unique style and it will be interesting to the see the outcome should they make a longer film.

What to know more about these guys? Keep reading…

Richard Chance is a Colchester, England based British Writer / Director, Actor and one half of Chance Encounters Productions. Jonathan Chance is a Southern California-based British Writer / Director, Actor and Editor, Voice Over Artist and the other-half of Chance Encounters Productions.

Richard Chance is the Writer / Director of six films. He and his brother Jonathan co-wrote and directed the micro budget acclaimed feature film The Veil, the nominated short film Chainmail, and the 2008 Action On Film Festival special jury prize-winning short The Day I Tried to Live. In 2009, a feature script The Waiting Room, was nominated for Best Horror Screenplay at the same festival.

Currently, with two new short films produced and a brand new cut of their debut feature currently looking for distribution this looks to be their most productive year yet. Apt, directed by Jonathan Chance, premiered back to back with The Veil US Cut in 2010 and earned a nomination for the ‘Delta Award’ at the Festival of Fantastic Films in Manchester, UK. In 2011 and the Chance Brothers’ The Timeslip premiered at the festival favorite, the AOF, in July and has since gone on to appear in ten film festivals and attained ‘Best Sci-Fi Film’ at the Geek Independent Film Festival. It continues a worldwide festival run.

You can follow Jonathan Chance on Twitter @CarryOnJohn

Or you can visit their website www.chance-encounters.org  for more info.

Filmmakers tend to start their careers with home-made movies, before moving on to short films, and then taking on the full length challenge. If these guys keep progressing the way they have so far, we can look forward to a number of great movies in the near future.

Prowler

 

After a huge leap in site visits following our post on Horrorcore, we figured we’d keep the music theme going.

With this in mind, we introduce Prowler – A horror/metal band from Myrtle Beach SC!

As soon as we heard these guys, our first thought was an evil Metallica! They’re AWESOME. Listen to the full song below and you will see what we mean.

Prowler is a 3-piece thrash horror metal band with terrorific riffs, spine-tingling sounds, memorable lyrics and quotes that should be familiar to aficionados of the horror genre. They combine metal with some old, chilling horror and thriller lyrics as well as quotes and live samples directly from the movies themselves.

The vocals range from melodic to death metal (with the death adding to the horror element and emphasizing the theme even deeper) The concept is deadly contagious and each song is written about an individual horror, slasher, or thriller film.

Their debut EP, entitled “PART 1,” was released in January of 2011. It introduced the 2 tracks, “THE DEAD RISE AGAIN” (based on Romero’s iconic, classic, 1968 black and white, NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD) and “FRIDAY THE 13TH,” (based on the 1980 Original). In June of 2011 they released their debut follow up, entitled PART 2 to a growing and hungry audience. Selling out of their first press the first week, PART 2 features the two tracks, “THE STALKER” (encompassing any slasher, stalker, thriller film with a female victim and samples taken from Savini’s 1981 “THE PROWLER”), and “THE TALL MAN” (based on the 1979 cult Coscarelli classic, PHANTASM).

They have just released their 3rd EP on Halloween entitled PART 3. PART 3 features the two terrors, “SAY HELLO TO THE NITE (based on one of the best vampire films; Joel Shumacher’s 1987, “THE LOST BOYS”) and “HADDONFIELD,” (from the 1978 slasher film that started them all, John Carpenter’s HALLOWEEN).

Prowler has already started a steady, devoted following and has been embraced with critical acclaim from all walks of the living, dead and undead. They have also released two videos, one for “THE DEAD RISE AGAIN” in March of 2011 and the other from PART 1, “FRIDAY THE 13TH,” in August 2011.

Wanna see? Here’s the video for FRIDAY THE 13TH,

Pretty cool right? The rest of the horror unfolds like this…….. There will be a limited edition series ran featuring – Part 1 – Part 2 – Part 3 – and the Final Chapter – (Part 4). Each series will consist of 2 songs making the series 8 songs total. Each part of the series will be sold only at a press of 500 copies, making each part a limited series collectible. Each part will contain a different cover and back photo jacket as well as different artwork on the actual disc. PART 1, 2 and 3 are available now and Prowler will be releasing the Final Chapter (PART 4) summer of 2012. After the 4 part series is released, a full length album will be pressed and distributed in Europe and the US. This album will be 9 tracks, featuring 1 bonus track not available anywhere else.

If you want to find out any more information about Prowler, visit their reverbnation page here:

http://www.reverbnation.com/prowlermusic

As far as we’re concerned, this is a prime example of what horror bands should be!

Komatose – Horrorcore

As we expand our coverage of all things horror, we delve into the dark realm of Horrorcore!

To anyone unfamiliar with this type of music, Horrorcore can be classed as a subgenre of rap/hip hop. With its dark, horror-themed lyrics and twisted messages, this style of music is something we thoroughly enjoy here at Erebus Horror.

