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Harley Poe is the Dose of Folksy Horror You Never Knew You Needed

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Several years ago I went on the hunt for horror music. No, not the scores from horror movies or music you would play at Halloween, but I mean good music with distinct horror themes. It was then I came across Harley Poe.

When it comes to horror music, many bands with horror themes are metal, rock, rockabilly, psychobilly, etc. The difference with Harley Poe is that the creepy, silly or disturbing horror-themed lyrics are paired with a snappy and upbeat background.

There’s nothing like snapping your fingers to a kicky banjo with lyrics about death, murder, werewolves, vampires, zombies and demonic possession.

I got a chance to talk with front man Joseph Whiteford and pick his brain about the band.

Harley Poe

(Image credit: Harley Poe’s Facebook)

Hey and thanks for talking with me! I’m very curious to know where did the name Harley Poe originate from?

Harley Poe was this wretched old shithead who used to live two houses down from my parents’ home. I hated that dude, and he hated everyone. The neighbor kids and I would talk about breaking into his home and beating him up or killing him. It’s not like we really meant it. He was just such a dickhead, none of us could stand him. Kinda like the ghost lady from the movie Monster House, he would keep our toys if they landed in his yard. He kicked my friend’s dog once. We had really good reasons to hate him. He was also very wealthy, and as my friends got older they began getting into trouble and had made actual plans to rob and beat him. I remember them telling me about their ideas to get into his house, but I didn’t think they would ever really do it. They ended up breaking into his home and murdering him, brutally. I’m not sure why I used his name as my alias.

Whoa, that is hands down the most intense name origin story I have ever heard. Why center the songs around horror themes?

I love horror films. I grew up with horror films. I was a bit obsessed with them for while. Not so much now, but I still try to keep up with what’s coming out. I think they just remind me of my childhood. I loved those days. It’s fun writing folksy punk songs about weird shit. It gives me a sense of purpose.

A follow up to your answer, why choose such happy, upbeat folk music for such dark themes?

I like happy, catchy tunes. I like the contrast the darker lyrics bring to an upbeat, fun sound. I’m not sure listeners would think the songs as humorous or fun if the music was as dark as the lyrical content. It lets people know that this is make-believe. This is Return of the Living Dead or The Texas Chainsaw Massacre Part 2. It’s entertainment. It’s fiction with some truth sprinkled in. It should be fun. And also, because that’s the kind of music I like. Most horror related bands fall into the category of punk, metal, psychobilly, or dark electronic music. I’ve never been good at playing any of that. I play acoustic guitar, and I like when the audience can understand what I’m singing. What’s the point of having lyrics if you can’t convey your message?

What musical artist(s) influenced you?

I discovered the Violent Femmes when I was a teen. I fell in love. Later on found out about The Cramps, Dead Kennedys, Dead Milkmen, The Dickies, Green Day, Weezer, Cake, Pixies, The Demonics, Slim Cessna’s Auto Club…man the list goes on. Pretty much whatever I’m listening to and loving is possibly going to be heard through my own writing. There are just so many great bands out there. Lately I’ve been really into Jeff Rosenstock, Frank Turner, The Reverend Horton Heat, Rocket From the Crypt, Ratatat, Man Man, The Taxpayers, The Presidents, Pale Young Gentlemen, Portugal.The Man, Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, Shannon and The Clams, The Mountain Goats, The Babies, Ezra Furman, Fugazi, Millencolin, A Giant Dog…now they are an awesome band!

I’ve heard of a few of those, but I will definitely check out the rest. Did any horror authors in particular influence your songwriting?

I don’t think so, but maybe Edward Gorey.

Great choice! The Ghastlycrumb Tinies is one of my favorite short books. There were recently two reunion shows. Are anymore planned in the future?

Only time will tell. My focus these days is really on my two sons. The band was taking up a lot of my life, but I don’t think Harley Poe is forever finished playing shows. I, at least, have no plans to stop writing songs. We’ll just see.

