Monsters of Legend Review

Monsters of Legend Cover Art

So often we debate whether or not movies, music, and video games are "art".  The Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines art as (n): decorative or illustrative elements in printed matter & (adj.): produced as an artistic effort or for decorative purposes.  By these definitions a musical cd isn't "printed matter" in the way described above, nor is it for decorative purposes.  These definitions imply art as a form "visual" matter in my opinion.  This is the beauty of The Midnight Syndicates new release "Monsters of Legend", it is not only something to listen to, but the sounds within create mental "decorations" if you will.  That's the thing about Monsters of Legend, if you just put the music on and lay back and close your eyes you will be instantly transported to a foggy cliffside castle, or a romp through an ancient european forest, or even perhaps a creepy old village where something is "not quite right".  People might ask if the new CD is a collection of creepy music, or is more of a soundscape of sorts.  My answer to them would be both.  As you listen to Monsters of Legend a well defined classic horror movie will play out in your head (if you have even the slightest imagination for these sorts of things, and if not why are you reading this!) accompanied by the gorgeous soundtrack provided by the music that accompanies the sound effects on the CD.  You will enter the village of Arcacia, visit the Inn of the Weeping Sparrow, experience the Witching Hour, take a Carriage Ride to the Dark Tower, and finally come face to face with A Terror Unleashed in a Cloistered Cemetery.  Yes some of those are actual song titles from the CD and I challenge you to purchase the CD, listen to those tracks, and tell me that they don't perfectly describe the scenes that will play out in your head!  A lot of the tracks on Monsters of Legend lean more toward the musical side but again there is a ton of stuff going on in the background if you listen close enough.  This is easily one of my favorite Midnight Syndicate releases and I will definitely be finding a way to incorporate it into my yard haunt this year.  What better way to kick off the Halloween Season than with a new release from the masters of Halloween Music, the Midnight Syndicate!  Click here to purchase Monsters of Legend!

Track Listing:

1.  Return to Arcacia

2.  Into the Valley of Shadows

3.  A Watchful Gathering

4.  Inn of the Weeping Sparrow

5.  Unwanted Visitor

6.  Requiem

7.  Witching Hour 

8.  Unexpected Cargo

9.  Black Woods

10.  Twilight

11.  Carriage Ride (My Favorite Track!)

12.  Stone Guardians

13.  Ancient Portal

14.  Dark Tower

15.  Building the Monster

16.  Lord of the Realm

17.  Forgotten Alcoves

18.  A Terror Unleashed

19.  Cloistered Cemetary

20.  It Lives!

21.  Beyond the Veil of Time

Don't those track names just make you wish it was Halloween already!  Once again click here to buy the CD and click the graphic to visit The Midnight Syndicate's website.  If you haven't figured this out from the review above I am awarding Monsters of Legend 5 "Jolly Jack-O-Lanterns!"

Full Disclosure: A review copy of Monsters of Legend was provided by Midnight Syndicate Halloween Music

Venomous Rat Regeneration Vendor

As you all know sometimes happens I've been inundated with end of the semester work and studying for finals.  In fact I've been so wrapped up in school that I totally let slip by me the fact that Rob Zombie's new cd Venomous Rat Regeneration Vendor (fucking mouthful!) is out now!  Here is the cover art and track listing;

                        

1. Teenage Nosferatu Pussy

2. Dead City Radio And The New Gods of Supertown

3. Revelation Revolution

4. Theme For The Rat Vendor

5. Ging Gang Gong De Do Gong De Laga Raga

6. Rock And Roll (In A Black Hole)

7. Behold, The Pretty Filthy Creatures!

8. White Trash Freaks

9. We're An American Band

10. Lucifer Rising

11. The Girl Who Loved The Monsters

12. Trade In Your Guns For A Coffin

The tracks I've listened to so far are amazing!  Zombie's last non-remix cd Hellbilly Deluxe 2 was decent but it just felt like it was missing something.  There were some great tracks such as Sick Bubblegum and Mars Needs Women but again it just felt like something was missing.  Venomous Rat Regeneration Vendor seems to have that old Hellbilly Deluxe 1 vibe to it but still feels fresh at the same time!  In the mean time check out the video for Dead City and the New Gods of Supertown! (Edit: Scratch the music video idea, both youtube and Vevo will not let me embed it for some reason even though both offer an embed code, weird right?)

Call me maybe parody - I'm a Zombie maybe?

Not bad, not bad. Still my favorite Call me maybe? parody is cookie monster's "Share it maybe". I caught this on Better Haunts and Gardens facebook feed today and thought I'd share it with any of you who didn't already see it!