Now there are many Horrorcore artists out there, as well as other horror-themed artists and bands, all of which deserve recognition. With this in mind, we’re going to try and introduce a new artist/band every month in the hope of expanding their fan-base and providing the extra publicity they deserve. So without further ado, we bring to you our first feature on the Horrorcore artist Komatose.

Considered by some a legend in the small genre of horrorcore, Komatose has been a slave to the darker side of music since 1998. Starting out reciting lyrics of lunacy into an at-home makeshift recording setup, Komatose quickly established himself as a prominent Horrorcore artist. Now, years later, Komatose is being whispered about in every dark corner by people who dare to like something a bit darker and morbid.

In 2001, Komatose started his own label with one of Horrorcore’s most memorable duos “Kryptik”. With Kryptik as the corner stone, Cutthroat Productions (his makeshift home for melodies of the macabre) had reached all corners of the United States and a few places across the pond just through word of mouth alone! Sadly though, Cutthroat Productions closed up shop when Komatose was scooped up by 3rd Shift Entertainment in 2005. His tenure there was short as he then moved onto one of the most dangerous labels in the country; Serial Killin Records.

With label mates, Sicktanick, Razakel, Stitchmouth and Razor Ruckus, the puzzle is complete. Now performing across the greater US, Komatose is pushing his butchered beats and hideous rhymes to anyone daring enough to listen and plans to do so until father time puts a stop to the madness known as Komatose “The Pumpkin King”. Currently he is working on his fourth album and by what Komatose himself believes, to be his best work to date. The title of the new manifesto, “I, Madman” is a homage to a lesser known campy 80s horror film and is currently slated for a 3rd quarter 2012 release.

Caught your interest?  Well here’s an example of just how good Komatose is!

If you want more, check out Komatose’s page on reverbnation here: www.reverbnation.com/komatosehorrorcore

If you want to know more about his label, click here (Although we will hopefully write a post on them as well pretty soon)

Remember Horror fans – Spread the word!

Corey Feldman – Horror actor or not?

 

At what point does an actor earn horror status? This is a question I started to deliberate a few days ago following an argument I had with a snotty teenager on a bus.

Now for those who read my previous post, you will be aware of my distaste for public transport. However I persevere and jump on the bus every now and then to avoid having to walk for miles in sub-zero temperatures.

Anyway I was sitting behind these women who were discussing the TV show Dancing on Ice (an indication of their peculiar interests to begin with) and they were talking about Corey Feldman. One of the women asks who he is, to which the other replies she has no idea. I would’ve let it go, until the first woman suggested he may have been a pop singer from the 80’s! At this point I just had to correct them:

“He’s actually a horror actor from the 80’s” I said (careful to include the 80’s part so the woman didn’t feel a complete idiot)

“No he’s not!” came the reply of some snotty young lad beside us “He was in The Goonies”

The two women looked back at me for confirmation. “Yes” I agreed “He was, but he is better known for his horror appearances. That’s what made his career” (and subsequently ended it (lost boys trilogy) but I wasn’t going to admit it to that little shit)

“He’s been in more normal films than horrors” was his response. I felt my anger start to burn as a result of his ignorance. He spoke of horror as if it were abnormal!
“Yes” I agreed again, feeling my voice grow louder “But the highlights of his career are horror movies and any horror fan will tell you that if an actor has appeared in five or more horror films that automatically makes him a horror actor!” (I have no idea where that came from; I was just trying to shut this kid up. But it did make me wonder later on…)
The kid looked as though he was going to snap back when another passenger joined the fray.

“He’s right” she hollered from the back of the bus “Feldman is definitely a horror actor; they’re the only decent things he has been in!”
My ally came in the form of a young gothic teenager sitting with a group of friends who all nodded in agreement. They didn’t look like a group to mess with and I think the snotty kid opposite realised this. All he could manage was “Oh” before turning away.

The conclusion could not have come sooner as my stop approached. Standing up I turned to back of the bus;

“Cheers girls” I waved farewell. I turned back to the two women and said “So if anyone asks who Corey Feldman is you know now”

One of them turned to her friend and asked “Wasn’t he in Dallas?”

I guess some people may have been dropped a few times as a baby…

But I was happy to find the support of fellow horror fanatics in the most obscure places…

It goes to show that, not only do we share similar interests, but we also share camaraderie (Erebus will be impressed – I’m sounding more like him every day)

Anyway, the point of this post was not only to share my experience, but also to raise the question of; ‘What makes a horror actor?”

Do you think it’s a horror movie being the most notable aspect of their career? Or does it relate to the number of horror films they have starred in?

In my opinion, Corey Feldman is definitely a horror actor. Not only has he appeared in the three Lost Boys movies, he also has two Friday the 13th credits, as well as roles in; Gremlins (okay horror might be a stretch…) and Bordello of Blood to name a few (I know there are more, I just can’t remember them off the top of my head… Wasn’t he in a few horror TV shows as well?)

     

Anyway you get my point – Something to consider next time you see a horror actor on-screen!