The new album “Lost and Losing It” recently released. It’s considerably different lyrically than the past Harley Poe albums. What was your influence for this one?

My divorce.

I’m very sorry to hear about the divorce.  For a bit of a lighter question, you do your own Harley Poe and other horror themed artwork; what made you choose the style and what inspired you?

The style is just what I enjoy. I don’t think I’m out to copy anyone, but I’ve always loved children’s book illustrators. I dig Tim Burton, Charles Addams, Edward Gorey, and the myriad of great artists those masters have inspired. Instagram  is full of amazing artists. I’m inspired every time I browse.

What can we look forward to in the future for Harley Poe and your art?

I usually post my art on Instagram. I plan to release my figures whenever I can, and at the moment I’m illustrating a children’s book written by director Joshua Hull. I will begin recording the next Harley Poe album hopefully this winter. I think it’s gonna be a fun, nasty little album. And as I said, I don’t Harley Poe is finished playing shows. Stay tuned, I guess.

Harley Poe

Congratulations on the book illustration! I look forward to seeing the finished product. And I definitely hope there are more shows in the future. What is your favorite horror movie?

It has always been The Return of the Living Dead, but I’m not sure anymore.

What is your favorite Harley Poe song you’ve recorded?

I have no idea.

I can only assume that’s because there are so many awesome tracks to choose from. Whether you’re listening to “Olivia,” “Corpse Grinding Man,” “I’m a Killer,” “Don’t Go Into the Woods” or one of the newer tracks like “Persevere,” you’re guaranteed a good time, some great lyrics and a heavy helping of horror.

If you’re more in tune with artists like Marilyn Manson, be sure to check out his scary as hell Instagram page he’s running.

Photos courtesy of joewhiteford.blogspot.com

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Melissa Barrera Says ‘Scary Movie VI’ Would Be “Fun To Do”

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Melissa Barrera might literally get the last laugh on Spyglass thanks to a possible Scary Movie sequel. Paramount and Miramax are seeing the right opportunity to bring the satirical franchise back into the fold and announced last week one might be in production as early as this fall.

The last chapter of the Scary Movie franchise was almost a decade ago and since the series lampoons thematic horror movies and pop culture trends, it would seem they have a lot of content to draw ideas from, including the recent reboot of slasher series Scream.

Barerra, who starred as final girl Samantha in those movies was abruptly fired from the latest chapter, Scream VII, for expressing what Spyglass interpreted as “antisemitism,” after the actress came out in support of Palestine on social media.

Even though the drama wasn’t a laughing matter, Barrera might get her chance to parody Sam in Scary Movie VI. That is if the opportunity arises. In an interview with Inverse, the 33-year-old actress was asked about Scary Movie VI, and her reply was intriguing.

“I always loved those movies,” the actress told Inverse. “When I saw it announced, I was like, ‘Oh, that would be fun. That would be so fun to do.’”

That “fun to do” part could be construed as a passive pitch to Paramount, but that’s open to interpretation.

Just like in her franchise, Scary Movie also has a legacy cast including Anna Faris and Regina Hall. There is no word yet on if either of those actors will appear in the reboot. With or without them, Barrera is still a fan of the comedies. “They have the iconic cast that did it, so we’ll see what goes on with that. I’m just excited to see a new one,” she told the publication.

Barrera is currently celebrating the box office success of her latest horror movie Abigail.

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Thrills and Chills: Ranking ‘Radio Silence’ Films from Bloody Brilliant to Just Bloody

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Radio Silence Films

Matt Bettinelli-Olpin, Tyler Gillett, and Chad Villella are all filmmakers under the collective label called Radio Silence. Bettinelli-Olpin and Gillett are the primary directors under that moniker while Villella produces.

They have gained popularity over the past 13 years and their films have become known as having a certain Radio Silence “signature.” They are bloody, usually contain monsters, and have breakneck action sequences. Their recent film Abigail exemplifies that signature and is perhaps their best film yet. They are currently working on a reboot of John Carpenter’s Escape From New York.