30 Days until Halloween!

Kicking off this year's Halloween Countdown is a review of Midnight Syndicate's new cd, "Carnival Arcane"!

Midnight Syndicate's new cd, "Carnival Arcane" is so infectious that I simply cannot stop listening to it!  From the moment I popped it in the cd player on the ride to school I simply knew that the Midnight Syndicate had struck gold!  Carnival even left my wife sitting in the car saying, "What is this, it is totally creepy?".
Starting with the first track, "Mesonoxian Visitors", the cd actually feels like it is guiding you through this dark and twisted carnival that has just come to your town.  I love the use of the track "Midway" as an actual introduction by way of a carnival barker to the macabre realm we have just entered.  Midnight Syndicate's use of sound effects mixed with their trademark orchestral sound is cranked up to maximum effect here, as I actually felt as if I was experiencing all the thrills and chills of a creepy carnival.  The tracks range from downright spooky to over the top carny style thrills such as, "Under the Big Top".  Some highlights I'd like to point out from the cd are the tracks, "Carousel Ride", "Kiddieland" (I guarantee this track will send chills down your spine), "Krellsig's Kastle of Fun" (in which I actually felt like I was on one of those decrepit old haunted carnival dark rides), and "Lights Out".  My favorite track of "Carnival Arcane" was "Welcome to the Carnival" with its thumping background beat and it's haunting melody! One of the most amazing things about "Carnival Arcane" is the apparent use of  "Binaural Recording"  I'm not sure if Midnight Syndicate actually recorded some of the parts this way or if it was just my brain, but I swore on some parts of the cd I felt as though I was actually walking right down the midway or sitting in on one of the shows in the carnival.  (For those that don't know what binaural recording is, it is the use of  two microphones to record sounds so that a stereo 3d surround effect is  achieved)
Since this is an official review I am going to score it with the old "Jolly Jack-O-Lantern" rating scale, which I haven't used in quite a while.  I officially give "Carnival Arcane" from the Midnight Syndicate 5 out of 5 "Jolly Jack-O-Lanterns" and can officially say it is tied for first as my favorite Midnight Syndicate cd!

Yes, 5 "Jolly Jack-O-Lanterns" is a must own for those don't know the rating scale, so please do yourself favor and click the Midnight Syndicate logo at the end of the post and purchase the cd from them.  We really need to support artists such as this who go out of their way to make sure that our Halloween (and every other day for that matter) are as creepy and macabre as we all love them to be!

Don't forget to check out all of the other amazing cds and other treats that are in the Midnight Syndicate store as well!

New Midnight Syndicate CD on August 2nd!!!!!

Mark your calendars ghouls because on August 2nd Midnight Syndicate will be releasing another audio journey into the unknown!  This Gothic nightmare will be known as "Carnival Arcane".

"Carnival Arcane" is the 14th release from the masters of Halloween music, the Midnight Syndicate.  To get a little taste of what this release is all about, here is a preview from the CD insert: "The train smoke drifting through the pale moon light signals the arrival of the Lancaster-Rigby Carnival.  In a forest clearing, these mesonoxian visitors await your arrival.  Stroll along the midway and behold wonders both fantastic and macabre from every corner of the globe.  And be sure to ride their one of a kind carousel for an experience you'll never, ever forget."
Sounds pretty f'n sweet doesn't it?  If that preview doesn't give you goosebumps then maybe this little audio clip from the cd will!  The track featured in the preview below is titled Freakshow.

Click here to be taken to the CD pre-order page, where for only $12.00 you can experience the "Carnival Arcane" in the discomfort of your own crypt. (The $12.00 includes shipping & handling!) Also if you head over to the Midnight Syndicate shop you can purchase the official "Carnival Arcane" t-shirt! Please do yourself a favor and pick this CD up, I kid you not I have used several Midnight Syndicate CD's at my home haunt for about the last 8 years and every year several people ask me what soundtrack I am using. These guys really know how to bring that extra atmosphere to Halloween or any other rainy, dark, thunderstorm filled night for that matter!

The Super 8 Debut Albums Blog Hop!!!

Today is the Super 8 Debut Albums Blog Hop and let me tell you it was not easy to pick my top 8. (please visit all the blogs participating by clicking their links in the blog hop list at the end of the post)  What I ended up doing was just picking my personal favorite 8 Debut albums that came out during my lifetime.  At the end of my list I will share a few honorable mentions that came out before my day.  So here it is, my 8 personal favorite debut albums. (In no particular order)

Number 8

Need I say more?

