When talking about horror soundtracks it is important to start at the beginning. When film first achieved recorded audio, the soundtracks for early horror films were not exploited fully, with most just using music for title sequences, though this soon evolved into full musical scoring.
Films such as 'Bride of Frankenstein' paved the way for more ambitious use of music within the narrative, allowing film composers artistic freedom and experimentation with avant-garde techniques.
Creating dread and unease by employing such avant-garde techniques as atonality began an exciting new area of composition with some of these early techniques still being utilized decades later, and giving life to horror soundtracks being a genre of it’s own.
With the evolution of imposing visuals informing the musical narrative composers began to retrospectively soundtrack older silent horror films which brings me to this week’s spotlight; 'The Cabinet of Doctor Caligari'. Using the film as a visual framework, composers have been able to create their own original scores often performing them as a live accompaniment to the film.
'The Cabinet of Doctor Caligari’ is a wonderful example of the different techniques and styles that have evolved from the earliest horror scores to more contemporary electronic sounds and effects, In pivotal scenes such as the introduction of the somnambulist or the chase through the village it is exciting to hear the contrasting interpretations.
The film is also very accessible, with just a quick trip to YouTube you are afforded the luxury of hearing some of the different composers interpretations of the film and it’s themes for yourself.
A place to celebrate and champion the horror genre.
Saturday 29 February 2020
Wednesday 26 February 2020
For the love of remakes
In the online horror community there is one subject that illicits a lot of negativity whenever it is brought up, and that is the subject of remakes. Today's blog is to show some appreciation to remakes and look positively at them.
There have always been remakes and reimaginings in the genre, for example, many different versions of icons like Dracula, but it seems to be a fairly recent thing to dismiss all remakes as having no merit. Unfortunately this means people can miss out on some great horror just because it has already been written off.
This article isn't trying to say that all remakes are groundbreaking cinema, but they are certainly worth a watch. Some remakes are made with such passion and respect to the source material that they are a joy to watch, just to share someone elses love of a classic. Some remakes are needed modernizations of quite dated films, that otherwise wouldn't have an audience in today's world, and some remakes may just be some mindless fun featuring characters the audience enjoys.
When watching a remake, the worst case scenario is that you don't enjoy it, which is fine, the original is still there, unchanged and ready for your viewing pleasure. The best case scenario is that you love the film and perhaps discover the original in the process. Just because a remake exists, it doesn't pull the original out of existence.
When the 2016 version of Ghostbusters was released it was met with so much hatred and negativity by people who hadn't seen the film and had no intention of doing so. In truth, the film isn't bad at all, it's a lot of fun with ghosts, and guess what? The 1984 original is still on the shelf for repeat viewings.
There are remakes like The Thing and The Fly that are praised in the horror community, and although more remakes are being made these days, some will undoubtedly stand the test of time as The Thing and The Fly have.
So in conclusion, go to see a remake with an open mind, and if you enjoy it, tell people about it. Spread the positivity for a horror film that has brought you joy. If you don't enjoy it, go back and watch the original and have a good time with that instead. There is plenty out there to love in the genre.
There have always been remakes and reimaginings in the genre, for example, many different versions of icons like Dracula, but it seems to be a fairly recent thing to dismiss all remakes as having no merit. Unfortunately this means people can miss out on some great horror just because it has already been written off.
This article isn't trying to say that all remakes are groundbreaking cinema, but they are certainly worth a watch. Some remakes are made with such passion and respect to the source material that they are a joy to watch, just to share someone elses love of a classic. Some remakes are needed modernizations of quite dated films, that otherwise wouldn't have an audience in today's world, and some remakes may just be some mindless fun featuring characters the audience enjoys.
When watching a remake, the worst case scenario is that you don't enjoy it, which is fine, the original is still there, unchanged and ready for your viewing pleasure. The best case scenario is that you love the film and perhaps discover the original in the process. Just because a remake exists, it doesn't pull the original out of existence.
When the 2016 version of Ghostbusters was released it was met with so much hatred and negativity by people who hadn't seen the film and had no intention of doing so. In truth, the film isn't bad at all, it's a lot of fun with ghosts, and guess what? The 1984 original is still on the shelf for repeat viewings.
There are remakes like The Thing and The Fly that are praised in the horror community, and although more remakes are being made these days, some will undoubtedly stand the test of time as The Thing and The Fly have.
So in conclusion, go to see a remake with an open mind, and if you enjoy it, tell people about it. Spread the positivity for a horror film that has brought you joy. If you don't enjoy it, go back and watch the original and have a good time with that instead. There is plenty out there to love in the genre.
Saturday 22 February 2020
Guest blog: an introduction to horror soundtracks by P.A. Bailey
One of the most powerful tools in any film makers’ kit is the soundtrack. Portrayal of emotional or situational context can be achieved with even the simplest of sounds.
The horror genre has made exceptional use of this tool from large scale epic orchestral scores to minimalist, sparse soundscapes.
Honourable mention should go to Arnold Schoenberg for perfecting the 12-tone serial technique in 1923, thus opening the doors for horror composers to freely create tension and unease within a simple framework.