We thought we would go through the list of projects they have directed and rank them from high to low. None of the movies and shorts on this list are bad, they all have their merits. These rankings from top to bottom are just ones we felt showcased their talents the best.

We didn’t include movies they produced but didn’t direct.

#1. Abigail

An update to the second film on this list, Abagail is the natural progression of Radio Silence’s love of lockdown horror. It follows in pretty much the same footsteps of Ready or Not, but manages to go one better — make it about vampires.

Abigail

#2. Ready or Not

This film put Radio Silence on the map. While not as successful at the box office as some of their other films, Ready or Not proved that the team could step outside their limited anthology space and create a fun, thrilling, and bloody adventure-length film.

Ready or Not

#3. Scream (2022)

While Scream will always be a polarizing franchise, this prequel, sequel, reboot — however you want to label it showed just how much Radio Silence knew the source material. It wasn’t lazy or cash-grabby, just a good time with legendary characters we love and new ones who grew on us.

Scream (2022)

#4 Southbound (The Way Out)

Radio Silence tosses their found footage modus operandi for this anthology film. Responsible for the bookend stories, they create a terrifying world in their segment titled The Way Out, which involves strange floating beings and some sort of time loop. It’s kind of the first time we see their work without a shaky cam. If we were to rank this entire film, it would remain at this position on the list.

Southbound

#5. V/H/S (10/31/98)

The film that started it all for Radio Silence. Or should we say the segment that started it all. Even though this isn’t feature-length what they managed to do with the time they had was very good. Their chapter was titled 10/31/98, a found-footage short involving a group of friends who crash what they think is a staged exorcism only to learn not to assume things on Halloween night.

V/H/S

#6. Scream VI

Cranking up the action, moving to the big city and letting Ghostface use a shotgun, Scream VI turned the franchise on its head. Like their first one, this film played with canon and managed to win over a lot of fans in its direction, but alienated others for coloring too far outside the lines of Wes Craven’s beloved series. If any sequel was showing how the trope was going stale it was Scream VI, but it managed to squeeze some fresh blood out of this nearly three-decade mainstay.

Scream VI

#7. Devil’s Due

Fairly underrated, this, Radio Silence’s first feature-length film, is a sampler of things they took from V/H/S. It was filmed in an omnipresent found footage style, showcasing a form of possession, and features clueless men. Since this was their first bonafide major studio job it’s a wonderful touchstone to see how far they have come with their storytelling.

Devil’s Due

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Perhaps the Scariest, Most Disturbing Series of The Year

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You may have never heard of Richard Gadd, but that will probably change after this month. His mini-series Baby Reindeer just hit Netflix and it’s a terrifying deep dive into abuse, addiction, and mental illness. What is even scarier is that it’s based on Gadd’s real-life hardships.

The crux of the story is about a man named Donny Dunn played by Gadd who wants to be a stand-up comedian, but it’s not working out so well thanks to stage fright stemming from his insecurity.

One day at his day job he meets a woman named Martha, played to unhinged perfection by Jessica Gunning, who is instantly charmed by Donny’s kindness and good looks. It doesn’t take long before she nicknames him “Baby Reindeer” and begins to relentlessly stalk him. But that is just the apex of Donny’s problems, he has his own incredibly disturbing issues.

This mini-series should come with a lot of triggers, so just be warned it is not for the faint of heart. The horrors here don’t come from blood and gore, but from physical and mental abuse that go beyond any physiological thriller you may have ever seen.

“It’s very emotionally true, obviously: I was severely stalked and severely abused,” Gadd said to People, explaining why he changed some aspects of the story. “But we wanted it to exist in the sphere of art, as well as protect the people it’s based on.”

The series has gained momentum thanks to positive word-of-mouth, and Gadd is getting used to the notoriety.

“It’s clearly struck a chord,” he told The Guardian. “I really did believe in it, but it’s taken off so quickly that I do feel a bit windswept.”

You can stream Baby Reindeer on Netflix right now.

If you or someone you know has been sexually assaulted, please contact the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673) or go to rainn.org.

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