Number 7


An amazing debut album, and one that I can personally listen to from track 1 until the end.  With tracks like Sunday Morning, This Love, Harder to Breathe, and Shiver, Maroon 5 knocked it out of the park with this one.  To this day my wife and I still argue over whether this is the best Maroon 5 CD or not, quite a feat for a debut album to be considered your best.

Number 6


The first CD I ever owned!  This might be the CD that cemented my love for Heavy Metal.  It also introduced me personally to the whole idea of Rap/Rock which is still very popular today although some bash the genre.  Personal favorite tracks: Know your Enemy & Freedom.

Number 5


Rap is something I still can't decide whether I love or hate.  There are so many great rap albums out there but then again there are 5 shitty ones for every great one.  One that sits right up at the top of the list for me though is Doggystyle from the one and only S-N double O-P/D-O double G.  Lodi Dodi and Gin and Juice are my favorites off this debut record.  Murder was the case wasn't bad either, however I never understood why there were so many versions of the song out at the time.

Number 4


Do I seriously even need to explain this one?  I will say though, against popular opinion that Black is my favorite song on the album for the simple fact that it brings me back to my youth, plus it was always fun to try to figure out just what the hell Eddie was saying.

Number 3


Another one that brings me back!  Appetite might possibly be the best of all the GnR albums.  I know, I know the Spaghetti Incident(?) is better right?  Wrong, stop going against the grain just for the sake of being different.  You know this album still rocks your world to this day.  Sweet Child O' Mine & Mr. Brownstone take the cake with Welcome to the Jungle and Paradise City close behind.

Number 2


I absolutely love this CD!  After many months of talking shit about this group I finally gave in to my wife and gave them a listen.  WOW, was I amazed!  I might not necessarily listen to every single song on the CD but the ones that I do are "must have" tracks on any mp3 player that I own.  Also this album is another in the great debate as to whether a debut album can be a bands best.

Number 1

This CD is my absolute favorite debut album of all time.  Every single track is a monster jam, and at the time of its release I think everyone was saying what do these crazy white dudes from NY think they are doing in the rap game?  Well I think it only took one try for them to solidify their status in the world of rap with Licensed to Ill.  Once again it's very hard to argue that this isn't the Beastie Boys best album.  Favorite tracks:  Paul Revere & No Sleep till Brooklyn.

There you have it my 8 personal favorite debut albums from my generation!  And while you're still here reading I would like to propose another blog hop to those involved in this one, and Mr. Discconnected since I believe you started this one, if I have permission, I think we should have a "Top 8 Album covers/artwork of all time blog hop"  what do you think? ( let me know in the comments)

Now for those honorable mentions.  These are also some fantastic debut albums that came out a little before my time!  Also, please comment and debate/argue below, the more comments the better!

The Eagles - "Eagles"

Lynyrd Skynyrd - "pronounced 'lĕh-'nérd 'skin-'nérd"

The Doors - "The Doors"

Tom Waits - "Closing Time"

I saw a werewolf with a Chinese menu in his hand

Anybody who knows me knows how much I dig "Werewolves of London" by the magnificent late Mr. Warren Zevon. Not only is this one of the must haves on your Halloween soundtrack ( post on that later ) but is also a staple of any mix CD that goes into my stereo. Anyhow this winter my wife and I traveled to Philadelphia for a conference she was involved in and while we were eating at this fancy Chinese buffet place I glanced out the window and what did my eye spy from the second story window of said restaurant but this!!!
Yes LE HOW FOOK!!! And yes I can hear you singing along in your head right now! That is an actual picture I took right from the balcony of this place in downtown Philly. Now I know what you're going to say, "but its spelled differently" yes it is, but after doing some research I found that this place is the closest place you're "Gonna get a big dish of beef chow mein" other than at the actual LE HO FOOK restaurant which is still located in the Soho area of downtown London. Below is another pic of the place though it's not quite as awesome as the first pic. Sing along in the comments below.

The Gruesome Twosome Tour!!!

That's right kiddies!!!  Long have we awaited the time when one of rock's most influential shock rockers and the modern monster himself unite for one concert that brings us to hell and back! Well the wait is over!!!  Not only do we get one concert but a whole tour! Alice Cooper and Rob Zombie are teaming up for the Gruesome Twosome Tour which kicks off April 26th in Winnipeg, Canada.  More tour dates will hopefully be added.  Visit the main tour page for updates!

http://www.gruesometwosometour.com/

Also leave comments if you are going or have already gone and want to share the memories!