Another ‘Avant-Garde’ composer that has had an impact on film sound-tracking is Edgard Varese. Similarly to Schoenberg, a lot of Varese’s repertoire already sounds like the score to a horror film, this is due to Hollywood employing these Avant-Garde techniques to accompany and enhance imposing visuals.
In the coming weeks I will be introducing a soundtrack spotlight and exploring how different compositional techniques have evolved to create the horror atmospheres that we know and love.
Wednesday 19 February 2020
Bite size horror on the go.
A wonderful thing about living in the age of the internet is that access to amazing horror content is at the ends of our fingertips and in our pockets at all times. A seemingly infinite number of short horror films are legally available for free on video streaming platforms such as YouTube and Vimeo.
With just a simple search you can find yourself down the rabbit hole, and lose hours watching films as short as fifteen seconds each. Or alternatively, if you only have a few minutes spare on a break at work but need a horror fix, you can pick out a five minute short and be through with it before your cigarette has burned down to the filter.
The beauty of horror shorts is that you can get everything you would look for in a feature film in bite-size nuggets of terror. Whether you are looking for mounting tension and dread, jump scares, light hearted comedy horror, or all out gore, you can find it after a few minutes of searching.
From the filmmaking point of view, shorts are so effective because they have to deliver the pay-off more or less immediately. This is acheived with a mixture of inventive storytelling, fast paced narrative structure, well timed sound design and stunning camera work.
So whether you're looking for somewhere to start, or you're eager to jump down the rabbit hole, there are some great pages on YouTube listed below that are full of horror shorts for you to check out:
https://www.youtube.com/user/mychopictures
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCMOB6uDg7e-h8OuCw8dK2_Q
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCpJ6Dn01AqjvFVN2EiK72Ag
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCScGuStmYj44aqipOzK1z-w
With just a simple search you can find yourself down the rabbit hole, and lose hours watching films as short as fifteen seconds each. Or alternatively, if you only have a few minutes spare on a break at work but need a horror fix, you can pick out a five minute short and be through with it before your cigarette has burned down to the filter.
The beauty of horror shorts is that you can get everything you would look for in a feature film in bite-size nuggets of terror. Whether you are looking for mounting tension and dread, jump scares, light hearted comedy horror, or all out gore, you can find it after a few minutes of searching.
From the filmmaking point of view, shorts are so effective because they have to deliver the pay-off more or less immediately. This is acheived with a mixture of inventive storytelling, fast paced narrative structure, well timed sound design and stunning camera work.
So whether you're looking for somewhere to start, or you're eager to jump down the rabbit hole, there are some great pages on YouTube listed below that are full of horror shorts for you to check out:
https://www.youtube.com/user/mychopictures
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCMOB6uDg7e-h8OuCw8dK2_Q
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCpJ6Dn01AqjvFVN2EiK72Ag
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCScGuStmYj44aqipOzK1z-w
Wednesday 12 February 2020
The Mychoverse (a brief overview)
The mychoverse is a shared cinematic universe created by M.J. "Mycho" Dixon. It features different slasher characters that have stand alone films, and then periodically come together in the slasher house films.
Think of the mychoverse like the marvel cinematic universe for horror lovers. Such a concept would be a huge undertaking, but M.J. masterfully pulls it off every time, and on almost no budget at all. It all comes together with the help of crowdfunding, DIY filming and FX, and dedicated cast and crew members that have a passion for what is being made.
The films are released back and forth over the shared timeline, giving insight into characters that have come before, and introductions to ones that will be explored in later films. This gives the viewer the ease of watching the releases as stand alone indie horror gems, or piecing together the entire puzzle in order, to see the bigger picture from beginning to end.
Over the years that Mycho Entertainment has been running, the films have gone from strength to strength, and even branched out into comic books. With every outing being more ambitious than the last. It is always exciting to see what will come next. Also, as the mychoverse has expanded, so has the fanbase. Calling themselves mychopaths, they have an online presence and are constantly championing the films on various social media platforms.
To find out more about the mychoverse, please follow the links listed below:
https://mycho.weebly.com/
https://www.patreon.com/mycho
Think of the mychoverse like the marvel cinematic universe for horror lovers. Such a concept would be a huge undertaking, but M.J. masterfully pulls it off every time, and on almost no budget at all. It all comes together with the help of crowdfunding, DIY filming and FX, and dedicated cast and crew members that have a passion for what is being made.
The films are released back and forth over the shared timeline, giving insight into characters that have come before, and introductions to ones that will be explored in later films. This gives the viewer the ease of watching the releases as stand alone indie horror gems, or piecing together the entire puzzle in order, to see the bigger picture from beginning to end.
Over the years that Mycho Entertainment has been running, the films have gone from strength to strength, and even branched out into comic books. With every outing being more ambitious than the last. It is always exciting to see what will come next. Also, as the mychoverse has expanded, so has the fanbase. Calling themselves mychopaths, they have an online presence and are constantly championing the films on various social media platforms.
To find out more about the mychoverse, please follow the links listed below:
https://mycho.weebly.com/
https://www.patreon.com/mycho
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